The Endangered Species Act helped bring the Yellowstone-area grizzly population back from the brink of extinction. It also sparked controversy... more

A few years ago, the May family set off on a trailblazing path to protect their land, and the carbon... more

The Rardins are father and son cowboys watching climate change threaten their way of life. They’ve given up on the... more

Ranchers are having a really hard time these days. They’ve got more drought, more conflict, expensive land, high rates of... more

We follow the cow’s journey from the mountain pasture to the feedlot and eventually the slaughterhouse. Along the way, we... more

We head to Wyoming’s Red Desert - and hear the history of the 19th century range wars. They led to... more

The history of how we brought the pastoral cow to live on the arid lands of the west is a... more

The Abeyta family has been driving sheep down from the mountains of southern Colorado for generations. But it hasn’t been... more

The Rolling Stone: The Modern West is re-sharing our ranching series The Great Individualist. This time, we explore our deep... more

We're back with a new season of Modern West. Listen to the first episode of The Great Individualist Reboot now!

It's a new season of the Great Individualist - new episode premieres on August 21st.

Wyoming is known as the “equality state” because it was the first in the nation to pass women’s suffrage. And... more

Meet Iva, an innovative teacher conducting scientific research with her middle schoolers on the Wind River Reservation. They even set... more

Recidivism rates in the U.S. are some of the highest in the world, and in Wyoming, 33 percent of inmates... more

In the resort town of Jackson Hole, WY, the housing shortage is so bad that people are finding crazy workarounds... more

The story of two wolves in Colorado’s North Park, a father and a son, and how the community is –... more

Take a bike ride into a tiny forgotten historic mining town that sits at the intersection of two beloved through... more

Exactly 100 years to the day after a woman named Eleanor Davis became the first recorded woman to ever climb... more

Miss us? We're back for Season 8 of The Modern West - High Altitude Tales. High Altitude Tales drops on... more

“In Paradise, what the fire didn't take was the sense of community that exists there. Our mission was, ‘look how... more

Ariel makes the trip out to see the new construction of her family home. But it’s nothing like the one... more

Ariel’s family and neighbors are starting to rebuild after the Marshall Fire destroyed their homes. But now new green building... more

Listen to a behind-the-scenes conversation with The Burn Scar’s producer Ariel Lavery and The Modern West host Melodie Edwards. Ariel... more

Ariel’s neighbors all want to know what caused the Marshall Fire. Then a new forensic report comes out, confirming climate... more

Ariel returns to see the burn scar that was once her childhood home. She feels strangely…homesick. “Imagining one’s home place... more

It’s the most expensive fire in Colorado History. Listen now.

The Marshall Fire was the most expensive fire in Colorado history. The Burn Scar is a tender yet carefully investigated... more

Filmmaker Ken Burns just released a new series called American Buffalo and The Modern West sat down to talk to... more

We’re re-sharing all of our bison episodes in preparation for the release of the new Ken Burns film, The American... more

Did you know documentarian Ken Burns is coming out with a film on the American buffalo? I’m going to share... more

Bringing Home the Buffalo…part one of our mini series Bison Stories. Find it under podcasts at wyomingpublicmedia.org.

You might remember this daunting statistic from our season on ranching: the American West is facing its biggest drought in... more

As you might have noticed from previous episodes, Jeff is a committed skeptic. But still, I decide to start by... more

I wanted to be part of contributing to identify healing interventions for our community. And also sharing with people that... more

It’s popular these days to read a land acknowledgement at public events, but Indigenous leaders and thinkers say that should... more

Jeff and I pick up the conversation today where our last one left off. As the 19th century came to... more

Native American women are the most stalked, raped, murdered and exploited of any other race in this country.

That's the identity for our tribe is our buffalo. So they are our relatives. I always cry when they come.... more

This time on the Modern West…to make sure the Plains Indian Wars don’t flare up again, the U.S. army starts... more

It seemed important to share some of the behind the scenes conversations for this series. As a white woman reporting... more

The Plains Tribes continue their winning streak at the Rosebud and Little Bighorn fights. But it only leads the federal... more

After the massacre, the survivors flee into the bitter cold night and eventually are rescued by the Lakota. The tribes... more

For the Arapaho and Cheyenne tribes, the Sand Creek Massacre of November 29, 1864 doesn’t feel like distant history at... more

Recently, you may have noticed a lot of big news coming out of Indigenous America, from protests at Standing Rock... more

A few seasons back, we had a series called Cowboy Up that dug into the juvenile justice system in Wyoming.... more

For all you Modern West fans who love our last season about ranching and the cowboy mythos in the American... more

This time on The Modern West, we join an 1896 hunting expedition to America’s first national park. The journey reveals... more

November is Native American Heritage Month…and in recognition, we thought we’d re-release the first episode of our third season “Shall... more

It's very important when you introduce a new technology, to make sure early adopters don't fail. And I want virtual... more

Some think the cowboy has gone riding off into the sunset, never to return. But in our final episode, we... more

Wyoming helped develop western water law, including the very idea that public waters belong to all of us. But the... more

If Out There isn’t already on your radar, it should be. It’s an award-winning show that uses stories about the... more

A few years ago, the May family set off on a trailblazing path to protect their land, and the carbon... more

The Rardins are father and son cowboys watching climate change threaten their way of life. They've given up on the... more

We follow the cow's journey from the mountain pasture to the feedlot and eventually the slaughterhouse. Along the way, we... more

The Modern West brings you heartfelt stories about poignant issues happening today in the rural west. A lot of these... more

This time, we head to Wyoming's Red Desert - and hear the history of the 19th-century range wars. They led... more

The history of how we brought the pastoral cow to live on the arid lands of the West is a... more

The Abeyta family has been driving sheep down from the mountains of southern Colorado for generations. But it hasn't been... more

For the Elliot family, there isn't just one kind of cowboy. There are guys like Jake who chase the idea... more