Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

By Commonwealth Club of CaliforniaNews Government Politics

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Commonwealth Club of California Podcast episodes

October 20, 2020 Brian Christian: The Future of AI
Time and time again we have created artificial intelligence (AI) systems to help solve our problems, but what happens when the AI systems become the problem? Artificial Intelligence systems have been created to help humans work faster, respond more justly, manage more and make fewer mistakes, but now the solution has become the issue. As these systems progress and become more prevalent, ethical and existential risks have emerged. Brian Christian argues that it turns out there is only so much AI can do before it becomes painfully clear that humans need humans. We need empathy and connection when determining bail amounts. We need doctors who know our names in order to feel cared for, not just machines that have downloaded our health data. Not everything can be outsourced, but so much already is and it now becomes a dilemma how to rein it in. What happens when our machines outsmart us, or an enemy outsmarts our systems? How do we realign? Christian investigates these questions and more in his new book, The Alignment Problem: Machine Learning and Human Values. Join us for our conversation about what must change culturally and in the world of tech to ensure that humanity remains our north star.

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1 hr 7 min
October 19, 2020 CLIMATE ONE: Climate Ambition with Gina McCarthy, Annie Leonard and Tamara Toles O’Laughlin
How are the leaders of some of the nation's biggest environmental organizations responding to a year of race and health crises? Groups such as the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), 350.org and Greenpeace helped move climate onto the presidential agenda last year, pushing Joe Biden and other Democrats’ stances on bold action. Now, organizers and advocates are backing recovery plans that bolster clean energy jobs, help strengthen communities and dismantle systems that exploit people and the planet. How enthusiastic are they about Joe Biden’s $2 trillion climate plan? Can activism finally bring America’s political ambitions in line with climate science? Join us for a conversation on the state of our climate with Annie Leonard, executive director of Greenpeace, Gina McCarthy, CEO of the NRDC, and Tamara Toles O'Laughlin, North America director of 350.org.

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53 min
October 16, 2020 John Judis: Is There a Socialist Awakening?
In the aftermath the 2007–08 financial collapse, the increasing inequality seen in countries around the world, and the fallout from the global pandemic, there has been an increase in global citizen interest in exploring alternative economic systems.. In the United States, whether it is the presidential candidacy of Bernie Sanders, the popularity on the Left of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, or protesters flooding the streets in unprecedented numbers seeking racial and economic equality, you can find something in common among many of those disillusioned with the way things are—and an interest in socialism. How did this happen? Why now? In his new book, longtime political journalist John Judis—himself a veteran of socialist movements—explores how an ideology thought to be long dead has taken hold as a broad movement among younger people dissatisfied with mainstream politics both on the Right and the Left, in America and around the world. From Karl Marx to Eduard Bernstein, Eugene Debs to Victor Berger, Bernie Sanders to Jeremy Corbyn, The Socialist Awakening chronicles the rebirth of an idea driven by a rising anti-capitalist resentment among those looking to assert public power over the direction of private enterprise. Please join us for an important conversation just weeks before the presidential election.

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1 hr 10 min
October 16, 2020 Transitions and Transformations: The Wonderful Journey of Midlife Women
If you're going through a transition (and who isn’t?)—whether it's an empty nest; a career shift; dealing with ageism, divorce, the loss of a spouse or parents; not to mention hot flashes in the conference room—this event will support you with many survival tips and tricks as well as the power that comes from information. Barbara Mark, Ph.D. has a deeply held passion for working with women in midlife and has enjoyed a decades-long career as an elite leadership, career and life strategies coach and advisor. She has been brought into the confidence of hundreds of professional women seeking to maintain inner balance while facing diverse external demands, personal ambition, and the desire to feel satisfied and fulfilled personally and professionally. As a recognized expert on the stages of adult development and how these stages impact career development and leadership in women, Dr. Mark is a sought-after coach by women who are looking to make appropriate and actionable personal and professional decisions at critical stages of their lives and careers. She is a recipient of the 2010 History Maker—Most Powerful Women of the Bay Award, the 2011 National Association of Women Business Owners Business Woman of the Year Award, The President’s Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Advancement of Coaching in 2017 (which has only been given to two recipients in the history of the organization), and the 2019 Bay Area Powerful Women Award. She is a frequent keynote speaker. MLF ORGANIZER Denise Michaud NOTES This program contains EXPLICIT language MLF: Grownups

