It’s a double shot of me on KALW radio today, where I’ll be hosting Your Call at 10am PT and then State of the Bay at 6pm PT for our second edition of our climate special series.
First, on Your Call’s One Planet Series at 10am PT, we’ll discuss a joint investigation by The Washington Post and The Examination about how the food, beverage and dietary supplement industries are paying dozens of registered influencer dietitians to help sell products and deliver industry-friendly messages on social media platforms. Joining us will be:
- Sasha Chavkin, correspondent for The Examination
- Dr. Caitlin Gilbert, neuroscientist and Well+Being data reporter at The Washington Post
Then at 6pm PT on State of the Bay for our second climate special, you can hear my interview with with California Attorney General Rob Bonta about the state’s lawsuit against big oil for climate damages.
Then, many Bay Area cities have formally declared a climate emergency, but what does this mean, and what should it mean? We’ll discuss what tradeoffs and changes may be needed to address climate change in the Bay Area with:
And finally, we sit down with local educator, organizer, artist and activist, Khafre Jay to learn why he thinks the climate movement needs more Hip Hop.
Tune in at 91.7 FM in the San Francisco Bay Area or stream live at 10am PT for Your Call and then again at 6pm PT for State of the Bay. What comments or questions do you have for our guests? Call 866-798-TALK to join the conversation!
I’m guest hosting today’s Your Call media roundtable at 10am PT. First, we’ll discuss the one-year anniversary of historic protests in Iran. It was last September when a young Kurdish woman named Jina Mahsa Amini died while in police custody, after being arrested and beaten for failing to comply with Iran’s compulsory veiling. According to Amnesty International, credible reports arose that the so-called “morality” police had subjected her to ill-treatment and even torture inside the police van. She fell into a coma and died three days later.
The news of her tragic death sparked months-long nationwide protests, led by women and girls who tossed off their head scarves in defiance and demanded the end to the Islamic Republic’s rule. The regime’s response was violent and deadly. According to human rights organizations, at least 530 protesters, including 72 children, were killed. Hundreds were blinded by live ammunition and more than 22 thousand people were detained.
Joining us to mark this anniversary and hear the latest about what’s happening in Iran will be:
- Nilo Tabrizy, video reporter for The Washington Post’s Visual Forensics team
- Khosro Kalbasi Isfahani, journalist, researcher, and an Oak Foundation human rights fellow
Then later in the program, we’ll cover a recent investigation by The Center for Public Integrity about the long struggle over taxing the rich.
In the past two years, at least 19 states have lowered their income taxes in ways that primarily benefit their most well-off residents, and conservative groups have spent millions to defeat tax increases on the wealthy. But there’s growing interest in raising taxes on the wealthy. Lawmakers in seven states, including California, Connecticut, New York, and Washington, are introducing wealth-tax measures.
Late last year, Massachusetts imposed a surtax of 4 percent on income over $1 million through a ballot initiative. This “Massachusetts millionaires’ tax” had been introduced and defeated multiple times before finally becoming law.
How would a wealth tax mitigate rising wealth inequality?
- Melissa Hellmann, journalist at the Center for Public Integrity, covering racial, gender, and economic inequality
- Maya Srikrishnan, investigative journalist at the Center for Public integrity, covering marginalized communities
Tune in at 91.7 FM in the San Francisco Bay Area or stream live at 10am PT. What comments or questions do you have for our guests? Call 866-798-TALK to join the conversation!
Being a pedestrian isn’t easy in California’s car-centric culture, so what can be done to improve walkability? I’ll be a guest on KQED Forum today at 10am PT to discuss, as part of Forum’s “In Transit” series where I’m a regular guest.
Much of the infrastructure in the state is built with cars in mind, and that means that walkers and wheelchair-users can confront serious safety risks in a state where an average of three pedestrians are killed every day. How is the state is addressing pedestrian safety issues, and what do you notice when you don’t use a car?
Joining me on the show will be Tim Weisberg, deputy director, marketing and public affairs, California Office of Traffic Safety.
You can stream live or tune in on KQED in Northern California.
The electric vehicle (EV) market is growing rapidly, but with this growth comes public pressure to ensure supply chains for EV batteries are sustainable. The soaring demand for batteries relies heavily on the extraction and refinement of critical minerals, processes that have far-reaching environmental and social impacts. Moreover, the global distribution of these operations leaves them susceptible to geopolitical instability, further complicating the supply chain.
