Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

Stephen Most will speak about visual storytelling as an effective form of public education on crucial subjects that mass media tend to ignore, misrepresent or present without adequate context. He will discuss how documentaries convey experiences that enlarge the viewer's understanding. Focusing on Oil on Ice and Wilder than Wild: Fires, Forests and the Future, which he worked on as a screenwriter and writer/producer, Most will speak about representing climate change via stories for the screen. He will discuss how films aid campaigns that change the climate of opinion. Addressing the challenges nonfiction filmmakers face in showing arts’ complexities and unprecedented realities, Most will read passages from his book, Stories Make the World: Reflections on Storytelling and the Art of the Documentary. MLF Organizer Name: Ann Clark Notes: MLF: Environment & Natural Resources

From Google and Twitter to Amazon, venture capitalist John Doerr has played his part in building and funding Silicon Valley’s most successful companies. Starting as a marketing manager at Intel, Doerr worked his way up to back some of the most successful global businesses and was appointed to the President's Council on Jobs and Competitiveness by President Obama. In his most recent book, Measure What Matters, Doerr delves into the systems that drive decision makers to consider the purpose behind their goals, leading to better results. From major CEOs to small-business owners, Doerr claims anyone with goals can use his methods to better achieve success. Join us for an informative discussion on goal making, success and Doerr’s personal experiences in the world of tech.

This program is part of our Good Lit series, underwritten by the Bernard Osher Foundation. From her early career as a social worker to serving as one of the few women present in international negotiations, Wendy Sherman has experienced politics and international diplomacy like few have. Among her past positions, Sherman has served as special advisor to President Bill Clinton, North Korea policy coordinator and chief U.S. negotiator for the Iran nuclear deal. With the current administration’s shift away from foreign policy, as seen in President Trump’s withdrawal from the very deal with Iran that she helped create, Sherman believes American diplomacy is under greater threat now than in any other recent time. Yet even still, this era is marked by increasing global interconnectedness. Sherman has focused on diplomatic negotiations to achieve greater peace and security. In her book, Not for the Faint of Heart: Lessons in Courage, Power, and Persistence, Sherman describes her experiences and perspectives to give us all a deeper understanding of past and present international diplomacy.

Kresser contends that we’re in the midst of an epidemic of chronic disease unlike anything human beings have ever experienced. It's destroying our quality of life, undermining the health of future generations and threatening to bankrupt governments. Unfortunately, our current model of “disease management" has not only failed to address the problem, it has contributed to it. In this presentation, Kresser will outline a new paradigm of healthcare — and health — with the potential to reverse chronic disease and restore the natural health and vitality that is our birthright. Chris Kresser is the CEO of Kresser Institute, the co-director of the California Center for Functional Medicine, the creator of ChrisKresser.com and the New York Times best-selling author of The Paleo Cure. He is known for his in-depth research uncovering myths and misconceptions in modern medicine and providing natural health solutions with proven results. Chris was named one of the 100 most influential people in health and fitness by Greatist.com, and his blog is one of the top-ranked natural health websites in the world. He recently launched Kresser Institute, an organization dedicated to reinventing healthcare and reversing chronic disease by training healthcare practitioners in functional and evolutionary medicine. MLF ORGANIZER NAME Patty James NOTES MLF: Health & Medicine

What is the secret to becoming the next Amazon or Facebook? According to legendary entrepreneur and investor Reid Hoffman, blitzscaling is the only competitive advantage that matters. Reid Hoffman describes why scaling up at a dizzying pace will ultimately blow competitors out of the water. He offers a wide range of advice for start-ups and established businesses on navigating the challenges and opportunities that every company will face. Hoffman was an angel investor in Facebook and Zynga. He currently sits on several boards including Airbnb, Apollo Fusion, Microsoft and Xapo and hosts the popular podcast series “Masters of Scale.”

