Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

The East Bay Sanctuary was organized in 1982 to assist refugees fleeing the terrible violence in the Northern Triangle of Central America. While refugees from El Salvador and Honduras were fleeing, mainly political persecution, the vast majority of Guatemalan refugees were Maya, fleeing persecution on account of their race. More than 200,000 Maya fled into Mexico at the height of the violence, and many eventually made their way to the United States, crossing the southern border without papers. Currently there are around 5,000 Mam Maya living in the East Bay, and thousands more working in the fields of the Central Valley of California, the forests in Washington, the meat packing plants in Iowa and Nebraska, the blueberry fields in Michigan, and the fields in many states in the Deep South.

Through the years the sanctuary has assisted thousands of indigenous Guatemalans and currently has 5 attorneys and 9 paralegals on staff, as well as numerous volunteer attorneys, law students and undergrads. This summer, sanctuary is predicted to win its 4,000th asylum case.

Michael Smith is the director of the Refugee Rights Program at the East Bay Sanctuary Covenant in Berkeley, CA. His background is in anthropology and archaeology, and he worked for many years on a project in Nicaragua for the National Museum. In 1984, he began work at East Bay Sanctuary and has been at sanctuary ever since. He has received awards from Helen Bamber and the Dalai Lama for his work in refugees and from Berkeley Law for his work with law students.

MLF ORGANIZER

Patrick O'Reilly

SPEAKERS

Michael Smith

Director, Refugee Rights Program, East Bay Sanctuary Covenant

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently hosting all of our live programming via YouTube live stream. This program was recorded via video conference on May 19th, 2021 by the Commonwealth Club of California.

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Many critics and patients agree: The American health-care system is broken. They say the quality is poor, the cost is high and the system has a dominant disease-care orientation. "I would like to tell you that 21st century medicine should be about wellness and how we can get there," says Dr. Leroy Hood. "I have a vision of a data-driven health-care system where we can follow the health trajectory of each individual throughout their lifetime to optimize their wellness and healthy aging, while avoiding transitions to chronic diseases.

Leroy Hood, M.D., Ph.D., is a recipient of the National Medal of Science, co-founder of the Institute for Systems Biology (ISB), and senior vice president and and chief science officer at Providence St. Joseph Health. Dr. Hood has played a role in founding 15 biotech companies, including Amgen, Applied Biosystems, Arrivale and Nanostring. In addition to having received 18 honorary degrees from prestigious universities in the United States and abroad, Dr. Hood has published more than 850 peer-reviewed articles and currently holds 36 patents. 

Join us for a conversation about what you can do to begin practicing a new vision of 21st century medicine with a wellness orientation.

MLF ORGANIZER: Robert Lee Kilpatrick

SPEAKERS

Leroy Hood

M.D., Ph.D., Co-Founder, Institute for Systems Biology; Senior Vice President and and Chief Science Officer, Providence St. Joseph Health

Robert Lee Kilpatrick

Ph.D., Chair, Health and Medicine Member-Led Forum, The Commonwealth Club of California—Moderator

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently hosting all of our live programming via YouTube live stream. This program was recorded via video conference on May 19th, 2021 by the Commonwealth Club of California.

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Two new mothers, a murder, and a question about crime: in her new thrilling debut novel A Good Mother, law professor Lara Bazelon examines the intricacies of motherhood, the legal system, and moral obligation. As a writer, attorney and mother herself, Lara Bazelon writes about crime, love, work and family with a voice that wonders what is right and fair for all.

When a soldier is found dead at a U.S. Army base, there is no doubt that his wife, Luz, is to blame. But was it an act of self-defense? An attempt to save her infant daughter? Or the cold-blooded murder of an innocent man? Public defender and new mother Abby strives to keep Luz out of prison, sympathizing with the struggles of parenthood. When new evidence emerges and the trial turns toward an outcome no one expects, Abby and Luz must answer the riveting question: What does it mean to be a good mother?

Join us as Lara Bazelon illustrates the answers to motherhood through a discussion of A Good Mother. She'll be joined in conversation by Piper Kerman, author of the hit bestseller Orange Is the New Black. Kerman's book served as the source material for the eponymous hit Netflix series.

NOTES

This program is part of our Good Lit series, underwritten by the Bernard Osher Foundation.

SPEAKERS

Lara Bazelon

Professor of Law and Director of Criminal Juvenile Justice and Racial Justice Clinical Programs, University of San Francisco; Author, A Good Mother: A Novel

In Conversation with Piper Kerman

Author, Orange Is the New Black: My Year in a Women's Prison

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently hosting all of our live programming via YouTube live stream. This program was recorded via video conference on May 18th, 2021 by the Commonwealth Club of California.

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This is a condensed Commonwealth Club week in review. Hear what you missed this week, and what we’ve got lined up for you next week.

