Tompkins Weekly 5-25-15

By Volunteers at WRFI

As we say in our station identification, WRFI is volunteer-run, listener-supported, non-commercial local radio. We broadcast at 88.1 fm and live-stream at http://www.wrfi.org/.  Noted in our Mission Statement is our commitment to peace, justice, sustainability, freedom of expression, cultural diversity, integrity, and joy.  What we love about this list is how “sustainability” is nestled in there, so modest, willing to make room for the other lofty goals, a long word and a quiet one.

But allow us now to tell you how the concept of sustainability actually underpins our entire enterprise at WRFI.  You support us, it’s true, but our community is in turn “radio-supported”, and that is no small matter.

Our region’s local food system, for example, is radio-supported.  With shows like Sharon Clark’s on Friday morning, local growers and producers get the spotlight.  A broad audience over time becomes acquainted with their heroic efforts to improve our foodshed. Eco-Defense Radio features news and conversation on the topics of ecology, environmental justice, and direct action, always informing our community on the larger sustainability picture:  will our region be a sea of calm in a turbulent world or can we have a larger impact through our direct actions. The Forecast, a show about climate change, covers this most critical of issues with intelligent interviews and wide-ranging discussion of solutions.

Jim Murphy regularly interviews activists from We are Seneca Lake and Gas Free Seneca, and this ongoing coverage is a vital part of sustaining the life we enjoy here in our region. This radio-supported community of lake guardians knows WRFI reports the truth, and their work of love grows and grows. Jim also interviews all kinds of community leaders at work building democracy. From veterans to drone protesters, we hear their unforgettable stories every morning. These activists are radio-supported and thereby reach new audiences with every broadcast.

The WRFI independent news team covers hundreds of local stories.  They train reporters, they strengthen our community’s understanding of the news, they follow up and diligently provide context and continuity. You’ve seen them: they report live from all around the region.  We are a radio-supported — and thus well-informed — community.  A sustainable community needs news it can trust, and the WRFI news team gives us an exceptional opportunity to deepen all our paths to sustainability.

Land and People, the Human Rights and Social Justice Program, Alcance Latino, Skeptical Sunday, the Made of Clay Report, all these shows highlight the many sustainability initiatives in our region.  They address how we think about our world, our country, our neighborhoods, our beliefs, and our values.  Local programming is actually too extensive to present here in full.  And that’s just local programming!

WRFI also broadcasts dozens of programs that explore environmental, economic, and social justice issues. As we work to build viable models of community — community that is fully, honestly sustainable — these shows offer current, reliable, articulate information on what works and why it works. You know Democracy Now!  Have you listened yet to The Monitor, Against the Grain, Economic Update, With Good Reason, the Ralph Nader Radio Hour, This Way Out, Food Sleuth Radio, Truthdig Radio, Capitol Pressroom, Radio Ecoshock?  Again, the list is too long to detail here.  These shows widen our world as they focus our attention. Day in, day out, you can turn on WRFI and find a program that supports people power, the authentic core of sustainability.

So tune in straightaway!  And if you love your radio-supported community, get in touch with us at WRFI: donate, volunteer, create your own show…We are waiting to hear from you.  All are welcome. Join us!