Commonwealth Club Of California Podcast

The best venture capitalists look around corners, and at Top Tech Trends, some of the best VCs will share what they see. The event will be highlighted by a lively panel discussion with investors from Bessemer, Greylock, HSBC Ventures and Mayfield offering their top picks for below-the-radar trends. We'll also hear from one of the most provocative tech investors in the business: Cathie Wood of Ark Invest, with her 1 million Twitter followers and bullish views on the future of technology. NOTES In partnership with the Silicon Valley Leadership Group Foundation's California Center for Innovation. SPEAKERS Ore Adeyemi Managing Director and Global Head, HSBC Invest Navin Chaddha Managing Director, Mayfield Byron Deeter Partner, Bessemer Venture Partners Sarah Guo General Partner, Greylock Cathie Wood CEO/Chief Investment Officer, ARK Invest Candy Cheng Senior Correspondent, Insider—Moderator In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently hosting all of our live programming via YouTube live stream. This pro

What has caused the recent international resurgence of xenophobia? Looking for clues, psychiatrist and historian George Makari started out in search of the idea’s origins. He discovered that while the fear and hatred of strangers may be ancient, the notion of a dangerous bias called "xenophobia" arose not that long ago. Coined by late-nineteenth-century doctors and political commentators, and popularized by an eccentric stenographer, xenophobia emerged as a popular cultural concept alongside Western nationalism, colonialism, mass migration, and genocide. Makari chronicles the concept’s rise, from its popularization and perverse misuse to its spread as an ethical principle in the wake of the Holocaust, and then on to its sudden reappearance in the twenty-first century. He investigates xenophobia’s evolution through writers like Joseph Conrad, Albert Camus and Richard Wright, and innovators like Walter Lippmann, Sigmund Freud, Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir and Frantz Fanon. Weaving together history, phil

The Black Lives Matter and Stop AAPI Hate movements, among others, have brought international attention to widespread social injustices that have been ignored by society for far too long. As a result, many individuals have been inspired to make positive changes toward a safer and more inclusive world. But pursuing equity and justice can be a complex and confusing undertaking. Good intentions do not necessarily lead to good outcomes. Inspiration can easily be derailed by feelings of confusion, the trap of performative allyship, and misguided attempts to take action. When it comes to helping instead of harming, the hardest part can often be figuring out where to begin. Michelle MiJung Kim will unpack hot button issues—cancel culture, inclusive language, representation, and more—in a way that is accessible to people regardless of their current understanding of inclusive practices. Join us for an in-depth conversation Michelle MiJung Kim, followed by a book signing for her new tome, The Wake Up: Closing the Gap B

What is the secret sauce behind The Commonwealth Club’s 500-plus annual programs? George Dobbins has led the Club’s programming effort for more than 22 years, responsible for the production of more than 9,000 forums. Sadly for the Club, he will retire on September 30, 2021. Dobbins has seen all the trends in public issues and public debate over the past two decades. He has dealt with myriad politicians, kings, princes, scientists and celebrities, recently ranging from Dr. Anthony Fauci to Rep. Liz Cheney. He has handled it all with diplomacy, tact and inspired leadership. Please join us on September 28 at 12:30 p.m., in-person at the Club or online, as Club CEO Gloria Duffy debriefs George Dobbins on his role of the past 22 years, and he tells a few behind-the-scenes stories that will both keep us laughing and underline the wisdom and care with which he has handled his important position. SPEAKERS George Dobbins Vice President of Programs, The Commonwealth Club of California In Conversation with Dr. Gloria Du

Over the past two decades, no industry has had a greater impact on the world than the tech industry, born and bred in California's Silicon Valley. And perhaps few individuals have done more to shape Silicon Valley than the enigmatic tech investor and entrepreneur, Peter Thiel. The billionaire venture capitalist and tech leader has been a behind-the-scenes operator influencing the tech industry and countless aspects of our contemporary way of life, from the technologies we use every day to the delicate power balance between Silicon Valley, Wall Street and Washington, particularly during the Trump administration. But despite his power, no public figure might be quite so mysterious as Thiel. In the first major biography of Thiel, reporter Max Chafkin traces the trajectory of Thiel's singular life and worldview, from his upbringing as the child of immigrant parents and years at Stanford as a burgeoning conservative thinker to his founding of PayPal and Palantir, early investments in Facebook and SpaceX, and relat

A celebrated revolution brought freedom to a group of enslaved people in northern India. Or did it? Join us for a conversation with Dr. Laura Murphy, who will join us live from the United Kingdom to talk about the fascinating story of Freedomville, a town founded by slaves in India.  Millions of people today are still enslaved, and nearly 8 million of them live in India, more than anywhere else. Murphy reveals the story of a small group of enslaved villagers in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh who founded their own town of Azad Nagar―Freedomville―after staging a rebellion against their slaveholders. International organizations championed it as a non-violent "silent revolution" that inspired other villagers to fight for their own freedom. But Murphy, a leading scholar of contemporary global slavery who spent years researching and teaching about Freedomville, found that there was something troubling about Azad Nagar's success.  Freedomville's enormous struggle to gain and maintain liberty shows us how realisti

