Support for Louisiana.

The state we're in is provided by Entergy.

Louisiana is strengthening our power grid throughout the state.

We're reinforcing infrastructure to prepare for stronger storms, reduce outages, and respond quicker when you do need us.

Because together we power life.

Additional support provided by the Fred B and Ruth B Zigler Foundation and the Zigler Art Museum, located in Jennings City Hall.

The museum focuses on emerging Louisiana artists and is a historical and cultural center for Southwest Louisiana.

And the Foundation for Excellence in Louisiana Public Broadcasting and viewers like you.

Thank you.

Health experts in Louisiana are urging people to take precautions against the bird flu.

Two public policy groups are merging with the goal a better life for all of us in Louisiana.

And if you're already feeling stressed in 2025, I'll have some tips for you to help you manage your mental health.

Louisiana native Geoffrey Beene gained global fame as a fashion designer.

LSU holds one of the largest collections of his garments.

I'm taking you on a tour.

Let█s get started Let█s do it!

Hello everyone I'm Karen LeBlanc and I'm Dorothea Wilson.

Much more on those top stories in a moment on this week's edition of Louisiana the State we're In.

But first Friday morning, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously agreed to uphold a law requiring TikTok to divest from its China based parent company or be banned.

The social media site has until Sunday to make a deal to allow it to continue operating in the U.S..

Lawmakers passed the ban because of concerns with how the Chinese government could use data collected from TikTok.

A lot of small businesses and content creators are hopeful a U.S. company will purchase the app and say the band could cut off a major source of advertising and income.

Meanwhile, health experts are warning people to be aware of bird flu.

Louisiana had not only the first human case in the country, but also the first bird flu death.

I spoke with experts about the risk and what you should be aware of as the disease spreads.

According to the Louisiana Department of Health, first person in the United States to develop a severe case of bird flu has died, making Louisiana the only state in the country to have recorded a human fatality from the disease.

the data that we've been seeing is that there are concerns about mutations, when they get into humans.

And so this Louisiana case in particular, they noted, a mutation in a virus that made it potentially more transmissible and or more virulent.

The good news was that it did not pass to anyone else.

The individual, who was over 65 and reportedly had underlying medical conditions, was hospitalized with the flu after exposure to a backyard flock and wild birds.

Some experts believe those preexisting medical issues could have played a role in the patient's inability to recover from the disease.

However, industry professionals like Doctor Rebecca Christopherson argue that there is insufficient evidence to support that.

in humans we have seen have been severe.

So both of the severe cases did have underlying conditions.

But we don't have enough cases to really say that those underlying conditions really are the risk factors.

Now, while the disease did not pass on to anyone else that experts are aware of, we are still not in the clear.

The worry, of course, is, is that the longer it stays in mammal populations, the more it might pick up some of these mutations.

That makes it better at being more mammal, less bird flu.

And then we get into a situation where it's more transmissible or possibly even more virulent as well, and you're going to get more of these severe cases.

So how do we combat this disease and keep ourselves, our domestic animals and our family safe?

Doctor Mark Mitchell, veterinarian and professor of Zoological medicine at LSU, says the answer is simple.

Remain vigilant.

there are great ways for us to stay ahead of this so we don't end up with a pandemic.

If you've ever been around a bunch of young age kids kindergarten, preschool, the parents all know the kids go to school, bring back the disease, wipe us out.

Those bird feeders for wild birds or some wild bird, bring that disease in.

Make the other bird sick.

And it's not just avian influenza that can be salmonella, Mycoplasma.

There's lots of diseases we worry about.

If you see, sick or dying dead birds, make sure that you're wearing appropriate protective gear, gloves, a mask, the same kind of mask you wore during the last pandemic.

Contact an expert veterinarian, Department of Agriculture for your poultry while in fisheries for wild birds, and have those partners help you to manage those cases.

In the meantime, both Doctor Mitchell and Doctor Christofferson are working to keep Louisiana residents safe and free of bird flu.

We're not trying to fear monger.

We're trying to make sure that we keep the message out there that this thing is happening.

But we want people to understand that we are doing what we can.

From hashtags to headlines.

Here's what's trending this week.

