Charity Nebbe
Talk of Iowa HostExpertise: Interviewing, literature, ecology, political science, history and life in Iowa, all in order to help IPR listeners and readers better understand, appreciate and explore their state
Education: Bachelors degree from Iowa State University
Favorite Iowa Destination: Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge
Experience:
Has served as a talk show and podcast host for IPR and WOI Radio, as well as for Michigan Public in Ann Arbor from 2000 — 2010
- Has been the host of Talk of Iowa since 2010
- Hosts the podcasts Garden Variety and Unsettled
- Founder of the Talk of Iowa Book Club
- Is a multi-award-winning host and reporter, including a regional Edward R. Murrow for The Bonobo Hope Great Ape Trust Sanctuary, a first place award from the Public Media Journalists Association for her Iowa Veteran Talks About Being Trafficked as a Teenager interview, a first place newscast award from the Public Media Journalists Association, and a Regional Upper Midwest Emmy for Iowa PBS' Iowa Ingredient
- Created the nationally-syndicated public radio show Chinwag Theater, which she produced and co-hosted with author Daniel Pinkwater
- Honored with an Alumni Achievement Award by Iowa State University's Department of Political Science
- Host of Iowa Life and Iowa Ingredient for Iowa PBS
- Author of the children's book Our Walk in the Woods, published in 2008
- Co-founder of Let Me Run Eastern Iowa Corridor, a character development and running program for boys
My Favorite Conversations
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The Talk of Iowa team hops into a dugout canoe on Lake Darling to learn about Indigenous cultural practices. Plus, Project AWARE uses canoes to clean up Iowa waters. -
While floodwaters destroyed and damaged Spencer homes, neighbors organized to help their community, supporting each other and the community after the devastating floodwaters receeded. -
Every spring, nearly one million Sandhill Cranes pass through an 80-mile stretch of the Platte River in Nebraska on their northward migration. -
In her memoir, Lucinda Williams explains how she spent her career making music on her own terms. -
The 108th annual Meskwaki Powwow takes place this weekend. It’s a four-day celebration of Meskwaki culture and tradition where everyone is welcome.
My Latest Stories
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Organizers said through times of hope and hardship, singing together has been an important way to find community and be authentic. The Silver Party on June 26 and 27 is a concert celebrating 25 years of the Des Moines Gay Men’s Chorus. -
The Quire of Eastern Iowa recently debuted the first Iowa performance of ‘Sincerely Yours, Pauli Murray." Board chair Sydney Houlton and Artistic Director Elena Cressy share her story and more about the inclusive LGBTQ community choir. -
Over a century ago, the Reed-Niland Corner opened at a major intersection in Colo. Today, the site is being preserved by a new nonprofit, Reed-Niland Corner, Inc., with celebrations planned for June 14.
My Latest Podcasts
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Peter Simons, author of 'Global Heartland: Cultivating the American Century on the Midwestern Farm,' shares an in-depth look at the role farmers throughout the Midwest played in America’s rise to power post-WWII. Then Adam Janke, Iowa State University wildlife extension specialist, joins the program. Janke's new series of articles shares low-cost, accessible tips for landowners and homeowners to sustain wildlife. (This show was originally produced August 11, 2025.)
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Nicole Terrizzi joins the show to discuss her memoir, 'Learning in Free Fall: A Testimony of Mental Health, Poverty and Race in American Education.' Her book focuses on the crisis in America's education system. Every day school children feel the impacts of increasing budget cuts, teacher shortages and threats to the accessibility of a quality education. Terrizzi shares her path to teaching from growing up in rural Iowa, and asks what happens when those leading our classrooms are in crisis themselves? (This show was originally produced August 6, 2025.)
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Dave Good was a District Court Judge living in Cedar Rapids. In 2003, at the age of 56, he was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s. His wife Kathy became his caregiver while continuing to work full time. On this episode, Kathy Good, who now guides other caregivers as the Senior Director of the Chris and Suzy DeWolf Family Innovation Center for Aging and Dementia of Mercy, shares her story. Then Good and Michael Wagler, Iowa State Director for the AARP, will talk about the resources those who care for loved ones with dementia. (This show was originally produced July 24, 2025.)