Journalist, writer & researcher
About
Hi, I’m Kate. I’m a journalist based in the San Francisco Bay Area who covers a wide range of topics including government, politics, the environment, the outdoors, social justice, tech, inequality and more. I work as Assistant Features Editor with Bay Area News Group, which publishes The Mercury News and East Bay Times, among other publications. My bylines can also be found in The Almanac, Palo Alto Weekly, Mountain View Voice, The Six Fifty, San José Spotlight, PUNCH Magazine and the Santa Rosa Press Democrat, among other publications. The California News Publishers Association has recognized my work in the areas of local government and election coverage, land-use reporting, feature writing and public service journalism.
Recent Stories
Nature, trails and…tech? How AllTrails CEO aims to make the outdoors more accessible than ever
Ron Schneidermann shares how the pandemic fueled the outdoor app’s explosive growth and where it’s headed next — while on a hike, of course. By Kate Bradshaw This story was first published in The Mercury News on March 15, 2024. If you like to hike, chances are good that you…
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Rafting through the Grand Canyon is every bit as magical as it sounds
The top of the Grand Canyon is so far from the river below that it can be hard to see. Hikers joining the rafters midway through the trip had to hike a long way down to the meeting point at Phantom Ranch. (Courtesy Kali Smolen) Floating down the Colorado River…
Keep readingLast-minute bill aims to protect California restaurants from surcharge ban
Restaurant surcharges could be OK after all, if they’re clearly displayed. By Kate Bradshaw This story was first published in The Mercury News on June 6, 2024. Just weeks before the July 1 start of a statewide ban on so-called “hidden fees,” State Sen. Bill Dodd (D-Napa) has proposed a…
Keep readingWineries on high alert as Point Fire burns in Sonoma County
Nearby wineries are unscathed so far, but remain on edge. By Kate Bradshaw and Rick Hurd This story was first published in The Mercury News on June 17, 2024. Wine lovers were watching anxiously Monday as firefighters engaged with a stubborn early-season blaze threatening some of Sonoma’s most famed vineyards.…
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How to spend a perfect day in Santa Cruz, based on your travel style
Visitors wade in the water at Natural Bridges State Beach in Santa Cruz, Calif., on Tuesday, Aug. 2, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group) Bored with the Boardwalk? Here’s your guide to exploring a different side of Santa Cruz This story was first published in The Mercury News on…
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Renowned Oakland-Senegalese chef teams up on a new West African cookbook
Lisa Katayama and chef Pierre Thiam have written the cookbook “Simply West African” on Thursday, Aug. 24, 2023, in Oakland, Calif. (Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group) “Simply West African” by Pierre Thiam and Lisa Katayama hits bookstores September 19 By Kate Bradshaw This story was first published in The Mercury…
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Q&A: Jenny Odell on how Bay Area landscapes inspired her new book ‘Saving Time’
From I-880 to Pescadero State Beach, Odell dissects different ways of grokking time. Jenny Odell, author of “Saving Time” and “How to Do Nothing,” lives in Oakland and draws inspiration for her writing from Bay Area landscapes. (Courtesy Chani Bockwinkel.) By Kate Bradshaw This story was first published in The…
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With roots in Silicon Valley, this century-old fruit business has ties to your cereal bowl
This fourth-generation dried fruit business supplies Raisin Bran’s raisins and has a street named after it at Apple headquarters. Mariani Packing Company president George Sousa Jr. at the company’s facility in Vacaville, Calif., on Sept. 6, 2023. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group) This story was first published in The Mercury…
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How pinball’s feminist uprising got its start in the Bay Area
A decade in, this ‘league of their own’ has transformed the world of competitive pinball. With fingernails that match the color of flipper buttons, a female contestant competes in the women’s pinball tournament at California Extreme, the annual classic arcade games show at the Hyatt Regency in Santa Clara, Calif.,…
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Bay Area: Who knew there were chestnut orchards right here?