The much anticipated lineup for this year's Jazz Fest was released.

That's right Karen.

And as always, there's a huge list of big names.

Headliners include Pearl jam, the Dave Matthews Band, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Luke Combs and none other than Lil Wayne and The Roots now.

I'm really happy for Lil Wayne.

He was showing a little bit from the Super Bowl performing in his hometown, but here he is at the Jazz.

Well that's good.

He has some redemption.

That's right.

So also taking the stage.

Kacey Musgraves one of my ultimate favorites, Lenny Kravitz and Carlos Santana.

So lots of musical variety.

Loving that Tons of local Louisiana artists are also performing Trombone Shorty, Irma Thomas and Tank and the Bangas.

Now the eight day festival runs April 24th through the 27th and May 1st through the fourth.

Now I'm excited about that, especially Lenny Kravitz.

What?

Oh my goodness.

Now residents can get local tickets or tickets for local Thursdays for just $50.

That's great.

That's a bargain.

All right, so it is officially king cake season in Louisiana.

And everyone, of course, has a favorite style.

And their favorite bakery, well known and iconic New Orleans brand is jumping into the mix.

Hemmings is best known for their hand pies, but this year they're offering Kings cakes and they come in four different styles and fillings custard, Dutch, apple, cinnamon and of course, cream cheese.

That's right.

And of course, they're flying off the store shelves, but you can also order them online@cubics.com.

Now, although I'm not a big fan of fillings in my king cake, I definitely think I'm going to try the cream cheese.

Yeah, cream cheese is just like a unanimous favorite right?

All right.

Okay.

But there are some really cool flavors out there.

I just found Cookie Dough King cake.

Right?

You guys had never heard of it, but it sounds good.

Well, speaking of sweet treats, you might want to stock up on some Girl Scout cookies while they're still available after this year, the Girl Scouts are retiring.

Two flavors, some s'mores, which makes me so sad.

And toast.

Yay, which is inspired by French toast.

Now there's going to be some outcry about retiring s'mores, right?

Yeah.

That's right.

And French toast.

I love Cinnamon Toast Crunch.

And this cookie kind of reminds me of that in oh my goodness, it's going away.

Well, as long as they don't retire the thing because there will be public outrage on that one.

You're right about that.

Well, LBB is once again looking for exceptional young people for our Louisiana Young Heroes program.

That's right.

In the high schoolers who are selected will have their stories told right here on Louisiana, the state we're in.

We're looking for young people who have excelled in academics, dedicate themselves to public service, overcome adversity or other inspired stories through acts of heroism, strength and character.

The deadline for nominations is Sunday, March 2nd, so don't delay.

You can find all the information at lpb.org/heroes.

And we want to thank all of the sponsors of our Young Heroes program.

Thank you so much for your support.

That's right.

Thank you, thank you.

Now 2025 is off to a tough start for many people.

But as we move into the new year, it's important to push through the stress and focus on ourselves.

I spoke with experts to look at simple things we can do to help deal with the drama and improve our mental health.

2025 has been off to a pretty traumatic start for some and for others, an ongoing spiral of crisis as they are still trying to heal from years past.

Many people say they can benefit from a mental reset and have shifted their focus for the new year.

Recent studies conducted by the American Psychiatry Association revealed that 33% of Americans have made mental health improvement our priority, and even part of their 2025 resolutions, a 5% increase from last year.

Studies also disclosed that our mental health directly impacts our physical health, and things like stress, which is known as the silent killer, can cause death.

The good news there are simple activities that we can engage in daily to remain in a mentally healthy state.

I spoke with Doctor Enrique Flechas, a psychiatrist and behavioral health specialist at Woman's Hospital, who shared some tips on how to maintain a mentally healthy lifestyle.

There are lots of relaxation techniques and some examples of that would be breathing exercises.

And when we think about that, we under stress will actually end up taking lots of shallow short breaths.

Instead, we want to work on being mindful to take a deep breath, hold the breath and let those out.

If we can focus on that, even for a few minutes every hour, it can substantially reduce the physical effects of stress.

Now, breathing is a powerful tool and can make the difference if these techniques are used daily.

The next tip is a practice skill known by industry professionals as imagery.

