Maddie Bender
Executive Producer, The ConversationMaddie Bender is a science, health, and technology journalist. She has contributed print, digital, and audio stories to outlets including The New York Times, The Daily Beast, Scientific American, Smithsonian and VICE.
She provided production assistance on This Is Our Hawaiʻi, HPR's first narrative podcast, and joined The Conversation in 2024. She was the show's executive producer from 2024 to August 2026.
She holds a master's degree in epidemiology from the Yale School of Public Health. When not editing out "uhs" and "ums" in interviews, you can find her baking sourdough and teaching group fitness classes.
Contact her at mbender@hawaiipublicradio.org.
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Army Sgt. Clara Davis shares her experience fighting her discharge from the military following President Trump’s ban on transgender troops. -
Scientists Rob Fleischer and Michael Campana of the Smithsonian Institution unlock the ‘ancient DNA’ of the extinct Lānaʻi hookbill. -
Gov. Josh Green shares information about another potential tropical storm, and why hurricane season isn’t over; HPR presents Homeroom Hawaiʻi, a segment that shares the stories of students and staff across Hawaiʻi’s schools. -
Angelina Mercado, executive director of the Hawaiʻi State Coalition Against Domestic Violence, talks about a new survey for domestic violence survivors in Hawaiʻi. -
HPR’s Savannah Harriman-Pote reports on HECO’s progress restoring power to the islands; Peter Oshiro, head of the Hawaiʻi State Department of Health’s Food Safety ranch, advises on how to prepare food for a hurricane. -
Zach Kennedy, general manager of Punalu'u Bake Shop in Nāʻālehu, shares how Lala devastated the beloved rural bakery and how the community has been recovering. -
Hawaiʻi Island resident Kolby Moser spoke with HPR’s Maddie Bender about the state on the ground in Kaʻū and the long road to recovery ahead. -
City and state officials deliver the latest updates on Hawaiʻi's recovery after Hurricane Lala; residents share their experience in the aftermath. -
University of Murcia archaeologist Miguel Valério studies different lunar calendars across the Pacific Islands, like the Rongorongo tablets of Rapa Nui. -
Hoʻola Na Pua, an organization committed to preventing sex trafficking, appoints a new CEO; University of Murcia archaeologist Miguel Valério studies different lunar calendars from across the Pacific Islands.
