40 – Is Jasper a Wild Place?
Dylan Hall and Chris Chang-Yen Phillips take a road trip to the Rockies, to figure out whether Jasper National Park is a wild place.
Nov 28, 2019•45 min•Ep. 48
Let's Find Out
We take questions from curious Edmontonians about local history. Then we find out the answers together.
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Episodes
December 1 Live Show: How We Make Nature
Join us for an afternoon of short talks at a live recording of Let’s Find Out . Throughout this season of the podcast, we’ve answered listener questions about how humans and nature have shaped each other in Edmonton. At this event, we’ll share stories that’ll really make you think about how we create nature where we live, and you’ll have a chance to get your hands dirty playing around with visions of what our city could become. When: Sunday, December 1 Doors will be open at 1:30 PM, and the even...
Nov 10, 2019•40 sec•Ep. 47
39 – The Most Edmonton Species
Marlena Wyman asks what wildlife species are so adapted to city life that they depend on the city to survive. We decided to answer with a gameshow, pitting a cockroach, a magpie, an elm, and a hare against each other to claim the title of The Most Edmonton Species.
Oct 30, 2019•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 46
38 – Leaving Bruderheim
Dustin Bajer asks whether we have a responsibility to help local species adapt to climate change by helping them migrate.
Sep 25, 2019•41 min•Ep. 45
37 – The Case of the Capilano Apricots
Brooklin Schneider asks us to help her find out who planted the Capilano apricots – three apricot trees growing beside the road on 75 Street.
Aug 30, 2019•44 min•Ep. 44
September 8: A Ritchie Tour with Oumar Salifou
Coming up on Sunday, September 8 we’re offering another historical walking tour of Edmonton’s Ritchie Neighbourhood. This year’s walk will be led by Oumar Salifou. Grab your free tickets here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ritchie-historical-walking-tours-tickets-66142380641
Aug 19, 2019•1 min•Ep. 43
36 – The Climate-Proof Farm
Denise Chang-Yen (yes, Chris’ mom) asks whether climate change will end up being a net benefit for farms in our area.
Jul 31, 2019•52 min•Ep. 42
35 – Bear Country
Shelley Jodoin-Chouinard asks if the proliferation of lawns in Edmonton has anything to do with the absence of bears in the city. More on this story: http://letsfindoutpodcast.com/2019/06/26/episode-35-bear-country/
Jun 26, 2019•56 min•Ep. 41
34 – The Dredge Report
Allan Farrell asks what’s up with a picture of a gold dredge he saw on a plaque downtown, and where the gold in the North Saskatchewan River comes from.
May 29, 2019•44 min•Ep. 40
33 – Kalyna Country
Alison Brooks-Starks asks how folks from Ukraine settled where they did in Canada – was it because the landscapes here looked like places in the Ukraine? To explore her question, we dug into a stack of academic research. We also went to the University of Alberta’s Pembina Hall to meet Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies Director Jars Balan. That inspired us to try making some juice from kalyna – aka high bush cranberry – berries using this recipe . Come say hi before NorthwestFest’s May 4 sc...
Apr 25, 2019•53 min•Ep. 39
32 – Dam Complicated
Amandah van Merlin asks how have dams changed our relationship with the North Saskatchewan River. To explore her question, we brought Amandah to the Provincial Archives of Alberta, to dig for files on the two dams upstream of Edmonton: the Brazeau Dam and the Bighorn Dam. We also met up with local writer Billie Milholland, author of Living in the Shed: Alberta’s North Saskatchewan River Watershed .
Mar 27, 2019•56 min•Ep. 38
31 – How Nature Shapes Us
This year, we’re embarking on a new season of Let’s Find Out, exploring these ideas. We kicked things off with a live show at The Almanac this February. It featured short talks about humans and natural history in the Edmonton area, and games for audience members to play. In this episode, you’ll hear from Marlena Wyman, Miranda Lucas, Jacquelyn Cardinal, and Hunter Cardinal. More info and a bevy of pictures and links from the event: http://letsfindoutpodcast.com/2019/02/26/episode-31-how-nature-s...
Feb 27, 2019•47 min•Ep. 37
Live Event Feb 9 – How Nature Shapes Us
From clearing the prairies with fire to planting elm trees along our streets, humans have been shaping the land in the Edmonton area for millennia. And it’s been shaping us right back. Join us Saturday, February 9 at 2 PM for an afternoon of short talks and a live recording of Let’s Find Out! Ever wondered how Edmontonians helped create the river valley parks? Curious about how lawns mould the locals who live nearby? We’ll share short stories about how humans and nature have shaped each other in...
Jan 09, 2019•2 min•Ep. 36
30 – The Class Photo Enigma
In our second episode, we wondered about the name of a black student in an Edmonton Technical School class photo from 1932. In this episode, Kyle Muzyka explains how he found out the answer.
Oct 31, 2018•23 min•Ep. 35
29 – About the Green Onion Cake Man
Earlier in 2018, we hosted a live panel dedicated to one of the most important questions in Edmonton’s food history: how the heck did green onion cakes get so popular in Edmonton? These delicious, flaky, greasy little circles of fried goodness didn’t just magically worm their way into our hearts. This episode, we’re getting a taste of what’s changed for green onion cake master Siu To since that episode.
