Think Out Loud

Grant High School constitution team to compete in national civics championship

After taking home the title in the statewide civics championship earlier this year, the constitution team from Portland’s Grant High School will represent Oregon in the national "We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution" [https://civiced.org/we-the-people/national-competitions/finals] finals kicking off in Maryland on April 17. The three-day competition features hundreds of students from around the nation demonstrating their knowledge of the U.S. Constitution, government and Supreme Court decisions by arguing historical and contemporary constitutional issues.   Sophie Durocher and Caspian Green are two members of Grant High School’s constitution team, and Angela DiPasquale is the team’s advisor. We’ll speak to them ahead of their travels to the national championship.

Oregon agricultural economist says rising productions costs for farmers aren't sustainable

The rising cost of oil and and fertilizer due to the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran is affecting farmers [https://www.salemreporter.com/2022/03/11/oregons-5-billion-agriculture-industry-struggles-amid-high-gas-prices/] all over Oregon. On Monday we spoke with local farmers [https://www.opb.org/article/2026/03/30/think-out-loud-woodburn-oregon-farmers/] and a nonprofit representing small and mid-sized farmers. They said gas prices are already starting to affect them and although they have the fertilizer supplies they need for this year, they are very concerned about those prices rising the next time they buy. Tim Delbridge [https://extension.oregonstate.edu/people/tim-delbridge] is an assistant professor of economics in Oregon State University’s Extension Services. He says agricultural operations of all kinds and sizes have limited options for dealing with rising costs. Not every grower can just raise prices on consumers to compensate. Delbridge joins us to tell us more about how the rising price of energy and fertilizer are likely to affect Oregon’s agricultural economy in the near future — and how long farmers can continue to operate if prices don’t drop.

How Pacific Northwest can handle growing energy demands without new gas-fired power plants

A recent study [https://www.opb.org/article/2025/10/30/renewable-energy-oregon-washington-power-electrical-grid/] by the Energy + Environmental Economics, also known as E3, found that by 2030 the Northwest will have a roughly 9 gigawatt energy gap. The study also found that the region will need to rely on natural gas plants and may need to build more infrastructure to support it. But some think this is unnecessary. The think tank Sightline Institute has a new report [https://www.sightline.org/2026/03/24/the-northwest-hasnt-learned-the-lessons-of-wppss-whoops/] arguing that the energy shortfall is misleading and says there are other ways to save power, such as asking data centers to temporarily reduce their use during times when the grid is stressed. Laura Feinstein is a fellow at Sightline. She joins us to share more.

National fellowship connects students with work at farms across the U.S.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, a group of college students across the U.S. began a remote, nationwide project – called Farmlink [https://www.farmlinkproject.org/team] – with the goal of  distributing surplus food to food banks and those in need. The program grew to support a fellowship [https://www.farmlinkproject.org/field-fellowship], which guides students through learning about reforming food systems, provides them with a full-time position at a farm, food bank, or distributor, and finally facilitates the students’ creation of a project that would help to strengthen the infrastructure of food systems in their communities.  Riley Bader is a senior at the University of Oregon, and one of Farmlink’s 6 chosen fellows from colleges and universities across the U.S. Stella Delp is the head of community and student programs at Farmlink, and one of the founders of the organization. They both join us to discuss their work.

War in Iran is affecting Oregon farmers as oil and fertilizer prices rise

The U.S. led war in Iran is not just driving oil prices up. It's doing the same for fertilizer. A third of the world's supply of fertiziler passes through the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran still has largely blocked.  Woodburn farmer Jon Iverson [https://www.iversonfamilyfarms.com/] grows grass seed, wheat, grapes and tulips, among other crops. Molalla nursery owner Jim Gilbert [http://www.northwoodsnursery.com] grows fruiting plants, among others. They join us to share how these price hikes are affecting them. We also hear from Alice Morrison [https://friendsoffamilyfarmers.org/team-member/alice/], the co-executive director of Friends of Family Farms, who tells us what she’s hearing from their small and midsized members.