Plus, how to collect your own haul. Hans Johsens prepares for the onslaught of harvest season visitors to his Skyline Chestnut In the Santa Cruz Mountains, Thursday, Oct. 26, 2023. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group) By Kate Bradshaw This story was first published in The Mercury News Oct. 31, 2023.…
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Autism-friendly Bay Area airports, hotels offer travel accessibility for families
Eli German, center, a 10-year-old boy with autism, shows a hotel card as he takes the elevator to the seventh floor at the Hilton Hotel in Concord, Calif., on Friday, Jan. 5, 2024. German and his family of five have stayed in the hotel free of charge through Concord’s Practice…
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Astronaut Steve Smith’s time in space has shaped the course of his existence
Former astronaut Steve Smith traveled 16 million miles and spent nearly 50 hours out on spacewalks during his time with NASA. (NASA) Spacewalker and diplomat Steve Smith shares how space has changed his life. This story was first published in The Mercury News on Jan. 21, 2024. Many kids dream…
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Remote work rises and Caltrain ridership plummets: How Silicon Valley has changed three years since COVID
Caltrain ridership has plummeted 92% from pre-pandemic rates. Photo by Magali Gauthier. Annual report illustrates how the increasing cost of living is impacting residents — and driving them away. By Kate Bradshaw This story was first published in The Six Fifty on March 22, 2023. Each year, Joint Venture Silicon…
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Inside Cupertino native Barbara Boissevain’s decadelong quest to photograph Peninsula salt ponds
The Ravenswood salt ponds next to Meta’s Menlo Park headquarters. Courtesy Barbara Boissevain. The photographer’s striking aerial and ground-level images are part of the forthcoming book ‘Salt of the Earth’. By Kate Bradshaw Published March 30, 2023 in The Six Fifty. Environmental photographer Barbara Boissevain was shooting photographs from a…
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Inside the wacky ways Peninsula communities are trying to skirt new housing
Pam Silvaroli comments on plans for multifamily zoning along El Camino Real at an Atherton City Council meeting Jan. 31. (Photo by Magali Gauthier) Wealthy towns have a rich playbook for preserving the status quo around housing. But it’s starting to backfire. By Kate Bradshaw Published Feb. 15, 2023 in…
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‘My family doesn’t know I’m opening a restaurant’: Inside two sisters’ journey launching one of the Bay Area’s only Uyghur eateries
Almira adds tomato paste to a dish while cooking in the restaurant, Mrs. Khan, that she co-owns with her sister. (Photo by Magali Gauthier) Sisters Almira and Kalbi are the faces behind Mrs. Khan in downtown Menlo Park. By Kate Bradshaw Published Dec. 8, 2022 in The Six Fifty. Almira…
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Beyond plastic straw bans: ‘Generation Dread’ author and Stanford postdoc Britt Wray on coping with (and acting on) eco-anxiety
Britt Wray is a Stanford University postdoc and the author of “Generation Dread: Finding Purpose in an Age of Climate Crisis.” Courtesy Sebastian Wray. Wray discusses her book, which is framed around her decision about whether to have a child in a climate crisis, and advice for navigating the stormy…
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Rohnert Park mother-daughter team designs floral masterpieces for any occasion
Jennifer Flores, left, and her mother Rosa Luviano, owners of Monarca Valley Floral, make arrangements in their backyard at their home in Rohnert Park, Calif. on Sunday, August 7, 2022. (Beth Schlanker/The Press Democrat) Matriarch of the family passes down wisdom, artistry of creating bouquets to daughter who uses social…
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Mariachi camp inspires kids to connect with Spanish music, instruments, culture
Ballet Folklorico dancers wait backstage before performing during the youth mariachi program at the Luther Burbank Center for the Arts, Friday, July 22, 2022 in Santa Rosa (Kent Porter / The Press Democrat) 2022 Music leader, José Soto, helps empower young musicians through free classes and instruction as their confidence…
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North Bay health advocates tackle wide range of wellness obstacles
Juanita Gonsalves, from left, Esamou Phongsa-Chu, Jesika Quintal, Chelene Lopez, Jennifer Ammons, Jackie Williams work on the Providence Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital Mobile Health Clinic. Photo taken in 2022. (Providence Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital) By Kate Bradshaw Published Nov. 22, 2022 in the Santa Rosa Press Democrat. In Sonoma, Mendocino…
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Kate Bradshaw 