documentary

'Urban Mining' explores how discarded electronics and wind turbines are being turned into a domestic source of rare earth elements. We hear from the filmmaker behind the documentary and two of the Iowans at the center of this work. The film will be showing at 4 p.m., Saturday, June 27 at the Interrobang Film Festival in Des Moines.

Frederick Newell came to Iowa City 20 years ago as a college freshman and single father, who recognized a need for support for young parents and underrepresented Iowans. As social worker, in 2012 Newell founded Dream City, a nonprofit that supports youth, families and entrepreneurs in Iowa City. Later in the program, we hear from documentary filmmaker and Muscatine native Chris Ward about his new film, 'The Journeying.'

With hopes of curbing rural population loss, Iowan Jessie Field Schambaugh created programs that led to the largest youth development organization in the United States. We hear about the history of 4-H from Laurel Burgmaier, the producer of a new Iowa PBS documentary, 'The Legacy of 4-H,' and Harry Smith, who voiced and co-wrote the script. Then, we learn about some of the oldest book clubs in Iowa from their members, Veronica Fowler and Peggy Murphy. They share tips on how to create groups that last.

Lizzie Hershberger grew up in an Amish community in Minnesota. She is a survivor of sexual abuse and rape, and she left the community, eventually writing the memoir, Behind Blue Curtains: A True Crime Memoir of an Amish Woman's Survival, Escape, and Pursuit of Justice. Hershberger connected with journalist Sarah McClure, who published a year-long investigation about incest, rape, and abuse in Amish communities. Hershberger and McClure then set out on years-long journey filming the documentary Keep Quiet and Forgive, which premieres March 23rd on PBS. Also, water quality is a huge challenge for the Midwest and the Great Plains, but there is a great deal of beauty to be found in the aquatic ecosystems that surround us. ISU professor Amy Burgin joins to share of the Great Plains' water wonders and what she calls "wicked problems."

A new documentary, Simon Estes: A Heart and A Voice tells the remarkable story of a Centerville native who shattered the color barrier for Black men in opera, and has used his acclaim and devout faith to give back as a philanthropist and humanitarian. Then and interview with Council Bluffs-based author, John T. Price, about his latest work, Goethe’s Oak: A Holocaust Story.

Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Art Cullen and president of Iowans for Stronger Communities Jesse Case join to discuss the new documentary series, 'What's Eating Iowa?' Then, two farmers share how their family has evolved to regenerative farming in northwest Iowa.