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Qandeel Baloch has become an icon for feminists in the country who see her as a woman who lived her life on her own terms. Her killing in 2016 drew international attention.

The power and importance of play is one of the ideas explored in Pulitzer Prize–winning author Richard Powers' new novel, Playground.

The Mayor of Normal warns looming federal limits on water system phosphorus emissions could be a development killer if area residents have to pay for 160-million-dollars in improvements without federal help. There are a lot of pets turned in to shelters in McLean County right now. But the reason for the furry glut might not be post pandemic pet purging after all. And a soon to be abolished tent city on Bloomington's west side raises the profile of the homeless in the twin cities.

Suburban sprawl is very expensive to cities and towns. It's far more cost effective to have cities go up instead of out. Bloomington wants to offer incentives for infill and rebuilding instead of more of the same old edge-of-town subdivisions. Three Afghani men evacuated when that country fell to the Taliban are relocating to Bloomington...Hear about the Afghan Welcome Home Project of Central Illinois. And there's a new resource guide for those with autism in Bloomington Normal and those who want to learn about the condition.

The Bloomington City Council is close to signing off on a plan to reduce the likelihood of future floods like the June deluge that hurt thousands of homeowners. A 50-minute recording of a wind chime is the center of a new album from a Bloomington Normal musician. Big development projects are always complicated heavy lifts. And a five year effort in Uptown Normal with Bush Construction is now over, for a while. The developer exits saying the time is not right. Normal City Manager Pam Reece says she's optimistic a four or five story mixed use building will eventually happen.

Cars connect to phones all the time now and Normal City Manager Pam Reece says that has implications, having emergency vehicles talk to traffic signals, for instance. Hear how Normal plans to be a smart city. Plus Dewitt County has a new wind farm under construction. There's more about that and the wind power industry. And in past decades McLean County Board redistricting has been a quiet exercise controlled by the dominant Republican party. This year there are enough Democrats on the board to make it a very noisy process indeed.

A Bloomington Normal woman who fought her way out of the hole of addiction is extending helping hands to others like her. Hear about an art exhibit that evokes a sense of place in central Illinois showing at Heartland Community College. Businesses have had a lot of projects delayed because of supply chain issues and inflationary cost increases, cities too, The O'Neil park project is one casualty. City Manager Tim Gleason has more. And a recent ISU graduate is campaigning for better fire protection in rental housing.

NPR's Ari Shapiro speaks with Sue Mi Terry of the Center for Strategic and International Studies about Kim Yo Jong, the increasingly influential sister of North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un, who will be joining the country's Olympic delegation.

Angeline Boulley, author of the hit Firekeeper's Daughter, writes thrillers set in Native American communities in northern Michigan, like the ones where her family has lived for generations.

Boston, San Francisco, London, Sydney — D.C.'s massive protest has spawned sister marches in all 50 states and hundreds of cities across seven continents. Here's a glimpse of some of the biggest.