DANGER LURKING: The two-week-long Festival of Whales...

DANGER LURKING: The two-week-long Festival of Whales in Dana Point begins Friday night with a talk at Dana Point High School by Peter Burtchell of the Cousteau Society (B2). But he won’t be talking about whales. . . . Burtchell says he will discuss threats to the world’s oceans with emphasis on Haiti, which he says is a microcosm of world problems. Says Burtchell: “What you have there is an ever-growing population desperately trying to feed itself with ever-dwindling resources, like our planet in general. Haiti is a wake-up call for all of us.”

HONORING ROBB: When 26-year-old Saddleback College student Robb Nimmo died of AIDS in 1986, the disease “wasn’t a household word,” says his sister, Heidi. She and her mother and brother recently established a $40,000 perpetual scholarship at Saddleback to honor Nimmo, who was active in theater there--his last performance when he was battling AIDS. . . . “He always thought of Saddleback as his home,” his sister says. “He felt good about this campus; we think this is a great way to honor him.”

ANY AGE OK: It’s no surprise what feminist leader Betty Friedan’s topic will be when she speaks to Women in Business Orange County on Thursday at Le Meridien Hotel in Newport Beach. Friedan’s latest book is “The Fountain of Age,” about growing old. Says group spokeswoman Terri Baas: “She’s going to tell us that it’s OK to get old and still use your talent. But we’ve had her speak before. She ignites the women whatever she says.”

DOWN UNDER BLUES: This may be small consolation, but things aren’t much better in Australia than they are here. Five Australian city officials have just completed two weeks in Orange and Los Angeles counties, taking a look at how they might improve government efficiency Down Under. And what did they learn? Terry Barnes, general manager of Fairfield in New South Wales, says his people need “more innovation, downsizing and more technology.” And his comparison of the two countries: “We both face financial difficulties.”