KUCI: Ask A Leader

Today the show’s all about performances in our neck of the woods. In advance of “Peter Pan” being performed @ Segerstrom Hall Aug 6-18 is our first guest, Larissa FastHorse. Speaking as an enrolled member of the Sicangu Lakota, a playwright, and MacArthur fellow, Larissa talks about her intentions around re-writing a standard bearer of a musical, as well as taking back some space for all Indigenou...

With recent news cycles mimicking a hurricane season; one storm after the next, building peaking, and subsiding, we turned the mic over to four women to process how the latest, unprecedented news is landing for them, 105 days before the election Nov 5th. For the full hour we heard from Pauline Merry, Yolanda Robinson, Jane Wishon, and Olivia Fu for their reflections. this live with heavy-duty news...

My guest for the full hour is entrepreneur consultant, author, activist, and veteran, Dee Batiste. She breaks down what is Project 2025, a 933-page document of proposed policies, built by a coalition of 110 conservative groups in their words, “advocating for the next conservative president,” or generically put a future Republican administration. Instead of a test at the end, consider this an ongoi...

My guest for the full hour is Paige Barrows, a fully-immersed volunteer bringing humanitarian aide to Ukraine. Her commitment to Ukraine stems from her service as a Peace Corps worker in Ukraine 2010-2012. She talks about her activities both stateside as well as in Ukraine since the full invasion by Russia in 2022. Her latest trip was to Bucha, Irpin, and multiple locations along the from line in...

Returning to the show for the full hour is Scott Bartell, UCI Professor of Environmental and Occupational Health. He brings us all the way up to speed on the forever chemicals, those PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances). Good news, more people are finally aware of them - bad news, industry is interfering in their regulation. Well, the bad news got worse last Friday with the SCOTUS rollback o...

Our guests are two highly acclaimed story tellers offering new books for summer reading or anytime of the year reading, bringing big city life to their plots. In the first segment is Curtis Chin, co-founder of the Asian American Writers’ Workshop, filmmaker, and author. He talks about his highly intersectional memoir "Everything I Learned I Learned in a Chinese Restaurant," published by Little Bro...

My guests for the full hour are two water activists who’ve been monitoring consequential infrastructure decisions over the decades: Sierra Club Water Committee Chair Charming Evelyn; and Conner Everts, Executive Director of the Southern California Watershed Alliance and facilitator of the Environmental Water Caucus. They attend innumerable water board meetings so that you and I don’t have to! Toda...

Here is the extension of our time together. We wrap up on topics opened in the broadcast: I-405 expansion, tollroads, comprehensive planning, and Caltrain.

Today our first guests will be Thomas Fynn and Tom Lamb, collaborating photographers bring “Spirit Possession a Celebration of Ghanaian Faces, African Culture and Heritage.” This exhibition continues through June 29th at OCCCA. In the second segment (minute 30:17) we hear from Susan Handy U.C. Davis professor of environmental science who researches the relationships between transportation and land...

Returning to the show are both guests. Madelynn Hirneise, CEO of Families Forward, speaks about her organization’s current efforts - before the holidays, well before chestnuts start roasting on the winter open fire. Housing is top of mind. She invites prospective volunteers to call 949-552-272 7 or check out: https://www.families-forward.org/volunteer-opportunities/. In the second segment (minute...

My guest for the full program is Michelle Story, a non-traditional student, mother of five soon to collect her diploma at UCI’s School of Social Sciences, before she pursues a graduate degree in clinical psychology. Listen to what breaking a mold sounds like as she talks about her institutional arrangements and studies at UCI after transferring from the community College of the Sequoias. Music cre...

Our featured guest is Sadaf Rahmani, the public affairs director of Planned Parenthood of Orange and San Bernardino Counties. She speaks about the challenges of delivering reproductive health services in today’s complex regulatory framework, post SCOTUS’ “Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization” decision on June 24, 2022. With all the headwinds in which Planned Parenthood is navigating, publi...

