The Berkeley Beacon
Rising Tides: The oyster industry faces climate change challenges and solutions
The world is your oyster, until it isn’t.
On Sept. 1, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a health advisory about recent reports of severe Vibrio vulnificus infections, associated with warming coastal waters, especially in the Gulf of Mexico and along the East Coast.
Colonization’s toll on Hawaiʻi: Lahaina’s devastation and the fight for Indigenous resilience
On August 8, 2023, my family and I huddled in front of the television watching the local news as wildfires ravaged the historic Lahaina town on Maui. As we watched Front Street ablaze, my mother prayed that my Great-Grandmother’s storefront and all of our extended family’s houses were still standing. With power and phone lines severed by Hurricane Dora’s relentless winds, we could not reach any of my Maui family members, so we sat helplessly hoping that everyone had made it out together.
It’s time to retire the term AAPI
Growing up Asian, Hispanic, and Kānaka Maoli on the island of Oʻahu, I have always been keenly aware of my racial identity and the way it is viewed by the rest of the world. Once a thriving, independent kingdom, Hawaiʻi was illegally taken over by the United States and turned into an exotic vacation destination. The rich culture of Native Hawaiians is overlooked in high school history courses, and many do not understand that there is a difference between being from Hawaiʻi and being ethnically Hawaiian.
Hugs and Honis for my ‘Ohana
My first year of college, I realized just how little my Hawaiian identity existed in Boston. I remember a distinct feeling of isolation as I came to terms with the fact that barely any of my peers understood that being Hawaiian meant something entirely different than being from Hawaiʻi. I found it difficult to relate to most of my white peers who had never listened to reggae or knew how to pronounce poke—and had never heard of Hawaiian pidgin. It was as though a piece of my identity was being repressed until those few times a month when I could call my parents and speak to them in the local Hawaiian vernacular.
Food fights will not save the planet
Real-life food fights are rare––for good reason.
In addition to wasting a perfectly good meal, throwing food in any context creates unnecessary and disgusting cleanup work and ultimately achieves nothing for an argument. So, it should come as no surprise that vandalizing works of art by throwing food at them is an extremely ineffective way to draw legitimate attention to environmental issues.
The poison of polarization: extreme political leaning undermines education
Disagreement is inevitable—especially at college.
Discourse on politics, religion, sociology, and other issues inform opposing opinions. The state of American politics currently seems to sit at two opposite ends, creating an “us vs. them” mentality that results in a lack of constructive dialogue. But when this sort of black-and-white mindset goes to school, it prevents impressionable minds from thinking critically.