November 24, 2024 • 29 mins
Portland-based MiaDonna is working to change the diamond industry with lab-grown diamonds. The Oregon Health Authority launches the Rethink the Drink campaign. PDX is ready for Thanksgiving travelers.
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Speaker 1 (00:04):
Welcome to Local Voices. I'm brad Ford. This week how
a local company is working to change the diamond industry.
The Oregon Health Authority is running an ad campaign that
asks you how much alcohol are you drinking? And Portland
International Airport prepares for one of its busiest times of
the year. A Portland entrepreneur is rewriting the way the
(00:24):
diamond industry works. The company is called Me and Donna.
Its founder is Atamika Anderson. Miadanna pioneered the lab grown
diamond industry because of what's involved in mining natural diamonds. Adamika,
thanks for joining us on Local Voices. Where do earth
mine diamonds come from?
Speaker 2 (00:41):
Most of the majority of diamonds come from Russia or Africa,
but are actually running out of diamond deposits. They're estimating
in the next ten years, if we do not find
a big new diamond deposit, we will have no more
diamonds to mine.
Speaker 1 (00:55):
Interesting. Now I hear about conflict diamonds. What's that meant?
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Diamonds means many different things to many different people. The
legal definite definition of a conflict diamond is a diamond
that was mined by insurgent forces to fund war. But
unfortunately that definition is so narrow that it misses so
much more, and it's marketed to the consumer that it
that it means that no one was hurt during the
process of getting this diamond to the store. Since it's
(01:22):
so narrow, someone could have been enslaved to mind the diamond,
or you know, brutally attacked or you know all those
horrific things.
Speaker 3 (01:30):
It's still going on.
Speaker 2 (01:31):
But because it didn't fund war, it's being sold to
the consumer as a conflict free diamond.
Speaker 1 (01:36):
Oh. Interesting, but there's still correct issues and problems with
the way the diamond was mined.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
Correct in the consumer's mind, you know, they feel like
they're being a conscious consumer, they're asking the right questions.
But unfortunately it's a marketing campaign, right, you know with
what a conflict free diamond is if you looked at
the legal ramifications of it.
Speaker 1 (01:55):
Sure tell us about your background and what led to Meadna.
Speaker 3 (01:59):
Yeah, Well, me and.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
Donna is the original lab grond diamond company, and I
founded it out of activism. I mean, to be honest,
lab grown Diamonds. I didn't get into this business to
sell diamonds. I got into it to solve a problem
and that really was the evolution of the lab.
Speaker 3 (02:16):
Grond diamond that we have today.
Speaker 2 (02:18):
Yeah, it was total by accident. I didn't set out
to be a corporate tycoon or anything like that. I
saw a problem in the world and thought, you know what,
I can help with this. It was back in two
thousand and five when I had found out I had
most likely purchased a conflict diamond myself. And like many
of us, I always thought I was a conscious consumer,
(02:40):
but unfortunately, by buying this product, I wasn't. And so
to make things right in my own mind, I started
sponsoring a little boy and as mother in a mining
community in Liberia, Africa, and that was going to be
the extent of my philanthropy, kind of.
Speaker 3 (02:54):
I paid it back. Now I know better, and now
I'll do better.
Speaker 2 (02:58):
But something really unexpected happened is that we actually developed
a relationship. And so through their letters, I got a
first hand look and a very unbiased look of what
it was like to grow up in these conditions.
Speaker 1 (03:10):
Tell us about the origin of the name Mia.
Speaker 3 (03:12):
Donna Mia. Donna.
Speaker 2 (03:15):
Mia is my daughter, and Donna is my mother, and
my mother passed away when I was a child, and
so I just felt that name was so fitting for
this company because it's named after the two most influential
women in my life. And with our foundation, we go
back into mining communities and we really try to focus
on uplifting women in these mining communities because what we
(03:36):
found out is that when you invest in a woman,
it has a multiplier effect that she'll go out into
the community and she will teach others what she has
learned as well. So, you know, very special companies. You know,
it's got a lot of meaning to it.
Speaker 1 (03:52):
So how are lab grown diamonds made?
Speaker 2 (03:54):
Web grown diamonds are diamonds. They're chemically, physically and optically
identical to earth my diamonds.
Speaker 3 (04:00):
I kind of explain it. It's kind of like making
ice in your freezer.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
We have a modern daylab environment called our freezer, and
we're putting water in there, and once we put the
right conditions together, kind of nature takes over from there
and creates ice for us. And so we have chambers
of heat and pressure, and we also use the technology
with CBD, which is chemical vapor deposition, and so similar
to that, we're putting our seed of diamond within these
(04:26):
chambers and we're putting the right conditions together, and so
a diamond actually grows within the chamber. They are identical, chemically, physically,
and optically identical to earthlind diamonds.
Speaker 1 (04:36):
Wow, it's a combination of pressure and heat that forms
a diamond.
Speaker 2 (04:42):
We're just momocking exactly what happens in the Earth in
a chamber of heat and pressure.
Speaker 1 (04:46):
Where are the lab grown diamonds manufactured?
Speaker 3 (04:48):
We used to make all our diamonds in America.
Speaker 2 (04:52):
The industry has changed significantly in the past couple of
years and we're actually growing our own diamonds now.
Speaker 3 (04:58):
So we have moved our facility to India.
Speaker 2 (05:02):
It has been a great move as well because I've
also moved our foundation over there as well. So right
now we're working with a school and adding on a
hostel side to it. So because I have to travel
quite far to get to the store, so now he
can stay overnight with their families.
Speaker 1 (05:17):
What are the environmental and social benefits of lab grown diamonds?
Speaker 2 (05:22):
So when I found out I had most likely purchased
a conflict diamond, and I started sponsoring pon Pond and
his mother, and I got a really unbiased look of
what it was like for him to grow up in
these conditions. I'll never forget the day that he wrote
to me and said I had a great summer because
only one of my classmates was killed.
Speaker 3 (05:41):
And as a mother myself, I couldn't not do anything.
Speaker 2 (05:45):
After hearing that, I knew I had to take the
sponsorship to a bigger level. And so that's when I thought,
you know what, I'm going to sell conflict freefine jewelry,
but with the profits, I'm going to go back into
these mining communities.
Speaker 3 (05:57):
I'm going to reinvest so I can help.
Speaker 2 (06:00):
Community is not just just one family, make it much bigger.
Soon found out that anything that came from the earth
cannot be considered conflict free, especially only one in nine
diamonds can be actually traced back to the origin, so
we actually don't know where they're from. So that, well,
that's not going to work. I can't, you know what
can I sell to be the fundraiser for my foundation?
(06:20):
And so that's when I started working with scientists to
grow a diamond in a lab, because then I have
can complete troll over the humanitarian side and also the
environmental side, and love grown diamonds actually have seven times
less the environmental impact than earthline diamonds.
