Finally, A Project Completed!

No, it isn't the 1/2 hour Babyfruit documentary that is in the can...yet. We're moving to a new place, and I have to carefully pack all our equipment and set it back up in the new place so logging will resume later this month. Hurrah!

I have completed a project, however, that was an incredible learning experience and has opened the door to more just like it.

My first radio segment for Marketplace (American Public Media/NPR) should be airing this month!

The piece is about Indian reservations and entrepreneurship, more specifically the Wind River Development Fund on the Wind River Reservation and their for-profit company Painted Pony, Inc.

I conducted interviews with John Washakie, a member of the Eastern Shoshone tribe and author of "Yuse: The Bully and the Bear" as well as the great-grandson of Chief Washakie. I also interviewed Elsie Meeks is a member of the Oglala Lakota tribe and executive director of First Nations Owesta Corporation, a CDFI in South Dakota.

I wanted to give national exposure to entrepreneurship on reservations and felt that the Painted Pony model was interesting and exemplary. The books they publish are beautifully illustrated children's books preserving Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho tales. From a business standpoint, they are creating a more sustainable model of business on reservations that hopefully will someday create more private-sector jobs.

I'll be producting my second segment in the next few weeks, most likely looking at some issues here in Alaska.