>> tonight on kqed newsroom. special guest talks about how a diet for a planet can combat climate change. plus campaign contributions for fossil fuel interest and a strike force. we go ice skating in this week's edition of something beautiful. coming from you headquarters in san francisco this friday. hello, welcome to the show aired this is newsroom. let's catch up on the big news

stories in california this week in the friday five. there have been and uptick of covid cases this week. this is the highest level of transmission according to the cdc. areas set of been in the orange rain are back to red. drug companies scored a win as a california judge ruled they could got be held a lot reliable for opioid crisis. the four california counties that brought the lawsuit had hoped to win billions of dollars to help pay for drug abuse treatment programs. hop environmental officials

are in scotland attending the climate change conference. their goal is to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. here's the natural resources secretary. >> california is a leader on climate action across the world. we are also a big and consequential place. we are proud to say that our economy if measured about other countries will be the fifth in the world aired we've managed to reduce our carbon pollution in remarkable ways. in 2007 we set a goal to reduce pollution by 2020. we achieve that target four years early in 2016. the state's department of fish and wildlife is delaying the start of crapping season to protect endangered world whales and turtles from getting tangled in lines. it's unlikely there will be crab on the menu for

thanksgiving. buster posey announced his retirement from baseball on thursday. he was named rookie of the year, most valuable player and help the team win three world series championships. he's looking forward to spending more time with his wife and children. that's this week's friday five. i will be joined later by our political reporters. our first guest is the expert in climate change. particularly in how food plays a role in the warming climate. and they wrote the revolutionary book "diet through a small planet" 50 years ago. anna has helped to update her mother's book and it's a call to action. she is joined us to discuss the latest release of her book.

she has frustration that it's not being discussed this week at the climate change conference and her hope. thank you for being here. >> it's nice to be here. >> what is different between this edition and the original decision. >> this is the 53rd anniversary of the book. so much of what my mother is saying is true today. what we eat and put in our bodies is central to our health . we see how much an impact our food systems is having on climate change. what is new is a introductory chapter from my mother that ties decades of thinking from my mother and ties together social movements around the world that makes food that's better for the body and the planet. the recipe sections have been

revamped for the 21st century and has a bunch of new recipes. all of the recipes have been tweaked in some way. >> i hope we can dig into that. at the end of the conversation. i want to check in about your mom and see how she is doing. she's still a powerhouse. >> i was talking with her this morning. we have done 50 events for the 50th anniversary already aired since it came out a month ago. i was teasing her that she is the poster child for this plant centered diet because she has so much energy and joy to bring to the work. she still going strong at 78 aired 20th book and 20th honorary degree. >> i want to read a quote from the new addition here aired it said "even if the world cut all fossil fuel emissions, food systems alone would make it

impossible to limit global warming set in the paris agreement". your point is the food is 37% of admissions and not enough to just focus on fossil fuels. can you tackle that more >> i'm glad you read that quote. it's important that every sector plays its part. i wouldn't want anyone listening to think i'm not saying let's not worry about gas or building. every sector has to step up. food and agriculture in particular. more than a third of all emissions. agriculture, especially at rib business. demands for animal feed and factory farms that's driving deforestation.

80% of the deforestation of the amazon have been driven by demand for land for feed crop and cattle grazing and that's what we need to talk about. that's one of the messages we hope people hear from us. >> the past 50 years, something has changed. we are generally more accepting of the concept and eating more plant centered diets. we see the problems with aggressive farming. there is still, unfortunately, incredible environmental dacian because of our food system. we are in a worse place than we were 50 years ago aired what is keepinus from adopting the principles in the book? >> we are living in this time that we both know so much more aiit looks like our plate ke and doing what we can to get chemicals out of farming and adopt practices that are better

for soil. although sings we know we need to do. there's a lot of popular acceptance for that way of eating. why don't we see more change? a lot has to do with the connection between food and democracy. the policies don't actually reflect our shared values that many of us hold that wants to have healthy food available to everybody and clean air and clean water. political system is really powerful. there is more agribusiness lobbyists on capitol hill then oil and gas industry. that tells me how much corporate power has in terms of policies. we need to pass regulations and shift systems. >> where we put our money and what is exceptional about our values. what about cop 26.

