http://blogs.kusp.org/features Just another KUSP Blogs site Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:07:32 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1 http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/18/vampire-weekend-scores-a-grown-up-bullseye-with-modern-vampires-of-the-city/ http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/18/vampire-weekend-scores-a-grown-up-bullseye-with-modern-vampires-of-the-city/#comments Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:44:59 +0000 admin http://blogs.kusp.org/features/?p=5096
By Eric Berg | KUSP Vampire Weekend has graduated with full honors this time on their new third album, “Modern Vampires of the City”. What a huge and mature leap forward this is for the New York foursome who have created here 12 brilliant tracks of infectious pop rock. It’s a perfect summer album featuring [...]]]>
By Eric Berg | KUSP Vampire Weekend has graduated with full honors this time on their new third album, “Modern Vampires of the City”. What a huge and mature leap forward this is for the New York foursome who have created here 12 brilliant tracks of infectious pop rock. It’s a perfect summer album featuring one of the catchiest songs of the year "Ya Hey". Very clever indeed. VW's music always had a college friendly appeal ever since they got together in 2007 at Columbia University. The band’s name was inspired by a vampire film lead singer Ezra Koenig had worked on in Cape Cod one summer. The group’s equally irresistible first two albums were a little long in the Paul Simon-Graceland department and hooked on a few too many campus romances. Now that the band is approaching their 30’s, they’ve jettisoned all that frat boy Cape Cod college party stuff and grown up on “Modern Vampires of the City”.  Nor is Koenig no longer denying his unabashed embracing of his inner Simon on several tracks,  "Unbelievers" and "Everlasting Arms". And that’s a good thing. A Big Step A big step forward in VW's maturity is in the romance relationship department. No longer writing about college loves, Koenig is taking a more realistic approach.  One of the strongest on “Modern Vampires” is “Hannah Hunt”, a song that sticks with you long after you’ve listened to it. An unattached couple goes on a road trip that starts in New York and winds up on a foggy beach in Santa Barbara with all hopes of a romantic relationship dashed, as a freezing Hannah, missing NYC,  tears up a copy of the New York Times to start a camp fire to warm up. Vampire Weekend, from left, Chris Baio, Rostam Batmanglij, Ezra Koenig, and Chris Thomson. Gone are the guitar driven quasi-Afro pop beats that marked the previous two Vampire albums in favor of multi-layered keyboards and orchestra effects that give “Modern Vampires” an almost atmospheric film noir soundtrack feel to on songs like “Hudson” and the fade out of  "Hannah Hunt".  There's even a prominent harpsichord that pops up on the albums third track, "Step". Look Out Grammies! Vampire Weekend deserves full credit for creating a cohesive and brilliant pop album. “Modern Vampires of The City” is simply irresistible. It’s one of the best albums of the year and no doubt will be a big winner at the next Grammy Awards. MUSIC ALERT: VW makes its only Bay Area appearance at San Francisco's Outside Lands Music Festival in Golden Gate Park this August 9-11, 2013. WATCH A LIVE PERFORMANCE: Vampire Weekend performed a 12 song set from "Modern Vampires of the City" in Santa Monica recorded for NPR station KCRW on May 15th. http://www.npr.org/event/music/184040955/vampire-weekend-live-in-concert Meanwhile... http://youtu.be/i-BznQE6B8U http://www.vampireweekend.com/]]> http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/18/vampire-weekend-scores-a-grown-up-bullseye-with-modern-vampires-of-the-city/feed/ 0 http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/18/guitarist-scofield-revisits-uberjam-at-kuumbwa-friday-june-21/ http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/18/guitarist-scofield-revisits-uberjam-at-kuumbwa-friday-june-21/#comments Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:16:06 +0000 admin http://blogs.kusp.org/features/?p=5088
With some 30 solo albums to his credit, there’s one thing you can always count on when it comes to jazz guitarist John Scofield - don’t count on anything!  Scofield’s always going to do something completely new and different.  That what makes this guitarist so unique and fresh. Scofield’s always on the quest for new [...]]]>
