Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

Mayors around the country are bypassing national politics and working around federal restrictions to both clean up their cities and foster growth in renewable energy. In red and blue states, local leaders are solving traffic congestion, promoting smart growth, and preparing for the impacts climate disruption will have on public health, roads and other infrastructure. Cities are a good news climate story; most reductions in carbon pollution actually happen at the city and regional level.

Carl Pope teamed with former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg to write a book about how cities are cleaning up their regional economies. Join us for a conversation with an environmental legend and Bay Area leaders who are advancing sustainable communities despite enthusiasm for the brown economy in Washington, D.C.

What lies ahead for the next 100 days of the Trump administration? How will President Trump’s action plan continue to impact our domestic and foreign affairs, health care, education, environment, immigration, economic and trade policies? Who are the new people leading the country and how will they impact public policy? What role will all forms of media play as they cover the new administration? Join The Commonwealth Club and KQED for the final program of our four-part series of programs that address the first 100 days of the Trump administration and how this period will shape America over the next four years and beyond.

From his perspective as head of Permanente Medical Group, Robert Pearl is responsible for the health care that is delivered to more than 4 million Kaiser Permanente members in the states of California, Virginia, Maryland and in Washington, D.C. Pearl says he has definitely seen his share of medical errors. He points out that American health care is in the bottom half of all industrialized countries, where every year hundreds of people die from medical errors and thousands die from diseases they did not have to get. Join us for a frank discussion on how to eliminate excessive costs, lack of convenience and poor quality health care and ultimately modernize and save the American health care industry.

In commemoration of Nancy Pelosi’s 30 years in Congress, join us for a conversation about where America has been and where it’s headed. What does the future hold for health care, jobs, the economy, infrastructure, the environment, women’s rights, immigration, national security and foreign policy? How will Democrats work with President Trump? Nancy Pelosi has led House Democrats for more than a dozen years and previously served as House Democratic whip. The Christian Science Monitor has called her “the most powerful woman in American politics.” Bring your questions.

Plastic is everywhere—in single and multiuse products and packaging. Almost all plastic ends its short, useable time in litter, waste, dumps, trash, rivers, oceans, soil or landfills. This ultimately leads to unhealthy plastic degradation and causes harm to environments throughout the world. Join us in this important discussion about Recology's mission to achieve the best and highest use of environmentally safe and healthy resources. Learn about Recology's challenges, work and research to create a practical system worldwide to reclaim, convert and remanufacture plastic particles and products into reusable, safe resources for healthy environments, people and populations.

We all love food, but Elisabeth Prueitt loves food. Whether she’s baking some of Bay Area’s favorite bread at Tartine or launching a new venture, the James Beard Award-winning pastry chef always brings the best to the table. Her Tartine Manufactory was recently short-listed for a 2017 James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant (although we hear Prueitt is most excited about the soft-serve ice cream machines).

Join Prueitt in conversation with other trailblazers in the Bay Area culinary world—such as Gabriela Cámara, owner and executive chef of ten restaurants (including the local Cala)—as they discuss effecting social change through food, creativity and entrepreneurship.

Prueitt’s latest cookbook, Tartine All Day, makes her popular food and recipes accessible to the broader community, with a hands-on approach not always seen in a gadget-driven world. Come be inspired to cook, eat, and do better with Elisabeth Prueitt and friends.

Premium tickets (limited availability) include a preprogram reception from 5:30–6:30 p.m. with special treats from Tartine and a brief appearance by chef Elisabeth Prueitt. Premium ticket holders will also receive a copy of Tartine All Day.

When Californians think of Texas, images of JR Ewing and pump jacks quickly come to mind. But the Lone Star State is greener than you think. It leads the country in wind power thanks to a law signed by Governor George W. Bush. Texans also claim the state can comply with President Obama’s Clean Power Plan with technologies and policies already on hand. Ranchers and former oil men are dipping their toes into renewable energy. What else is in the clean energy pipeline? Join a conversation with Texas energy leaders about fossil fuels and renewables in America’s most prominent energy-exporting state.

As CEO of YouTube, Susan Wojcicki oversees one of the world’s most popular digital video platforms—used by over a billion people worldwide. She spent the majority of her career at Google, where she headed the company’s marketing and advertising department and strengthened their commerce and monetization developments. What continues to drive her success as a leader and as an innovator? Wojcicki reflects on her experiences and addresses some of the challenges facing the tech industry in terms of culture, diversity, gender discrimination and transparency.

Fake News. Fake Facts. All knowing proclamations on social media. Are we at a point in history where expertise is meaningless? Prompted by this very concern, Tom Nichols wrote The Death of Expertise. Nichols says people are now exposed to more information than ever before. He says that these societal gains, however, have also helped fuel a surge in narcissistic and misguided intellectual egalitarianism that has crippled informed debates on any number of issues. Today, everyone knows everything: With only a quick trip through WebMD or Wikipedia, average citizens believe themselves to be on an equal intellectual footing with doctors and diplomats. All voices, even the most ridiculous, demand to be taken with equal seriousness, and any claim to the contrary is dismissed as elitism. Nichols is even more concerned that the current rejection of expertise and learning will threaten the survival of our democracy. What has caused this, and what can be done about it? Join us for a thought-provoking discussion.

Former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown will give his annual lecture on national and regional political trends. A two-term mayor of San Francisco and legendary speaker of the California State Assembly, Brown is widely regarded as one of the most influential African-American politicians of the late 20th century. He has been at the center of California politics, government and civic life for an astonishing four decades.