At the same time, this growth in mining and manufacturing also presents an opportunity to avoid recreating the harms of past mining and industrial activities. While individual EV buyers have little leverage over the industry, fleet purchasers of EVs instead have an opportunity to use their combined market power to ensure upstream suppliers adhere to strong sustainability standards. Corporate fleets can wield their collective influence and purchasing power to drive change on a large scale.
With that market power in mind, our climate program at Berkeley Law’s Center for Law, Energy and the Environment (CLEE) has partnered with the nonprofit Ceres and its Corporate Electric Vehicle Alliance (CEVA), a collaborative group of companies focused on accelerating the transition to EVs, to release a new report with recommendations for major corporate EV fleet purchasers for how they can help ensure supply chain sustainability.
Among other solutions, the report recommends that corporate actors looking to make EV fleet purchases:
- Join the Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance (IRMA) in order to publicly demonstrate commitment to responsible sourcing; and add political momentum and end-user economic clout to IRMA’s efforts to engage and audit the mining industry
- Advocate for domestic mining reform that expands mining only as much as necessary while ensuring responsible environmental management and clean up as well as community and Tribal engagement
- Participate in extended producer responsibility schemes and build partnerships with second life and recycling entities.
- Advocate for federal policy to standardize EV battery labeling and traceability through an open-source, interoperable digital product passport with requirements designed to improve environmental and human impacts, carbon footprint, and end of life opportunities.
- Advocate for federal policy to standardize EV battery labeling and traceability through an open-source, interoperable digital product passport with requirements designed to improve environmental and human impacts, carbon footprint, and end of life opportunities.
While the report’s primary focus is on U.S. companies operating electric vehicle fleets, the information and recommendations can also benefit other companies involved in the EV supply chain. The goal is to highlight areas where corporate advocacy and procurement practices can have the most impact in promoting a sustainable EV industry.
Ensuring a sustainable EV battery supply chain—one that maximizes benefits for communities, industry, and the environment—will require long-term, coordinated action by stakeholders across the globe. Large fleets and major companies can leverage their purchasing power and engagement with industry to incentivize manufacturers and mining operators to prioritize sustainability and responsible practices. The recommendations in this guidebook offer a roadmap for corporate procurement practices, supplier engagement, and support for policies and initiatives that aim to make ethical sourcing and environmental stewardship the industry norm.
Access the full report here: Electric Vehicle Batteries: A Guidebook for Responsible Corporate Engagement Throughout the Supply Chain
This post is co-authored with Shruti Sarode and cross-posted on Legal Planet.
I’ll be double-hosting radio programs today on KALW. First, will California’s iconic Joshua Tree vanish from its namesake national park by the end of this century? I’m guest hosting Your Call’s One Planet Series at 10am PT, and we’ll discuss how climate change and development pressures are endangering Joshua Trees and what the state is doing about it. Joining us will be:
- Brendan Cummings, conservation director of the Center for Biological Diversity and a Joshua tree resident
- Dr. Cameron Barrows, professor Emeritus and Research Ecologist at UC Riverside
Then later in the program we will talk about a campaign by Fossil Free Media targeting oil and gas companies for their role in fueling climate disasters. Jaime Henn will join us, the founder and director of Fossil Free Media, a nonprofit communications lab that supports the movement to break free from fossil fuels.
Then at 6pm PT I’m hosting State of the Bay. You’ll hear my interview with State Senator Scott Wiener, whose bill to decriminalize psychedelics, SB 58, just passed the State legislature last week and is now headed to the Governor’s desk. Will Governor Newsom sign it?
Then I’ll talk to Silicon Valley investor, activist, and tech executive Tom Kemp about his new book, Containing Big Tech: How to Protect Our Civil Rights, Economy and Democracy.
Finally, you’ll hear from one of the San Francisco Dolphin Club members who recently swam across the English Channel, at the age of 75.
Tune in at 91.7 FM in the San Francisco Bay Area or stream live at 10am PT for Your Call and then again at 6pm PT for State of the Bay. What comments or questions do you have for our guests? Call 866-798-TALK to join the conversation!
I’ll be a guest on KQED Forum today at 10am PT discussing congestion pricing — where cities charge drivers to enter congested areas during peak times, as a way to limit traffic and pay for transit. The show is part of Forum’s “In Transit” series where I’m a regular guest.
London, Stockholm and Singapore all use congestion pricing, but it has yet to be adopted in any U.S. city. Los Angeles is now studying the concept, and LA Metro will soon release a report examining which parts of the city could benefit most from congestion pricing.
Joining me on the show will be Mark Vallianatos, executive officer in the Office of Strategic Innovation, LA Metro.
You can stream live or tune in on KQED in Northern California.