Speaker 1 (06:35):
Interesting because of everything environmentally that goes into digging the
mine and creating the mine and the impact on the
environment of doing that.
Speaker 2 (06:44):
I mean, you can move a thousand tons of earth
just to get a one carrot diamond.
Speaker 3 (06:48):
Depending on what the soil is looking where you're mining.
Speaker 1 (06:51):
Interesting. Tell us about the greener diamond. What's that?
Speaker 2 (06:55):
So the greener diamond is the foundation Mia Donna is
a social enterprise. So we have a for profit company,
me and Donna, and then we have our foundation, which
is a five oh one C three, which.
Speaker 3 (07:06):
Is the greener Diamond. And I actually run this.
Speaker 2 (07:08):
This is obviously my heart and soul and my passion,
and so our foundation goes back into these mining communities,
and I spend a lot of time in these communities
myself and visit.
Speaker 3 (07:18):
The locals and really immerse myself into the.
Speaker 2 (07:21):
Community and see what needs to be happened, to see
what the issues are, how can we best support them
to live a life free of mining. A lot of
people don't realize that in a lot of these communities
where the ground is so abundant in natural resources, that
it's actually illegal to grow food because it's too valuable.
Speaker 3 (07:41):
That they want to mine it exactly.
Speaker 2 (07:44):
The wealth within their soil is way too valuable. Yeah,
So what happens there is that that this can go
on for generations and they actually lose the trade about
being able to be sustainable themselves and grow their own food.
So that's why we go back into these mining community.
We try to secure land for the locals and teach
them techniques.
Speaker 3 (08:04):
On how to grow food.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
Wow, very interesting.
Speaker 3 (08:06):
We're actually growing diamonds, so we can grow food.
Speaker 1 (08:08):
Yeah, right, So explain how consumer choices can shape the
impact of industries. In this case, the diamond industry conflict diamonds,
but how consumers can make a choice to change that industry.
Speaker 3 (08:22):
It keeps coming back to being a conscious consumer. I mean,
if you know.
Speaker 2 (08:27):
The basis of that is every dollar we spend, we
are investing in the future that we want to see
in the world. But I will go back on that
too and say, it's very hard as a consumer to
know what's right, what's wrong, what's going on, what's fast fashion,
what's slow fashion. There are so many select marketing campaigns,
but really it comes down to more than price. In
(08:49):
marketing now it takes more of an investigation within the
company I always say to people that you look for
third party verifications on a company. Another nonprofit that is
actually dove into this company to give them the seal
of approval. Mia Donna is actually a b CORP certified company.
Speaker 1 (09:09):
With the first What does that mean?
Speaker 4 (09:11):
So?
Speaker 2 (09:11):
Be CORP certification means that we have not only met,
but we have exceeded the highest levels of social and
environmental justice.
Speaker 3 (09:20):
And it's a rigorous process.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
So it took us about two years to get certified
the first time because they do unpack everything within your company.
But it's really good because I'll also highlight areas that
you can do better. And so you know, if a
company has a certification like b CORP, then they've done.
Speaker 3 (09:39):
The work for you. You can trust them may be a
much better company.
Speaker 1 (09:43):
So Maadna sells the top one percent of lab grown diamonds.
I saw that on your website. What's that mean?
Speaker 5 (09:50):
So?
Speaker 2 (09:51):
I love diamond science and when we first started growing diamonds,
we could only grow them to a quarter of a
carrot and they were yellow in color, so they weren't
diamonds that we have today. I mean, our diamonds that
we're growing are better than anything. We'll ever get out
of the Earth. But what we never talk about is
the different types of diamonds because in earthlind diamonds, we
(10:12):
don't have that ability because there's a type two diamond.
Speaker 3 (10:17):
That is so incredibly rare that only.
Speaker 2 (10:19):
One percent of diamonds will be mined at that quality.
So we're actually growing all our diamonds in a type
one diamond, which just basically just has a very pure
form of carbon. So now that a lot of companies
are hitting the lab grown diamond market, there's a lot
of new manufacturers that are speeding up the process and
(10:39):
not doing a type A type two diamonds. So there's
many different qualities within lab grow and diamonds. But that's
why me and Donna's diamonds are the top one percent
of diamonds, because we are growing them to a type two,
the highest quality diamond.
Speaker 3 (10:54):
You can get.
Speaker 1 (10:55):
So when you go into an industry and you bring
as much change as you have brought to the diamond industry,
what kind of resistance did you face? You've got to
imagine that with all the big money right that's involved.
Speaker 3 (11:09):
Oh yeah, they didn't want this to start.
Speaker 2 (11:10):
I think I was so naive at the beginning that
it kind of worked in my favor. You know, I
just kind of ran into the industries. I got this
great idea, let's grow diamonds and a lamb.
Speaker 3 (11:21):
Let's give away our money.
Speaker 2 (11:24):
Wasn't taken seriously, no, But I mean I didn't just
start a business. I had to start a whole industry
and start, you know, create an innovative scientific product and
go up against one of the most ruthless industries the
world has ever seen. And I'm female, which you know,
added a whole a whole lot more of complications to that.
(11:45):
Traditionally to get into the earth my diamond industry and
normally born into it, married into it.
Speaker 3 (11:50):
Or you are a male heir.
Speaker 1 (11:52):
Wow.
Speaker 3 (11:52):
Yeah. And so there was a ton of pushback at
the beginning.
Speaker 2 (11:58):
A lot of threats, a lot of season it's a
lot of suing. I mean, for the first ten years
of my company, I spent more time in court than
I did selling diamonds.
Speaker 1 (12:09):
Interesting. I mean, you would think that it would have
something to do with copywriters something, but I mean they're
they're mining diamonds. You're making lab grown diamonds there. While
they're the same diamond a diamond, right, the process is different,
the product is different.
Speaker 3 (12:28):
Different consumer, Yeah exactly.
Speaker 1 (12:30):
But they wanted to stop it because they knew it
was a threat, correct.
Speaker 2 (12:33):
Yeah, correct, And I mean they saw this coming for
a long time. I don't think they just expected me
to come in and kind of accelerate it faster than
what they anticipated.
Speaker 3 (12:45):
But it's like the.
Speaker 2 (12:46):
Oil industry, right, they tried to stop the car battery,
car battery, the.
Speaker 3 (12:49):
Electric cars for a very long time.
Speaker 2 (12:51):
It's these old industries that are having a really hard
time adapting to modern technology that are resistant.
Speaker 1 (12:58):
Tell us about your pledge to give back ten percent
of the company's profits.
Speaker 2 (13:02):
Yeah, so ten percent of our net profits go back
to our foundation so we can reinvest into these mining communities.
And it's not just ten percent because we foundation actually
has zero administration costs. Everyone that works on the company
is a volunteer, and so ten percent of net profits
go to actually physically buy things or train or you know,
(13:25):
to the tangible options for these communities.
Speaker 1 (13:29):
Wow, that is terrific. What's it been like to be
a female entrepreneur and what obstacles did you face in
what's been a male dominated industry.