is is states coming together saying what can we agree on to make the world environmentally sound. there isa california delegation there. several of the leaders in the administration on the environment front. 16 legislators, all democrats. we talk with jared bloom and felt. you just had a interview before the pandemic. his secretary of environment and protection. i want to share a message he sent us talking about what he hopes to accomplish from the conference. >> i hope we won't need a cop 27. there's been 26 of these things and about time we figure this out would ultimately the folks stand up on the podium and make big bold promises and we need

to turn it into action. it comes in the local and state action level. >> what actions do we need to do? >> he is right. there's so much power that states have. huge agriculture producer and economy. it's been encouraging to see the state has passed good policies and put money behind the policies we need to help farmers make this transition away from fossil fuel dependent way of farming to one that is better for environment and community. we are seeing for the first time $100 million dedicatd to farmworker housing that will help the workers be protected better from climate shocks we are seeing transitions to farmers and millions going into soil programs. is encouraging. the message i would give our

state is those investments need to happen every year on an ongoing way and we need to grow if we are going to reach our climate ambitions. they can't be the things we fund when we have a boom economy that we are lucky to have right now. of the california economy is volatile. we need to step up and invest in long-term and do bond measures that we need to have consistent funding for these policies. >> you have frustrations about what conversations are taking place when it comes to food at cop 26. >> huge frustration, not just mine but the advocates around the world that have been trying to center conversations around agriculture and climate policy. 37% emissions central to the story. a big concern that if we don't have the trendlines around meat and dairy production, they will go off the chart and lock us

into climate catastrophe. there is not a single day dedicated to agriculture in cop 26. of the kind of policies we are hearing, i was reading the press release of things he announced, $5 million partnership for united emirates. that's keeping pesticides and artificial fertilizers and folks may be hearing about net zero which is not really zero. and not moving the needle. a lot of us are being concerned about what's being talked about. words like our greenwashing, the tough policies we need. >> there is a lot of dread when it comes to climate change. and yet there's a word that pops up over and over again. your mother's writing and the books you've authored. that's hope.

you wrote a book called hopes edge. to talk about the strength for hope and need for hope and how you find th hope and keep moving forward. >> i'm glad you asked because i think probably like many of us i've experienced levels of climate disparity that i've never experienced before. i lived through many of your viewers from the san francisco bay area. that day last year when the sun never came out. i had to explain why i they couldn't come outside because of the wildfires smoke everywhere. i found myself having to remind myself what i mean by hope a lot these days. what my mother and i have come to realize about hope is it's a source of energy that comes from taking action and being part of trying to make the change you want to see in the world aired it comes from our sense of possibility. it's grounded in the evidence

we've seen. i've gone around the world and we've met incredible movement leaders and government leaders and people in the media that have made change possible up against the biggest odds you could imagine. those people taught us to be possible us. we are not optimist. we are not pessimists. those presume what you think is gonna happen. we are possible us. it's that sense of possibility that i get my hope. even a small part. create the world i want to see for my children. >> thank you for joining us and bringing this message of hope. >> thank you for having me. republicans ran a vick relapse and took the governor's office in virginia and am expect ably close in new jersey. both had gone to president joe

biden by double digit margins. it was a wake-up call for democrats. to dozens of crickets it congressional seats could be flipped from republican to get democrat. i'm joined now by government correspondent. california politics reporter for politico. jeremy. >> pleasure to be here. >> marissa let's start with you. democrat should be worried said mccarthy. he's saying 60 seats could be flipped and what you make of the prediction? >> democrats arm are worried. this pre-midterm results when we are already seeing concerns about the slowness of joe biden's agenda getting through in washington aired when there have been headlines around in trip party squabbles between

the moderate and progressive wing. historically it's hard to keep congress when you have a president in the white house. i'm sure ey are concerned. these receipts that joe biden won by double digits a year ago. time go slowly and very quickly in the political world. is premature to bank the prediction. kevin mccarthy would like to see it and he will talk it up. it looks like a few months before the delta surge, politics were different nationally and in certain communities. at the end of the day the current gear congressional races will be impacted by the national mood and how people are feeling about the parties but a lot has to do with the individual races and candidates. >> are you thinking candidates are worried in california based on these results? >> i think we have a handful of competitive seats that are going to be as long as the districts don't change

dramatically, perennial places for folks to watch. orange county, the cease flip back to read a couple of years ago. an example of how this could play out depending on how people feel in your. this was a good thing for people in a pulpal district when they see the writing on the wall. there was a huge oil spill down there this year. local issues of the personality work by the candidates will make a difference. while i feel that they flipped republican a few years ago they are excited about what happened in virginia. i don't think the democrats think it's the giveaway. i think we need to make these pronouncements but there is different elements at play here. it's hard to tell which ones will be an issue in 22.

