Gov. Brown Declares Drought Emergency
Gov. Jerry Brown declared an official drought Friday, Jan. 17. Last year was the driest year on record in California, and forecasters don't see many rain clouds on the horizon. With the snowpack meager and reservoirs low, water officials and legislators are debating what to do before it's too late.
Guests:
Lauren Sommer, KQED Science reporter
Heather Cooley, Pacific Institute Water Program co-director
Chris Brown, California Urban Water Conservation Council executive director
Further Reporting:
California Drought Update: Gov. Brown Declares Emergency
Icebergs and Green Paint: Lessons from California's Big Droughts
KQED Science: Drought Watch 2014
A Threat to the Hotel Industry?
Airbnb has been shaking up the travel industry, going from a scrappy upstart listing rooms for rent to an international hospitality powerhouse. It's a leader in the so-called "sharing economy." Customers — or "hosts" as the company calls them — now use the service to list more than a half-billion offerings around the world. But as the company grows, it's also facing mounting criticism from hotel owners and government officials who say the company is breaking the law and avoiding taxes. Scott Shafer hears from Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky.
Tales of the Tenderloin
Special correspondent Spencer Michels explores whether change is coming to the gritty Tenderloin, home to some of San Francisco's most down and out. As tech companies like Twitter move into the nearby Mid-Market corridor and encroach on the neighborhood, Tenderloin Housing Clinic executive director Randy Shaw says its unique housing stock prevents gentrification. "Cool Gray City of Love" author Gary Kamiya goes further, suggesting in his book that the city and nonprofits headquartered in the Tenderloin have a stake in keeping it the way it is.