Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

According to a 2015 North American study by McKinsey & Company, women are almost four times more likely than men to think they have fewer opportunities to advance because of their gender. How can we change this? During this candid discussion, you'll join three leading women in tech as they share their experiences of being a woman in the technology industry, what challenges they've faced along the way, how they overcame them and ways to encourage more women to pursue careers in tech.

Should employees know each others’ salaries? Can companies win by putting their employees’ welfare first, and their clients second? Are annual performance reviews necessary? Burkus challenges the traditional and widely accepted principles of business management—proving that they're outdated, outmoded and simply don’t work—and presents winning strategies using case studies and in-depth research. You'll learn how the nature of work is changing—and what that means for business, society and your own career.

On June 29, more than 30 Bay Area media organizations spanning radio, print, online and television news curated an unprecedented wave of coverage about homelessness in San Francisco to inspire a public dialogue and to urge local politicians to come up with impactful solutions to this ongoing problem. It's not often that journalists set aside their differences in order to unify behind a shared purpose, so on the day that this special media collaboration launches, INFORUM is proud to present a panel discussion featuring several journalists who are involved in this important project. You'll hear more about how this coordinated media campaign started, what the journalists hope to accomplish through their efforts and how they see the changing role of media in society.

As President Barack Obama nears the end of his two terms, White House Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett, who oversees the Offices of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs and is chair of the White House Council on Women and Girls, will sit down with The Commonwealth Club to talk about the president’s work on behalf of the American people and the important priorities that are still ahead. Ms. Jarrett has worked throughout her tenure at the White House to mobilize elected officials, business and community leaders, and diverse groups of advocates behind efforts to strengthen and improve access to the middle class, to boost American businesses and our economy, and to champion equality and opportunity for all Americans. She has led the Obama Administration’s campaigns to reform our criminal justice system, end sexual assault, raise the minimum wage, advocate workplace policies that empower working families, reduce gun violence, as well as to economically and politically empower women in the United States and around the world. Join us and bring your questions to learn hear more about the president’s work and the important priorities that are still ahead of us!

In recent years, there has been growing scientific evidence indicating a connection between public health and how places—particularly our cities and suburbs—are designed and built. From higher car use in suburban sprawl to urban neighborhoods lacking green space and walkways, every aspect of the built environment surrounding us impacts our health. What is being done to rethink the structure of our towns and cities? How can we improve the health of our communities through design? Come for a discussion on our cities, our health, and what we can do to increase the number of healthy spaces in our growing communities.

Can California and other west coast economies accelerate the global transition to clean energy technologies? The chief executives of Pacific coast states and provinces say policies pushing clean power have boosted their economies and created jobs. Companies involved in solar power and electric vehicles agree. But the some business groups say going green can hit consumers in the pocket book and hamper the economy. What can the West Coast of Canada and the United States do to advance the goals countries and corporations outlined at the Paris climate summit last year? Oregon Governor Kate Brown, Washington Governor Jay Inslee, and Mary Polak, Environment Minister of British Columbia, join Climate One for a conversation on a clean energy economy.

In his latest book, Spiral, Danner describes a nation altered in fundamental ways by 9/11. Fourteen years of armed conflict makes the War on Terror the longest war in U.S. history, even though only a tiny percentage of our citizens fight in actual combat. Now Al Qaeda has been replaced by multiple jihadist and terror organizations, including the most notorious: ISIS. Guantanamo, indefinite detention, drone warfare, enhanced interrogation, torture and warrantless wiretapping are all words that have become familiar and tolerated in the name of security. By defining the War on Terror as boundless, apocalyptic and unceasing, we have, Danner concludes, “let it define us as ideological crusaders caught in an endless war.”

If black holes collide in outer space and no one can see it, does it make a sound? A black hole collision is an event more powerful than any since the origin of the universe. But when black holes collide, they will do so unilluminated—emanating only gravitational waves. The only evidence would be the sound of spacetime ringing. Levin shares the obsessions, the aspirations, and the trials of the scientists who embarked on an arduous, 50-year endeavor to capture these elusive waves and record the soundtrack of the universe.

Millions of people serve in our armed forces, but what does it take get them prepared and keep them alive? Roach tackles the science behind some of a soldier’s most challenging adversaries – panic, exhaustion, heat and noise. She shares some of her bizarre experiences dodging hostile fire as part of a training exercise with the U.S. Marine Corps Paintball Team and staying up all night with the crew manning missiles on the nuclear submarine USS Tennessee. Take a tour of duty with Roach and you’ll never think about our nation’s defenders the same way again.

Larry Jacobson will describe how to make a meaningful and fulfilling transition from career to retirement. Jacobson is a non-financial retirement transition coach whose coaching program, "Sail into Retirement," is specifically designed to answer the question "What am I going to do with my time in retirement?" Not accepting that retirement is a time to stop growing, he will describe how he coaches clients to discover untapped passions beyond their previous careers, and combines these passions with the knowledge from their vocations to build a plan of action for a retirement of fulfillment and purpose.