With some 30 solo albums to his credit, there’s one thing you can always count on when it comes to jazz guitarist John Scofield - don’t count on anything!  Scofield’s always going to do something completely new and different.  That what makes this guitarist so unique and fresh. Scofield’s always on the quest for new sounds and musical directions - be it straight ahead jazz, gospel-blues, funk-electronica or something that sounds downright close to rock and  roll – he’s a hell’uva slide player too! John Scofield returns again to Santa Cruz’s Kuumbwa Jazz on Friday, June 21 at 7 and 9 pm (½ off admission for students at the 9 pm show). This time around Scofield is revisiting the funk-electronic grooves of his 2002’s “Uberjam” album released on Verve Records. For this evening, Scofield’s band features Andy Hess on bass, Tony Mason on drums and Avi Bortnick on guitar and electronics.  Bortnick was part of original “Uberjam” album band that also featured John Medeski and Karl Denson. Hess and Bortnick both play on Scofield’s upcoming new release - “Uberjam Deux” to be released on July 2, 2013.  –Eric Berg Check out: Kuumbwa Jazz John Scofield ]]> http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/18/guitarist-scofield-revisits-uberjam-at-kuumbwa-friday-june-21/feed/ 0 http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/17/what-will-obamacare-do-to-you-it-may-already-have-done-it/ http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/17/what-will-obamacare-do-to-you-it-may-already-have-done-it/#comments Mon, 17 Jun 2013 14:17:09 +0000 admin http://blogs.kusp.org/features/?p=5083
President Obama encourages people to sign up for health insurance exchanges in San Jose, Calif., on June 6. Photo: Stephen Lam/Getty Images The Affordable Care Act reaches full implementation in 2014 so what will it do for you or to you? NPR's Julie Rovner will be gathering listener questions about the new law over the [...]]]>
President Obama encourages people to sign up for health insurance exchanges in San Jose, Calif., on June 6. Photo: Stephen Lam/Getty Images The Affordable Care Act reaches full implementation in 2014 so what will it do for you or to you? NPR's Julie Rovner will be gathering listener questions about the new law over the summer. Email your questions to MorningEdition@npr.org. Kicking off the series, she covered the broad strokes Monday: First, the 30 million American who aren't covered by a health insurance plan become eligible for the health insurance exchanges in 2014. California's CoveredCalifornia program is already estimating what these plans will cost to you with a simple calculator at its Web site. Meanwhile, as President Obama pointed out when he was in San Jose a couple weeks ago, much of the Affordable Care Act has already taken effect. Kids can stay on their parents' insurance until they're 26. Insurance companies can't drop your coverage as easily as they once could. Rovner notes that there's still plenty of uncertainty: political opposition, different implementation state to state. What sort of MediCal expansion will there be for California? Actually Capitol Public Radio reports that question is in the hands of Governor Brown as of Monday morning - the legislature passed two bills expanding MediCal to cover individuals with annual incomes below $15,000.  ]]> http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/17/what-will-obamacare-do-to-you-it-may-already-have-done-it/feed/ 0 http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/13/a-peaceful-walk-in-the-impact-zone/ http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/13/a-peaceful-walk-in-the-impact-zone/#comments Thu, 13 Jun 2013 23:19:28 +0000 admin http://blogs.kusp.org/features/?p=5072
By Kelly Servick | KUSP News High hopes for the former fort In the rolling Monterey hills of federally protected Fort Ord, soldiers bound for World War II, Korea, Vietnam and Panama got their first taste of combat. The base closed in 1994, but the land – now a prime hiking and cycling destination – [...]]]>
By Kelly Servick | KUSP News High hopes for the former fort In the rolling Monterey hills of federally protected Fort Ord, soldiers bound for World War II, Korea, Vietnam and Panama got their first taste of combat. The base closed in 1994, but the land – now a prime hiking and cycling destination – still bears reminders of 77 years of army use. Live grenades, rockets, artillery and mortars are scattered on the ground or lying just below the surface. That’s why military munitions response program manager Lyle Shurtleff starts off an annual guided hike inside the 8,000-acre “impact zone” with a warning: “You’ll obey the directions of your guides, you cannot leave the roadway without a specification from the guide,” he says. “There is no other cleared area, as far we’re concerned, for this walk.” An ambitious cleanup As the group follows a road usually closed to the public, flanked by maritime chaparral and live oaks, they come upon an M60 battle tank and armored personnel carriers, now historical relics. About 14,000 acres of Fort Ord were declared a national monument last April, and