Twenty-five thousand people gathered last weekend at fort Benning, Georgia, for the 18^th annual vigil to close the School of the Americas – now known as the Western Hemispheric Institute for Security Studies.            

  The school has been documented to be a training ground for central and south American military officials, many of whom have engaged in torture and attacks on civilians after being trained at the School by U.S. Military officials.

While many cities in the U.S. are finally coming to the realization that walkability is a necessity in city planning, Vancouver, Washington is actually doing something about it.

A non-profit group in the city invited Mark Fenton, the host of the PBS series "America's Walking” and walkability expert, to speak to a sold-out crowd last night.

He’s also headed out around the city to see just how pedestrian-friendly the city is.

KBOO’s Crystal Leighty spoke with Mark Fenton earlier today:

Crystal Leighty interviews David Wann, co-author of Affluenza: the All-Consuming Epidemic. (Berrett-Koehler Publishers) He’ll discuss his new book Simple Prosperity: Finding Real Wealth in a Sustainable Lifestyle.”  (St. Martin's Griffin)

Crystal Leighty speaks with Elisa Albert, about her debut novel, THE BOOK OF DAHLIA, which features a 29 year old anti-heroine.

Host Crystal Leighty speaks with local activist Yvonne Simmons about her recent trip to Peru where she has worked with a political and human rights NGO for many years. She talks about her work with children in poor neighborhoods who live off the small items that they scavenge from a local garbage dump. She also discusses her work on preventing violence against women.

Guest host Crystal Leighty speaks with Matthew Deschaine of The WhyNotPortland campaign. The campaign has submitted 30,520 signatures to the City Auditor for its ballot-initiative to provide health insurance for uninsured school children in Portland. The plan would allow children to see their pediatrician or other primary care provider for a $10 co-pay while providing coverage for hospitalizations and other major illnesses.

Crystal Leighty interviews Patricia Santana, author of Ghosts of El Grullo, in which ayoung woman
struggles to find an identity of her own within her Mexican-American community
while uncovering the secrets left behind by her recently deceased mother.

Host Crystal Leighty speaks with Garth Stein, author of the novel, The Art of Racing in the Rain, which features a canine narrator called Enzo.

Host Crystal Leighty speaks with Ariel Gore, editor of "Portland Queer: Tales of the Rose City," a new anthology featuring local writers: Dexter Flowers, sts, Kathleen Bryson, Colleen Siviter, David Ciminello, Tony Longshanks LeTigre, Michael Sage Ricci, Annie Murphy, Sarah Gottesdiener, Jacob Anderson-Minshall, Gabrielle Rivera, David Oates, Donal Mosher, J.T

 Crystal Leighty talks with David Mas Masumoto author of Wisdom of the Last Farmer, Harvesting Legacies from the Land.   Publisher notes: "Hailed by The New York Times as “A poet of farming” and the Los Angeles Times as the “Rockstar Farmer” who “uses his farm as Thoreau did his Walden Pond,” David Mas Masumoto weaves together stories of family and farming, life and death to reveal age-old wisdom that is fast disappearing—and urgently needed."

 KBOO's Host Crystal Leighty talks with Lise Eliot, author of "Pink Brain, Blue Brain: How Small Differences grow into troublesome gaps - and What You Can Do About It." 

 The guest is writer and lecturer David Korten, author of "The Great Turning" and "AGENDA FOR A NEW ECONOMY: FROM PHANTOM WEALTH TO REAL WEALTH: A Declaration of Independence from Wall Street." He was speaking at the  E-Convergence in Portland.  Hosted by Crystal Leighty.

Host Crystal Leighty speaks with author Melissa Hart about her new memoir, Gringa: A Contradictory Girlhood.  “You can’t grow up parented by two women. It’s unnatural.”  This is the rationale that allows Melissa Hart’s father to take custody of his three young children.

 Host Crystal Leighty speaks with Leigh Knox about Awakening the Dreamer...Changing the Dream is a unique 4 hour symposium developed by the Pachamama Alliance, a not-for-profit organization inspired by indigenous elders of the Amazon rain forest and their friends in North America.

 Crystal Leighty hosts this Veteran's Day Talk Radio Show with guest Wayne Karlin, author of "Wandering Souls," the story of a Vietnam veteran who returned to Vietnam to face the family of a man he killed.

 Earthquake Preparedness
Hosted by Crystal Leighty

On the March 25, 2010, airing of Between the Covers, host Crystal Leighty interviews Chris Bohjalian, the author of thirteen books, including the new novel, Secrets of Eden, a story of shattered faith, intimate secrets and the delicate exploration of the nature of sacrifice.

 Hosted by Crystal Leighty

Today's guest is Ruth Conniff, Political Editor at the Madison-base magazine, The Progressive.  We'll be talking about the current Political Issues gripping Wisconsin and the nation.

Host Crystal Leighty speaks with Elaine Jesmer, author of "I'm Hot!...and I'm Bald!": CHEMOTHERAPY FOR WINNERS," about how to handle the side effects of chemotherapy, and why it's important not be afraid of it.

 Host Crystal Leighty speaks with Marc Freedman about his book THE BIG SHIFT: Navigating the New Stage Beyond Midlife.

Marc Freedman is founder and CEO of Civic Ventures. An award-winning social entrepreneur, frequent commentator in the national media, and the author of Encore,Prime Time, and The Kindness of Strangers, Freedman spearheaded the creation of Experience Corps and The Purpose Prize.