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53 min
October 16, 2020 Robert Putnam and Shaylyn Romney Garrett: How America Can Come Together Again
Twenty years ago, eminent Harvard political scientist Robert Putnam wrote the nonfiction book Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community. In it, he lamented the decline of in-person social discourse, which Americans used to enrich the fabric of our lives. He further went on to say that this decline undermined the civic engagement required in a strong democracy. Professor Putnam's new book, The Upswing: How America Came Together a Century Ago and How We Can Do It Again, coauthored by social entrepreneur Shaylyn Romney Garrett, comes at a time of deep and accelerating inequality, unprecedented political polarization, vitriolic public discourse and a fraying social fabric. In a sweeping overview of more than a century of history, drawing on a combination of statistical analysis and storytelling, Putnam and Garrett analyze a remarkable confluence of trends that brought us from an “I” society to a “we” society and then back again. They draw inspiring lessons for our time from an earlier era, when a dedicated group of reformers righted the ship, putting us on a path to becoming a society once again based on community. Come for an important conversation that provides optimism in these challenging times.

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1 hr 11 min
October 15, 2020 Aarti Shahani and DJ Patil: First Gen and Proud
Award-winning NPR journalist and author Aarti Shahani and America's First Chief Data Scientist DJ Patil point out that the immigrant has become an object of distrust, scorn and even hatred. Yet they also say that for many immigrants, including both of them, this identity is a source of profound pride. They further say that immigrants are proud to have crossed borders and built homes (even in places that didn’t want them). Join these prominent first-generation Americans as they celebrate and interrogate the migrant journey. Both have a strong sense of humor, and the evening will also include a few surprise cameos. NOTES Part of our Good Lit series, underwritten by the Bernard Osher Foundation

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1 hr 7 min
October 15, 2020 Immigration Is a Public Health Concern
Donald Trump began his campaign for president by making immigration restrictions a centerpiece of his platform. He is ending his (first?) term with his administration dealing with the biggest public health crisis in decades. But there are a lot of connections between public health and our country's immigration policies and practices. Join us for a conversation with New Orleans-based Giuli Alvarenga, an award-winning writer and law student. Alvarenga will share personal accounts as a volunteer at the border, witnessing unsafe conditions, and the conviction that immigration is actually a public health concern. NOTE: This program contains EXPLICIT language

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1 hr 4 min
October 15, 2020 CLIMATE ONE: A Feminist Climate Renaissance
Pathways for reducing carbon emissions include electrifying transportation, replacing fossil fuels with wind and solar power. But in this time of national reckoning on racial and economic disparities there is growing support for a more holistic approach. This view holds that the climate crisis won’t be resolved until we first address the systemic imbalances that have fueled it - racism, capitalism, white supremacy and patriarchy. In their new book, All We Can Save:Truth, Courage and Solutions for the Climate Crisis, co-editors Katharine Wilkinson and Ayana Elizabeth Johnson bring together the voices of women artists, writers and changemakers who are at the forefront of climate action. “The work that we’re doing is instigating or nurturing a feminist climate renaissance,” says Johnson, “which is what we feel the climate movement so desperately needs right now.”

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53 min
October 14, 2020 Be Antiracist: Dr. Ibram X. Kendi
Ibram X. Kendi is one of America’s foremost authorities on anti-racism, authoring books such as the National Book Award winner Stamped from the Beginning and the number-one New York Times bestseller How to Be an Antiracist. Kendi’s new book, Be Antiracist: A Journal for Awareness, Reflection, and Action, gives the reader a space to reflect on their personal journey in becoming an anti-racist. At INFORUM, Kendi will discuss how changing one’s outlook on race in America is not easy—becoming a true anti-racist requires careful introspection. While progress toward anti-racism does not look the same for everyone, it is a goal that everyone can and should take on.

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51 min
October 14, 2020 CLIMATE ONE: Tech to the Rescue?
Technology has helped the world survive, thrive and stay connected through the COVID-19 lockdown. As countries look toward re-opening in a post-pandemic world, does tech hold the same promise in the fight to solve climate change?
From mapping weather patterns with pinpoint accuracy using artificial intelligence, to engineering algae that gobbles up carbon dioxide, climate tech is ripe with breakthroughs. “The technology is there,” says inventor and entrepreneur Saul Griffith, ”it’s now down to the politics and the financing.”
Guests:
Saul Griffith, Founder & Chief Scientist, Otherlab Valerie Shen, Chief Operating Officer, G2VP
Michael Wilshire, Head of Strategy, Bloomberg NEF
This program was recorded on August 18, 2020.
For full show notes, visit our website.

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53 min

About Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

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The Commonwealth Club of California is the nation's largest public affairs forum. The nonpartisan and nonprofit Club produces and distributes programs featuring diverse viewpoints from thought leaders…