Why I love public art: It's always there | Letter to the editor

You can join Oregon's fight for universal healthcare | Letter to the editor

Our healthcare should not be up for debate every four years. Decisions about our health should come from doctors, not corporations looking to make a profit. Families shouldn’t go bankrupt because someone gets injured or sick. People in rural communities should have access to the same care at the same price as people who live […]

Assuming a sports team is male in articles does a disservice to fans who support equality | Letter to the editor

My niece wrote me recently that the new thing to say at Portland Fire games is the MNBA – Men’s National Basketball Association, not the NBA. Since the WNBA has a W, she’s saying that men need a gender label too. The headline of Lookout’s article about Sporting Cascades FC said “Eugene’s upcoming pro soccer club.” Since […]

A wildfire expert assessed my backyard: the good, the bad and the flammable

An environmental journalist shares her firsthand account of receiving a “defensible space” assessment of her own backyard by a deputy state fire marshal. It challenged some common assumptions about wildfire preparedness and helped her understand what it means to reduce risk.

Eagles Rest: Get out of town for a hike — without traveling too far

If you are ever looking to get out of town without driving too far, here’s an ideal hike that’s good for a simple picnic or watching the sunset. About 30 miles southwest of Eugene, a forest trail leads to the beautiful mountain overlook at Eagles Rest. The trail begins at a gravel parking area off […]

Trump administration backs off on plan to remove ocean monitoring system

The reversal comes after a bipartisan group of state and federal lawmakers pushed back on the federal plan to dismantle its Ocean Observatories Initiative system, which provides information useful to the fishing and recreation industries as well was scien