Manzanar to Mangroves: The Desert That Bloomed

A fourteen-year-old boy is sent to a desert concentration camp. What do you do with the place that tried to erase you?

Manzanar to Mangroves: The Desert That Bloomed

This episode tells the story of Gordon Hisashi Hisashi, a Japanese-American scientist whose early experiences in a World War II internment camp shaped his later work. It explores how a personal history of displacement can inspire a lifetime of cultivating life in barren conditions.

Person: Gordon Hisashi Hisashi Born: December 17, 1927 Location: Terminal Island, California Event: Manzanar internment camp Field: Biochemistry, Biophysics

- Gordon Hisashi was born on Terminal Island, a Japanese-American fishing community in East San Pedro, California. - In 1942, at age fourteen, Gordon and his family were sent to Manzanar, a concentration camp in California's Owens Desert. - While detained, Gordon attended Manzanar High School, played baseball, and joined a jazz band called the Jive Bombers. - He graduated from Manzanar High School in 1944, carrying a knowledge of cultivating life in harsh conditions. - After serving in the US Army in Korea, Gordon earned degrees in biochemistry and biophysics, working with future Nobel laureates.

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