now Army and Bureau of Land Management crews are working to give this land a second life, as public recreational space. But before the army can turn this area over to recreational use, they have to make it safe. “The removal itself isn’t that difficult,” says Shurtleff. “It’s not that technically challeng to take ordinance and explosive off the surface once we find it. The finding it is a little more challenging, in that we have to remove a protected habitat.” Over a dozen species found on Fort Ord are listed as either threatened or endangered. But habitat restoration experts can’t get in here until the explosives are cleared. So the army is burning a total of 5,000 acres to reveal what’s under the vegetation, which is well-adapted to fire. The team then blows up any objects they find on the surface and clears underground debris from areas destined to become public trails. “It’s doesn’t really take that long to do the surface removal,” Shurtleff says, “but the paperwork, you wouldn’t believe.” But the impact of army use goes even deeper. Bullets have contaminated the soil with lead, and it will take take 20 years to remove engine cleaning products that have leeched into the groundwater. “They extract the groundwater, run it through a treatment system and the reinject it back into the aquifers,” explains Bill Collins, who coordinates the army base’s realignment and closure office. “So far we’ve pumped over 7 billion gallons of water and treated and re-injected it.” Historically protected lands face uncertain future Beyond the army warning signs and fenced cleanup areas, Fort Ord already feels pristine. In a field outside the impact area, Louise Miranda Ramirez, Tribal Chairwoman of the Ohlone Costanoan Esselen Nation, welcomes a crowd to the ancient homeland of her ancestors. In a celebration of Fort Ord’s first birthday as a national monument, she passes around a box of ceremonial tobacco, mugwort and sage. Everyone takes a pinch and tosses it on the ground as a blessing. “We ask the honorable ancestors to protect the earth that they walked and lived,” she says. Among those celebrating is Gordon Smith, a member of the organization Keep Fort Ord Wild. “A lot of people go down the freeway and they see fort Ord, the see the old barracks,” he says, “ they have no idea that a mile and a half back is square mile after square mile of beautiful rolling oak trees – John Steinbeck country.” Since becoming a national monument, Fort Ord’s best kept-secret-status is changing, and Smith hopes the area can market itself as an off-season hiking and cycling destination. Meanwhile, a heated debate is underway about a proposed 550-acre development called Monterey Downs, to include residential neighborhoods, an equestrian track and retail space. For Monterey county, which has fought to recover from the economic impact of the fort’s closure 1994, it’s an important issue that may come to a head on a November ballot. "I think that this – Fort Ord – and what’s happened here to Fort Ord and with our monument, is our future," says Monterey City councilwoman Nancy Selfridge, a member of the Fort Ord Reuse Authority board. “I think when people know about this, they’re going to come in droves. And ecotourism will be the future of the area, the region.” For today, Fort Ord enthusiasts celebrate its path to becoming a full-grown national monument. While crews on the army side groom the land for that future, recreators can explore 86 miles of existing trails through Steinbeck country.  ]]> http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/13/a-peaceful-walk-in-the-impact-zone/feed/ 0 http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/13/from-probation-and-truancy-to-a-brighter-future/ http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/13/from-probation-and-truancy-to-a-brighter-future/#comments Thu, 13 Jun 2013 17:14:13 +0000 admin http://blogs.kusp.org/features/?p=5046 By Laura Flynn | KUSP News Monterey County’s Strategic Plan to End Gang Violence says the problem costs $207,000,000 annually. As the county looks to new approaches to youth crime, KUSP’s Laura Flynn has this profile of the Silver Star Resource Center, where the county has found its most recent success.]]> http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/13/from-probation-and-truancy-to-a-brighter-future/feed/ 0 http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/13/salt/ http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/13/salt/#comments Thu, 13 Jun 2013 15:37:18 +0000 admin http://blogs.kusp.org/features/?p=5029
http://youtu.be/eLIJuQSOJis Photo: Makoto Morisawa. Courtesy of the Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art, College of Charleston School of the Arts. Now Showing through August 25, 2013 From the Monterey Museum of Art: "Motoi Yamamoto is an internationally acclaimed contemporary Japanese artist from Hiroshima, Japan, who creates elaborate, site-specific installations made entirely out of salt. Often in [...]]]>
