The Bay

Before the pandemic, casual carpool was a completely organic system of pickup spots and patient passengers looking for a quick, comfortable way to head into San Francisco. Casual carpool collapsed when the pandemic hit. But now it’s been relaunched. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Music festivals in the Bay Area are upon us. And it takes a lot to leave no trace after a 3-day festival like Outside Lands. As Golden Gate Park prepares for another music event this weekend, SFGate’s Melissa Cho takes us behind the scenes at Outside Lands, where the majority of waste is diverted from landfills. Links: This is Where Your Trash at Outside Lands Goes LaRussell and Good Compenny Present: A Bay Area Music Showcase Tickets! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you want solar power in your home, you usually need to be a homeowner with a good roof and a decent amount of cash to pay up front. But some Bay Area residents are trying out plug-in solar, which can hang from an apartment balcony, out a window, or be tented in the backyard. Links: Forget Rooftops — Bay Area Residents Are Plugging Solar Into the Wall Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Young people are increasingly turning to AI “companion” chatbots to help meet their emotional needs. But a new study shows that these chatbots, which are designed to mimic real social relationships, may come with serious risks. On this episode of Close All Tabs from KQED, host Morgan Sung and her sister put one chatbot's safety guardrails to the test — and get more than they bargained for. This episode mentions suicide. If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide, you can dial or text 988 and be connected to help. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the 1960s, Alameda County and the city of Hayward forcibly displaced more than 1,000 mostly Black and Latino residents living in a 12-block unincorporated area called Russell City to make way for an industrial park. Now, the city and county have approved reparations for former residents whose homes were seized by the government. Links: Decades After 'Cultural Genocide,' Residents of a Bulldozed Community Get Apology from Hayward Alameda County Set to Approve Reparations Fund for Displaced Russell City Residents Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the South Bay, calls to a community-led Rapid Response Network have increased as the network fights back against misinformation around Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions. Meet the community members on the other end of the line. Links: How to Verify ICE Raid Rumors in California As ICE Operations Expand, How Are Immigrant Allies Responding? This episode was hosted by Ericka Cruz Guevarra and produced by Jessica Kariisa and Alan Montecillo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When we talk about homelessness, especially in San Francisco, many of us are usually talking about individuals living on the streets. But the number of families experiencing homelessness in San Francisco nearly doubled from 2022 to 2024, according to the city’s Point In Time Count. And many of them move from shelter to shelter, in a system that’s meant to be temporary but has few permanent housing options to offer. Links: SF Families Win Shelter Extension Rights, Still Face Long Waits for Housing Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This weekend, San Francisco is hosting shows and celebrations honoring 60 years of the Grateful Dead’s music. Dead & Company, which performs Grateful Dead covers and includes former members of the original band, will be headlining three nights in Golden Gate Park. For some Deadheads, it’s a chance to celebrate the Dead’s music in the city where the band became famous. Others say that the anniversary shows, which cost $635 for a three-day pass, go against everything the Dead stood for. Links: ‘Jerry is rolling in his grave’: The Deadheads boycotting SF’s anniversary shows Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As you may have heard, last week was a tough one for KQED, NPR, and public media across the country. Last Tuesday, KQED announced that it is cutting 15% of its staff in response to a budget shortfall and financial uncertainty. While our team was not laid off, we are losing many beloved colleagues. Then, just a few days later, Congress voted to take back $1.1 billion in funding for public media. These were funds that public media stations across the country had already been promised. It’s a huge setback for us. But we want to reassure you: We’re still here. And we will keep fighting for the mission that public media represents, and reaffirm our commitment to serving you. So if you’re reading this: Thank you for your support. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Every year The Bay team takes some time off from making new episodes. This is time we spend planning and recharging. So there will be no new episodes in your feed in the month of July. In the meantime, we want to thank you for letting us be part of your daily routines. We will be back Friday, August 1 with a new episode. You can still reach us via e-mail at thebay@kqed.org. We always love hearing from you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this month’s edition of The Bay’s news roundup, we introduce you to the Bay Area’s first women’s sports bar, discuss Stanford’s scaling back of gender-related surgical procedures for minors, and the secret sauce of the San Francisco malls defying the ‘doom loop’ narrative. Links: The Bay Area’s First Women’s Sports Bar Is Open for Business Stanford Scales Back Trans Care for Minors Amid Federal Crackdown Asian Food Is Coming to Save a Mall Near You SF Chronicle: These S.F. malls are experiencing a ‘renaissance’ that defies the doom loop. Here’s their secret Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Aurora Theatre Company in Berkeley has long been seen as a launchpad for actors and artists. In 2018 the theater commissioned and premiered the Tony-Award winning play “Eureka Day.” Now, the theater is suspending production, joining a growing list of Bay Area theaters on the brink of closure in what the San Francisco Chronicle theater critic Lily Janiak describes as the “industry’s free fall.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Wood Street encampment in West Oakland was at one point the largest homeless encampment Northern California. In 2023, the city of Oakland completed its final evictions of the unhoused residents living there. Dozens of Wood Street residents ended up at a city-funded shelter site where part of the encampment used to be. It includes an RV park and a "community cabins" site. Now, this shelter site is scheduled to close on Monday. Today, Oakland journalist and filmmaker Caron Creighton tells us about the cabin sites, and introduces us to two unhoused people who have been living there. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gwenn Craig moved to San Francisco in 1975, as a young woman eager to explore her lesbian identity. She got involved in politics and was a close collaborator of Harvey Milk. In this episode, she talks about her political organizing, what pride has meant to her over the years, and what she hopes for its future. This episode first aired on June 28, 2023. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hip-hop is nearly 52 years old — and when it comes to talking about hip-hop history, it’s no secret that the Bay Area gets overlooked. Today, we're revisiting an episode with KQED's Eric Arnold and Nastia Voynovskaya about exploring the history of hip-hop — and how our region has shaped it through the years. Links: That’s My Word The Bay Area Was Hip-Hop Before There Was Hip-Hop That’s My Word, Spotify Playlists celebrating 50 years of Bay Area Hip Hop It’s Time to Unpack Pimp Culture in Bay Area Hip-Hop This episode first aired Aug 11, 2023. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After the city of Berkeley ordered the clearing of RV encampments on Second Street, the city began offering cash to people living in their RVs in addition to a room at a motel shelter. Most accepted the offer, and city leaders are hopeful that this approach can expand. Links: Berkeley’s Strategy for RV Encampments Could Be a Model for California Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Suisun City in Solano County will begin studying annexing land owned by California Forever, the billionaire-backed group that bought up thousands of acres of land with plans to build a brand new city from scratch in Solano County. KQED’s Adhiti Bandlamudi joins us to discuss the implications of this decision and why it has divided the local community. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Since Donald Trump’s first term in office, a UC Berkeley student group called Central Americans for Empowerment (CAFE) has been pushing for a Central American Studies department. For them, it would help raise visibility of Central Americans whose specific stories often get lost in broader conversations about Latinos and immigration in the U.S. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Trump Administration’s immigration crackdown has left few safe spaces for immigrants. But in the East Bay, local soccer leagues have provided a rare sense of psychological safety for immigrant newcomers. Links: As Safe Spaces Shrink, Immigrant Youth Find Solace in 'The Beautiful Game' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Fairfax is a small, predominantly white town of about 7,500 people, nestled up against the Mt. Tam watershed in Marin. Wellness and a distrust of authority have long been part of the town’s culture. But since the pandemic, it also became a place where supporters of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s anti-vaccine message grew louder and louder. Links: The Marin Town Where RFK Jr.’s Message Took Root Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices