Show Spotlight: Building a Greener Idaho

Charlie, Remington, and Kris – and their fearless producer, Laura – have been pursuing sustainability issues on their weekly program, Building a Greener Idaho (BAGI), relentlessly and hilariously for a total of six years. If it has something to do with making a more livable, healthy, eco-friendly community, they’re likely to cover it or talk to the expert. Here they let us in on what issues they are following now,  what they love about community radio and the Treasure Valley, and how cool issues-based radio is:

What sustainability issues are at the forefront of your thoughts these days?

Charlie: Climate change is on top of the list; how businesses and communities in our state are going to work to reduce our impact and mitigate the effects of our warming climate or adapt to the new normal. I believe green building and energy efficiency are great solutions that make economic sense, but there are a myriad of related issues and solutions we need to keep talking about.

Remington: To me, sustainability means stable and resilient human networks. Humans are part of nature, not apart from nature, so as climate change brings increasing environmental variability, the need to build and nurture stable community networks and healthy economies is key to adapting to the changes tomorrow brings. If we need to wait until tomorrow for the data we need today (to answer yesterday’s questions), then more than ever, our sustainability focus needs to contribute to building vibrant communities.

Kris: Externalities is a term that comes up for me. I believe that the key to achieving a sustainable economy is creating a culture where individuals consider the impact of their actions beyond their own immediate surroundings. How do my choices affect people in another community or country? How do their decisions and actions affect the environment. What kind of legacy am I leaving for future generations, or even my future living conditions? Until these considerations are widely adopted in our decision making processes, sustainability will remain an uphill battle.

Do you have a ritual surrounding your show? You know, a ritual meal or a certain artist you have to play

Charlie: Yes, I push it as close to the deadline as possible then I get that rush. Unfortunately I don’t think Nichole Marie enjoys it as she wraps up The Rapture…

Remington: The same ritual for everything in my life: coffee.

Kris: I close my eyes and envision all 10 of our current regular listeners, then I visualize our audience steadily growing.

How long have you been doing BAGI? Tell us how this current powerhouse rotation evolved?

Charlie: As of this coming fall I will have been hosting BAGI for 6 years! I did the show by myself for a bit and then Remington Buyer joined me in late 2012. Sometime after that we had Gunnar Gladics and Jake Dunn, architects from the University of Idaho Integrated Design Lab come on board for one show a month. Kris Wilson joined the cast in 2014 and we welcomed our first “producer” Laura Mathews as the newest BAGI team member in 2016 to help us step up our game. It’s been quite the journey and I’ve learned a ton. We are really pleased to have Laura on board to help guide our strategic direction and week to week organizing.

For those who may not be familiar with your show, how would you describe BAGI’s focus and tone?

Charlie: We cover sustainability topics across the board with local, regional and national guests and through those conversations we explore the intersection of people, profit and planet and the related impacts to our communities.

Remington: I would say that BAGI’s strength is that it doesn’t really have a focus, meaning, we cast a wide net and try to look at any and every topic as it might relate to the triple bottom line of sustainable communities, environments and economics. We try to keep the tone casual and light-hearted.

Kris: I’ve been a BAGI co-host for three years. Charlie roped me in late in 2013 and I have been unable to escape the charms of Radio Boise and the intrigue of interacting with a wide variety of interesting guests. We managed to recruit Laura Matthews as Producer in 2016 and she has really helped us up our game.

How did you discover Radio Boise?

Charlie: I knew Jeff Abrams through the nonprofit community when he was rallying to get RB on air and we would discuss fundraising and nonprofit management. (And btw Remi my mom is a super hip lady!)

Remington: I blame Charlie.

Kris: Wait you mean our shows broadcast on the radio? I thought we were just a blog and podcast…. Seriously though, I did not really connect with RB until I became a BAGI co host, and my affection for our local community radio station has grown ever since. I think that the RB culture is part of what keeps me motivated to continue with BAGI.

What other kinds of things do you do in your life?

Charlie: Yelling at my boys takes up a lot of my free time, but with the rest I try to get out skiing, camping, boating, fishing etc where there are less humans and more pretty things.

Remington: I’ve got a two-year old who is the funniest person I know. He keeps me and my wife busy. When we do have free time, we try to travel as much as possible. And trail running in the Boise Foothills is always a weekly highlight.

What is going on in the Treasure Valley that you’re excited about?

Charlie: The way our downtown core is developing is pretty exciting with a lot more housing units that will create even more vibrancy for the business, cultural and social life in Boise. And of course the Central Addition LIV District is going to be fantastic with the Broad Street makeover that is currently under way.

Remington: The (eventual) end of winter and beginning of spring!

Kris: Hipster scene at small city scale.

What other shows do you listen to?

Charlie: So many good music and public affairs shows! I love Jazz Beyond the Sky, Rambler’s Retreat, V3, The Rapture, and Antler Crafts.

Remington: The Rapture–my default go-to for new music on Radio Boise.

Kris: You can’t go wrong with The Rapture. Nichole Marie hand picks music that you don’t hear from mainstream sources and it is on right before our show. Great music to prep my show to.

Why do you believe in volunteering for community radio is important?

Remington: It’s easy to let life kick you in the ass and to forget that the most important thing you can do is laugh and love. Visiting Radio Boise, just visiting the station itself and being around inspiring creative people, it’s a soulful breath of fresh air. It’s the best volunteer opportunity one could have!

Kris: Community Radio is one of those rare sources of media that is real and local. It’s so easy to find canned and repetitive media these days, and so refreshing to hear real thoughts and music from the people who are actively making our community a more vibrant place to be.

Is it true that the typical public affairs host hates music? If not, please dispel, and tell us what you find yourself listening to.

Charlie: Music is ok but it’s just not as groovy as hearing people talk.

Remington: Bwa-haha, we don’t hate music, we just don’t know how to operate Spinitron! But seriously, for those who aren’t already fans, you need to be listening to Welcome to Nightvale. Just do it already.

Kris: I love music across the board, but I am more drawn to driving beats than flowing melodies and soft edges.

What do you hope to see in the future with yourselves and Radio Boise?

Charlie: We have a goal of evolving our show’s format to include a lot more segments that are snippets from different voices and dialogue. And we also want to develop more capacity with community partners and interns to keep raising the bar.

Remington: More input/direction from Radio Boise listeners. We volunteer our time to explore topics we care about; what do you care about? Increased listener feedback would be awesome!

Kris: I would love to feature more Idaho guests from outside the Treasure Valley and up our production quality to include more cut-away segments and music soundbites during our interviews. We are always on the lookout for people with production experience, or an enthusiasm for learning, who want to help us take BAGI to the next level (hint, hint).

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