the rundown

The Chinese proverb, “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime” encompasses two essential approaches toward beneficial impact: Handouts and Hand ups. Handouts provide short-term solutions, which can be fundamental in situations requiring immediate aid such as natural disasters. Yet, the path to creating the world we dare to imagine will require the latter. Hand ups are developmental opportunities intent on securing long-term viability. Operating in 14 countries, Soles4Souls is a non-profit organization determined to disrupt the cycle of poverty by creating jobs and providing relief through the distribution of shoes. Unlike handout organizations, it collects donated shoes and repurposes them as a steady supply of sellable inventory for its microenterprise operation taking place in underdeveloped regions around the world. Soles4Souls offers a hand up, providing the necessary training and support for these smal...

In recent years, the health of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta has raised concerns as invasive plant species are diminishing water quality and killing its salmon populations. Furthermore, rising sea levels erode levees, allowing these invasive species to pollute the water and contaminate the entire watershed. Since a large portion of Los Angeles’s water supply is obtained from Northern California, the condition of this precious water system should be a concern of the entire state. Therefore, we must invest to restore its ecological health. Growing up in the Napa Valley, I can see the importance of water and the region’s reliance on it; not only for the grapes and wine which the economy heavily depends on, but for its ecosystems and population. In the fall of 2017, severe fires destroyed homes and habitats throughout Napa, Sonoma, and Santa Rosa, placing even more importance on water for emergency protection. Because of this, we must allocate funding to develop new surface w...

          What kind of music do you listen to? I listen to all kinds of music; yes, even country. Yet, it's hip-hop and R&B that mostly flow through my headphones. With Coachella coming up, I thought I'd promote one of its artists who's always on my "Recently Played" playlist and who grew up not too far from where we're studying: Anderson .Paak.  In 2016, Paak dropped his breakthrough album.  Malibu  underlines storytelling, feel-good raps with funky and jazzy beats assembled from live instrument recordings and electronics, molding this project into one that epitomizes three constant components throughout the evolution of hip-hop: soul, funk, and swagger. Let me show you two of my favorite tracks: "Put Me Thru" and "Room in Here."           Paak's fifth track "Put Me Thru" illustrates his internal struggle of a mentally and emotionally abusive relationship through a combination of qu...