My guest for the full hour is UCI social scientist and one important demographer, Professor Wang Feng. We focus on his latest publication, especially as it helps us appreciate what China’s got to work with under current conditions. "China’s Age of Abundance; Origins, Ascendance, and Aftermath,” published by the Cambridge University Press, explores China’s rise to material wealth, current predicame...

For the full hour is Joey Forsyte, an LA based, award-winning filmmaker and visual artist. She focuses on works that build community, political awareness and activism. She is the owner of Velocity Filmworks as well as the founder and executive director of A Band of Voters. Civics is on her front burner as she works with institutions that reach out to the youngest of eligible voters: CA Student Civ...

We begin with Rosaisela López Cienfuegos, a lead coordinator at Orange County Communities for Responsible Development, talking about the naturalization process that they’re overseeing, always looking for takers. Recent changes to the application and associated fees lower some of the earlier barriers; the processing time have been reduced get newly naturalized citizens into the voting booth sooner...

My guest for the full the hour is mixed media artist Soheila Siadate, with an extraordinary solo exhibition at the Orange County Center for Contemporary Art in Santa Ana, “In Search of the Third Feather of Simurgh: Contagious Dictatorship and Fragile Democracy” on view now through 4/26th. Details are available at: https://www.occca.org/EXHIBITIONS.html. This is her most expansive exhibit yet. On t...

Returning to the show, for the full hour, is Samantha Trad, the National Director of Advocacy for Compassion and Choices. Up the escalator are more states enacting laws granting end of life options or “medical aid in dying,” (MAID). Amidst this trend, boarding the downward escalator, are federal and state challenges to end these choices. In the background are Compassion and Choices’ findings that...

For the full hour is Chinmayi Sharma, assistant professor at Fordham University Law School. Think Cassandra for this time we are in, as she brings her not-so-modest proposal, "AI’s Hippocratic Oath.” Amidst the tech sector’s arms race to build these voracious artificial intelligence systems, she raises the specter of harm overtaking the common good. Professionalizing the AI engineers at the front...

In this extended portion of Jordie Davies' interview we draw comparisons with Ukrainians coalescing in the Maidan Revolution in 2013-14 and American protest movements. This clip is under 3 minutes.

Today we first hear from Dr. Jordie Davies, Assistant Professor of Political Science at UCI, and an affiliate faculty member of the UCI Culture & Theory Ph. D. Program. Of particular interest is her work on “Solidarity Processes in Multi-Racial Coalitions.” An additional portion of this interview is available in Part 2 of this pod. In the segment (minute 35:50) is Paula Tomei, managing directo...

We begin with Davin Phoenix, who talks about the voter participation gap opening up between Black and white voters, since the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling on Shelby Co. v Holder. His very well received book, "The Anger Gap; How Race Shapes Emotion in Politics" anticipated this trend. He breaks it all down for us; his work along with the findings of the Brennan Center for Justice. In the segment (ap...

Logic for kiddos and dance are on today’s roster. We begin with former therapist now children’s book and memoir author Cornelia Maude Spelman. Her brand-new children’s non-fiction book, entitled A "Foot is Not a Fish," published by Frederator Books, pairs rhymes with vivid illustrations, to help parents show their children that it is not hard to see what is true and what is not, a fitting starting...

Our guest for the full hour is Sudi Farokhnia, a local Risk and Audit professional and Co-founder of Iranian American Democrats of California. Speaking in her capacity as an activist, she has a full roster to cover today including: Iranian American political organizing in general; The Middle Eastern Northern African Inclusion Act, California AB 2763; the Temporary Family Visitation Act, HR 5155; a...

Paa-Kwesi Heto had more to say, on the heels of the news about the U. S. Supreme Court rendering its decision about Donald Trump's eligibility to appear on the Colorado primary ballot.

Welcome all to the CA Primary 2024 edition of "Ask A Voter," continuing the tradition of asking guests to tell their voting story. Think Story Corps walking around the polling place. Today, on Super Tuesday our roster of voters include: Alex Denysov, Ukrainian-American actor, filmmaker, musician and songwriter based on Los Angeles (minute 1:48); Shawn Khalifa, UCI sociology major soon to complete...