This program will serve as a way-finding event that balances the realism of climate change with the practical solutions currently at work with the Buckminster Fuller Institute and Project Drawdown. The density and intensity of the presentations inspire action. The audience will be challenged to find their own voices and amplify the work of the team of experts already on the front lines of climate solutions. Amanda Ravenhill and Malcolm Walter bring their diverse backgrounds and experience to deliver a powerful and inspiring presentation that will engage and empower. Malcolm Walter, a graduate of Al Gore’s Climate Reality leadership training, will explore with attendees the current state of climate change and policy as he asks: Can we change, and will we change? Amanda Ravenhill will present some of Project Drawdown's 100 most substantive, existing solutions to address climate change. Following a Q&A session, attendees will have the hands-on opportunity to learn more specifics from experts and work to identify individual contributions to this important work. The intention is to provide a message of hope and instill urgency. We hope all guests will leave feeling poised to take action. MLF Organizer Name Elizabeth Carney Notes MLF: Business & Leadership

Democracies are facing multiplying challenges—from structural changes to geopolitical shifts to cultural transformations. Though the United States remains one of the strongest democratic nations in the world, it is by no means immune to democratic backsliding. As the American public becomes more polarized on issues such as the freedom of press and U.S.–Russia relations, will our institutions hold? Do the systemic weaknesses revealed by recent pressures on the U.S. Constitution require fundamental change in how the Constitution is interpreted and implemented? How likely is it that our democracy could erode? And what can be done to mitigate the risk? Aziz Huq is a noted scholar on the interaction of constitutional design with individual rights and liberties. Before joining the law school faculty, Huq worked as associate counsel and then director of the Liberty and National Security Project of the Brennan Center for Justice at the New York University School of Law, litigating cases in both the United States courts of appeals and the Supreme Court. He was also a senior consultant analyst for the International Crisis Group, researching constitutional design and implementation in Pakistan, Nepal, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka. In 2015, Huq received the University of Chicago Graduating Students Award for Teaching Excellence. He is a graduate of Columbia Law School. Notes This program is being held in partnership with the Jewish Community Relations Council. The Club is also a partner in the council’s Waging Democracy conference on Sunday, October 14. Please visit https://jcrc.org/news-events/events/waging-democracy for more information about the conference.

Prior to this November's midterm elections, Monday Night Philosophy dives into 2016's political polling. Josh Libresco examines what the polls can teach us about the 2016 presidential election, even as American pollsters attempt to make sense of an election that was very different from anything Americans have seen in generations. Libresco will explain why it was especially difficult for pollsters to make predictions in 2016 and what techniques they use in an effort to understand how and why people vote the way they do. He will also offer insights into the November 2018 congressional elections and California's governor and Senate races. MLF Organizer Name George Hammond Notes MLF: Humanities

The future of political power in the United States may be determined by what happens in the congressional districts in Orange County, California, once a conservative bastion. Today, however, Orange County has become a very different place than it once was, with a high percentage of minorities remaking its politics and economics. No one understands the changes happening there better than journalist Gustavo Arellano. The former publisher and editor of Orange County’s alternative weekly, OC Weekly, Arellano is now the California columnist for the Los Angeles Times’ op-ed section and a sought-after essayist for numerous publications and a frequent commentator on radio and television. He penned the award-winning syndicated column, “¡Ask a Mexican!,” and is the author of Orange County: A Personal History and Taco USA: How Mexican Food Conquered America. In the winter issue of The Journal of Alta California, Arellano takes on the changes going on around him in Orange County as only Arellano can. Please join us as Arellano and editor and publisher of Alta magazine, Will Hearst, discuss changes in Orange County, the growing voice of Latinos in California politics and culture, and Arellano’s rise as an original and influential voice on California life. Gustavo Arellano is the former editor of OC Weekly, an alternative newspaper in Orange County, California; author of Orange County: A Personal History and Taco USA: How Mexican Food Conquered America; and a lecturer in the Department of Journalism at Orange Coast College. Arellano has been the subject of press coverage in national and international newspapers, “The Today Show,” “Hannity,” “Nightline,” “Good Morning America” and “The Colbert Report,” and his commentaries regularly appear on NPR and in the Los Angeles Times. William R. Hearst III is chairman of the board of Hearst, one of the nation's largest diversified media and information companies. Hearst is a grandson of company founder William Randolph Hearst. He founded and launched The Journal of Alta California in 2017. NOTES In association with The Journal of Alta California

Climate used to have bipartisan support. Now that the Republican party is skeptical about fighting climate, companies are moving into a leadership void. On the show today we'll hear from two former white house spokesmen in Republican and Democratic administrations now working on climate from different angles. Robert Gibbs addresses what McDonald's is doing to cut its carbon emissions and environmental impact. Jeff Nesbit heads a communications organization trying to get the climate story covered more prominently in the mainstream news media.