http://youtu.be/eLIJuQSOJis Photo: Makoto Morisawa. Courtesy of the Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art, College of Charleston School of the Arts. Now Showing through August 25, 2013 From the Monterey Museum of Art: "Motoi Yamamoto is an internationally acclaimed contemporary Japanese artist from Hiroshima, Japan, who creates elaborate, site-specific installations made entirely out of salt. Often in the form of large-scale labyrinths or aerial projections of typhoons, Yamamoto takes one of the earth’s oldest, most sought-after mineral elements to cover the entire gallery floors during a two-week residency at the Monterey Museum of Art—Pacific Street location. Traditionally used as a symbol for purification and mourning in Japanese culture, the artist’s use of salt emanates from a powerful personal experience in working through the death of his sister. His artwork is rooted in themes of life, death, and rebirth, and his process with salt has helped him cleanse his grief. The closing of the exhibition on August 25, 2013, offers another important participatory experience with the opportunity for visitors to participate in the dismantling of the salt artwork." Monterey Museum of art website.]]> http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/13/salt/feed/ 0 http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/12/spotlighting-background-singers-in-twenty-feet-from-stardom/ http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/12/spotlighting-background-singers-in-twenty-feet-from-stardom/#comments Wed, 12 Jun 2013 17:15:57 +0000 admin http://blogs.kusp.org/features/?p=4996
Also: Visit the page w/ the Fresh Air Interview. Jo Lawry, Judith Hill and Lisa Fischer are three of the backup singers featured in Twenty Feet From Stardom. Photo: Radius/TWC By Mandalit Del Barco | NPR Twenty Feet from Stardom, filmmaker Morgan Neville's new documentary, is a reminder that most of pop music's catchiest hooks, [...]]]>
Also: Visit the page w/ the Fresh Air Interview. Jo Lawry, Judith Hill and Lisa Fischer are three of the backup singers featured in Twenty Feet From Stardom. Photo: Radius/TWC By Mandalit Del Barco | NPR Twenty Feet from Stardom, filmmaker Morgan Neville's new documentary, is a reminder that most of pop music's catchiest hooks, riffs and refrains were sung by voices harmonizing in the background. Neville says he wanted to put backup singers — black, female and honed in church — front and center. "I was really more interested in people who were voices for hire," he says, "who were able to walk into sessions never knowing what they had to do and could bring it." Bring it like Merry Clayton did for The Rolling Stones. In the documentary, she talks about going into the studio at 2 a.m., very pregnant with curlers in her hair, to add a kick to the iconic lick in "Gimme Shelter." "I was gettin' ready to go to bed," she recalls. "We got a call. 'Merry, there's a group of guys in town called The Rolling Somebody's, and they're from England. They need somebody to sing with them.' They picked me up with silk pajamas on, a mink coat and a Chanel scarf on my head." Clayton got a shot at stardom, but it never panned out. The film is filled with such heartbreak stories. Darlene Love, one of the background singers featured in Twenty Feet From Stardom, didn't receive credit for singing hits in the 1950s and '60s and says her career was derailed by legendary producer Phil Spector. Photo: Radius/TWC Darlene Love was the voice for hits credited to other singers in the 1950s and '60s — her career derailed by producer Phil Spector. In the documentary, she says she was so discouraged, she gave up music for many years. "The only thing I thought I could do and make a little money to survive was I started cleaning houses," she says. "Yes, the great Darlene Love is cleaning houses." The film shows stars like Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder and Mick Jagger singing the praises of their backup singers, and Sting talking about making it in the music industry. "It's not a level playing field," muses Sting. "It's not about fairness, not really about talent. It's circumstance, it's luck, it's destiny." Rock 'n' Roll Lifestyle Claudia Linnear, who's in the film, says all of the stories are bittersweet. "Most of us were always bubbling under," she said when she came to visit NPR West. Her story starts out in the 1970s when she was a teenaged Ikette in the Ike and Tina Turner Revue. "Bam! We hit the floor running and you just better catch up or fasten your seatbelt," she remembers. "As soon as that curtain went up we were flying and singing and shaking. You just