We’re always adding new programs - check out commonwealthclub.org/online for all of our upcoming events.

If you haven’t already - please consider becoming a member of the Club. Enjoy exclusive discounts and access to special programs all while knowing your contributions directly support our many public programs and civic initiatives.

Visit commonwealthclub.org/special, for special rates on memberships.

Thanks for your support and as always - thanks for listening!

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Distinguished political analyst John Judis returns to The Commonwealth Club for a timely discussion on the major political issues that have shaped America's tumultuous last decade and can be seen around the world.

Over the past five years, Judis has written three books—The Populist Explosion in 2016, The Nationalist Revival in 2018, and The Socialist Awakening in 2020—that have charted the rise of unexpected political movements in the United States and Europe that have grown in impact in the wake of the Great Recession, the conflict with al-Qaeda and ISIS, and encroaching climate change. These three books have all been updated and combined into a new volume that expands Judis's focus to include the Trump presidency and the response to the COVID-19 global pandemic. This new book, The Politics of Our Times, is an important guide to understanding the significant currents and emotions that have transformed the world and influenced political parties and politicians on both the Right and Left.

As the United States and Europe look to emerge from the global pandemic, understanding the major political trends that help guide our civic discussion are critical. Please join us for this important conversation.

SPEAKERS

John Judis

Editor-at-Large, Talking Points Memo; Author, The Politics of Our Time

George Hammond

Author, Conversations With Socrates—Moderator

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently hosting all of our live programming via YouTube live stream. This program was recorded via video conference on May 18th, 2021 by the Commonwealth Club of California.

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Scott Foglesong says this program will be coverage of a potpourri (talk and music) of "pieces that have a particular gift of providing comfort and making us happy. Of course that’s quite subjective, and I’ll be selecting stuff that makes me happy. But my tastes aren’t particularly esoteric, and with any luck there will be something in here for everybody. What can make a piece of music a source of comfort? And maybe a bit about what doesn’t do that as a rule."

Foglesong is a pianist, musician, teacher, writer, cat-lover, music history devotée, occasional computer geek and sometime programmer. He is the chair of the Department of Musicianship and Music Theory at San Francisco Conservatory of Music; a member of the faculty at the University of California, Berkeley, and The Fromm Institute of the University of San Francisco; a contributing writer and lecturer at the San Francisco Symphony. Professor Foglesong was formally educated at the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore and the San Francisco Conservatory, but he says his "informal education continues everywhere, without cease."

NOTES

MLF: Arts

SPEAKERS

Scott Foglesong

Chair, Department of Musicianship and Music Theory, San Francisco Conservatory of Music; Faculty, UC Berkeley, The Fromm Institute, USF; Contributing Writer and Lecturer, San Francisco Symphony

Carol Fleming

Member, Commonwealth Club Board of Governors; Chair, Commonwealth Club Member-Led Forums

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently hosting all of our live programming via YouTube live stream. This program was recorded via video conference on May 18th, 2021 by the Commonwealth Club of California.

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Mapping has emerged as a powerful tool for helping humans combat climate disruption. Technology for measuring the totality of global carbon emissions, for example, is highly refined: we know that half of all the carbon pollution humans have dumped into the sky has happened in just the last three decades. But understanding the specific sources of those emissions at the scale of factories or communities has been more elusive. 

Riley Duren, CEO of Carbon Mapper, has said, “you can’t manage what you can’t measure.” Carbon Mapper, a public-private partnership that includes universities and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab and is backed by philanthropists, uses satellites to pinpoint super emitters of both CO2 and methane in real time with the goal of reducing emissions.

But this isn’t the only technology that may point the way toward a better understanding of climate threats and potential solutions. The Catholic Church, for example, holds vast tracts of land across the globe. But until Molly Burhans came on the scene, the Vatican had no real understanding of what they own. Burhans founded her nonprofit mapping organization Goodlands to provide the Church with the tools to use their landholdings to address issues ranging from erosion and biodiversity loss to climate migration. 

On the local level, Ariane Middel’s research uses a human-sized mobile weather station to look at variations in actual heat on the ground, chronicling how small differences in landscape and urban design can add up to major differences in heat impacts experienced by those who live and work in various built environments.

Guests:

Molly Burhans, Founder / Executive Director, GoodLands

Riley Duren, CEO, Carbon Mapper  

Ariane Middel, Senior Sustainability Scientist, Global Institute of Sustainability and Innovation

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After the rollercoaster eyes-glued-to-Twitter ride of the Trump years, the nation is now in the Biden-Harris era. Joe Biden came to office promising a return to normalcy as he tackled the country's problems, even as he offered up something in dramatic contrast to his predecessor: He would make policy while being boring. 

Has he delivered? Is it an improvement, or does the job of the presidency require a bigger-than-normal personality?