>> jeremy i want to ask you. there are changes to the political map that is coming because of the redistrict thing process. i thought the pole the referred to a process of drying election lines has been redressed read districting and cleaning up housekeeping. there are political outcomes. tell us about the congressional changes you are seeing that can come from the new proposed district boundary lines. >> this is the latest political drama unfolding in california. is going to accelerate in the next couple of months. we're going to see the drafts of the new districts in a couple of weeks. and then the final by the end of the year aired the california redistrict thing is holding meeting on their visualization of what the districts might look like. already causing a lot of consternation. something like weather a city is in a more rural district, for example. central valley district that carter ip.

tracy ends up there is an easy district to defend. and it becomes a lot tougher. you have democrats thinking that republicans in another part of the central valley could get a little more blue and make things easier for them. california will be losing one house seat aired probably see that in l.a. county which has lost a lot of population relative to other parts of the state. once we see folks drawn into competitive distris, i expect some members will retire. people in legislature will run for house seats and people will run for the new legislative seats. there will be a chaotic cast aid of people retiring and campaign starting pretty soon. >> a lot to talk about. >> let's not forget the census was delayed aired this is also a tight timeframe and it will

be tighter. it requires a lot of quick thinking. do i run in this district. candidates don't have to live in the district they run in. unlike the senate and state assembly. the other headline out of the central valley, whatever districts could include kevin mccarthy and noonan or these others in the same district. that would mean they couldn't run for their seats. i don't think kevin mccarthy is in danger of losing his seat that it's a bizarre situation. >> jeremy, anything you'd like to add. go ahead. >> remember the last time around two los angeles democrats, got drawn into the same seat aired they almost came to blows at one point in that campaign, it got sort of vicious. úi think that is a scenario. there is a scenario of is this more difficult for my party that folks are worried about

aired so us scenario, am i gonna have to run against an ally if there's not enough seats going around x >> list talk about cop 26. in terms of the environment at large. california delegation out there. there was a vote by the california democratic party to stop except the money from some fossil fuel groups in law enforcement groups. that vote happening has been delayed. california progressives are steamed about this. can you tell us was going on here. they already don't take money from fossil fuel industry directly. >> this is where we get into the problem of campaign finance and all the murky things. environmental activists and progressive activists are saying is the state democratic

party needs to stand up and say no to all fossil fuel money and law enforcement we can get to that in a second. the big seven or eight oil companies, they already don't take that money dreck relief a lot of industry groups and trade groups of funnel that money through. they are very powerful. often is not necessarily the oil companies in sacramento or dc who are lobbying. the western petroleum association. i think this is emblematic of a broader debate within the democratic party around climate change. it's not simple. it sounds like it should be. but in richmond you have chevron. is a huge employer. a lot of people that work there are people of color. they also live in the surrounding community and our impacted by the pollution. that means that doesn't mean they are speaking with one voice on what they want to see happen. with the brakes being put on here with the state party is worried about that. at a time judging by tuesday's results we just talked about, and democrats need their enti

collation. there's a worry at the top including state chair doing this too quickly. maybe they are trying to end it . it could've hurt their ability to get the coalition and 22. i would love to go into law enforcement. >> will have to wait for that because i want to turn to attorney general. this week he analyses launching a new housing strike force. i want to know what that means. here's a little bit about attorney general speaking at a press conference. >> everywhere we look we are in a housing crisis. fresno to fremont and san diego to san francisco and los angeles to loomis. families facing a housing shortage and epic proportion. people that are not fulfilling their obligations, we will be there to enforce those laws.

they are not suggestions or recommendations or invitations for voluntary reactions, they are requirements. >> it sounded like the attorney general is kicking off a listening tour. having conversations and launched a website. is this much a force to strike force? >> this is a con solid they should of resources and focus on the issue. department of justice can't do anything but enforce laws. they can create a new mechanism the legislature hasn't given them. that said, they've created those in the past few years and we seen the state get tougher on local governments that aren't doing their part to build housing according to the law. including san francisco voting down that project on stephenson street this past week. part of the larger picker of a desire from the legislature, executive branch and department of justice having more

assertive state rule dealing with the housing lot aired that úsaid, i don't think with what the attorney general announced here introduce the equation more than emphasis on the issue . >> last question in the final moments we have left. attorney general was in san francisco and attending the swearing in of his friend who is now the new san francisco city attorney. what you expect him to tackle first? >> corruption scandal is how he got into the job. general manager stepped down after being indicted. that will be part of this. housing. that's a big issue in sacramento. housing and homelessness. he led the way on marriage equality and enhancement on those things. he has a full plate. >> thank you both.

>> this week's look at something beautiful is the best of post-pandemic return of the holiday ice rink of union square incense and san francisco.

>> that's the end of our chauffeur tonight. thank you for joining us. if you wa a look behind the scenes, hang out online. kqed is on twitter and facebook. you can reach me on twitter. we will be back here next friday night. have a great weekend.

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