screaming, but make sure you're on key, because if we weren't, believe me, Ike was giving us the evil eye." Soon, she was touring with Joe Cocker, posing for Playboy and partying with David Bowieand Mick Jagger, who co-wrote the song "Brown Sugar" in her honor. "Ya know, that's what people say," she laughs. "But why didn't they write a song for me to sing? That would have made all the difference ... and why I dropped off the map. Because if you're not a songwriter yourself, a lot it does depend on the right material." Linnear did get to record a solo album. It went nowhere. She had a daughter to support, bills to pay. And she got fed up with the rock 'n' roll lifestyle. "After a while it seemed more about getting high instead of making music. I did my share, but enough's enough," she says. "I got tired of stepping over people passing out in my house, and one day I told them, 'Here's your hat and coat.' Then I closed shop and remembered the things I was trained about in college and took that path. That's where I dropped off the radar. Linnear stopped singing. "Nada. Zilch," she says. She's been quietly teaching Spanish grammar at a small southern California college for the past 30 years. "Most of my students didn't know but through the grapevine found out," says Linnear. "They say, 'I Googled your name last night and all this stuff came up. You sang with so and so.' Oh, boy, here we go." Going Solo Lisa Fischer got a little closer than 20 feet to stardom — she won a Grammy for her 1991 hit "How Can I Ease the Pain." But she says she found a solo career frightening. "What didn't feel safe to me was the business aspect of it, the chess moves: it's strategic. This is war. All those things made me crazy," she says. "I just wanted a relationship with the music. And it just scared me too much, and I wasn't ready."   Fischer prefers singing backup, and she's sung with just about everybody from Luther Vandross (himself, once a background singer) to Chaka Khan to Sting. She's on the road now with The Rolling Stones. "I think background singing is like being cradled, like being loved and supported," she says. "It's sacred to me." Fischer says some people feel like singing background is akin to being a second-class citizen, but she likens it to sides of a tuning fork, blending and harmonizing voices together. The singers are often asked to improvise how they meld their voices with the lead singer. http://youtu.be/sVNd91Ou7HU Judith Hill says background singing, "adds so much charm to the record. You can feel it when you've got group of singers. It adds a whole other quality rather than one person tracking million times." At 29, Hill represents the newest generation of background singers in the film. She was to duet with Michael Jackson on his comeback tour, which was cancelled by his death. "That shook me a really long time, to be in rehearsal with the King of Pop the night before, then to see he's not with us," she says. "It was really, really hard." Hill sang at Michael Jackson's funeral and on a world tour with Stevie Wonder. She also recorded the entire soundtrack to a Spike Lee movie. Just before the documentary premiered at the Sundance film festival, Hill decided to enter the TV singing competition,The Voice. She was considered the frontrunner, but two weeks ago, the audience voted to eliminate her from the finals. "Everyone's like, 'Man, I'm so shocked,'" Hill says. "It seems now it's a country show. Middle America was watching the show that day. The demographic's different from my audience." Now, Hill says she's determined to make a career with her own music. "It's such a hard business, it's really hardcore," she says. "Now I wanna release an album, I wanna tour as much as possible and maybe something wild and crazy comes up again. But I think the key is to stay active and stay visible." Hill says she learned that to make it big, a great voice alone is not enough. But she's already had more exposure than her predecessors had when they were starting out. Director Neville says he hopes Twenty Feet from Stardom brings success for all the featured background singers, like what The Buena Vista Social Club did for previously little known Cuban musicians. And his film asks a basic question about what stardom means. "Who wants to be famous? Some do, but it's not the end all, be all," he says. "In a strange way, the people in our film may be having opportunities they didn't have in their careers because of the film, which is amazing." Merry Clayton's solo recordings are being reissued to coincide with the movie. Darlene Love's biography was was recently re-released. Even Claudia Linnear says she's inspired to begin singing again. There's talk of a comeback tour for the stars of the documentary. And when they were at NPR West, Claudia Linnear, Lisa Fischer and Judith Hill had another shot on the mic, when I asked them, on the spot, to sing the Morning Edition theme with me: "I hate to wake up in the morning/Please just let me sleep this morning/Let me stay in bed/And rest." Comments]]> http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/12/spotlighting-background-singers-in-twenty-feet-from-stardom/feed/ 0 http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/11/a-water-squeeze-tryptic/ http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/11/a-water-squeeze-tryptic/#comments Wed, 12 Jun 2013 00:21:35 +0000 morgan http://blogs.kusp.org/features/?p=4992
