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Issues & Ideas
Mondays, 1:00PM - 2:00PM

Issues and Ideas is a show that features a wide variety of people sharing their thoughts and perspectives about local issues, initiatives and events on the Central Coast. You might hear a policy maker discussing new regulation, an artist sharing their creative process, an entrepreneur exploring sustainable business practices, or an author talking about her latest book.

Our regular segments include: "Wine Country" with wine journalist and author Mira Honeycutt; literary conversations on "Bookwaves" with former librarian Brian Reynolds; "Playing With Food" with culinary enthusiast Fr. Ian Delinger; stories of Central Coast downtowns on "Talking Downtown" with Carol Tangeman; Dr. Consuelo Meux's "The Nonprofit Story" that covers the work nonprofits are doing on the Central Coast; "Standing-in-Courage: Stories of Social Justice and Resilience," with Rosie Bultman; and "The Lonely Goat Cafe" with Meher Ali, that explores loneliness and the immigrant experience.

The show also carries occasional episodes from "Journeys of Discovery" by KCBX travel correspondent Tom Wilmer; features from the KCBX Newsroom, from KCSB, the student-run radio station at UC Santa Barbara, and from The California Report; along with interviews by other occasional contributors from our Central Coast community.

Meher Ali produces, edits, contributes interviews, and anchors the program.

