
California State University of Bakersfield (CSUB) hosted a panel discussion with author and journalist David Yarnold for the release of his book called “The Geography of Hope: Real-Life Stories of Optimists Mapping a Better World,” on Wednesday evening.
Yarnold’s book introduces readers to individuals who helped map the world for a better future. One of the nine chapters in Yarnold’s book, “Fair lines make fair lives” highlights Bakersfield’s fight for the “Unity Map” and equity for the city council districts in 2022. Which drew a new voice for Bakersfield’s marginalized residents to the City Council, including the Sikh community in Southwest Bakersfield.
“The more I learned about Bakersfield’s history and about a majority minority community. Where a political machine has sort of seized control for decades, and then something dramatic happened in the early 2020s. The community came together around the unity map. And community mapping is the biggest change in GIS probably in the last decade,” Yarnold said.
Yarnold explained every one of these chapters in his book is about people that eventually gets to tell a story about GIS [Geographic Information System]. He wanted to look for a general audience so that’s why each story was framed this way, Yarnold said.
The panelist included Bakersfield City Councilmember Manpreet Kaur (who became the first Sikh Punjabi woman elected to the Bakersfield City Council in 2022), community advocate and formerly with Dolores Huerta Foundation, Lori Pesante, and Industry Solution for Equity and Civic Nonprofits at Esri, Sophia Garcia. The panel was moderated by CSUB Trustee, Raji Brar.
“I confess that what first got my attention as a journalist was the fact that there was a father daughter team involved,” Yarnold said about the chartaper in Bakersfield.
Garcia and her father, Jesus Garcia, who helped build consensus for the “Unity Map” are featured in Yarnold’s book as a father-daughter duo who fought for fair election.
“ I believe, my dad believes, and the people in this room believe that redistricting at its core should be about creating districts that represent the community,” said Garica. “As a consultant, we worked with over 150 municipalities in those two years. The City of Bakersfield was the only community, the only city, that adopted a community map.”
Garica said that the City of Bakersfield will be a blueprint for redistricting in 2030.
“My time here was rich and I really enjoyed getting to know the communities. You are in my heart. It’s my favorite chapter,” Yarnold said.