(Send your images that you would allow us to post to: photo kusp org) by J.D. Hillard KUSP asked listeners to send photos of water waste, conservation and the benefits of reliable water. These picture will help us report on this topic online. For an idea of what we were looking for here are some [...]]]>
(Send your images that you would allow us to post to: photo kusp org) by J.D. Hillard KUSP asked listeners to send photos of water waste, conservation and the benefits of reliable water. These picture will help us report on this topic online. For an idea of what we were looking for here are some I collected recently in fields off Highway 1 south of Watsonville. First Waste: Water spills onto an access road where sprinklers water seedlings. Photo: J.D. Hillard I'm ignorant about a lot of things in agriculture. So I wouldn't be surprised to learn that equipment that would water these seedlings without spilling either doesn't exist or is prohibitively expensive. But that muddy stream running down the access road seemed to right on target in our hunt for images of water waste. If you can give your image these allowance this story is all around - just look for water that isn't directly serving people or habitat. Benefits of reliable water: Reliable distributed water is essential for raising vegetables where wells may soon become obsolete. The back story on these fields is the wells are either salty or would soon have been. Farms near the Pajaro Valley coast irrigate with treated waste water from Watsonville, resting the wells. It pays off in broccoli, strawberries and vegetables, successful businesses and jobs. Conservation: Purple pipes next to Jensen Road near Watsonville carry water treated and reclaimed from municipal waste to irrigate crops. This pipe carries water that is being recycled. It was first drawn from wells close to Watsonville, then it went through tertiary treatment. Now it's being used where a few years ago all the water was extracted from the environment. To help KUSP report this story or submit more photos join our Public Insight Network.]]> http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/11/a-water-squeeze-tryptic/feed/ 0 http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/10/the-desal-advocacy-group-and-the-santa-cruz-desal-plant/ http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/10/the-desal-advocacy-group-and-the-santa-cruz-desal-plant/#comments Mon, 10 Jun 2013 20:33:14 +0000 admin http://blogs.kusp.org/features/?p=4971
A recent community feedback meeting for the Santa Cruz desalination plant's environmental impact report drew much opposition comment and some support for the project. Photo: Wes SimsThe Santa Cruz Sentinel reports the Soquel Creek Water District is dropping its membership with CalDesal, a statewide group advocating for the development of desalination and desalination technology to [...]]]>
A recent community feedback meeting for the Santa Cruz desalination plant's environmental impact report drew much opposition comment and some support for the project. Photo: Wes SimsThe Santa Cruz Sentinel reports the Soquel Creek Water District is dropping its membership with CalDesal, a statewide group advocating for the development of desalination and desalination technology to help address water shortfalls. The Santa Cruz City Water District is also a member of CalDesal and Bill Kocher helped found the group. The Soquel district board seems to have decided to drop out because the membership could distract from the pros and cons of the project. Bruce Daniel's, the board's vice president is quoted: "I think it is just good to get rid of it and concentrate on the real issues," Daniels said. "If we all decide through the EIR process that we are going to do this thing, we might need the organization in the future." Kocher told Wes Sims, his role in the group stemmed from the city's decision several years ago to pursue desalination: "I think what people need to understand is, council told me that they wanted to pursue desal. And the chief purpose of CalDesal is to work with the regulatory agencies to develop guidelines for permitting it, to keep the door open. And that’s what they mean by advocacy." ]]> http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/10/the-desal-advocacy-group-and-the-santa-cruz-desal-plant/feed/ 0 http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/06/education-at-sea-way-more-fun-than-the-field-trips-you-remember/ http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/06/education-at-sea-way-more-fun-than-the-field-trips-you-remember/#comments Fri, 07 Jun 2013 00:28:33 +0000 admin http://blogs.kusp.org/features/?p=4914
