A New Angle

Rob Angel invented the legendary game Pictionary in 1985. I got the chance to speak with this charismatic, inspired and dynamic creator during a quick visit with his children, both Missoula residents. Rob shares the Pictionary origin story, brings us up to date on his current endeavors, and outlines his philanthropic efforts...all subject to the entertaining commentary of his daughter Sam (UM 2017) and his son Ben (MT Code School 2018).

Few places impact the community like Big Sky Brewing. This week, we sit down with founder Bjorn Nabozney to talk about beer, building a community, and the issue of alcohol on college campuses.

Women’s Voices for the Earth is a Missoula based national non-profit organization doing big things on a national scale. The group’s aim is to eliminate the use of harmful chemicals in a surprising and disturbing number of household products, particularly products used predominantly by women. We talk about WVO’s mission and strategy and how you can be more aware and get more involved

Montana has a handful of iconic establishments, and The Big Dipper is one of its finest. In this week's episode we learn all about it with founder and owner Charlie Beaton, a Missoula legend. Charlie not only creates killer ice cream, but he also makes great music as the lead singer for VTO. On top of that, hes a passionate family man and had a keen sense of the sort of life he wants to build for himself and his family. Check out The Big Dipper at: www.bigdippericecream.com

Matt McQuilkin and Jim Chapman launched Black Coffee Roasting Company in 2010 and it quickly became a fixture of the Missoula scene. In this conversation, Matt and I discuss the series of experiences that uniquely prepared him for success as a coffee entrepreneur and how he has turned that success into deep support for the Missoula community. To learn more about his great product, shop, and staff, visit: https://www.blackcoffeeroastingco.com Or stop by the shop at 525 E Spruce St in Missoula.

Meg Whicher is a Recreation Specialist at Missoula Parks and Recreation. In four short years she's become a fixture of

Investment in higher education is a hot topic across the country and in Montana especially. Every ten years since 1948 Montanans vote on a ballot measured called the 6-mil levy, which represents a substantial funding mechanism for the state's university system. The 6-mil levy returns to the ballot this November. In this special episode we present the viewpoints of Senator Jon Tester (D), Congressman Greg Gianforte (R), and UM Bureau of Business and Economic Research economist Bryce Ward. Each presents a different perspective on the value of higher education and offers some thoughts on the 6-mil levy. To be clear, we here at A New Angle can't take a position on how you should vote, but we can present you with these various viewpoints encourage you to get out and vote.

Eric Sprunk was the commencement speaker at this year's University of Montana graduation ceremony. In today's episode, we track Eric's experience as an accounting student who graduated in from UM in 1986 though to his current position as head of Nike's global operations. It's an amazing story and along the way Eric has developed a powerful and inspiring set of leadership principles. He also has some important ideas about how to conceptualize and seize opportunity. Thanks for listening!

Jeff Ament was born in Havre and grew up in Big Sandy. His Montana roots and pride run deep and returning to his home state is a big part of what keeps him balanced. Our conversation dug into several key themes about the basis for his gritty work ethic, his creative process, and his commitment to creating opportunity for others. We also explore the magic that has kept Pearl Jam at the top of its game for over 25 years. Jeff's knew solo album, Heaven/Hell, releases on May 10th. Check it out!

Lisa Mills is the creator of the world's first tea certification program. In this episode she tells us about the devastating effects conventional tea farming has on the severely endangered population of Asian elephants. The program she launched - Elephant Friendly Tea - is a fantastic example of the important collaborative, interdisciplinary work happening at the University of Montana. Housed at UM's Broader Impacts Group, the project brings together wildlife biologists, policy makers, economists, and business leaders in an attempt to change culture, industry, and the trajectory of this magnificent species. To learn more visit: www.elephantfriendlytea.com.

This week we chat with Christopher Preston, Professor of Philosophy at University of Montana. Christopher recently published The Synthetic Age: Outdesigning Evolution, Resurrecting Species, and Reengineering Our World. The central argument of the book is that human beings have fundamentally altered the planet in a manner unprecedented in history. We chat talk about the areas in which this is happening - climate, genetics, artificial intelligence, etc. It's fascinating, horrifying, inspiring, and humbling all at the same time. Christopher makes a compelling case that the world needs philosophy now more than ever. You can find the book at: https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/synthetic-age

This week's episode features my conversation with Karen Knutsen, Executive Director of the Clark Fork Coalition. Karen's focused and dynamic leadership has lead the coalition to many critical achievements in its work to protect and restore the Clark Fork River watershed. We talk about the mission of the CFC and how she uses that mission as a guide for deciding what the CFC should do and initiatives it should say "no" to. To learn more about the Clark Fork Coalition, visit www.clarkfork.org

In this episode we chat with some of the amazing University of Montana students behind Switchback Records. Switchback Records is an entirely student-run record label operating out of the College of Business’s Entertainment Management Program. On April 13, Switchback will launch its first album Elvis: Missoula to Memphis and this episode we discuss all the work leading up to this achievement. Enjoy!

Learn how Missoula's Dram Shop went from crazy idea to booming business in this week's conversation with Zach Millar. This interview was done on location, catching Zach as he tuned up the shop for a regular day of business. That makes the sound quality a bit challenging, but we think the content is solid and authentic. The Dram Shop will be celebrating its 3rd anniversary on Saturday April 7th with cool promotional events happening all day. In conjunction with this, A New Angle is launching our first promotional give-away. Listen to the pod for details!

Joel Benenson is a premier political strategist and pollster. He's the only Democratic pollster to have played a leading role in 3 winning presidential campaigns. He recently visited University of Montana to speak with our students about the Big Sky Poll project. Joel and I discuss the roll of polling, the problems associated with reporting on poll results, and how some things went wrong (for his candidate) in the 2016 election. Joel is founder and CEO of The Benenson Strategy Group where he and his team serve as strategist and consultants to heads of state, domestic political leaders at all levels, Fortune 100 CEOs, and leaders of major advocacy and nonprofit institutions. https://www.bsgco.com/who-we-are/team/joel-benenson https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joel_Benenson http://www.umt.edu/bigskypoll/