Ruth Dusseault

1 week ago | localnewsmatters.org | Ruth Dusseault

TREES AND SHRUBS were the topic of a hot debate this week as the Berkeley City Council adopted new fire code amendments. The adoptions included new state and local maps that designate Fire Hazard Severity Zones — areas that state and local fire officials determine to have moderate, high or very high risk of fire — and a new local wildfire mitigation ordinance called Effective Mitigations for Berkeley Ember Resilience or EMBER.

1 week ago | localnewsmatters.org | Ruth Dusseault

HUNDREDS OF GRANDPARENTS and elders crowded an intersection in Oakland during Saturday’s “No Kings” Oakland Elders Rally. A few miles to the west, pedestrian bridges over Interstate 80 were filled with protesters waving to the drivers who honked their horns in a constant chorus of support. They were just some of the thousands of No Kings Day protests happening nationwide and abroad in opposition to President Donald Trump’s methods and policies.

2 weeks ago | stocktonia.org | Ruth Dusseault

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s attempt to fast track the construction of the Delta Conveyance Project had a setback Tuesday. The governor’s strategy of inserting a bundle of policy changes into the state budget was rejected by a budget subcommittee, essentially sending a message to Newsom that the Legislature would rather discuss his suggestions using the normal legislative process.

2 weeks ago | localnewsmatters.org | Ruth Dusseault

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s attempt to fast track the construction of the Delta Conveyance Project had a setback Tuesday. The governor’s strategy of inserting a bundle of policy changes into the state budget was rejected by a budget subcommittee, essentially sending a message to Newsom that the Legislature would rather discuss his suggestions using the normal legislative process.

2 weeks ago | localnewsmatters.org | Ruth Dusseault

DIVIDED WE FALL, UNITED WE STAND. That was the message delivered by immigration advocates and elected leaders in a Monday rally on the steps of San Francisco’s City Hall. The event was organized by Supervisor Jackie Fielder with immigrant advocacy groups that represent people from Asian and Latino countries, as well as the Arab Resource and Organizing Center, a nonprofit that provides services and advocacy for working-class Arabs and Muslims across the Bay Area.