Speaker 2 (13:38):
Yeah, you're underestimated continually and not taken seriously. And for
the longest time, I really wanted respect from the industry.
I really wanted to be treated as an equal. And
I feel like a lot of women in leadership roles,
we tend to adopt a more masculine point of viewleadership
(14:00):
style to fit in, to be accepted. That was full
of fear and exhausting, to be honest, and it wasn't
until I realized, you know what, I do have an
emotional response to my foundation.
Speaker 3 (14:14):
That's actually the fuel behind what I do.
Speaker 2 (14:17):
Being a female in this industry is my unique proposition
and it is really my superpower. So when I turned
it around and went, you know what I do crime
meetings sometimes, you know, you.
Speaker 3 (14:29):
Know, being a woman and relying on.
Speaker 2 (14:32):
My empathy and compassion is what's so unique about my
company and it's what the diamond industry needs. So it's
kind of making that mental shift to honor myself.
Speaker 1 (14:43):
To be honest, How have your personal life and experiences
influenced your approach to leadership, authenticity and resilience.
Speaker 3 (14:51):
Well, what I want to say to women that are
thinking about taking a bold move like this, like what
I did, You.
Speaker 2 (14:58):
Just can't take no for an there's a lot of
rules that have already been written for us. You need
to rewrite the playbook for you, and you need to
make the choices that are right for you. What I
love seeing is that in our foundation, all our projects
have to have half female, half.
Speaker 3 (15:16):
Male in what we do.
Speaker 2 (15:17):
It's so it's equal. And what we're seeing is that
the women that we're training in different projects, whether it
be agricultural or business or entrepreneurialship, they're growing faster, they're
giving back to the community. It has a much bigger
multiplier effect. Even studies show that women in business not
(15:38):
only do better, but they're most likely going to give
their profits back to their local community because they definitely
lead from more of a WE standpoint than an I standpoint.
And so that's what I love talking to other women
when they're not sure about starting their own business. They
have such a unique set of skills that the world
(15:58):
needs right now big business.
Speaker 3 (16:00):
This has been so masculine.
Speaker 2 (16:01):
In the past that bringing a more feminine approach to
big business can only help the environment.
Speaker 3 (16:09):
And communities worldwide.
Speaker 1 (16:10):
Kind of create your own path exactly exactly, So where
can listeners learn more about me and Donna?
Speaker 2 (16:16):
We're online at Meadonna dot com. You can also follow
me on Instagram or TikTok and see kind of the
behind the scenes of what it takes to run a
lib Gron diamond company, how we grow lab grown diamonds,
and what we do with our philanthropy side. But we've
also just opened up a new store in Bridgeport Village,
so come fine and see us.
Speaker 1 (16:36):
Anamika, thanks for joining us on local voices. Visit me
and Donna's store in Bridgeport Village. They'll have Black Friday
offers now through December third. They have future plans to
open stores in New York, Seattle, and Los Angeles. The
Oregon Health Authority is bringing back the Rethink the Drink
ad campaign. The goal is to reduce successive drinking. One
(16:57):
TV ad points out where alcohol is becoming a new norm.
Speaker 6 (17:01):
Have you noticed how alcohol is kind of everywhere these days?
When did it start showing up at baby showers or
our kid's birthday parties, on a hike for breakfast, at
the end of a race, doing your laundry. How has
alcohol become essential to so many parts of our lives?
Visit rethinkthedrink dot com for more.
Speaker 1 (17:22):
Another ad asks the question they want you to ask yourself,
how many drinks do you have in a week?
Speaker 3 (17:31):
I don't think I've ever answered that question honestly.
Speaker 1 (17:34):
During the holidays fifteen sixteen seventeen. Well it's fullball season.
You can have more than me and I usually do.
Speaker 3 (17:48):
I don't know how many should I have.
Speaker 1 (17:51):
Doctor Tom Jane with the Oregon Health Authority joins us
on Local Voices. Tom tell us about the ad campaign.
Speaker 5 (17:57):
Yeah, So, Rethink the Drink is the name of our
our campaign about excessive alcohol use, and we've been running
it for a couple of years now and we are
back with a campaign this holiday season to continue the
conversation about excessive alcohol use. So this year's campaign encourages
people to come together to help one another be healthy,
(18:20):
to care for our communities, and that includes creating healthy
environments that support people and their efforts to drink west.
So it's running during football season and the holiday holidays,
which is of course a time when many people are
coming together to attend and host celebrations or events where
alcohol may be served. And then the campaign will also
(18:42):
run through the beginning of January, which is a time
when people are focused on New Year's resolutions and improving
their health. And really we're emphasizing that we don't need
alcohol to enjoy the holiday season. We can spend time
with loved ones and friends and celebrate without the pressure
to drink.
Speaker 1 (19:01):
Are multiple state agencies involved in the campaign.
Speaker 5 (19:04):
Yes, we have organ Health Authority, we have the Alcohol
and Drug Policy Commission, we have the Organ Liquor and
Cannabis Commission, and the organ Department of Transportation that are
uniting to urge people to rethink the drink during this
holiday season. And you know, we're excited that we're all
working together towards our shared goals. And you know, all
(19:28):
these agencies have been working with Rethink the Drinks from
the beginning, and all these agencies recognize the numerous impacts
of alcohol use on Oregonians.
Speaker 1 (19:38):
Yeah, talk a little bit about the type of health
impacts that excessive alcohol use has on Oregonians.
Speaker 5 (19:45):
Excessive alcohol use can lead to cancers, numerous cancers, heart disease,
liver disease, mental health issues, as well as crime and
domestic violence and vehicle crashes. And really the more alcoholic drink,
the more alcohol that a person drinks, the higher their
risk of all of these harms, and excessive alcohol use
(20:08):
also increases risk for developing an actual alcohol use disorder
or alcoholism later in life. We know that over twenty
five hundred people in Oregan die from alcohol related causes
every year, so some of those that I mentioned are
included in that. And the share of organ adults who
drink excessively is larger than many may realize. So it's
(20:29):
more than one in five organ adults who are drinking excessively.
And as a reminder that excessive drinking includes both binge drinking,
which is five or more drinks than one occasion for
a man, or four or more drinks on one occasion
for a woman, and heavy drinking, which is fifteen drinks
or more a week for a man, or eight or
(20:51):
more drinks a week for a woman.
Speaker 1 (20:53):
What type of reactions do you hope the campaign has
on people who see it? What do you want them
to do?
Speaker 5 (21:00):
So, as I mentioned, we're really hoping to spark conversations
and you know, balanced discussions of you know the role
that alcohol plays in people's lives. So they're kind of
these ads are meant to be conversation starters people people
may may not realize, how you know, quite how ubiquitous
(21:20):
alcohol has become in in many settings, whether it's you know,
not not just parties or events, but uh, you know,
at the barbershop or baby showers. It's just very very
common in our in our culture these days. So we
really think we need a new way to think and
talk about alcohol and to realize that, you know, less
(21:41):
drinking is always better. We're not saying people need to
stop drinking, but we're just trying to highlight that there
are health risks at even at really relatively low levels
of alcohol use.