What you want to try to do is imagine someplace that you enjoy going at your sort of happy place.

For example, if that's the beach, try to remember that in very much detail of what were the sounds, what were the smells, what were the feelings?

And practice allowing your mind to go there?

By doing that, that becomes an escape and a relaxation.

And the more you practice it and develop the details of those images, the more relaxing and the more it can disengage you from feeling stressed.

And the last tip is one we often overlook but is high on this stress relief hierarchy.

One of the things that we often gloss over is sleep.

We all say, oh, I can get by on 4 or 5 hours of sleep, but in reality, your body actually needs 8 or 9 hours of sleep.

We don't always get it, but it's impressive how much that can actually help you, not only physically, but mentally.

When you are sleep deprived, your body produces a lot of stress hormones, and those can mimic or amplify the stress reactions.

The other is, of course, what we always hear is, healthy diet and when we say healthy diet, it doesn't have to be all, you know, perfectly balanced.

But we want to try to encourage people to do is minimize their intake of refined sugar that actually can help.

It helps to reduce inflammation and, not only helps mentally, but physically, also moderating caffeine and moderating alcohol.

Oh, those are tough ones for a lot of people.

That doesn't mean zero of either of those, but just moderation.

At what point do you think a person should really seek help?

Yeah, that's a very good question.

So as you said, we all feel stress or feel some anxiety during the day.

And, you know, it's important to recognize that feeling some anxiety is a healthy thing.

If we all felt zero anxiety, we wouldn't care about anything.

We wouldn't be motivated.

We wouldn't care if something went well or not.

So having some anxiety is important.

Where we start to become concerned is when anxiety starts to get in the way of accomplishing something.

If it starts to control your behavior, if you're finding that this is not just an isolated 1 or 2 day kind of thing, that you might say, I can identify this related to a situation, or if it's going on for an extended period of time, then it's time to maybe say, I need to seek help.

Two nonprofit organizations with long histories in Louisiana are joining forces.

The Council for a Better Louisiana and Committee of 100 will now be known as leaders for a Better Louisiana.

The groups hope that by working together, they'll be better able to support improvements in our state through policy and analysis.

The Committee of 104 Economic Development, Inc. is merging with the Council for a Better Louisiana to nonpartisan, nonprofit organizations focused on public policy and Louisiana.

Now, what does this mean for you regarding access to policy research, public information, and good government advocacy?

Well, how will the two missions join forces as a single vision for a better government and of course, better quality of life here in Louisiana?

Joining me now is Adam Knapp.

He is CEO of C100, and Barry Irwin, president of Council for a Better Louisiana.

Both of you will be working together under the newly formed nonprofit organization leaders for a Better Louisiana.

So big news.

Congratulations.

Thank you so much.

The new entity.

So, Adam, first of all, before we take a deep dive into the new nonprofit, let's talk about your roles at the existing agencies.

What did you do?

What was the overarching mission?

The organization started back in the early 1990s and has been focused on that kind of development in different ways over the course of that 30 year history.

Most significantly, in the last year, we especially focused on the agency set up at Louisiana Economic Development and Advocacy related to workforce issues and very the mission of cable.

Our organization is more than 60 years old, and it was formed by a group of people who were, frankly frustrated with, you know, kind of the way they saw things in Louisiana at the time in the 1960s.

And they wanted to do things to enhance and improve the quality of life for everybody in the business environment as well.

Okay.

So with that said, two different missions.

How will you merge into a single vision and this formation of the new nonprofit leaders for a Better Louisiana?

Well, I think the thing that we saw is both of our organizations are involved in advocacy as nonpartisan organizations at the state level, with slightly different approaches and goals.

But a strong history and a great base of folks who have been involved across Louisiana in our work.

What we want to try to do is increase that influence and advocacy work.

So we thought this is a way to increase our impact on what a state needs more than ever is to move, to move forward faster and and more aggressively to improve things for our state.

Yeah, really the same thing, I think when we started thinking about it from both of our perspectives, it was really what can we do and how can we have a greater impact on the state?

And this just seemed to make sense.

We worked together on, projects, initiatives in the past.

It just seemed like an opportunity to, to do more.

