Fifth & Mission

The Fruitvale neighborhood has one of the lowest vaccination rates and highest COVID case rates in Alameda County. Reporter Deepa Fernandes joins host Cecilia Lei to discuss an outreach program that's hoping to change that with the help of key ambassadors in the community: children of immigrants. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The enhanced federal safety net has helped keep more than a million Californians from poverty this year, but the extra payouts are set to end on Labor Day. Chronicle reporter Carolyn Said joins host Cecilia Lei to talk about who will be affected the most and how jobless people will have to cope in the months ahead as the delta variant continues to threaten the economy. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With the delta variant on the rise, concerned parents are demanding a distance learning option from school districts. Education reporter Jill Tucker joins Cecilia Lei to talk about this week's bumpy start to the new in-person school year. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's happened again: A California community wiped out by flames. The Dixie Fire tore through the Gold Country town of Greenville last week even as neighborhoods in places like Santa Rosa, Redding and Paradise continue to rebuild after past catastrophes. What's it like to lose everything? Host Demian Bulwa talks to Margaret Elysia Garcia, who was evacuated from Greenville, and Melissa Geissinger, who lost her Santa Rosa home in the 2017 Tubbs Fire. Read Garcia's Eulogy for Greenville in the Plumas News: bit.ly/3lEvSvrVisit Geissinger's website: survivaloversurrender.comRead Out of the Fire by Lizzie Johnson: bit.ly/2VAwyHDListen to the accompanying podcast City of Ash: spoti.fi/3lGtg0m Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Delta variant has been a tough reality check, so Chronicle reporters went out into the field to ask Bay Area residents about how they're feeling at this stage of the pandemic. Internationally known stress scientist Dr. Elissa Epel joins host Cecilia Lei to discuss how we can maintain our emotional health, even as a prolonged pandemic stirs strong emotions of anger and frustration.  | Get full digital access to the Chronicle: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

All over the Bay Area, the pandemic left hundreds of thousands of people and families unable to afford their rent. But as Chronicle reporter Lauren Helper reports, government programs designed to provide aid and shore up local communities have been slow to disperse the funds. As of mid-July, only 10% of $889 million in available aid had been distributed. Hepler tells host Demian Bulwa how these programs work, how they are breaking down, and what is at stake for renters, landlords and everyone else. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Indoor mask mandates are back in seven Bay Area counties because of the highly transmissible delta variant, and the risk isn't just for unvaccinated people: post-vaccination cases are also on the rise. UCSF's Dr. Bob Wachter joins host Cecilia Lei to explain breakthrough cases, and what the latest public health guidance means for the future of the pandemic. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Many Bay Area residents moved away from cities like San Francisco and Oakland during the pandemic and landed in the places that are most vulnerable to wildfires. Chronicle reporter Susie Neilson joins host Cecilia Lei to discuss the trend and why some people are knowingly placing themselves closer to the blazes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For more than four decades, Gilbert Baker's iconic rainbow flag has been the global symbol of the LGBTQ community. But critics say it's time for the flag to be updated and inclusive of other groups, including Black and transgender people. The Chronicle's Tony Bravo joins host Cecilia Lei to discuss what's happening with the flagpole at Castro and Market streets, which stands at the center of the debate. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's another huge moment in the pandemic: the full return of in-person instruction at Bay Area public schools. But what will that look like? And are we ready amid the frightening surge of the delta variant of the coronavirus? Chronicle health reporter Jill Tucker tells host Demian Bulwa how school officials are preparing, including what they are requiring in terms of vaccinations, masks and social distancing. She talks about how students are transitioning back. And she discusses the prospect of potential lockdowns in the future. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices