How young leaders are learning to address 'wicked problems' like the climate crisis  

Have you lost sleep worrying about the climate crisis? Or maybe you’re anxious about the surging cost of housing and health care. Or you’ve gotten discouraged about the growing gap between rich and poor in Minnesota.  

Among people who work on policy, these big, complicated problems with no simple solutions are sometimes called “wicked problems.”  

MPR News host Angela Davis talks about how the state’s top policy school is training young leaders learning to address some of these “wicked problems,” and how all of us can learn from their fresh ideas and optimism.  

Guests:  

• Nisha Botchwey is the dean of the Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota. She started in 2022. She holds master’s degrees in public health and urban planning and a Ph.D. in urban planning. 

• Nathan Jeide-Detweiler will graduate this spring from the Humphrey School’s Master of Development Practice program. He is also president of the Public Affairs Student Association.  

• Ruby DeBellis will graduate this spring from the Humphrey School’s Master of Science in Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy program. She also works as an outreach director in Senator Amy Klobuchar’s Minneapolis office.   

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Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.