Speaker 1 (21:52):
So for people throwing parties, what do they need to
consider to control alcohol use? And people driving home after
a party?
Speaker 5 (22:00):
Yeah, I think one of the most important things if
you're hosting an event is to make sure you're not
pressuring guests into drinking or drinking more. So that definitely
means including non alcoholic beverage options. Of course, having a
designated driver or riot share or a taxi set up
for people who are coming to the event, and drinking
(22:21):
plenty of water and eating food for people are who
may be drinking alcohol.
Speaker 1 (22:26):
Should you keep track of how much alcohol people are drinking,
how many drinks somebody's had.
Speaker 5 (22:31):
Yeah, I think you know, that's one of the things
that hosts and family members can think about, just keep
an eye on people. You know, it's obviously a personal
decision how much to drink, but kind of the context
and the environment that you're setting in a social situation
makes a big difference on how much people may be drinking.
So if you have a huge range of alcoholic beverageers
(22:54):
and just one or two non alcoholic options, that may
mean everybody's going to end up drinking more alcohol than
if you have a lot of different non alcoholic options
and fewer alcoholic options.
Speaker 1 (23:05):
Does the state offer resources to help people reduce alcohol use.
Speaker 5 (23:09):
Absolutely. There are some great resources at rethinkthedrink dot com
which can help people who want to drink less. It
can support individuals or their loved ones who might have
an alcohol US disorder. We have a presence on Facebook
on Instagram as well, and there's also the Alcohol and
Drug Helpline where people can find free confidential resources, and
(23:33):
that's at one eight hundred and nine two three or
three five seven.
Speaker 1 (23:37):
Thanks Tom. That's doctor Tom Jean with the Oregon Health
Authority explaining the Rethink the Drink ad campaign to encourage
you to think about how much you might be drinking
and whether you need to scale back. You can find
out more on the website rethinkthedrink dot com. Thanksgiving week
is here in travel at Portland International Airport would be
among the busiest of the year. Allison for Right for
(24:00):
PDX joins us on local Voices Alison, how many people
will go through PDX and what will be the busiest days?
Speaker 4 (24:06):
Yeah, So, what we're looking at for Thanksgiving travel at PDX,
and we're defining that Thanksgiving travel window as Tuesday, November
twenty six through Monday, December second, and we're expecting around
three hundred and fifty thousand arriving and departing travelers coming
through PDX during that period. That's going to be about
(24:27):
a three and a half percent increase over last year.
And the peak days are pretty much what you would expect.
Wednesday before Thanksgiving and then also the Sunday after and
both of those days we're expecting to see around fifty
seven thousand travelers each day.
Speaker 1 (24:43):
What do you advise as far as when people should arrive.
Speaker 4 (24:46):
The standard recommendation for when to arrive during that busy
period is at least two hours for domestic flights, and again,
you know, there's a lot of factors that go into
when you should arrive. You know, if you're checking a bed,
if you need to find parking, you know, all of
those things can to add to the time it actually
(25:07):
takes you to get to your gate. But the two
hours before is a safe bet, just to make sure
you have time to do what you need to do
before your flight, get through security and you're not running
running down the hallways because you know, construction is still
ongoing even though the new main terminal is open, so
(25:29):
there are longer walks to two of the concourses, specifically
Concourse B and Concourse E. So if your gate is
you know at the end of one of those, you
will have a little bit longer walk.
Speaker 1 (25:41):
What do you recommend for people who have not been
to the main terminal since it opened and the renovations
have gotten to this point as far as you know,
what they should expect when they enter the area and
should they give themselves a little bit more time to
figure out where they need to go.
Speaker 4 (26:00):
Yeah, So, if you know the holidays are a time
where people may be traveling, it may be the one
time of year that they travel so many people who
are traveling over the Thanksgiving a holiday haven't been to PDX,
the new PDX since it opened back in August, so
it's going to look a little bit different. And one
thing that travelers can do, especially those travelers who like
(26:23):
to familiarize themselves before they arrive at the airport, is
we have an interactive map on flypdx dot com backslash map,
and you can see the new layout, and it gives
you an aerial view, so you can kind of see
it's the same general layout. You know you walk in
the TSA checkpoints are at the north and south, but
(26:46):
everything's bigger. The ticket counters have a different orientation, so
you can kind of get familiar with what to expect
at PDX by looking at that map in advance. And
it also has really helpful tools on it. You can
see where the new shops and restaurants are that you
may want to check out. You can find resources like
(27:07):
kids play areas if you're traveling with little ones. And
then there's also fun features on it. You know, you
can find background on the local art installations that are
new to PDX. There's even a carpet finder so you
can make sure you get that foot selfie with the
iconic carpet that's back.
Speaker 1 (27:26):
I think different with TSA. I can't remember the last
time I went through if it had changed. It's still
the main line and then the TSA pre line.
Speaker 4 (27:34):
Right, Yeah, so I mean there are the checkpoints are
new and they do have upgraded equipment since the August opening,
so it is going to look a little bit different
many of the lines now for general, the non TSA
pre check lines, people now approach the machines three at
(27:54):
a time to load their equipment. So certain things are
going to be a little bit different. But if you
visit pdxnext dot com, we have an overview of kind
of five things to expect when the terminal opened, and
people can find a little bit more information about the
TSA lines. But you know, generally, you know they're in
the same locations north and south, but they do they
(28:18):
do look different.
Speaker 1 (28:19):
Any advice on parking and what people can do to
figure out, you know, where they might want to park,
where there's available parking.
Speaker 4 (28:27):
Yeah. So one of the other great features about fly
PDX is you can see in real time the capacity
of the parking garages. So let's say you always park
in long term, but as you're getting ready to leave,
you're seeing that's you know, maybe ninety percent full or
something like that, which which can happen over these busy
travel periods. You may then pivot plan to park somewhere else,
(28:50):
or you know, change plans and take the Max Redline,
which underwent improvements last year and has expanded service into
Hillsboro and it'll bring you right to PDX.
Speaker 1 (29:03):
Anything else you want to add that I didn't ask
you about, I.
Speaker 4 (29:06):
Think the only other thing to add that I didn't
mention in reference to the win to arrive thing is
also just reminding people that airports have rush hours too,
So if people don't typically travel in the morning, if
you show up in that five am to nine am period,
that's the busiest time at PDX. So definitely plan to
(29:26):
give yourself more of a buffer if you're traveling during
that time period.
