KQED's Forum

China has refused to condemn the Russian invasion of Ukraine, despite requests from Western nations, and it has criticized sanctions against Russia. “China-Russia cooperation has no limits,” a Chinese government spokesman said Wednesday as Russia’s foreign minister Sergey Lavrov visited China for the first time since the Ukraine War began. What will that cooperation look like as the war continues? Will it include Chinese military aid or assistance circumventing sanctions? And how does the relationship between Chinese president Xi Jinping and Russian president Vladimir Putin, a relationship believed to be close, impact policy? We’ll talk to experts on Chinese foreign policy to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday ordered cities, water districts and other agencies to tighten their conservation rules, as the state comes to grips with the realities of a drier-than-needed winter rainy season. “While we have made historic investments to protect our communities, economy and ecosystems from the worsening drought across the West, it is clear we need to do more,” Gov. Newsom said. “Today, I am calling on local water agencies to implement more aggressive water conservation measures.” The governor’s executive order focuses on the actions of the 420 largest water providers in the state, even as California’s urban residents have fallen far short of a goal set to voluntarily reduce their water usage. San Jose Mercury News natural resources and environment reporter Paul Rogers helps unpack the latest on the drought and the state’s new water rules. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Los Angeles Times reporter Tyrone Beason discusses the fight over an ethnic studies course in Paso Robles. The debate revealed deeper fissures within the community and explored issues such as resistance to teaching history, race, education, and structural racism, and the challenges of living in a predominantly white community.

From his time with the Merry Pranksters to his influence on Steve Jobs to his utopian “Whole Earth Catalog,” Stewart Brand epitomizes the Bay Area counterculture visionary. Brand has “an eerie knack for showing up first at the onset of some social movement or technological inflection point and then moving on just when everyone else catches up,” writes technology reporter John Markoff. Forum talks with Markoff about the life, work and influence of Brand and his new biography, "Whole Earth: The Many Lives of Stewart Brand.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Drivers in California paid an average of $5.93 per gallon of regular gas on Monday  — about $1.50 more than the national average. Gas prices rose nationwide following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but while they’ve leveled off in other states, California’s are still rising. To lessen the impact, Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed a gas rebate last week that would provide between $400 and $800 to California car owners. We’ll talk about the rebate and other legislative proposals and explore why gas in California is so expensive. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the early 1970s, Dave Goelz was an industrial designer working for Hewlett-Packard by day and obsessing over the puppets on Sesame Street in his spare time. Fifty years later, Goelz still has the dream job he left Silicon Valley to pursue. He’s the Muppet performer bringing life to Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Waldolf, Zoot and others. We’ll talk about the creative alchemy of Jim Henson’s Muppet universe with Goelz as well as Henson’s biographer and the curator of Imagination Unlimited, an exhibit about Henson which opens this week at the Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Reyna Grande’s new novel, “A Ballad of Love and Glory,” tells the story of the San Patricios, a battalion of Irish soldiers who fought for Mexico during the Mexican-American War that ended in 1848. The book explores the brutality and contradictions of war while bringing to life the stories of John Riley, the leader of the San Patricios, and Ximena, a woman displaced by the war who becomes an army nurse. Although the Mexican-American war is sometimes called “The Forgotten War,” the conflict reshaped two nations and has had a profound impact on how Mexican Americans are viewed and treated. Grande joins us to talk about the legacy of the war and its parallels to modern day armed conflicts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In response to the mounting humanitarian crisis brought on by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the Biden Administration on Thursday announced that it would allow 100,000 Ukrainian refugees into the United States. Meanwhile, immigration advocates are intensifying their calls on U.S. officials to end Title 42, a Trump-era public health rule that has been used to expel tens of thousands of migrants at the southern border. We'll get the latest on both issues. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

During the pandemic, not only did children aged 8 to 18 spend more time on their screens, those under 13 who are technically barred by age limits from platforms, are increasingly gravitating to social media. The new study by Common Sense Media looked at what kids like to do on their screens – spoiler alert: watch videos – and reports that kids on average spend one and a half hours a day on social media but say they don’t really like it. We’ll talk about what this research means and how parents, teachers and caregivers can respond to these trends. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 94th annual Academy Awards ceremony takes place on Sunday, and event boosters hope that a cast of three female comedic hosts, including Amy Schumer, Wanda Sykes, and Regina Hall, and a reworked format will reinvigorate the award show's flagging popularity. We’ll talk about the nominations – both the critical favorites and the sleepers – and hear your picks for best films and performances. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices