Join host Ellina Yin and the team behind the Silicon Valley Pain Index (SVPI) for a deep dive into this year’s report. The Annual Silicon Valley Pain Index features new data that highlights the region’s persistent inequalities. The SVPI was originally inspired by Professor Bill Quigley's Katrina Pain Index following the devastating 2005 hurricane and later by 2020 national Black Lives Matter protests in the wake of the police murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.

Guests: Dr. Michael Dao is an Associate Professor in the Department of Kinesiology at San Jose State University and currently serves as the Associate Chair in the Department of Kinesiology and is the current Director of the SJSU Human Rights Institute.

Dr. Anji Buckner-Capone is an Associate Professor, Public Health and Recreation, College of Health and Human Sciences and practitioner of community health promotion with expertise in program planning and evaluation, health education, and advocacy.

Ruth Melton is a fourth year at San Jose State University, majoring in Communication Studies. She was a student assistant and co-author for the 2025 Silicon Valley Pain Index report released this month. Her interest in working with families and education comes from her non-profit involvement over the years.

Briyana Costa holds a Bachelor of Science in Public Health and is currently pursuing her Master of Public Health (MPH), with a concentration in Community Health Education at San José State University.

Only in Santa Clara County, is a sister project of the ⁠Only in San José⁠ a civic education podcast series dedicated to demystifying and democratizing the process of local government and civic participation in Santa Clara County.

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Episode Resources:

1. SJSU Silicon Valley Pain Index: https://www.sjsu.edu/hri/policy-projects/svpi/index.php

2. Human Rights Institute: https://www.sjsu.edu/hri/about/index.php

3. Support the Human Rights Institute with a Donation

4. Contact Person: Dr. Michael Dao michael.dao@sjsu.edu 

5. SB33 (Dave Cortese) guaranteed income for unhoused high school seniors

6. SB685 (Dave Cortese) pilot program covering full cost of college attendance (at select universities) for unhoused youth

7. AB3229 (Alex Lee) pilot program to increase fruit and vegetable consumption among CalFresh recipients

Music: Spunker by Blue Dot Sessions (https://app.sessions.blue/browse/track/271482) Creative Commons License Attribution - Noncommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

*Copyright Disclaimer under Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976: Allowance is made for “fair use” for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing.