Ashley Westerman
Ashley Westerman is a producer who occasionally directs the show. Since joining the staff in June 2015, she has produced a variety of stories including a coal mine closing near her hometown, the 2016 Republican National Convention, and the Rohingya refugee crisis in southern Bangladesh. She is also an occasional reporter for Morning Edition, and NPR.org, where she has contributed reports on both domestic and international news.
Ashley was a summer intern in 2011 with Morning Edition and pitched a story on her very first day. She went on to work as a reporter and host for member station 89.3 WRKF in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where she earned awards covering everything from healthcare to jambalaya.
Ashley is an East-West Center 2018 Jefferson Fellow and a two-time reporting fellow with the International Center for Journalists. Through ICFJ, she has covered labor issues in her home country of the Philippines for NPR and health care in Appalachia for Voice of America.
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Chrissy Lovett had just opened Maui Ocean Adventures when a deadly wildfire swept through Lahaina in 2023, burning up the entire business. A year and half later, they're finally back in the water. -
Ukraine is suffering from more than a Russian invasion. Births have plummeted. But many families with help from the government and doctors are trying to buck the trend and have a child in wartime. -
Witches are having a moment in Ukraine. Now they have taken center stage in a dark musical comedy titled The Witch of Konotop, with performances selling out all summer in Kyiv. -
Manicures have long been a part of regular hygiene in Ukraine. Now, amid war, they are also seen as a sign of resilience and defiance.
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Young men afraid of military conscription in Ukraine are avoiding the traditional workforce, and it's having a negative effect on the economy.
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Ukraine's largest music festival was held over the weekend in Kyiv for the first time since 2021. Going to the festival is about a lot more than just the music.
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The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees has pledged $100 million of support for people in Ukraine as they prepare for winter.
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A program in Ukraine trains women to drive buses and large trucks — jobs typically dominated by men. But the ongoing conflict with Russia is reshaping Ukraine's economy, its job market and who is available to work.
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The funeral for a doctor who was killed in a Russian missile strike on a children's hospital in Kyiv accentuates the wartime danger and losses for Ukraine's medical community.
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Ukrainians want the world to know that Russia will stop at nothing in its campaign to take over Ukraine — even if it means hurting children. Russia launched strikes on a children's hospital in Kyiv.