And that's what I think all of our members want is to do All right.

When we talk about area of focus and, constituency survey, C100 tended to be focused on business interests.

Cable tended to be focused on a more based, broader based, public interest.

Do you see those two as mutually compatible?

our view has been that we are a nonpartisan organization focused really on, the economic development of the state.

But looking at that broadly.

And so we've been involved on a lot of issues collaboratively already with cable.

And, and we expected that was the match matchup working really well is that we already had such, a synergy and alignment.

If there's a slight focus more on job growth and economic development issues, it was, it was that slight difference in where cable might have been more, more heavily involved on general education policy in ways that we haven't been at committee of 100.

But the alignment of those things seems to match up.

Well, you can't grow the estate without a better education, and a better quality of life.

So that brings me to my next obvious question with the 2025 legislature session, limited to fiscal only matters.

And that's coming up on us in April.

Have we outlined any initiatives that we're going to push and pursue in the upcoming legislative session?

One of the things that that we were kind of disappointed in, in terms of the fiscal session piece, was the fact that we had to raise the sales tax, broad based, you know, across the board.

But now we're getting some pretty good revenue estimating numbers in from the Revenue Estimating Conference.

Maybe there's a way we can tweak that a little bit and maybe bring that down a little bit.

That's at least some of the things we're talking about or thinking about.

So table dates back to 1962 a long history, 50 plus years.

And, all that time you've been a strong partner with LPB as a source of non biased, nonpartisan analysis, a source of data and information.

And you've worked hand in hand with us in terms of educating the public, right, on issues with this merger, will we continue this role and active relationship with the media?

Well, I certainly think so.

I mean, from us part of our mission from the beginning has been about raising public awareness.

And certainly we've had a wonderful relationship in partnership with LPB for at least in my 30 years that I've been around.

But I think probably even before that.

And we want to continue that because part of what we're trying to do, and who's always wanted to do is get information out, you know, Nonpartizan again, data information and LPB and the media and all these different outlets are great ways for us to do that to, to reach an audience.

Well, Adam, Nat Erwin, thank you both for coming to join us here in the studios.

And we will have you back.

I am very certain sooner than later to talk policy, data, research and how to move the state forward.

So thank you both.

Thank you for that.

Sounds very.

From small town Louisiana to the Big Apple.

Designer Jeffrey Bean left his mark on the fashion industry.

Now, the late Louisiana legend is being honored with an exhibit showcasing some of his stunning works at the LSU Textile and Costume Museum.

I took an exhibit tour and went behind the scenes for an insider's look at one of the largest collections of beings ready to wear line.

Louisiana native Jeffrey being built a fashion label and a legacy for his ready to wear line with couture quality fabrication and an affinity for Louisiana motifs, including a childhood obsession with a popular print.

When Mr. Bean was ten years old, he became obsessed with a polka dot fabric in his aunt's help chest.

It was the lining of the whole chest.

And so eventually she took it out of the chest and gave it to him.

And with his simplicity pattern, at age ten, he made his first garment from that polka dot fabric.

So we thought it was apropos to begin our exhibition with this nod to polka dots made by Jeffrey Bean.

Over a wide period of time.

Jeffrey Being grew up in Haynesville, Louisiana.

In a 1983 interview with LPB as a Louisiana legend, he shared that his parents saw a career in medicine, not fashion, in his future.

I dare say in the South, if you are not, doctor lawyer merch of a thief.

Everything else is a hobby.

But after three years of pre-med and one year of medicine, I went back to one of my first loves, which was art.

Jeffrey founded his fashion house and label in 1964, in New York City.

He became a boldface name on the International catwalks and on magazine covers for his attention to structure and hidden details, visual surprises only known to the garments wearer.

In his 1983 interview, Jeffrey talked about several of his key pieces, it has been quilted so that it is it will not wrinkle.

I mean, the jacket can actually be, held, in the hand and fold it up.

It travels beautifully.

this ensemble, for example, which is the same look that you see in the image on the wall, which was published in Vogue magazine in 1982, retailed in 1982 for $2,300.

So he occupied this really unique space where it was a very high price point.

It was technically ready to wear, but there would have only been maybe one size run of a outfit made.