With her first book, Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World's Most Dangerous Man, trained clinical psychologist Mary L. Trump focused a spotlight on their family's complex history to explain how her uncle became a historically disruptive national figure. The book was a international bestseller, appearing in the midst of a heated presidential election and providing deep insight into the nation's 45th president. Now in The Reckoning: Our Nation's Trauma and Finding a Way to Heal, Mary Trump examines America's national trauma, rooted in our history but dramatically exacerbated by the impact of current events and the Trump administration's divisive policies. She says that our failure to acknowledge this, let alone root it out, has allowed it to metastasize. Whether the trauma manifests itself in rising levels of rage and hatred, or hopelessness and apathy, the stress of living in a country people feel they no longer recognize has affected millions. It’s a collective PTSD that a new leader alon

Mary Roach wants to let us in on a secret: The greatest number of repeat criminal offenders are outside, all around us, and you’ve probably even seen some today—animals. It has only been three centuries since animals had to stand trial for their misconduct, in a court of law, with legal representation. Yes, really. In her newest book, Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law, the science enthusiast turned writer deep-dives into human-animal conflict. As human land consumption creeps further into the natural habitats of these so-called troublemakers, it becomes more pressing to realize a symbiotic coexistence. The question becomes: Who is in the wrong, animals living according to their instincts or the humans that increasingly police them? To answer this question, Roach trots the globe from the Himalayas to Vatican City making friends with rats and foes with a macaque. Ultimately she reaches the conclusion that there is true, untamed hope for working with rather than against our critter counterparts. At INFORUM Roach

Despite her identity as an evangelical, climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe doesn't accept global warming on faith; she crunches the data, analyzes the models, and helps engineers, city managers and ecologists quantify the impacts. In her new book, Saving Us: A Climate Scientist’s Case for Hope and Healing in a Divided World, Hayhoe argues that when it comes to changing hearts and minds, facts are only one part of the equation.  “The biggest problem we have is not the people who willfully decide to reject 200 years of basic science,” she says. “The bigger problem is the number of people who say, ‘it's real’ but they don’t think it matters to them.” Hayhoe says we need to find shared values with others to drive conversations and collective action on climate disruption. Guest: Katharine Hayhoe, climate scientist and chief scientist, The Nature Conservancy; author, Saving Us: A Climate Scientist’s Case for Hope and Healing in a Divided World Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The mass movements of summer 2020 brought together millions and compelled museums across the country to confront their own legacies with urgency and openness. Director of the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco Jay Xu will share how the museum navigated these challenges while endeavoring to transform the 55-year-old museum into a 21st century experience accessible and welcoming to all. Through an ever-growing contemporary art collection, investment in accessible digital technologies, a new pavilion helping to reenergize Civic Center, and an expansive look at what it means to be a culturally specific museum during a surge in anti-Asian racism, Xu will talk about his team’s efforts to inspire and connect audiences from around the world—with art as well as with each other. The discussion will be moderated by Deborah Clearwaters, director of education and interpretation at the Asian Art Museum. NOTES MLF: Asia-Pacific Affairs SPEAKERS Dr. Jay Xu Barbara Bass Bakar Director & CEO, Asian Art Museum of San Francisco D

A fundamental challenge of our health-care system is the enhancement of cognition for millions of people who suffer from psychiatric and neurological conditions. Despite 70 years of global effort in attempting to identify molecules deliverable as pills to accomplish this goal, we have largely failed to deliver truly effective, accessible and low-side-effect treatments for cognitive impairments associated with medical conditions, including depression, anxiety, PTSD, ADHD and dementia. It is important to be aware that for thousands of years we humans have been creating experiences to enhance the quality of our lives and support our mental health. However, this approach has largely been marginalized as “alternative” and has not been embraced within the core of mainstream medicine. Dr. Adam Gazzaley will describe his mission to develop and validate experiences as medicine by integrating neuroscience-guided design, invention and experimentation. In this talk, he will discuss his invention of a closed-loop video ga

Peter Coyote has acted in more than 130 films (including E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Cross Creek, Jagged Edge,Patch Adams, Erin Brockovich, and Hemingway & Gellhorn), is an Emmy Award-winning narrator of more than 200 documentaries (including, for Ken Burns, The West, The National Parks, Prohibition, The Dust Bowl, The Roosevelts, The Vietnam War, The Mayo Clinic, and Country Music), and is a political activist, singer/songwriter and a Buddhist priest. He has also penned two memoirs. He is the author of the new book of poetry, Tongue of a Crow, and a forthcoming December book, The Lone Ranger and Tonto Meet Buddha: Masks, Meditation, and Improvised Play to Induce Liberated States, in which he "reveals how to use masks, meditation, and improvisation to free yourself from overthinking, self-doubt, and fixed ideas of who you think you are." Join a fascinating conversation with Peter Coyote about his amazing life, career, and the lessons he's learned along the way. NOTES This program is part of The Commonwealth C

