KSQD 90.7 FM Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz musicians Robbie Fitzsimmons, Cheryl Anderson and David Graham joined our show to talk about their journey in music and the productions Queerlantis and Considering Matthew Shepard.

Cindy Cohn’s new book, Privacy’s Defender, focuses on three legal cases that formed the basis for privacy and freedom of speech on the Internet. But it’s also a memoir, framing the issues raised by legal battles through personal choices and life events both mundane and momentous. In this unusual conversation, we leave the big legal questions behind and focus instead on our modern lives on the inte...

With nearly 35 years of nonprofit leadership, Maria Elena de la Garza, Chief Executive Officer of the Community Action Board (CAB) of Santa Cruz County has made a lasting impact on her community, working to expand services, increase community engagement, and foster cultural and fiscal growth. A proud Watsonville native, Maria Elena is deeply committed […]

Joining us at the table this episode will be Marlena De Castro the Santa Cruz County Community Outreach And Engagement Specialist from Miracle Messages, a nonprofit organization dedicated to building empathy and connection with people experiencing homelessness. Learn more about Miracle Messages and how to get involved by visiting www.miraclemessages.org. 

Midwinter Break, adapted from Bernard MacLaverty’s 2017 novel, arrived in theaters earlier this spring. It’s a quiet, deliberate drama anchored by the lived‑in performances of Lesley Manville and Ciarán Hinds, who play Stella and Gerry, a long‑married couple navigating the emotional terrain of their later years. The film is less interested in plot than in […]

Sandy Faber is a University Professor Emerita at UCSC and a staff member of the Lick Observatory. She is an observational astronomer with research interests in cosmology and galaxy formation. Some of her major discoveries include the first structural scaling law for galaxies (called the Faber–Jackson law), large-scale flow perturbations in the expansion of the […]

Denise Miranda is New York State's top civil rights official, the head of an agency that is charged with monitoring and promoting civil rights in the state. She's also a proud native of the Bronx, daughter of Puerto Rican-born parents, and a mother. It's an unusual time for Denise—a Black Latina—to be in charge of the part of the government so despised by New York's most famous native son.

Gardens are bursting with growth and color! How many of those flowers, along with the other plants in our gardens that we may love and cherish, contain dangerous, often lethal, naturally occurring poisons? Many common flowers, fruits, and even vegetables (along with certain weeds and wild plants) may pose serious health and safety hazards to you, […]

Extractive Frontiers: Critical Minerals and Green Capitalism with Professor Thea Riofrancos, Providence College on Sustainability Now! Sunday, May 24th, from 5-6 PM The attack on Iran by the United States and Israel demonstrated, among other things, the necessity of a rapid transition to renewable fuels, like solar and wind.  The technologies for capturing and converting […]

  Jim Pattiz and his brother Will Pattiz have spent their entire adult lives exploring and documenting America’s public lands. In 2014 they set off with a camera and a question: What if people could actually see what they were losing? They packed up and drove to every national park in the country. They slept […]

Hear from Pat Dellin, the collector and creator of the LGBTQ+ History exhibit at London Nelson Center, and Kian Hladky from the MAH who has created the downtown walking tour of important LGBTQ+ places.

The Drama, directed by Kristoffer Borgli, is a razor-sharp black comedy that puts forward startling dilemmas about relationships in the modern era. The film follows Emma Harwood, played by the incomparable Zendaya, and Charlie Thompson, played by Robert Pattinson, as they navigate the week leading up to their wedding. Upon their introduction, Emma and Charlie […]

How to Mobilize to Defend Democracy Be Bold America! Friday, May 15, 2026 at 5:00pm (PT) With the 2026 midterm elections looming and democracy on the line, progressive attorney, activist, and author, Gary Lucks, presents in his new book We Are The Power fiercely practical, street-level directions for Americans who want to engage beyond posting, […]

Patrick Meyer and Curt Keyer talk about the 1970s and 1980s in Santa Cruz County, LGBTQ+ organizing and how people in Santa Cruz interfaced with Harvey Milk and San Francisco

Is that Teflon in your food and water? Good for eggs, maybe, but probably not for you! with Dr. Faith Kibuye, Penn State University On Sustainability Now! Sunday, May 10th, 5-6 PM on KSQD ⁠Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances⁠—commonly known as ⁠PFASs⁠ and “forever chemicals”—have become ubiquitous in the environment and are being found almost everywhere […]

Chris Upham  interviews Sofia Orlando and Sam, who are apart of  the X Academy Robotics club.

UCSC Arboretum horticulturalist Hann Osborne discusses his efforts to identify plant species in dozens of habitats throughout California. These geographic areas vary by soil, altitude, temperature ranges, rainfall, proximity to the ocean, and the degree to which development has affected them. Osborne and his crew record the plant species found in each area to create […]

Chirs Upham interviews Becky Steinbruner about the Measure J and Battery Energy Storage Systems.

Chris Upham  interviews  Tim Sylvester and his students who are apart of  the X Academy Robotics club.

“Saving the American Dream”  “Be Bold America!” Airs May 1, 2026 at 5:00pm (PT)  “John K. Roth has spent over five decades challenging students to wrestle with the import and meaning of the American Dream and inspiring them to fulfill its promise. In Saving the American Dream, he uses that lifetime of philosophical and historical […]

Chris Upham interviews Dave Benet about the Scientific Diver Certification Program at UCSC.

Episode 90: Films don’t just entertain—they can shape how we understand ourselves and our lives. In this episode, media expert Yalda T. Uhls joins host and psychotherapist Debra Sloss to explore the psychological impact of cinema, especially during childhood and adolescence. Community members share powerful stories about films like Inside Out 2 and Annie Hall that helped them better understand the...

The Christophers, Steven Soderbergh’s latest foray into the intimacies of chamber comedy, stars Ian McKellan as Julian Sklar, a once influential and famous pop-era artist whose glory faded long ago. Now near the end of his life, he is mostly famous for being famous and makes his living recording cameos for those still besotted with […]

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts • YouTube • Spotify • Amazon • TuneIn Retired Judge LaDoris Cordell was in last year’s news a lot in the SF Bay Area due to a high-profile investigation she conducted. The situation was complicated—Sheriff Corpus, accused of misconduct, was the first Latina and first woman in her job. But Judge Cordell, having […]

One of the world’s greatest filmmakers, writer (and occasional actor), Werner Herzog joins host (and occasional collaborator) Erik Nelson for a unique, very live two hours. Herzog has a lot to say about a lot of things, ranging from prostitute penguins, the future of A.I, his larcenous beginnings as a filmmaker, the secret life of […]