Speaker 1 (29:29):
Thanks Allison. That's Alison Forray with Portland International Airport with
Thanksgiving travel tips. You can find out more on their
website FLYPDX dot com. Thanks for listening to local voices,
I'm brad Ford. You can hear past episodes on the
iHeartRadio app under the podcast tab Local Voices is a
public affairs presentation from iHeartRadio
Welcome to Local Voices. I'm brad Ford. This week how
a local company is working to change the diamond industry.
The Oregon Health Authority is running an ad campaign that
asks you how much alcohol are you drinking? And Portland
International Airport prepares for one of its busiest times of
the year. A Portland entrepreneur is rewriting the way the
(00:24):
diamond industry works. The company is called Me and Donna.
Its founder is Atamika Anderson. Miadanna pioneered the lab grown
diamond industry because of what's involved in mining natural diamonds. Adamika,
thanks for joining us on Local Voices. Where do earth
mine diamonds come from?
Speaker 2 (00:41):
Most of the majority of diamonds come from Russia or Africa,
but are actually running out of diamond deposits. They're estimating
in the next ten years, if we do not find
a big new diamond deposit, we will have no more
diamonds to mine.
Speaker 1 (00:55):
Interesting. Now I hear about conflict diamonds. What's that meant?
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Diamonds means many different things to many different people. The
legal definite definition of a conflict diamond is a diamond
that was mined by insurgent forces to fund war. But
unfortunately that definition is so narrow that it misses so
much more, and it's marketed to the consumer that it
that it means that no one was hurt during the
process of getting this diamond to the store. Since it's
(01:22):
so narrow, someone could have been enslaved to mind the diamond,
or you know, brutally attacked or you know all those
horrific things.
Speaker 3 (01:30):
It's still going on.
Speaker 2 (01:31):
But because it didn't fund war, it's being sold to
the consumer as a conflict free diamond.
Speaker 1 (01:36):
Oh. Interesting, but there's still correct issues and problems with
the way the diamond was mined.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
Correct in the consumer's mind, you know, they feel like
they're being a conscious consumer, they're asking the right questions.
But unfortunately it's a marketing campaign, right, you know with
what a conflict free diamond is if you looked at
the legal ramifications of it.
Speaker 1 (01:55):
Sure tell us about your background and what led to Meadna.
Speaker 3 (01:59):
Yeah, Well, me and.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
Donna is the original lab grond diamond company, and I
founded it out of activism. I mean, to be honest,
lab grown Diamonds. I didn't get into this business to
sell diamonds. I got into it to solve a problem
and that really was the evolution of the lab.
Speaker 3 (02:16):
Grond diamond that we have today.
Speaker 2 (02:18):
Yeah, it was total by accident. I didn't set out
to be a corporate tycoon or anything like that. I
saw a problem in the world and thought, you know what,
I can help with this. It was back in two
thousand and five when I had found out I had
most likely purchased a conflict diamond myself. And like many
of us, I always thought I was a conscious consumer,
(02:40):
but unfortunately, by buying this product, I wasn't. And so
to make things right in my own mind, I started
sponsoring a little boy and as mother in a mining
community in Liberia, Africa, and that was going to be
the extent of my philanthropy, kind of.
Speaker 3 (02:54):
I paid it back. Now I know better, and now
I'll do better.
Speaker 2 (02:58):
But something really unexpected happened is that we actually developed
a relationship. And so through their letters, I got a
first hand look and a very unbiased look of what
it was like to grow up in these conditions.
Speaker 1 (03:10):
Tell us about the origin of the name Mia.
Speaker 3 (03:12):
Donna Mia. Donna.
Speaker 2 (03:15):
Mia is my daughter, and Donna is my mother, and
my mother passed away when I was a child, and
so I just felt that name was so fitting for
this company because it's named after the two most influential
women in my life. And with our foundation, we go
back into mining communities and we really try to focus
on uplifting women in these mining communities because what we
(03:36):
found out is that when you invest in a woman,
it has a multiplier effect that she'll go out into
the community and she will teach others what she has
learned as well. So, you know, very special companies. You know,
it's got a lot of meaning to it.
Speaker 1 (03:52):
So how are lab grown diamonds made?
Speaker 2 (03:54):
Web grown diamonds are diamonds. They're chemically, physically and optically
identical to earth my diamonds.
Speaker 3 (04:00):
I kind of explain it. It's kind of like making
ice in your freezer.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
We have a modern daylab environment called our freezer, and
we're putting water in there, and once we put the
right conditions together, kind of nature takes over from there
and creates ice for us. And so we have chambers
of heat and pressure, and we also use the technology
with CBD, which is chemical vapor deposition, and so similar
to that, we're putting our seed of diamond within these
(04:26):
chambers and we're putting the right conditions together, and so
a diamond actually grows within the chamber. They are identical, chemically, physically,
and optically identical to earthlind diamonds.
Speaker 1 (04:36):
Wow, it's a combination of pressure and heat that forms
a diamond.
Speaker 2 (04:42):
We're just momocking exactly what happens in the Earth in
a chamber of heat and pressure.
Speaker 1 (04:46):
Where are the lab grown diamonds manufactured?
Speaker 3 (04:48):
We used to make all our diamonds in America.
Speaker 2 (04:52):
The industry has changed significantly in the past couple of
years and we're actually growing our own diamonds now.
Speaker 3 (04:58):
So we have moved our facility to India.
Speaker 2 (05:02):
It has been a great move as well because I've
also moved our foundation over there as well. So right
now we're working with a school and adding on a
hostel side to it. So because I have to travel
quite far to get to the store, so now he
can stay overnight with their families.
Speaker 1 (05:17):
What are the environmental and social benefits of lab grown diamonds?
Speaker 2 (05:22):
So when I found out I had most likely purchased
a conflict diamond, and I started sponsoring pon Pond and
his mother, and I got a really unbiased look of
what it was like for him to grow up in
these conditions. I'll never forget the day that he wrote
to me and said I had a great summer because
only one of my classmates was killed.
Speaker 3 (05:41):
And as a mother myself, I couldn't not do anything.
Speaker 2 (05:45):
After hearing that, I knew I had to take the
sponsorship to a bigger level. And so that's when I thought,
you know what, I'm going to sell conflict freefine jewelry,
but with the profits, I'm going to go back into
these mining communities.
Speaker 3 (05:57):
I'm going to reinvest so I can help.
Speaker 2 (06:00):
Community is not just just one family, make it much bigger.
Soon found out that anything that came from the earth
cannot be considered conflict free, especially only one in nine
diamonds can be actually traced back to the origin, so
we actually don't know where they're from. So that, well,
that's not going to work. I can't, you know what
can I sell to be the fundraiser for my foundation?
(06:20):
And so that's when I started working with scientists to
grow a diamond in a lab, because then I have
can complete troll over the humanitarian side and also the
environmental side, and love grown diamonds actually have seven times
less the environmental impact than earthline diamonds.
Speaker 1 (06:35):
Interesting because of everything environmentally that goes into digging the
mine and creating the mine and the impact on the
environment of doing that.