Oct 24, 2018•15 min•Ep. 34
28 – The Not-So-Absent Gravestone
Back in 2017, Sheila Thomas asked why there was no headstone to mark the grave of Frank Beevers – the first Edmonton police officer killed in the line of duty. This episode, we find out what it’s like to actually see your idea turn into cold, hard, granite reality.
Oct 17, 2018•21 min•Ep. 33
27 – The Cree Calendar
With geese flying south in August and snow in September, it sometimes feels like winter in Edmonton spills far outside its season. What if instead of getting frustrated with the weather though, we tweaked the way we measured the year? Ben Freeland learned that the Cree calendar divides the year into six seasons. So he wondered why we don’t revive the calendar here in Treaty Six territory. Further reading on this month’s episode: http://letsfindoutpodcast.com/2018/09/26/episode-27-the-cree-calend...
Sep 26, 2018•37 min•Ep. 32
26 – The High Rise Inquisition
How is the proliferation of tall buildings in Edmonton affecting training and planning by Edmonton Fire Rescue? Susan Padget asked that question on Taproot Edmonton ‘s story garden. Finding out the answer taught us about a surprisingly tangible transition the city is making.
Aug 29, 2018•21 min•Ep. 31
25 – The City That Wanted To Be Prairie
How did Edmonton come to be known as a prairie city? Dustin Bajer asked that question on Taproot Edmonton’s story garden. Finding out the answer – and figuring out whether this area is aspen parkland, or prairie, or forest – challenged our ideas about the land we live on.
Jul 25, 2018•47 min•Ep. 30
24 – Back To Ritchie
We’re back in the Ritchie neighbourhood for a second set of locals’ questions and a live history walk exploring their answers. Karen Wall wanted to know how one neighbourhood could support two independent cobblers. Nicole Anderson wanted to know the history of her home in Ritchie. And Scott Harris wanted to know what the story was behind the quonset-hut type rounded-roof buildings with the squared off fronting in the industrial area of West Ritchie.
Jun 27, 2018•54 min•Ep. 29
23 – The High Level Inquisition
Susan Padget asks whether it’s true that workers died during the construction of Edmonton’s High Level Bridge. Oodles of extra content on our website: http://www.letsfindoutpodcast.com
May 30, 2018•47 min•Ep. 28
22 – The Glyde Mural
When Kelsey Chief took an orientation tour at the University of Alberta in 2015, one of the stops took her to a mural in Rutherford Library: Henry Glyde’s painting, “Alberta History.” In this episode, Kelsey talks about the anger she felt seeing that mural. And University of Regina artist and professor David Garneau shares a different take on the mural.
Apr 25, 2018•19 min•Ep. 27
21 – About Green Onion Cakes
Daniel Emberg wanted to know why green onion cakes took hold in Edmonton when they did. He flew in from Winnipeg to join us for a live panel at the Mercury Room to find out the answer. Featuring special guests Linda Tzang, Siu To, and Marty Chan.
Mar 28, 2018•1 hr 25 min•Ep. 26
20 – If It Hadn’t Been For You Meddling Kids
Mariam Macabanding and Laila Elbery help us investigate how climate change could affect the ways Indigenous peoples around here connect to nature. We’ve been working with a group of students from Hazeldean Elementary and Queen Elizabeth high school. They gave us some questions about climate change in our area. Then we brought them to CJSR (Edmonton’s campus and community radio station) for a radio camp to teach them how to use radio and podcasting to find out the answers. This is the second of t...
Mar 02, 2018•31 min•Ep. 25
19 – And I Would Have Gotten Away With All Those Wildfires Too…
Rasha Chebli and Nuha Taha help us investigate whether climate change is affecting wildfires in Alberta. We’ve been working with a group of students from Hazeldean Elementary and Queen Elizabeth high school. They gave us some questions about climate change in our area. Then we brought them to CJSR (Edmonton’s campus and community radio station) for a radio camp to teach them how to use radio and podcasting to find out the answers. This is the first of two episodes we’ve adapted for the podcast f...
Feb 28, 2018•26 min•Ep. 24
18 – The Case Of The Christmas Train
Glen Carlson asks us to help him figure out whether the Bay store downtown really used to have a Christmas train on the rooftop. Get the full story on our website: https://letsfindoutpodcast.com/2018/01/31/episode-18-the-case-of-the-christmas-train/
Jan 31, 2018•33 min•Ep. 23
17 – The Avalanche Of Garbage
Nicole and Jason Harcus ask whether the hill in Gallagher Park used to be a dump once upon a time.
Dec 27, 2017•34 min•Ep. 22
16 – Keep Everything
What should we keep, and what should we throw away? We use a case study of three boxes that Chris’ parents asked him to finally sort through. And we bring in expert witnesses: a private records archivist from the Provincial Archives of Alberta, and two people connected to letters we published in a previous episode.
Nov 29, 2017•49 min•Ep. 21
15 – The Sign Of The Ferry
Raymond Matthias asks if he’s found the remains of John Walter’s ferry. We take a live history walk into the river valley to examine the debris he found and get to the bottom of his question.
Oct 25, 2017•48 min•Ep. 20
14 – The Land At Hand
Lauren Crazybull asks what parallels we can see between broken treaties and gentrification in Edmonton. Our journey starts on a hill at the Mount Pleasant Cemetery with Papaschase First Nation’s Chief Calvin Bruneau.
Sep 27, 2017•43 min•Ep. 19
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