Tonight on KALW’s State of the Bay, we’ll hear an update on what to expect as San Francisco students head back to school from Jill Tucker, education reporter with the San Francisco Chronicle.
Then we’ll learn about the benefits of “awe walks” and the many ways to enjoy hiking in the Bay Area, including tips on how to get to the trails on public transit. Guests include UCSF’s Virginia Sturm, PhD, Tracy Salcedo and Evan Tschuy.
Finally, you’ll hear my interview with local author Erin Carlson about her new book, No Crying in Baseball, which details the making of the classic film, A League of Their Own.
Tune in at 91.7 FM in the San Francisco Bay Area or stream live at 6pm PT. Call in at 866-798-TALK with comments or questions for our guests!
This morning at 10am PT, I’ll be joining KQED’s Forum to discuss how California can make our roads and pathways safer for bicyclists. Biking is a more climate-friendly and healthy way to get around, but sharing space on California’s roadways with vehicles is notoriously dangerous and sometimes deadly. What can be done to make biking safer and encourage more people to ride?
Joining me on the panel will be:
- Jared Sanchez, policy director, California Bicycle Coalition
- Darwin Moosavi, deputy secretary for environmental policy and housing coordination, California State Transportation Agency
- Anthony Molina, chair, Fresno County Bike Coalition
Stream live at 10am PT or tune in at 88.5 FM KQED in the San Francisco Bay Area!
Then at 6pm PT, I’ll be hosting State of the Bay on KALW, where we’ll start by interviewing State Senator Scott Wiener about his bill SB 58 to decriminalize psychedelics in California.
Then I’ll interview former Oakland Athletics vice president Andy Dolich, author of Goodbye, Oakland, about the future of the team and sports in Oakland, given the team owners’ apparent decision to relocate to Las Vegas. Can Oakland find a way to keep their last major sports franchise from leaving?
Finally, we’ll hear all about the San Francisco Mime Troupe’s new satire, Breakdown.
Tune in at 91.7 FM in the San Francisco Bay Area or stream live at 6pm PT. What comments or questions do you have for our guests? Call 866-798-TALK to join the conversation!
Tonight on KALW’s State of the Bay, we’ll discuss a new legislative proposal (SB 532, Wiener) to increase San Francisco’s bridge tolls to help pay for Bay Area public transit. Joining us will be Laura Tolkoff of SPUR.
Then we’ll have a one-on-one with San Francisco District 2 Supervisor Catherine Stefani to talk about the issues most pressing to San Francisco residents, including homelessness, public safety, and more. What should we be asking her about?
And finally, for our series “Have You Met…”, you’ll meet Peter Kaisin, who leads free sea shanty sing-a-longs at Aquatic Park.
Tune in at 91.7 FM in the San Francisco Bay Area or stream live at 6pm PT. What comments or questions do you have for our guests? Call 866-798-TALK to join the conversation!
I’m guest hosting today’s Your Call Media Roundtable, when we’ll discuss the worsening situation in Haiti. The UN estimates that 4.9 million Haitians, nearly half the population, are now facing “acute food insecurity.”
165,000 Haitians have fled their homes, driven out by gang violence, with nowhere to go in Port-au-Prince, the Haitian capital city of nearly three million people, according to the Associate Press.
Joining us to discuss will be:
- Amy Wilentz, contributing editor at The Nation
- Widlore Mérancourt, Haitian reporter and editor-in-chief of AyiboPost
Then later in the program we’ll discuss the major new Supreme Court decisions on affirmative action and student loans, the latter just handed down this morning. The Court also rejected the so-called independent state legislature theory that would have given power over elections to state lawmakers.
In a 6-3 decision, the court’s conservative majority rejected the race-conscious admissions policies used by Harvard College and the University of North Carolina, finding that the programs violate the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment. Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented.
Jackson wrote in her dissenting opinion in Students for Fair Admissions v. University of North Carolina “with let-them-eat-cake obliviousness, today, the majority pulls the ripcord and announces ‘colorblindness for all’ by legal fiat. But deeming race irrelevant in law does not make it so in life.”
Joining us will be:
- Chris Geidner, journalist and MSNBC columnist whose Law Dork newsletter covers the Supreme Court, law and politics
- Elie Mystal , Justice Correspondent for The Nation, host of the new podcast, Contempt of Court with Elie Mystal, and the author of the Allow Me to Retort: A Black Guy’s Guide to the Constitution
Tune in at 91.7 FM in the San Francisco Bay Area or stream live at 10am PT. What comments or questions do you have for our guests? Call 866-798-TALK to join the conversation!
