11/13/24

Rocky Mountain Community Radio (RMCR) is pleased to announce the hiring of Caroline Llanes as the network’s first Rural Climate Reporter. In this role, Caroline will focus on telling the stories of rural communities across the region, examining how climate change impacts the people, environments, and economies of the Rocky Mountain West.

Caroline comes to the position after nearly three years as a reporter at Aspen Public Radio  where she covered local government and reported on a variety of state, local, and federal agencies, with a strong emphasis on climate and environmental issues.

Caroline’s award-winning work has been broadcast nationally on NPR, regionally through the Mountain West News Bureau, and across the RMCR network. 

“Climate and the environment is at the core of pretty much all of my reporting, because it’s an issue that intersects with nearly every other issue in our lives. That includes where and how we build affordable and attainable housing, how we plan our cities and transit, and the impacts on our most marginalized and vulnerable members of our communities,” said Llanes.

As RMCR’s new Rural Climate Reporter, Caroline will collaborate with newsrooms across the coalition’s 20 member stations to report on climate change and its impact on rural communities throughout the region. She will work directly with RMCR Managing Editor Maeve Conran.

“Now more than ever, covering rural climate issues is crucial, with our region at the heart of so many national conversations on climate-related topics,” said Conran. “I’m thrilled to work with Caroline as she shares the stories of this region and amplifies the voices of the people and communities most affected by climate change.”

Breeze Richardson, RMCR President concurs, stating: 

“Over the last three years I’ve had the privilege of watching Caroline grow into a remarkable beat reporter, with a passion for making climate stories accessible and relevant to our lives today. She’s going to be a tremendous asset for the RMCR coalition, with Aspen Public Radio listeners still able to hear her work thanks to our role in this collaboration as a member station.”

The Rural Climate Reporter position is funded by a one-year grant from the Rural Climate Partnership in collaboration with Colorado Media Project. 

“In an industry once defined by fierce competition, Colorado’s local newsrooms lead the nation in creating innovative ways to work together to better serve their communities. When coalitions like Rocky Mountain Community Radio share reporters and coordinate coverage among their member stations, they help different communities facing similar challenges and questions connect, support, and learn from each other,” added Sam Moody, Learning and Grants Manager at Colorado Media Project who helped RMCR secure the grant.

Founded over forty years ago, Rocky Mountain Community Radio is a coalition of more than 20 non-commercial radio stations in Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming. Participating stations include:

KAFM – Grand Junction
KAJX – Aspen
KBUT – Crested Butte and Gunnison
KDNK – Carbondale
KDUR – Durango
KFFR – Winter Park, Fraser
KGNU – Boulder and Denver
KHEN – Salida
KHOL – Jackson Hole, WY
KLZR – Westcliffe
KOTO – Telluride
KRFC – Fort Collins
KRCL – Salt Lake City, Park City, Ogden, Provo, UT
KSJD – Cortez
KSJE – Farmington, NM
KSUT – Ignacio
KUNC – Greeley
KUVO – Denver
KVNF – Paonia and Montrose
KZMU – Moab, UT

With RMCR serving many additional communities beyond those listed above.

For information about RMCR contact:

Breeze Richardson
President, RMCR Board of Directors
Executive Director, Aspen Public Radio
breeze.richardson@aspenpublicradio.org

Maeve Conran
Managing Editor, RMCR
maeve@rockymountaincommunityradio.org