March 21, 2002 - Northern Minnesota is better known for iron mines and wilderness areas than for cutting edge industry. But one start-up company in Duluth is out in front in an important field - water quality monitoring. Apprise technologies products help protect water supplies all over the world. Mainstreet Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports. {
March 20, 2002 - One popular prediction before the release of the redistricting plan was the political powerhouse of Northern Minnesota would lose a lot of clout. With population shifts, political leaders were expecting the plan to eliminate some northern seats in the state legislature. But Mainstreet Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports the new lines turned out to be less traumatic for northern politicians than many expected:
March 7, 2002 - Hotel workers in Duluth have been picketing for the last three months in front of five downtown hotels. Picketing is a standard strategy in labor disputes, but these workers are not on strike. They're demanding that their employers stay out of a union organizing effort. Minnesota Public Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports its becoming an increasingly popular tool for unions.
February 25, 2002 - One place that's never been popular for sailing or cruising is the North Shore of Lake Superior. The big lake is famous for its sudden storms. MPR's Stephanie Hemphill reports that local boaters have been pushing the state to build safe harbors along the rocky North Shore. Duluth City Council looks at a plan for a harbor that's created its own storm of controversy.
February 11, 2002 - Many kids from small towns grow up and leave. Teachers at Cotton high school in northeastern Minnesota have a plan to keep more of their graduates in town. They've started a student-run business. Teachers hope some students might be inspired to stay in Cotton and start their own businesses. Mainstreet Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports. {
February 6, 2002 - Walk in the woods in Minnesota today and chances are you will see a young forest. Much of the state was heavily logged in the early 20th century. The old growth pines and hardwoods have been replaced by softwoods like aspen. Aspen has become a staple of the forest products industry. It's used for pulp, paper and particle board. But some people would like change that. In the second in our series of reports on changes in the Northwoods, Mainstreet Radio's Stephanie Hemphill visits a logging site in Aitkin County, about 50 miles west of Duluth. Aitkin was the first county in the nation to have its lands certified as a well-managed forest. The certification is part of a conscious effort to encourage local forest-based industries.
February 5, 2002 - The Sierra Club is suing the U.S. Forest Service. It wants the court to block aspen logging on the national forests in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. The Sierra Club says the Forest Service allows too much clearcutting of aspen. The suit says that's holding back re-growth of native pine and hardwood forests. The lawsuit is a sign of the times: American forests are in transition. Mainstreet Radio's Stephanie Hemphill has the first in a series of three reports on how things are changing in the Northwoods.
December 28, 2001 - Longtime state senator Sam Solon died this afternoon in Duluth. Solon was known as a champion for Northeastern Minnesota. He had been battling liver cancer for nearly a year. Minnesota Public Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports. {
December 20, 2001 - Host intro: Law enforcement officials around the country have been stepping up security measures everywhere since the September 11 attacks. Officials are operating at a heightened sense of alert even in Duluth, more than a thousand miles from the nearest ocean. Duluth-Superior is the busiest port on the U.S. side of the Great Lakes. Port officials say they are thinking a lot more about security. But they say a terrorist attack on the port is unlikely. Minnesota Public Radio's Stephanie Hemphill has the next report in our series on border security.
December 11, 2001 - As part of Mainstreet Radio’s “Our Town” project, Stephanie Hemphill reports on debate in Duluth between preservationists and those wanting new buildings. The city's old Armory is the lastest battlefield in that ongoing conflict.