The southwestern United States has been in a drought for more than 20 years. It's created a serious problem for the Colorado River, and tens of millions of people who use water from it. Parched is a podcast about people who rely on the river that shaped the West – and have ideas to save it. Michael Elizabeth Sakas, a water reporter for Colorado Public Radio, takes you on a journey to explore some of the best and boldest ideas to bolster our water supplies.
Parched, the new podcast from CPR News, is coming April 18. Follow the show on your favorite podcast app so you don’t miss an episode.

The U.S. southwest is in a water crisis; it's a front line of climate change. This show takes you to places that rely on the Colorado River, to explore what we can do to ensure life in the region as it dries out. In this first episode, we get high up in the Rocky Mountains to see where our water comes from, and see ground zero for our water problems — the Hoover Dam — where we meet someone who predicted this crisis years before it happened. It's all to answer the question: Just how screwed are we? Part 1 of 10.

Host: Michael Elizabeth Sakas
Written by Rachel Estabrook
Editors: Erin Jones, Joe Wertz
Production and Mixing: Emily Williams
Theme song by Kibwe Cooper. Additional music via Universal Production Music.
Artwork: Maria Juliana Pinzón
Executive Producers: Kevin Dale, Brad Turner
Additional Production Support: Alison Borden, Kibwe Cooper, Jo Erickson, Luis Antonio Perez, Rebekah Romberg, Taylar Dawn Stagner, Andrew Villegas
Thanks also to Sarah Bures, Hart Van Denburg, Jodi Gersh, Kim Nguyen, Clara Shelton, Arielle Wilson and Kevin J. Beaty.

Parched is a production of the Climate Solutions team of CPR News and Colorado Public Radio’s Audio Innovations Studio — part of the NPR Network.

Indigenous tribes lived with the water's flow for thousands of years. Then, they were shut out of decision making about the Colorado River. In this episode, we go to the Jicarilla Apache Reservation to learn what that's meant for tribes, and how it's contributed to the river drying up. We also meet someone from a very different background in Boulder, Colorado. Together these men are urgently trying to do the same thing: Get everybody to the table to come up with solutions together--solutions to serve everyone who depends on the river. Part 2 of a 10-part series.

For more CPR News coverage of the Colorado River, visited cpr.org/parched.

Host: Michael Elizabeth Sakas with Taylar Dawn Stagner
Written by Michael Elizabeth Sakas and Taylar Dawn Stagner
Editors: Rachel Estabrook, Erin Jones
Production and Mixing: Emily Williams
Theme song by Kibwe Cooper. Additional music via Universal Production Music.
Artwork: Maria Juliana Pinzón
Executive Producers: Kevin Dale, Brad Turner
Additional Editorial Support: Alison Borden, Kibwe Cooper, Jo Erickson, Luis Antonio Perez, Rebekah Romberg, Andrew Villegas
Thanks also to Jeremy Wade Shockley, Sarah Bures, Hart Van Denburg, Jodi Gersh, Kim Nguyen, Clara Shelton, Arielle Wilson.

Parched is a production of the Climate Solutions team of CPR News and Colorado Public Radio’s Audio Innovations Studio — part of the NPR Network.