Nick Konopka

The spotted lanternfly has infested the deepest corners of the state. The invasive red, gray, and black insect has been killing plants across the state since its arrival in 2014.

On today’s episode of The Confluence: Allegheny County will work with the Harvard Kennedy School's Government Performance Lab to implement different responses to nonviolent 911 calls; the Latino Community Center has opened a new headquarters in East Liberty; and we look at the pay raise state lawmakers are expected to receive this year, corresponding with the inflation rate. Today’s guests include: Gloria Gong, executive director of the Government Performance Lab at the Harvard Kennedy School; Rosamaria Cristello, founder and executive director of Latino Community Center; and Christina Baker and Jaxon White, reporters with Lancaster Online.

On today’s episode of The Confluence: An investigation by PublicSource found that eviction filings dropped in the pandemic, but have returned to pre-shutdown levels; new research suggests there are more than 100 genetic markers associated with autism; and we ask an entomologist why spotted lanternflies have to be squashed.Today’s guests include: Eric Jankiewicz, a reporter with PublicSource; Dr. Bernie Devlin, a professor of psychiatry with the University of Pittsburgh, and Dr. Kathryn Roeder, the UPMC Professor of Statistics and Life Sciences from Carnegie Mellon University; and Kelli Hoover, professor of entomology at Penn State University.

On today’s episode of The Confluence: The judges who sent children to for-profit jails in exchange for kickbacks have been order to pay more than $200 million to those children; the state Department of Transportation is developing an autonomous vehicle research and training facility in Westmoreland County; and a look at how some Republican lawmakers are increasingly suggesting Christian ideology be enmeshed with politics. Today’s guests include: Michael Rubinkam, who covers Pennsylvania news for Associated Press; and Mark Kopko, director of the Office of Transformational Technology at Pennsylvania’s Department of Transportation.

On today’s episode of The Confluence: We speak with an Afghan journalist who fled the country after the U.S. withdrew its military presence, and has spent the last year in Pittsburgh; as Allegheny County is contracting with consultants at the National Commission on Correctional Health Care to review fatalities at the county jail, we ask a researcher what might come of the review; and author David Maraniss has a new biography of Jim Thorpe, one of America’s greatest athletes, who grew up at the Indian Industrial School in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Today’s guests include: Zubair Babakarkhail, Afghan-born journalist and interpreter; Robin Mejia, director of the Statistics and Human Rights Program at Carnegie Mellon University.

On today’s episode of The Confluence: The Penn Hills School District will be forming a police force in an effort to boost security; we speak to a high school senior and adult working in violence prevention about the results of a survey that asked Pittsburgh area youth what impact gun violence is having on their lives; and a look at how a Homewood garden is seeking to combat food apartheid.Today’s guests include: Nancy Hines, superintendent of school at Penn Hills School District; Cierra Guest, a senior at Woodland Hills School District, and Rev. Eleanor Williams, founder of the North Side Partnership Project.

On today’s episode of The Confluence: Pittsburgh Public Schools sent 26 teachers furlough notices, but is having trouble filling certain positions, like special education teachers; why is there a different look and different interest level in this year's Steelers' training camp and preseason; there’s a movement by Black-led groups to bring more students of color into the tech industry in Pittsburgh.Today’s guests include: Nina Esposito-Visgitis, president of the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers; and Sean Gentille, senior writer for The Athletic.

On today’s episode of The Confluence: A recap of U.S. Senate candidate John Fetterman’s return to the campaign trail, and news about Pennsylvania gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano’s use of military imagery; we look back on water protection in western Pennsylvania since the Clean Water Act was created in 1972; and what greater access to public restrooms in Downtown Pittsburgh could mean for visitors and businesses. Today’s guests include: Chris Potter, WESA’s Government and Accountability Editor; Heather Hulton VanTassel, Executive Director, Three Rivers Waterkeeper; Heather Starr Fielder, chair of the Department of Community Engagement and Leadership at Point Park University.

On today’s episode of The Confluence: We ask a pediatrician about vaccinating children ahead of the coming school year; Pittsburgh Public Schools has raised property taxes to try to reduce its budget deficit, but it has little ability to collect such money from the city’s largest nonprofits; and a conversation with a religious studies professor about the rise of white Christian Nationalism in American politics.Today’s guests include: Dr. Todd Wolynn, pediatrician and CEO of Kids Plus Pediatrics; and Emma Folts, higher education reporter for PublicSource.

On today’s episode of The Confluence: For 30 years, Dr. Jim Withers of Pittsburgh Mercy has been making “house calls” to people living on the streets; a look into the practice of search and seizure following the FBI raid at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home; and a conversation about how a state grant for early childhood learning will add another early childhood education class to Homestead. Today’s guests include: Dr. Jim Withers, medical director of Homeless Services at Pittsburgh Mercy; David Harris, law professor at the University of Pittsburgh and WESA’s legal analyst; and Hannah Sitz, executive director of Maple Unified Student Academy.