Speaker 2 (06:44):
I mean, you can move a thousand tons of earth
just to get a one carrot diamond.
Speaker 3 (06:48):
Depending on what the soil is looking where you're mining.
Speaker 1 (06:51):
Interesting. Tell us about the greener diamond. What's that?
Speaker 2 (06:55):
So the greener diamond is the foundation Mia Donna is
a social enterprise. So we have a for profit company,
me and Donna, and then we have our foundation, which
is a five oh one C three, which.
Speaker 3 (07:06):
Is the greener Diamond. And I actually run this.
Speaker 2 (07:08):
This is obviously my heart and soul and my passion,
and so our foundation goes back into these mining communities,
and I spend a lot of time in these communities
myself and visit.
Speaker 3 (07:18):
The locals and really immerse myself into the.
Speaker 2 (07:21):
Community and see what needs to be happened, to see
what the issues are, how can we best support them
to live a life free of mining. A lot of
people don't realize that in a lot of these communities
where the ground is so abundant in natural resources, that
it's actually illegal to grow food because it's too valuable.
Speaker 3 (07:41):
That they want to mine it exactly.
Speaker 2 (07:44):
The wealth within their soil is way too valuable. Yeah,
So what happens there is that that this can go
on for generations and they actually lose the trade about
being able to be sustainable themselves and grow their own food.
So that's why we go back into these mining community.
We try to secure land for the locals and teach
them techniques.
Speaker 3 (08:04):
On how to grow food.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
Wow, very interesting.
Speaker 3 (08:06):
We're actually growing diamonds, so we can grow food.
Speaker 1 (08:08):
Yeah, right, So explain how consumer choices can shape the
impact of industries. In this case, the diamond industry conflict diamonds,
but how consumers can make a choice to change that industry.
Speaker 3 (08:22):
It keeps coming back to being a conscious consumer. I mean,
if you know.
Speaker 2 (08:27):
The basis of that is every dollar we spend, we
are investing in the future that we want to see
in the world. But I will go back on that
too and say, it's very hard as a consumer to
know what's right, what's wrong, what's going on, what's fast fashion,
what's slow fashion. There are so many select marketing campaigns,
but really it comes down to more than price. In
(08:49):
marketing now it takes more of an investigation within the
company I always say to people that you look for
third party verifications on a company. Another nonprofit that is
actually dove into this company to give them the seal
of approval. Mia Donna is actually a b CORP certified company.
Speaker 1 (09:09):
With the first What does that mean?
Speaker 4 (09:11):
So?
Speaker 2 (09:11):
Be CORP certification means that we have not only met,
but we have exceeded the highest levels of social and
environmental justice.
Speaker 3 (09:20):
And it's a rigorous process.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
So it took us about two years to get certified
the first time because they do unpack everything within your company.
But it's really good because I'll also highlight areas that
you can do better. And so you know, if a
company has a certification like b CORP, then they've done.
Speaker 3 (09:39):
The work for you. You can trust them may be a
much better company.
Speaker 1 (09:43):
So Maadna sells the top one percent of lab grown diamonds.
I saw that on your website. What's that mean?
Speaker 5 (09:50):
So?
Speaker 2 (09:51):
I love diamond science and when we first started growing diamonds,
we could only grow them to a quarter of a
carrot and they were yellow in color, so they weren't
diamonds that we have today. I mean, our diamonds that
we're growing are better than anything. We'll ever get out
of the Earth. But what we never talk about is
the different types of diamonds because in earthlind diamonds, we
(10:12):
don't have that ability because there's a type two diamond.
Speaker 3 (10:17):
That is so incredibly rare that only.
Speaker 2 (10:19):
One percent of diamonds will be mined at that quality.
So we're actually growing all our diamonds in a type
one diamond, which just basically just has a very pure
form of carbon. So now that a lot of companies
are hitting the lab grown diamond market, there's a lot
of new manufacturers that are speeding up the process and
(10:39):
not doing a type A type two diamonds. So there's
many different qualities within lab grow and diamonds. But that's
why me and Donna's diamonds are the top one percent
of diamonds, because we are growing them to a type two,
the highest quality diamond.
Speaker 3 (10:54):
You can get.
Speaker 1 (10:55):
So when you go into an industry and you bring
as much change as you have brought to the diamond industry,
what kind of resistance did you face? You've got to
imagine that with all the big money right that's involved.
Speaker 3 (11:09):
Oh yeah, they didn't want this to start.
Speaker 2 (11:10):
I think I was so naive at the beginning that
it kind of worked in my favor. You know, I
just kind of ran into the industries. I got this
great idea, let's grow diamonds and a lamb.
Speaker 3 (11:21):
Let's give away our money.
Speaker 2 (11:24):
Wasn't taken seriously, no, But I mean I didn't just
start a business. I had to start a whole industry
and start, you know, create an innovative scientific product and
go up against one of the most ruthless industries the
world has ever seen. And I'm female, which you know,
added a whole a whole lot more of complications to that.
(11:45):
Traditionally to get into the earth my diamond industry and
normally born into it, married into it.
Speaker 3 (11:50):
Or you are a male heir.
Speaker 1 (11:52):
Wow.
Speaker 3 (11:52):
Yeah. And so there was a ton of pushback at
the beginning.
Speaker 2 (11:58):
A lot of threats, a lot of season it's a
lot of suing. I mean, for the first ten years
of my company, I spent more time in court than
I did selling diamonds.
Speaker 1 (12:09):
Interesting. I mean, you would think that it would have
something to do with copywriters something, but I mean they're
they're mining diamonds. You're making lab grown diamonds there. While
they're the same diamond a diamond, right, the process is different,
the product is different.
Speaker 3 (12:28):
Different consumer, Yeah exactly.
Speaker 1 (12:30):
But they wanted to stop it because they knew it
was a threat, correct.
Speaker 2 (12:33):
Yeah, correct, And I mean they saw this coming for
a long time. I don't think they just expected me
to come in and kind of accelerate it faster than
what they anticipated.
Speaker 3 (12:45):
But it's like the.
Speaker 2 (12:46):
Oil industry, right, they tried to stop the car battery,
car battery, the.
Speaker 3 (12:49):
Electric cars for a very long time.
Speaker 2 (12:51):
It's these old industries that are having a really hard
time adapting to modern technology that are resistant.
Speaker 1 (12:58):
Tell us about your pledge to give back ten percent
of the company's profits.
Speaker 2 (13:02):
Yeah, so ten percent of our net profits go back
to our foundation so we can reinvest into these mining communities.
And it's not just ten percent because we foundation actually
has zero administration costs. Everyone that works on the company
is a volunteer, and so ten percent of net profits
go to actually physically buy things or train or you know,
(13:25):
to the tangible options for these communities.
Speaker 1 (13:29):
Wow, that is terrific. What's it been like to be
a female entrepreneur and what obstacles did you face in
what's been a male dominated industry.