Join us for a five-month check-in on the Biden presidency, as well as a look at other big political issues, such as the reopening of cities and states from the pandemic, the recall effort against Governor Gavin Newsom, and more.

SPEAKERS

Larry Gerston

Ph.D., Political Analyst, NBC Bay Area; Professor Emeritus of Political Science, San Jose State University; Twitter @lgerston

Debra J. Saunders

Fellow, Discovery Institute; Weekly Columnist, Distributed by Creators Syndicate; Twitter @debrajsaunders

Dan Schnur

Professor, University of Southern California's Annenberg School of Communications; Professor, University of California Berkeley's Institute of Governmental Studies; Host, "Politics in the Time of Coronavirus" Webinar; Twitter @danschnur

John Zipperer

Producer and Host, Week to Week Political Roundtable; Vice President of Media & Editorial, The Commonwealth Club—Co-host

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently hosting all of our live programming via YouTube live stream. This program was recorded via video conference on May 19th, 2021 by the Commonwealth Club of California.

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In a special program co-presented with the Climate Reality Project Bay Area Chapter, join us for an up-close and personal talk with Jim Warne of the Oglala Lakota (Sioux) Nation about the history of Native Americans and the work of building relationships with native communities to produce effective climate progress. The multitalented Warne is a motivational speaker, president of Warrior Society Development, WSD Productions; the community engagement & diversity director for the USD Center for Disabilities Oyata' Circle; and creator of the award-winning documentary "7th Generation" and the NFL Social Justice Series' "Oyate' un Ito'wapi–Pictures of My People," which was featured on Fox. 

In Warne's own words:

"In talking to people from other countries, I have found that Asians and Europeans know more about our Indian history than Americans do. . . . In America, we get one narrow and uniform tribal perspective when there are over 550 tribes here that are recognized and 200 languages still today.

"It's important to have an understanding that some of the history that has been taught may not be correct, and in many cases it's not even addressed. . . . It's an ignorance by design, but how could we expect our non-Indian brothers to know when they're not being taught? If we taught the truth from the beginning we wouldn't be dealing with the ignorance and intolerance we're dealing with today."

NOTES

Co-presented by the Climate Reality Project Bay Area Chapter.

SPEAKERS

Jim Warne

President, Warrior Society Development, WSD Productions; Community Engagement & Diversity Director, USD Center for Disabilities, Oyata' Circle; Creator, "7th Generation" and "Oyate' un Ito'wapi–Pictures of My People"

Jill Sherman-Warne

Director, Native American Environmental Protection Coalition

Alma Soongi Beck

Climate Justice Co-Chair, Climate Reality Project Bay Area Chapter—Introduction

Sarah Diefendorf

Director, Environmental Finance Center West, Earth Island Institute—Moderator

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently hosting all of our live programming via YouTube live stream. This program was recorded via video conference on May 17th, 2021 by the Commonwealth Club of California.

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Join us for this special program in The Commonwealth Club's series recognizing recipients of The Club's Distinguished Citizen Award. Tonight's honorees are committed to the improvement of mental health in the Bay Area and the nation.

This program will particularly honor the work of the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), for its innovation in mental health, and will salute UCSF Health Executive Council Member John Pritzker; Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Department Chair Dr. Matthew State; Neurological Surgery Chair Dr. Edward Chang; and Dr. Lisa Fortuna, chief of psychiatry and vice-chair at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital/UCSF.

John Pritzker is chairman of the John Pritzker Family Fund and is well known for his commitment to mental health, serving on the Executive Council of UCSF Health and supporting The Commonwealth Club’s speaker series on mental health, dedicated in memory of his sister, Nancy Friend Pritzker. Mr. Pritzker is also a significant supporter of UCSF's Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, in particular the department's research, faculty, clinical care and training.

He is passionate about reducing stigma, and to ensuring the availability and accessibility of mental health care. His charitable work on this issue has been aimed at supporting efforts to reduce mental health stigma at the individual, community and systems levels.

Come for this tribute to the renowned UCSF Medical Center and its groundbreaking work in advancing mental health for all.

SPEAKERS

John Pritzker

Chairman, John Pritzker Family Fund; Member, UCSF Health Executive Council

Matthew W. State

M.D., Ph.D., Oberndorf Family Distinguished Professor of Psychiatry; Chair, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, UCSF; President, Langley Porter Psychiatric Hospital and Clinics; Executive Director, UCSF Child, Teen and Family Center

Edward Chang

M.D., Joan and Sanford I. Weill Chair, Department of Neurological Surgery, Jeanne Robertson Distinguished Professor, Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco

Lisa Fortuna

M.D., MPH, Chief of Psychiatry and Vice-Chair, Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital/UCSF

Michael Krasny

Retired Host, KQED "Forum"—Moderator

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently hosting all of our live programming via YouTube live stream. This program was recorded via video conference on May 13th, 2021 by the Commonwealth Club of California.

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