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Latest Episodes
  • For Playing with Food, KCBX's Fr. Ian Delinger travels to southern San Luis Obispo County to talk to algae farmers and find out how one particular algae—Spirulina—is made, and why it is considered a complete health food. Then, KCBX's Meher Ali is in conversation with poet and activist Dian Sousa about poetry, the necessity of work, her immigrant parents and their love of the sea, on The Lonely Goat Cafe. Last, reporter Benjamin Purper walks with Brook Monroe, musician and winemaker, in the vineyard that he manages on the Central Coast, where the latter shows him how he incorporates winemaking into his compositions. Purper's story has been sourced from KQED's The California Report.
  • For Bookwaves, Brian Reynolds speaks with local author and musician Kevin Carver, about his debut fantasy novel “The Forbidden Parallel“ that he has released alongside an album of the same name. Also, for The Nonprofit Story, Dr. Consuelo Meux talks with Candace Galli, Executive Director of the Cancer Support Community, about the reason why her nonprofit prioritizes mental health support for cancer patients. And, Gianna Patchen, the Sierra Club’s Santa Lucia chapter coordinator in San Luis Obispo County, shares the story of how the organization supported the designation campaign for the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary, with KCBX's Meher Ali.
  • Every summer in venues throughout San Luis Obispo County, Festival Mozaic presents chamber music, orchestral music, and some non-classical genres such as folk, bluegrass, world music and more. The festival presents free community concerts, ticketed concerts, educational opportunities, and even a children's concert. Listen as Marisa Waddell talks with Festival Mozaic Music Director Scott Yoo about what to expect for his 20th year with the festival. Then hear all about the Cuban mambo band Festival Mozaic is bringing to the Fremont Theater in SLO. KCBX Latin music DJ David Figueroa chats with one of the founders of Orquesta Akokán.
  • Rosie Bultman, News Director at KCSB, UC Santa Barbara's student-run radio station, joins us with a brand new segment called "Standing-in-Courage." She speaks about the No Kings protests with her first guest, Linda Baker, organizer for the protests in San Luis Obispo County. For Wine Country, host Mira Honeycutt talks to Sherrie Holzer, winemaker of Rava Wines in Paso Robles, about how sparkling wine is made. And then, Meagan Friberg, Director of the Cuesta College Central Coast Writers' Conference, talks with Meher Ali about this year's lineup.
  • We start with Carol Tangeman’s new segment, “Talking Downtown”, where she brings us stories from downtowns across the Central Coast. This one is sourced from KCSB, where reporter Lisa Osborn speaks with author and historian Betsy J. Green about an earthquake that hit Santa Barbara exactly a hundred years ago and destroyed its downtown. This led to a decision: to rebuild downtown Santa Barbara in the Spanish style. Next, KCBX's Fr. Ian speaks with local businesses about the impact of tariffs on the food and drinks industries on the Central Coast. Last, KCBX's Meher Ali has a new segment called The Lonely Goat Cafe, and it explores immigrant life from a mental health perspective, specifically looking at the idea of loneliness: how people experience it, and how they use art, music, films, and literature, to move through it. For it, she speaks with poet and Cal Poly professor MT Vallarta about the trauma of migration and poetry.
  • Dr. Consuelo Meux speaks with Kayla Rutland, Executive Director, and Kate DiTrani, Program Manager, of City Farm SLO about its youth education programs and regenerative farming for the Nonprofit Story. Then, KCSB reporter Lisa Osborn's interview with Simone Ruskamp, co-founder of Santa Barbara's Juneteenth celebration about her efforts to get it started in the county. Last, KCBX's Meher Ali talks with Thomas Kessler, Executive Director, and Brittany Webb, Collections Manager, of the History Center of San Luis Obispo County, about the impact that recent budget cuts will have on the nonprofit's operations, and especially the 120,000 artifacts that make up its collection.
  • KCBX's Meher Ali speaks with Carlen Eckford, founder of the Rancho Burro Donkey Sanctuary and it's medical director as well as volunteer Barn Manager Nancy DeRuchie about how the nonprofit rehabilitates of donkeys and the misconceptions surrounding the behavior and care of these animals. Then, Kathleen Heil, President of Art Center Morro Bay, talks with KCBX’s Newsroom Intern Myrna Waddle about the arts nonprofit and their upcoming Art in the Park event. Then, Linnea Valdivia, Program Coordinator at the Gala Pride and Diversity Center, talks to KCBX's Meher Ali about Pride Month and the challenges facing the LGBTQ community on the Central Coast. Lastly, KCSB reporter Devon Szalva interviews retired Professor Emeritus of Sociology and Global Studies, Mark Juergensmeyer about the history of India-Pakistan relations, and the global significance of the recent four-day military conflict.
  • For his segment Bookwaves, KCBX's Brian Reynolds speaks with award-winning author and activist Lucy Jane Bledsoe about how attitudes towards the LGBTQ community have or have not changed and about one novel in particular titled “Tell the Rest.” Bledsoe will be speaking on Saturday, June 14th at the Atascadero Library from 12-2pm and San Luis Obispo library from 4-5 pm. Then, Wine Country with Mira Honeycutt who is a Central Coast author and wine journalist. She's also the co-author of the recently published book, "Sideways Uncorked: The Perfect Pairing of Film & Wine." Mira speaks with winemaker Dave McGee, owner of Monochrome Wines and founder of the festival White Wine Invitational that is happening on Friday, June 20th from 4-7 pm in Paso Robles. Dave talks to Mira about the motivation behind the invitational and the world of white wines. This is followed by Meher Ali's interview with Grant Helete, Program Coordinator at the Environmental Center of San Luis Obispo or ECOSLO about their annual fundraiser and programs in SLO county from cleanup to nature awareness to tree planting. Their annual fundraiser is happening this Saturday on June 14th at The Octagon Barn from 4-8pm and tickets are on sale at ecoslo.com. Last is a story by Katie Brown, a reporter at KAZU 90.3, and her story has been sourced from The California Report, where she reports on food insecurity facing Central coast farmworkers and how it is being exacerbated because of raids by the U.S. Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE).
  • On Playing with Food, Fr. Ian Delinger spotlights Harvestly, a local delivery service that fills the gap between farm boxes, supermarkets, and restaurants by delivering local produce to your doorstep. Then, KCBX's Carol Tangeman speaks with LeBren Harris, CEO of the nonprofit Downtown SLO, about its challenges and successes in making the city’s downtown economically and culturally vibrant. Then, Katelyn Schiavone, operations director and concessions coordinator at the Live Oak Music Festival, and Marisa Waddell, the festival’s artistic director, talk about the logistics of organising an event of such a scale, and what makes it special for them.
  • KCBX’s Gabriela Fernandez reports on how a longtime nonprofit serving the Latino and immigrant communities on California’s Central Coast is fighting to reclaim its historic headquarters that it lost in 2021 after filing for bankruptcy. Next, May is National Stroke Awareness Month. KCBX's Meher Ali speaks with Maria Irthum, Neuroscience Coordinator at Adventist Health Central Coast and co-lead at the Hope for Stroke Survivors Group, as well as Dave Serverson, a stroke survivor and member of this support group. Both share their experiences and talk about how the group provide a space not only for support, but resource sharing for stroke survivors. And then, from KCSB, UC Santa Barbara's student-run radio station, reporter Christina McDermott's story on Dr. Michelle Petty, an academic at the university, who has won a prestigious award for her research that seeks to bring Black linguistic justice into college classrooms. Next is a segment from our archives! KCBX’s Tom Wilmer traveled to Salinas back in 2013 to visit the Steinbeck Center on the 75th anniversary of John Steinbeck’s celebrated novel “Grapes of Wrath". Last, in celebration of National Bike Month, KCBX's Meher Ali speaks with Rick Ellison, Executive Director of Bike SLO County, and Rose Levinson Wurtz, Program Coordinator for Cycling Without Age to find out about the nonprofit's history, and their latest program that offers free trishaw rides to older adults in San Luis Obispo.