Podcast
Vermont Edition
Hosted by Vermont Public · EN
Vermont Edition brings you news and conversation about issues affecting your life. Host Mikaela Lefrak considers the context of current events through interviews with news makers and people who make our region buzz.
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The architecture movement rooted in the Mad River Valley
1w ago00:49:50Tap to summarizeDesign-build architects are trained not just to envision a home or structure, but to build it themselves and to improvise based on their on-site experiences.For years this movement centered around Prickly Mountain in Warren. A handful of visionary young architects moved to Vermont’s Mad River Valley in the 1960s to explore the more creative and experimental aspects of homebuilding. Waitsfield filmmaker Allie Rood grew up in and around Prickly Mountain homes. Her feature-length documentary, “Prickly Mountain, and My Design/Build Life,” premiered last fall. It won the best documentary award at Vermont Public’s Made Here Film Festival.There are many local architects who were inspired by the work of Prickly Mountain. We learn about the design-build movement of today with Britton Rogers, executive director of Yestermorrow in Waitsfield, and Danny Sagan, architecture professor at Norwich University.
Transcribe →AG Charity Clark and America 250 in Vermont
1w ago00:49:47Tap to summarizeFirst, we're joined by Vermont's Attorney General Charity Clark, who discusses her ongoing legal battle against Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram. Then, a roundtable of historians and curators discuss the events going on around the state this summer to commemorate the 250th birthday of America. We're joined by Stephen Perkins of the Vermont Historical Society, Angie Grove of the Ethan Allen Homestead Museum, and Martin Mahoney of the Bennington Museum.
Transcribe →Legislative session wrap-up
2w ago00:49:50Tap to summarizeThe Vermont Legislature adjourned for the session Friday evening after Democratic lawmakers and Gov. Phil Scott reached an agreement on education reform. Lawmakers also passed a budget bill and a yield bill to set tax rates, and Gov. Scott is expected to sign all three. To help us make sense of this sessions' hot topics are a trio of Vermont Public statehouse reporters: Peter Hirschfeld and Lola Duffort in Montpelier, and Report for America fellow Carly Berlin, who covers housing and infrastructure for Vermont Public and VTDigger.
Transcribe →What hours of bodycam footage reveal about ICE operations in Vermont
2w ago00:49:35Tap to summarizeWhat hours of bodycam footage reveal about ICE operations in Vermont
Transcribe →Beetles, bees and butterflies: How to explore your buzzing backyard ecosystem
2w ago00:49:50Tap to summarizeHave you ever thought about just how many insect species call your yard home? There are thousands of species to discover just outside your door.The app iNaturalist lets users upload photos to identify insects, animals, fungi and more. Each iNaturalist entry helps the team at the Vermont Center for Ecostudies (VCE) catalogue every living species in the Vermont Atlas of Life. Two VCE biologists discuss ways to spot and catalogue local species: Kent McFarland, VCE's co-founder and the force behind the Vermont Butterfly Atlas, and Spencer Hardy, a bee biologist who runs VCE's Wild Bee Survey and the co-owner of The Farm Upstairs in Jericho.Amateur naturalist and community scientist Bernie Paquette of Jericho is one of the top bee observers in the world on iNaturalist, where he posts research-grade photographs of insects. Last year, he received the 2025 Julie Nicholson Community Science Award from VCE.
Transcribe →Are twins really "in the water" in Sheldon? Brave Little State investigates
2w ago00:49:46Tap to summarizeVermont Edition went down the rabbit hole with a recent episode of Brave Little State to find out if there really are more twins per capita in the town of Sheldon — and if so, how it happened.Two sets of Vermont twins told us about going into business together. Leah Klatzker and Rachel Klatzker, co-owners of So Full Sisters, run two food trucks as well as a Middlebury College coffee stand. Circus artists Elsie Smith and Serenity Smith Forchion co-founded the nonprofit New England Center for Circus Arts and the creative circus production company Nimble Arts. They shared what it's been like to work together everywhere from the trapeze to the board room.Broadcast live on Tuesday, May 26, 2026, at noon; rebroadcast at 7 p.m.Have questions, comments or tips? Send us a message or check us out on Instagram.
Transcribe →'Social media can be an amazing tool:' How these Vermonters built unique communities online
3w ago00:49:50Tap to summarizeSome movie stars or celebrity chefs have massive followings on Instagram or YouTube. Others gain followers by posting addictive content. But some people simply post about what they love, and build a community from there.Today on Vermont Edition, three Vermonter content creators showcase their passions on social media. Mirna Valerio is an endurance athlete, writer and brand ambassador for major brands like Darn Tough, Lululemon and LLBean. She also advocates for inclusion in the outdoors community. Graham Montague snorkels in local lakes and ponds and posts about his underwater wonders. Christine Tyler Hill is an artist and Burlington crossing guard. She mails a monthly printed newsletter about what she sees, but people on Instagram have caught on, too.They’ve each learned a lot about how to make social media meaningful instead of soul-sucking. And they also have some big adventures planned for this summer.
Transcribe →Journalist Jasper Craven on the harms of American military education
3w ago00:49:48Tap to summarizeMilitary academies and ROTC clubs teach children and young adults — most of them boys — how to fight in war. But this education comes with its own risk of scars.Vermont-based freelance journalist Jasper Craven explores American military education in his new book, God Forgives, Brothers Don't: The Long March of Military Education and the Making of American Manhood.Craven has reported on the military and veterans' issues for local and national publications including VTDigger, Mother Jones, The New Republic and the The New York Times Magazine.Broadcast live on Wednesday, May 20, 2026, at noon; rebroadcast at 7 p.m.Have questions, comments or tips? Send us a message or check us out on Instagram.
Transcribe →'I'm not here to punish taxpayers:' Gov. Phil Scott on ed reform, return to office and more
3w ago00:57:00Tap to summarizeWe’re nearing the traditional end point of Vermont’s legislative calendar. Adjournment at the statehouse in Montpelier is tentatively scheduled for May 29, but there’s a lot left to settle before the state’s part-time lawmakers head home. Throughout this legislative session you’ve heard lawmakers on Vermont Edition discuss these issues. Now, we get to hear from the state’s top elected official, Gov. Phil Scott.
Transcribe →Tick talk
3w ago00:49:44Tap to summarizeTick season is upon us yet again, and tick bite-related emergency room visits in the Northeast are higher than normal right now. It’s hard not to resent these disease-spreading arachnids. Ticks spread pathogens like anaplasmosis, babesiosis, Powassan virus, and Lyme disease. We're joined by David Allen, an associate professor of biology at Middlebury College to talk about the different types of ticks in the region, the diseases they spread, how to prevent tick bites, and how he learned to embrace one of the most detested parts of the animal kingdom. But first; the chair of the education committee in Vermont's House of Representatives will not seek reelection this fall. Rep. Peter Conlon (D-Cornwall) has served in the state legislature for a decade. He's focused his efforts in the last few years on education reform and the ongoing school redistricting debate. He joins us to talk about his decision to step down and what he's learned from his time in the legislature.Broadcast live on Monday, May 18, 2026, at noon; rebroadcast at 7 p.m.Have questions, comments or tips? Send us a message or check us out on Instagram.
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