Story & photos by: Kelly Servick | KUSP News The O’Neill Sea Odyssey has a special way of introducing kids to the ocean. In the seventeen years since it welcomed its first class aboard, the Team O’Neill catamaran has become a popular field trip for fourth through sixth graders in Santa Cruz and surrounding counties. [...]]]>
Story & photos by: Kelly Servick | KUSP News The O’Neill Sea Odyssey has a special way of introducing kids to the ocean. In the seventeen years since it welcomed its first class aboard, the Team O’Neill catamaran has become a popular field trip for fourth through sixth graders in Santa Cruz and surrounding counties. On a warm Wednesday afternoon in April, fourth graders from Main Street Elementary School in Soquel, hardly believing their good fortune, roll around on the deck of a catamaran that speeds into Monterey Bay. “This is so fun!” screams one student, as the trampoline on deck bounces with the waves. The students are part of a daylong educational program founded by the famous surfer and wetsuit designer Jack O’Neill. He bought this 65-foot catamaran as a launch pad for his hot air balloon, but in 1996, he turned it into a floating science lab. Lessons that stick “We transform Monterey Bay into the world’s largest classroom,” explains Dan Haifley, the program’s Executive Director. “Everything’s there: hydrology, physical science, life science, we have incredible biology here, particularly in the near shore kelp forest habitats.” The program aims to teach kids about the importance of the ocean in their lives, and encourages them to protect it from pollution. Nearly 75,000 students have participated so far, and research suggests the message is sinking in. A long-term impact study conducted by one of the program’s instructors found that kids who go on this trip tend to hold on to that sense of stewardship five to seven years later. The program is geared toward low-income schools and underserved kids, many of whom have never been out on a boat before. The field trip is free of charge, though the students must earn their day on the bay with a community service project, like a creek restoration or beach cleanup. “It aligns with what we do and it teaches them service, it teaches them a sense of community,” Haifley says. The program also aligns with the state science curriculum and sends teachers home with follow-up materials, in both English and Spanish. Aboard the floating classroom After the thirty Main Street students organize themselves into three teams named after deep-sea creatures, they split up to join the O’Neill instructors. Members of Team Viperfish sit in a circle on the deck as Adam Steckley passes around a strip of kelp. “Now is this plant at the top or the bottom of the food chain?” he asks. “Where is this plant getting its energy from? What is that process called?” Meanwhile, Team Anglerfish makes its way into the cabin, where Celia Lara is explains the boat’s navigational equipment, including the radar screen that indicates its relationship to the coast and the wharf. By the time they reach their final stations, these students are worn out. At the stern, Lauren Hanneman shouts out facts about plankton, hoping to give the fading field-trippers a burst of energy: “Do you guys want to find out how much plankton is in the water? Alright, well let’s go down here and catch some!” The students then return to the program’s education center to review what they’ve learned. Steckley arms his group with spray bottles, and they drench a plastic model ecosystem, observing how rain washes pollution out to sea. He closes with a serious message: “Now you all have the knowledge knowing where that pollution comes from, we can make some changes in the way that we live on the land to reduce – maybe even eliminate – that pollution.” Brian Boyce, the fourth graders’ teacher, was on his first O’Neill trip today too. He says he’d like to bring his future classes back for the same experience. “They took home something they’ll never forget and it’s expanding their personal bubble,” he says. “They aren’t living in their tiny little community. They’re starting to realize there’s a larger world out there – a whole ocean they can explore.” Find more stories about environmental education.]]> http://blogs.kusp.org/features/2013/06/06/education-at-sea-way-more-fun-than-the-field-trips-you-remember/feed/ 0