KQED's Forum

In her new memoir, “The Man Who Could Move Clouds,” Ingrid Rojas Contreras tells the story of a journey she took with her mother to her native Colombia to exhume her grandfather’s remains. She intricately weaves family histories involving her curandero grandfather, her mother who could appear in two places at once and her own magical inheritance sparked by a bout of amnesia. Rojas Contreras, who now calls the Bay Area home, joins us to talk about infusing magic into story telling and how memory is both a burden and a treasure.

This segment originally aired Aug. 8. 

Guests:

Ingrid Rojas Contreras, author, "The Man Who Could Move Clouds"

This segment originally aired Aug. 8. 

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Bumblebees can’t see red, but they can detect the ultraviolet hue, invisible to humans, at the center of a sunflower. A fly can taste an apple just by landing on it, and a rattlesnake can perceive the infrared radiation emanating from warm-blooded prey. Those are just some of the extraordinary animal senses that science journalist Ed Yong celebrates in his new book “An Immense World.” We’ll talk to Yong about what he learned and hear how humans can limit behaviors that endanger the sensory environments of other species.

This segment originally aired Jun. 22

Guests:

Ed Yong, science writer, The Atlantic; author, "An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden Realms Around Us"

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When he was 9, poet Javier Zamora traveled 3,000 miles by bus, boat and on foot, without family or friends, from El Salvador to the United States. The trip was supposed to take two weeks. It took nine. Along the way, Zamora was embraced by fellow migrants and folded into a makeshift family. With them, Zamora encountered corrupt police officers and was robbed of the little money he had. He scrambled over mountains and under barbed wire fences that laced the desert border, all so he could be reunited with his parents who lived in Marin and who he had not seen in years. Thousands of immigrants, including children, have experienced similar journeys, but few have described them as eloquently as Zamora. We’ll talk to Zamora about those nine weeks to the border, which he recounts in his new memoir “Solito,” and his experience as an immigrant growing up in San Rafael.

This segment originally aired Sept. 12. 

Guests:

Javier Zamora, Author of the memoir "Solito," Zamora has been a Radcliffe Fellow at Harvard University and a Stegner Fellow at Stanford University. He is the recipient of fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts. His debut poetry collection, which focuses on the impact of war and immigration on his family, is titled "Unaccompanied."

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The holidays can bring joy but also immense stress, as we host complicated family gatherings or worry about affording gifts or long for loved ones who have passed. But stress doesn’t have to dampen the spirit of the season. UCSF psychiatry professor Elissa Epel has studied stress, its effects and how to turn a stressful life into one of regenerative joy. We’ll talk with Epel about her new book “The Stress Prescription” and get tips on managing stress, especially during the holidays.

Guests:

Elissa Epel, professor and vice chair, Department of Psychiatry, UCSF; author, "The Stress Prescription."

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Earlier this week, the Jan. 6 congressional committee concluded its tenth and final hearing by voting unanimously in favor of issuing criminal referrals for former President Donald Trump. “Ours is not a system of justice where foot soldiers go to jail and the masterminds and the ringleaders get a free pass,” declared Democrat Jamie Raskin as he outlined the committee’s conclusions that Trump had violated four separate federal statutes, including aiding and abetting an insurrection. A final report of the committee is due this week. We’ll look at the committee’s recommendations, which are now in the hands of the Department of Justice and discuss what might happen next.

Guests:

Ryan Goodman, professor of law, NYU; co-editor-in-chief, Just Security; former special counsel, the Department of Defense

Sarah Wire, Justice Department and National Security reporter focusing on Jan. 6 and domestic extremism, the Los Angeles Times

Shanlon Wu, criminal defense attorney; legal analyst, CNN; former federal prosecutor who also served as counsel to Attorney General Janet Reno

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The potent synthetic opioid fentanyl causes on average one death in the United States every seven minutes — more than die by car accidents, guns or suicide. Fentanyl is cheap and easy to mass produce and smuggle; when added to drugs like cocaine and heroin, it can cause people to overdose quickly, before they even realize they’ve ingested it at all. That’s all according to a new seven-part Washington Post investigation called “Cartel RX.” We’ll talk to the reporters behind the series about what’s driving fentanyl’s “catastrophic surge” in the U.S. and how experts think we can begin to turn the tide.