So less than 12 or 14 of an outfit made total.

So for us to have as many as we do is pretty amazing.

the LSU Textile and Costume Museum has one of the nation's largest holdings of Jeffrey being creations, thanks in part to a generous donation from the designer's devotee.

Doctor Sylvia Carr su, who's pictured here on our, donor wall, donated the entire collection that is on display.

254 pieces were her donation in the exhibit?

We have up 92. this 254 piece donation from Doctor Carr, Steve, who has worn Jeffrey Bean every day since 1991, Is the largest in our history and was valued at over $241,000.

Jeffrey's mother, worked as a florist, and throughout his collections flowers have been a constant motif manifest in various materials and techniques.

he used flowers over and over again in his designs.

You can see that there from the abstract, to the more literal.

And he used a variety of techniques, like the midriff of this dress that you see here is completely hand beaded and also, sequined to create this floral motif.

Of course, the floral pattern is also in the dress, and this is another example where you have to see the petticoat that's underneath this skirt, done in a plant esprit trimmed in handmade lace.

Jeffrey being passed away in 2004, immortalized in fashion history as a skilled architect of garments rather than a trendy fashion designer, he's known for his innovative approach to structure and fit, using triangular shapes rather than the typical darts for figure flattering outfits.

One of the reasons that I think Mr. Bean's legacy, even though he was one of the most successful American fashion designers of all time, he won the Coty Award eight times, which is the best you can do in fashion?

No one's ever won the coding award that many times.

He isn't as celebrated or remembered as some other designers, because there wasn't necessarily a distinct esthetic component to his work.

He was just interested in making beautiful, well constructed clothes, oftentimes with interior linings and finishings that only the wearer would see.

We end our tour behind the scenes at the museum's temperature controlled storage facility.

State of the art compact closets unfurl to reveal more sartorial treasures.

How many items do you have here?

We have approximately 5000 items in our collection.

The oldest being prehistoric textile fragments that date to approximately 3000 BC.

To garments up to about 2022.

And you also have other Jeffrey being outfits that are not part of this current exhibit, but some of these will be on display in future exhibits.

Yes.

Doctor Karas, who gave us 254 pieces, and we also already had about 20 pieces in our collection of Jeffrey being prior to her gift.

These are some of our additional Jeffrey being evening dresses that we have all donated by Doctor Carissa, including some really stunning pieces, such as this one LSU students have access to the collection for design inspiration.

The university is one of only a few in the nation offering graduate and PhD studies in historical, cultural, textiles and apparel.

This piece is splints.

The Aga French couture designer from the 1960s.

This is also Balenciaga, which has this unbelievable surface detail.

All done by hand.

This is a Balenciaga piece from the 1950s.

this is an example of a woman's, shoe from about 1805.

People were much smaller.

So tiny.

We've gotten larger with time.

From polka dots and magnolias to over-the-top renderings of the big top and a dress that evokes the metallic shimmer of a Gustav Klimt painting.

Jeffrey being pushed the possibilities of fashion and fabrics, unexpected and experimental juxtapositions and his signature whimsy.

the LSU Textile and Costume Museum serves as the safe keeper and steward of this rare window into his design mind.

That's our show for this week.

Remember, you can watch anything LPB, any time, wherever you are with our LPB app.

You can catch LPB news and public affairs shows, as well as other Louisiana programs you've come to enjoy over the years.

And please like us on Facebook and Instagram for everyone at Louisiana Public Broadcasting.

I'm Karen LeBlanc and I'm Dorothea Wilson.

Until next time.

That's the state we're in.

Support for Louisiana.

The state we're in is provided by Entergy.

Louisiana is strengthening our power grid throughout the state.

We're reinforcing infrastructure to prepare for stronger storms, reduce outages, and respond quicker when you do need us.

Because together we power life.

Additional support provided by the Fred B and Ruth B Zigler Foundation and the Zigler Art Museum, located in Jennings City Hall.

The museum focuses on emerging Louisiana artists and is a historical and cultural center for Southwest Louisiana and by Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center.

Visit Baton Rouge and the Foundation for Excellence in Louisiana Public Broadcasting and viewers like you.

Thank you.