Speaker 2 (13:38):
Yeah, you're underestimated continually and not taken seriously. And for
the longest time, I really wanted respect from the industry.
I really wanted to be treated as an equal. And
I feel like a lot of women in leadership roles,
we tend to adopt a more masculine point of viewleadership
(14:00):
style to fit in, to be accepted. That was full
of fear and exhausting, to be honest, and it wasn't
until I realized, you know what, I do have an
emotional response to my foundation.
Speaker 3 (14:14):
That's actually the fuel behind what I do.
Speaker 2 (14:17):
Being a female in this industry is my unique proposition
and it is really my superpower. So when I turned
it around and went, you know what I do crime
meetings sometimes, you know, you.
Speaker 3 (14:29):
Know, being a woman and relying on.
Speaker 2 (14:32):
My empathy and compassion is what's so unique about my
company and it's what the diamond industry needs. So it's
kind of making that mental shift to honor myself.
Speaker 1 (14:43):
To be honest, How have your personal life and experiences
influenced your approach to leadership, authenticity and resilience.
Speaker 3 (14:51):
Well, what I want to say to women that are
thinking about taking a bold move like this, like what
I did, You.
Speaker 2 (14:58):
Just can't take no for an there's a lot of
rules that have already been written for us. You need
to rewrite the playbook for you, and you need to
make the choices that are right for you. What I
love seeing is that in our foundation, all our projects
have to have half female, half.
Speaker 3 (15:16):
Male in what we do.
Speaker 2 (15:17):
It's so it's equal. And what we're seeing is that
the women that we're training in different projects, whether it
be agricultural or business or entrepreneurialship, they're growing faster, they're
giving back to the community. It has a much bigger
multiplier effect. Even studies show that women in business not
(15:38):
only do better, but they're most likely going to give
their profits back to their local community because they definitely
lead from more of a WE standpoint than an I standpoint.
And so that's what I love talking to other women
when they're not sure about starting their own business. They
have such a unique set of skills that the world
(15:58):
needs right now big business.
Speaker 3 (16:00):
This has been so masculine.
Speaker 2 (16:01):
In the past that bringing a more feminine approach to
big business can only help the environment.
Speaker 3 (16:09):
And communities worldwide.
Speaker 1 (16:10):
Kind of create your own path exactly exactly, So where
can listeners learn more about me and Donna?
Speaker 2 (16:16):
We're online at Meadonna dot com. You can also follow
me on Instagram or TikTok and see kind of the
behind the scenes of what it takes to run a
lib Gron diamond company, how we grow lab grown diamonds,
and what we do with our philanthropy side. But we've
also just opened up a new store in Bridgeport Village,
so come fine and see us.
Speaker 1 (16:36):
Anamika, thanks for joining us on local voices. Visit me
and Donna's store in Bridgeport Village. They'll have Black Friday
offers now through December third. They have future plans to
open stores in New York, Seattle, and Los Angeles. The
Oregon Health Authority is bringing back the Rethink the Drink
ad campaign. The goal is to reduce successive drinking. One
(16:57):
TV ad points out where alcohol is becoming a new norm.
Speaker 6 (17:01):
Have you noticed how alcohol is kind of everywhere these days?
When did it start showing up at baby showers or
our kid's birthday parties, on a hike for breakfast, at
the end of a race, doing your laundry. How has
alcohol become essential to so many parts of our lives?
Visit rethinkthedrink dot com for more.
Speaker 1 (17:22):
Another ad asks the question they want you to ask yourself,
how many drinks do you have in a week?
Speaker 3 (17:31):
I don't think I've ever answered that question honestly.
Speaker 1 (17:34):
During the holidays fifteen sixteen seventeen. Well it's fullball season.
You can have more than me and I usually do.
Speaker 3 (17:48):
I don't know how many should I have.
Speaker 1 (17:51):
Doctor Tom Jane with the Oregon Health Authority joins us
on Local Voices. Tom tell us about the ad campaign.
Speaker 5 (17:57):
Yeah, So, Rethink the Drink is the name of our
our campaign about excessive alcohol use, and we've been running
it for a couple of years now and we are
back with a campaign this holiday season to continue the
conversation about excessive alcohol use. So this year's campaign encourages
people to come together to help one another be healthy,
(18:20):
to care for our communities, and that includes creating healthy
environments that support people and their efforts to drink west.
So it's running during football season and the holiday holidays,
which is of course a time when many people are
coming together to attend and host celebrations or events where
alcohol may be served. And then the campaign will also
(18:42):
run through the beginning of January, which is a time
when people are focused on New Year's resolutions and improving
their health. And really we're emphasizing that we don't need
alcohol to enjoy the holiday season. We can spend time
with loved ones and friends and celebrate without the pressure
to drink.
Speaker 1 (19:01):
Are multiple state agencies involved in the campaign.
Speaker 5 (19:04):
Yes, we have organ Health Authority, we have the Alcohol
and Drug Policy Commission, we have the Organ Liquor and
Cannabis Commission, and the organ Department of Transportation that are
uniting to urge people to rethink the drink during this
holiday season. And you know, we're excited that we're all
working together towards our shared goals. And you know, all
(19:28):
these agencies have been working with Rethink the Drinks from
the beginning, and all these agencies recognize the numerous impacts
of alcohol use on Oregonians.
Speaker 1 (19:38):
Yeah, talk a little bit about the type of health
impacts that excessive alcohol use has on Oregonians.
Speaker 5 (19:45):
Excessive alcohol use can lead to cancers, numerous cancers, heart disease,
liver disease, mental health issues, as well as crime and
domestic violence and vehicle crashes. And really the more alcoholic drink,
the more alcohol that a person drinks, the higher their
risk of all of these harms, and excessive alcohol use
(20:08):
also increases risk for developing an actual alcohol use disorder
or alcoholism later in life. We know that over twenty
five hundred people in Oregan die from alcohol related causes
every year, so some of those that I mentioned are
included in that. And the share of organ adults who
drink excessively is larger than many may realize. So it's
(20:29):
more than one in five organ adults who are drinking excessively.
And as a reminder that excessive drinking includes both binge drinking,
which is five or more drinks than one occasion for
a man, or four or more drinks on one occasion
for a woman, and heavy drinking, which is fifteen drinks
or more a week for a man, or eight or
(20:51):
more drinks a week for a woman.
Speaker 1 (20:53):
What type of reactions do you hope the campaign has
on people who see it? What do you want them
to do?
Speaker 5 (21:00):
So, as I mentioned, we're really hoping to spark conversations
and you know, balanced discussions of you know the role
that alcohol plays in people's lives. So they're kind of
these ads are meant to be conversation starters people people
may may not realize, how you know, quite how ubiquitous
(21:20):
alcohol has become in in many settings, whether it's you know,
not not just parties or events, but uh, you know,
at the barbershop or baby showers. It's just very very
common in our in our culture these days. So we
really think we need a new way to think and
talk about alcohol and to realize that, you know, less
(21:41):
drinking is always better. We're not saying people need to
stop drinking, but we're just trying to highlight that there
are health risks at even at really relatively low levels
of alcohol use.