Guests:

Nick Miroff, reporter covering the Department of Homeland Security, Washington Post

Scott Higham, investigative reporter, The Washington Post

Sari Horwitz, investigative reporter, The Washington Post

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When people say publishing is a dying industry, Brad Johnson begs to differ. East Bay Booksellers, which Johnson owns, had its best sales in the store’s history during the past two years. So, it’s fair to say that in some pockets of the world, and particularly in Oakland, books are very much still a thing. And, as the world opened up, people are not only enjoying solitary reading time, but have returned to filling seats at literary readings and in-person book festivals. As the year comes to a close, we’ll talk to booksellers like Johnson, critics and writers about the books that we couldn’t put down.

Guests:

Brad Johnson, owner, East Bay Booksellers in Oakland

Anita Felicelli, editor, Alta Journal‘s California Book Club; 2022-2023 fiction chair, the National Book Critics Circle board; author, "Chimerica: A Novel" and the short story collection "Love Songs for a Lost Continent"

Vauhini Vara, author, "The Immortal King Rao;" former business editor, NewYorker.com; former reporter, the Wall Street Journal in San Francisco

Carlos Lozada, opinion columnist, New York Times; author, “What Were We Thinking: A Brief Intellectual History of the Trump Era;" former nonfiction book critic, The Washington Post.

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It’s tempting to discard a carton of milk or a loaf of bread once it’s passed its “best by” date. But that “expiration” date only means that food is no longer at its freshest – it’s still perfectly safe to eat. Every year, Americans toss millions of pounds of edible food into landfills, contributing to climate change and exacerbating food insecurity issues. We’ll talk with food waste experts about how to interpret expiration dates and make the most of the surplus in our food system.

Guests:

Dana Gunders, executive director, ReFED; author, "Waste Free Kitchen Handbook"

Yasmin Tayag, staff writer, The Atlantic

Diana Lara, executive director, Food Finders

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For some committed couples, years of living in close quarters during the pandemic prompted a search for a different marital model: Living Apart Together. These couples want to stay together, just not in the same home. While the percentage of Americans who are married has declined from 2000 to 2019, the percentage of couples living apart has risen by 25%. Now, it’s estimated that nearly four million Americans are married but living in separate households. Sometimes it’s because of their jobs or other circumstances. But often, particularly for women and older couples, living apart together is a choice that allows for agency and autonomy. We’ll hear about how it works, and whether being apart is the solution for staying together.

Guests:

Kelly Coyne, freelance journalist, New York Times article "The Wife Left, but They're Still Together;" PhD candidate in the Department of Radio/TV/Film, Northwestern University; professor in the Department of English, Georgetown University

Vicki Larson, journalist, Marin Independent Journal; author, "Not Too Old for That: How Women Are Changing the Story of Aging" and "The New 'I Do';" forthcoming book about Living Apart Together

Sherrie Sims Allen, psychologist and relationship expert

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A sunset over the Bay, pregnancy news, a stroll through a flea market, and a conversation about the meaning of love. Those are some of the memories writers and editors from KQED Arts &Culture wrote about for the 2022 series called “One Beautiful Thing”. This year certainly had its hardships, including three years of living with the coronavirus pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, mass shootings, and of course, the mundane demands of life. And yet, it also held moments of beauty, resilience, and gratitude. We’ll talk about the KQED series and we want to hear from you about One Beautiful Thing you experienced in the past year.

Guests:

Pendarvis "Pen" Harshaw, columnist, KQED Arts & Culture; host, KQED's "Rightnowish" podcast

Kristie Song, intern, KQED Arts & Culture - wrote the Fall Book Guide

Gabe Meline, senior editor, KQED Arts & Culture

Thea Matthews, poet, educator, and speaker of African and Indigenous Mexican descent born and raised on Ohlone land, San Francisco

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