EJB Talks: Rutgers Bloustein School Experts

On this episode of EJBTalks it's time to talk politics! Stuart Shapiro welcomes Amy Cobb back to recap the 2022 Midterms. The two talk about who won, who lost, competitive key races and what the future may hold. Tune in to find out more!!  

On this episode of EJBTalks Stuart welcomes Bloustein PhD alum and Drexel University Professor, Andrew Zitcer. Professor Zitcer describes his personal and intellectual journey as a PhD student at Bloustein.  He then discusses his dissertation concentration on cooperative ventures and gives details about what types of co-ops exist from food to health, who they serve and how they are a physical embodiement of deliberate, participatory democracy. Zitcer also talks to Stuart about his continued research on cooperatives with the two discussing his latest book, Practicing Cooperative: Mutual Aid Beyond Capitalism, which uses examples of co-ops in food provision, dance, and health care to illustrate the potential of this form of organization. Tune in for all the details.

It's our 75th episode of EJBTalks! For this very special episode, Stuart welcomes our former Associate Dean Dorothea Berkhout. The two talk about our school's namesake, President Edward J Bloustein and why the school bears his name.  Dorothea reflects on President Bloustein's innovative leadership, commitment to public service, his reorganization of the University and the path he paved for Rutgers' current place in the Big10. She also talks about the organizational foundation at the Bloustein school playing an invaluable role in growing the school from a couple of small programs to one that fulfills Ed Bloustein's legacy with five majors and five graduate degrees.  Find out all this and more on our special 75th episode!

This week we welcome back alumnus and 2022 Alumni of the Year honoree Brandon McKoy MCRP '13. Stuart and Brandon discuss Brandon's exciting career move to, and the current work he is doing at, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. They then move to talk about national political issues, from the Inflation Reduction Act to the Child Tax Credit to the National Debt Limit and the legalization of marijuana. The two discuss our current political and societal era, how the value of expertise is questioned and how to be a trusted voice in a sea of bad analysis and hot takes. Brandon also shares invaluable advice to help prepare listeners for public-oriented careers, particularly during times like these. Tune in for a great discussion!

It's Bloustein's 30th anniversary, so this season of EJBTalks Stuart will be welcoming our amazing alums! Our first alumna of the season is Stefania Davia, who received her bachelor's in public health from the Bloustein School. Stuart talks with Stefania about the exciting career path she took around the world from her time as a student in Nicaragua, to her position with the World Food Program HIV and nutrition unit in Italy, to three years working in Lesotho in Africa working on population-based HIV impact assessment. Stefania discusses how the COVID pandemic and its impacts and challenges impacted her current position with WHO's regional office in Europe and what lessons can be learned to improve the use of data in crafting national and global responses to future public health challenges. Finally, Stefania describes the positive impacts the education and the atmosphere at Rutgers had on her career from its beginning to today. Tune in for all this and more!

Welcome back, listeners! For our season seven opener, it's a post-summer political check-in. Amy Cobb talks with Stuart Shapiro about four factors that have changed the prospects for the midterms for the better since May. They discuss Biden's big wins, like the Inflation Reduction Act, student loan forgiveness, and the wise choices made regarding the war in Europe. Stuart talks with Amy about the impact of the Dobbs ruling, the significance it brings to Governor's races, and what it means for the national election. And of course, the two talk about the Trump factor from January 6th to Mar a Lago and the effects on Republican congressional candidates.  Join us for all this and more and a look ahead to the rest of season seven.

As we wrap up the sixth season of EJBTalks, the midterm primaries are underway and Amy Cobb is back to talk with Stuart Shaprio about the hot topics in national politics. She asks for his take on inflation and the economy, who's to blame (if anyone), and what we face next. The two talk about the history and the possible fate of Roe V Wade, the turn to the states, and the cascading effects and threats on other precedents.  And finally, they discuss the important races of the 2022 Midterms and what the primary results and issues like abortion and inflation mean for the possible results.

On this episode of EJBTalks Stuart welcome Billy Terry, Executive Director of Bloustein's National Transit Institute (NTI), the federally funded training arm for the transit industry's extensive back-office operations. Billy talks about how he started in the transit world, and his path to his role at Rutgers. The two discuss NTI's mission to educate the administrative workforce within the multitudes of transit agencies across the nation. Billy gives an overview of the broad catalog of training that NTI offers on adhering to regulations and guidelines and the growing focus on managing and cultivating the diverse workforce.  He also discusses the new and exciting focus on training current employees to successfully transition to much needed supervisory roles. Tune in to hear about all this and more!

On this episode of EJBTalks, Stuart welcomes Marc Pfeiffer, the Executive Director of the Bloustein Local Government Research Center, which serves as an invaluable resource for New Jersey's elected and appointed officials. The two talk about current critical work such as the impact of the digital economy on tax policy for local governments. They explore the increasing risk of cybersecurity threats and what local governments can to do be "technology fit" to lower their risk and ease their recovery when a problem occurs. Marc also discusses one of New Jersey's long standing conundrums; the consolidation of the multitudes of municipalities. Tune in for this and much more!

On this episode of EJBTalks, Stuart welcomes Jennifer Senick, Executive Director of Rutgers Center for Green Building. Jennifer discusses many aspects of "green buildings" from the design of the physical space to all of the components of its total operation. The two delve into topics from the New Jersey Zero Energy roadmap and the center's integral work with the New England Energy Efficiency Partnership, to what zero net emissions would look like in buildings, and how public policy could work in favor of more green and better building practices. Jennifer also discusses her field work mostly concentrating in low to moderate income neighborhoods and environmental justice communities where we see the most critical need for green building, affordable housing and community health. Tune in for this and more!