Think Out Loud

Oregon’s 2026-27 Teacher of the Year is Nate Jackson, a social studies teacher at Willamette High School in Eugene. He also advises the school’s Black Student Union, helping to organize student trips and the first Black Summit for students across the district. Before becoming a teacher, Jackson had a career as an entertainment journalist and emcee for college sporting events.   Jackson joins us to talk about the award and why he thinks it’s a particularly important time to be teaching social studies.  

A million people in the Portland area get their water from the Bull Run watershed, about 25 miles east of the city. The city council voted in 2017 to build the water filtration plant to protect against cryptosporidium to comply with Environmental Protection Agency standards.   The project was originally estimated at $500 million, but since then it’s risen to $2.58 billion. The water bureau says a number of factors worked to drive up the price tag, including skyrocketing construction costs and defending the project against a number of land use challenges. The filtration plant is now the largest public works project in the city’s history.   It was originally scheduled to be completed next year. But after delays, it is now about 40% complete and on track to be operational in 2029. The Portland Water Bureau's Interim Chief Engineer Muriel Gueissaz-Teufe joins us, along with Lyda Hakes, the Bull Run supply and treatment manager. They share more details about why this kind of filtration is needed, how it will work and the benefits for Portland area residents.  

Some families living in mobile home parks in Malheur County have been dealing with arsenic in their drinking water supply for years. And water tested recently at one location where unsafe levels of arsenic have been found since 2004, recently found levels six times higher than federal standards for safe drinking water. We’re joined by OPB Eastern Oregon reporter Monica Carrillo-Casas, who’s been following the story and tells us more about who’s being affected and how people are responding.

The Portland Trail Blazers kicked off their new NBA season Wednesday night at the Moda Center with a resounding 41-point victory over the Phoenix Suns. It marked the return of 9-time NBA All-Star Damian Lillard to the Blazers and his first regular season game since an Achilles injury he suffered in April 2025 while playing for the Milwaukee Bucks. Lillard scored 25 points, including six 3-pointers, in just 24 minutes on the court. Ja Morant, whom the Blazers acquired during the summer from the Memphis Grizzlies, added 14 points and eight assists. Micah Nori, the team’s new head coach, will also be under pressure to deliver results this season.    Meanwhile, the clock is ticking on a December deadline for Portland city officials and the Blazers’ management - led by owner Tom Dundon – to negotiate a new lease agreement for the Moda Center. At stake is roughly $600 million in public funds state and local leaders have committed to paying to renovate the aging arena, provided certain conditions are met.    KOIN 6 sports anchor and reporter Brenna Greene joins us to break this all down for us.  

Monarch butterflies in the Pacific Northwest are currently making their annual migration south for the winter. Around 200 of them are carrying innovative digital trackers that will allow researchers — and the public — to follow their path for the first time.   David James, an associate professor in Washington State University’s entomology department, is overseeing the project. He joins us to talk about what he hopes to learn about monarch migration patterns