Speaker 1 (21:52):
So for people throwing parties, what do they need to
consider to control alcohol use? And people driving home after
a party?
Speaker 5 (22:00):
Yeah, I think one of the most important things if
you're hosting an event is to make sure you're not
pressuring guests into drinking or drinking more. So that definitely
means including non alcoholic beverage options. Of course, having a
designated driver or riot share or a taxi set up
for people who are coming to the event, and drinking
(22:21):
plenty of water and eating food for people are who
may be drinking alcohol.
Speaker 1 (22:26):
Should you keep track of how much alcohol people are drinking,
how many drinks somebody's had.
Speaker 5 (22:31):
Yeah, I think you know, that's one of the things
that hosts and family members can think about, just keep
an eye on people. You know, it's obviously a personal
decision how much to drink, but kind of the context
and the environment that you're setting in a social situation
makes a big difference on how much people may be drinking.
So if you have a huge range of alcoholic beverageers
(22:54):
and just one or two non alcoholic options, that may
mean everybody's going to end up drinking more alcohol than
if you have a lot of different non alcoholic options
and fewer alcoholic options.
Speaker 1 (23:05):
Does the state offer resources to help people reduce alcohol use.
Speaker 5 (23:09):
Absolutely. There are some great resources at rethinkthedrink dot com
which can help people who want to drink less. It
can support individuals or their loved ones who might have
an alcohol US disorder. We have a presence on Facebook
on Instagram as well, and there's also the Alcohol and
Drug Helpline where people can find free confidential resources, and
(23:33):
that's at one eight hundred and nine two three or
three five seven.
Speaker 1 (23:37):
Thanks Tom. That's doctor Tom Jean with the Oregon Health
Authority explaining the Rethink the Drink ad campaign to encourage
you to think about how much you might be drinking
and whether you need to scale back. You can find
out more on the website rethinkthedrink dot com. Thanksgiving week
is here in travel at Portland International Airport would be
among the busiest of the year. Allison for Right for
(24:00):
PDX joins us on local Voices Alison, how many people
will go through PDX and what will be the busiest days?
Speaker 4 (24:06):
Yeah, So, what we're looking at for Thanksgiving travel at PDX,
and we're defining that Thanksgiving travel window as Tuesday, November
twenty six through Monday, December second, and we're expecting around
three hundred and fifty thousand arriving and departing travelers coming
through PDX during that period. That's going to be about
(24:27):
a three and a half percent increase over last year.
And the peak days are pretty much what you would expect.
Wednesday before Thanksgiving and then also the Sunday after and
both of those days we're expecting to see around fifty
seven thousand travelers each day.
Speaker 1 (24:43):
What do you advise as far as when people should arrive.
Speaker 4 (24:46):
The standard recommendation for when to arrive during that busy
period is at least two hours for domestic flights, and again,
you know, there's a lot of factors that go into
when you should arrive. You know, if you're checking a bed,
if you need to find parking, you know, all of
those things can to add to the time it actually
(25:07):
takes you to get to your gate. But the two
hours before is a safe bet, just to make sure
you have time to do what you need to do
before your flight, get through security and you're not running
running down the hallways because you know, construction is still
ongoing even though the new main terminal is open, so
(25:29):
there are longer walks to two of the concourses, specifically
Concourse B and Concourse E. So if your gate is
you know at the end of one of those, you
will have a little bit longer walk.
Speaker 1 (25:41):
What do you recommend for people who have not been
to the main terminal since it opened and the renovations
have gotten to this point as far as you know,
what they should expect when they enter the area and
should they give themselves a little bit more time to
figure out where they need to go.
Speaker 4 (26:00):
Yeah, So, if you know the holidays are a time
where people may be traveling, it may be the one
time of year that they travel so many people who
are traveling over the Thanksgiving a holiday haven't been to PDX,
the new PDX since it opened back in August, so
it's going to look a little bit different. And one
thing that travelers can do, especially those travelers who like
(26:23):
to familiarize themselves before they arrive at the airport, is
we have an interactive map on flypdx dot com backslash map,
and you can see the new layout, and it gives
you an aerial view, so you can kind of see
it's the same general layout. You know you walk in
the TSA checkpoints are at the north and south, but
(26:46):
everything's bigger. The ticket counters have a different orientation, so
you can kind of get familiar with what to expect
at PDX by looking at that map in advance. And
it also has really helpful tools on it. You can
see where the new shops and restaurants are that you
may want to check out. You can find resources like
(27:07):
kids play areas if you're traveling with little ones. And
then there's also fun features on it. You know, you
can find background on the local art installations that are
new to PDX. There's even a carpet finder so you
can make sure you get that foot selfie with the
iconic carpet that's back.
Speaker 1 (27:26):
I think different with TSA. I can't remember the last
time I went through if it had changed. It's still
the main line and then the TSA pre line.
Speaker 4 (27:34):
Right, Yeah, so I mean there are the checkpoints are
new and they do have upgraded equipment since the August opening,
so it is going to look a little bit different
many of the lines now for general, the non TSA
pre check lines, people now approach the machines three at
(27:54):
a time to load their equipment. So certain things are
going to be a little bit different. But if you
visit pdxnext dot com, we have an overview of kind
of five things to expect when the terminal opened, and
people can find a little bit more information about the
TSA lines. But you know, generally, you know they're in
the same locations north and south, but they do they
(28:18):
do look different.
Speaker 1 (28:19):
Any advice on parking and what people can do to
figure out, you know, where they might want to park,
where there's available parking.
Speaker 4 (28:27):
Yeah. So one of the other great features about fly
PDX is you can see in real time the capacity
of the parking garages. So let's say you always park
in long term, but as you're getting ready to leave,
you're seeing that's you know, maybe ninety percent full or
something like that, which which can happen over these busy
travel periods. You may then pivot plan to park somewhere else,
(28:50):
or you know, change plans and take the Max Redline,
which underwent improvements last year and has expanded service into
Hillsboro and it'll bring you right to PDX.
Speaker 1 (29:03):
Anything else you want to add that I didn't ask
you about, I.
Speaker 4 (29:06):
Think the only other thing to add that I didn't
mention in reference to the win to arrive thing is
also just reminding people that airports have rush hours too,
So if people don't typically travel in the morning, if
you show up in that five am to nine am period,
that's the busiest time at PDX. So definitely plan to
(29:26):
give yourself more of a buffer if you're traveling during
that time period.
Speaker 1 (29:29):
Thanks Allison. That's Alison Forray with Portland International Airport with
Thanksgiving travel tips. You can find out more on their
website FLYPDX dot com. Thanks for listening to local voices,
I'm brad Ford. You can hear past episodes on the
iHeartRadio app under the podcast tab Local Voices is a
public affairs presentation from iHeartRadio
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