Héctor Alejandro Arzate
Environmental and Agriculture Reporter, KCURI cover environmental and agriculture issues for Harvest Public Media. I’m based at KCUR, the NPR station in Kansas City.
Previously, I was a reporter at DCist.com and WAMU 88.5 in Washington, DC. There, I reported on the everyday lives of immigrant communities in D.C, Maryland, and northern Virginia. Before that, I worked at my hometown station, KQED, in the San Francisco Bay Area. I graduated from Cal Poly Humboldt with a degree in criminology and a minor in journalism.
My favorite kinds of stories are the “radio road trips” that help us better understand the world around us. When I’m not working — or racking up miles on my car’s odometer for a reporting trip — I enjoy cooking, fly-fishing, and reading books about magical realism.
Please send story ideas, tips, or just say hello at hectorarzate@kcur.org. You can follow me on Twitter/X @hectoraarzate.
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The Trump administration wants Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to raid worksites in the agriculture and hospitality industries, despite an initial reprieve this month. Experts say the policy could hurt businesses that rely on immigrant workers. -
The United States government promised the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation about 1,280 acres of Illinois reservation in an 1829 treaty. Instead, the U.S sold all of it illegally to white settlers. The Prairie Band is now the latest tribe in the Midwest and Great Plains to get some of their ancestral home back. -
Supporters of the mandate say it will help to make roads safer, but some are worried about how it will impact immigrant drivers. -
All six U.S. regional climate centers will remain online through a new contract deadline in mid-June. Four of the centers, which are overseen by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, were abruptly closed last week after their funding ran out. -
The closure of four of the six Regional Climate Centers across the U.S. occurred after funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ran out. A recent report stated that the Trump administration plans to propose a 25% cut to NOAA's budget next fiscal year. -
About $378 million of Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program funding remains to be distributed. Without federal staff, some experts and advocates worry that low-income customers won’t be able to pay for cooling as the months get hotter. -
Another year of dry conditions could hurt production for farmers growing crops and raising livestock in the region. -
Despite the postmaster general resigning, a plan to cut back services will move forward this year. -
A nesting pair of the protected birds have made their home in the Kansas City suburb. Blue Springs and the state conservation department have set up Missouri's only live feed for viewers to follow their journey to bird parenthood. -
The annual “Great Backyard Bird Count” asks people to track the birds they see and hear over a few days. The information can help researchers better understand bird populations and whether species are declining.