When Americans think about Mexico, many things may come to mind—complexities around immigration, perhaps, or travel involving beaches and food. Technology and innovation are probably not on that list, but increasingly a new reality is taking hold across Mexico: a growing technology and innovation sector with strong links to Silicon Valley and Bay Area investors, entrepreneurs and companies. Mexico’s young venture capital industry is growing rapidly. From $55 million in 2010, annual investment has grown to more than $1 billion. Softbank’s $5 billion Innovation Fund, created several years ago to invest in Latin America, was a turning point that put Mexico on the global venture map. Now the country boasts unicorns and fast-growing startups. More are on the way, supported by universities, accelerators and by large tech and startup conferences in cities such as Guadalajara and Monterrey. The roots of Mexico’s economic and cultural ties with the Bay Area run exceptionally deep, dating to Spain’s settlement of Calif

Our distinguished panelists will give an overview of the present situation in Afghanistan following U.S. withdrawal and how quickly the Taliban took power. They will also explore how we might help our Afghan allies and others fleeing to the United States. Humaira Ghilzai, who instituted the Sister City relationship between Hayward, CA and Ghazni, Afghanistan, is a dedicated woman's advocate and Afghan cultural advisor. She will talk about how we might help Afghan women threatened with the loss of rights and freedoms. Ami Dodson is a JFCS East Bay volunteer services manager who has been helping to to resettle Afghan refugees in the SF Bay Area. JCSF works with HIAS, a global Jewish nonprofit, which protects and assists refugees of all faiths and ethnicities. Steve Miska was a White House director for Iraq on the National Security Council, and during combat tours, he led a team that created an underground railroad from Baghdad to the United States for military interpreters. MLF ORGANIZER Celia Menczel NOTES MLF

Join us for a conversation with cosmologist Stephon Alexander, who argues that great physics requires one to think outside the mainstream—to improvise and to rely on intuition. His approach has led him to three principles that shape all theories of the universe: the principle of invariance, the quantum principle, and the principle of emergence. Alexander uses these three principles to explore some of physics' greatest mysteries, from what happened before the Big Bang to how the universe makes consciousness possible. Drawing on his experience as a Black physicist, Alexander makes a powerful case for diversifying our scientific communities because—after successfully incorporating a piece of life-changing advice that, in order to discover real physics, he needed to stop memorizing and start taking risks—Alexander has concluded that making further progress in physics probably requires embracing the excluded, listening to the unheard, and being unafraid of being wrong. MLF ORGANIZER George Hammond NOTES MLF: Human

The COVID-19 pandemic revealed structural weaknesses and inequities that existed long before 2020. Like COVID-19, climate change is another “threat multiplier,” with the power to disrupt many of our social systems.  In her new book, The Fight for Climate After COVID-19, Alice Hill says we need to adapt our thinking and our policies to combat the ever-increasing threat of climate change. Especially when we see more compound disasters – like a wildfire followed by a mudslide. “We need to come together to understand the risks, understand the vulnerabilities and then start making decisions with the support and the aid of the federal government to have better outcomes,” Hill says. What changes can we make now to better prepare for future risks and climate disasters?    Guests: Alice Hill, author, The Fight for Climate After COVID-19, Senior Fellow for Climate Change Policy, Council on Foreign Relations Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Thomas P. Bostick, Former Commanding General, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Francis Suarez, Mayor

Now making appearances on the film festival circuit, "Boy Culture: The Series" is a follow-up to the 2006's Boy Culture—the movie of the novel by the same name first published in the mid-1990s. In six brand-new 15-minute episodes, the series tells the story of X, portrayed by Derek Magyar, his roommate Andrew (Darryl Stephens), and their struggles.  Join us for an exclusive conversation with Matthew Rettenmund, author of the book and the series, for a look at tackling controversial topics, filmmaking during a pandemic, his career as an LGBTQ author, crowdfunding a budget, and much more. Besides Boy Culture, Rettenmund is the author of Encyclopedia Madonnica, Blind Items: A (Love) Story and MLVC 60. He has forgotten more information about Madonna than most of us will ever know. He was also the founder and longtime editor of Popstar! magazine, and he blogs regularly at boyculture.com. Note: This program contains EXPLICIT language. SPEAKERS Matthew Rettenmund Author, Boy Culture, Blind Items & Encyclopedia Madon

Pulitzer Prize-winner George F. Will has been one of this country’s leading columnists since 1974 and, as The Wall Street Journal once called him, “perhaps the most powerful journalist in America.” In his new collection titled American Happiness and Discontents: The Unruly Torrent, 2008–2020, Will offers an in-depth account of a remarkably chaotic 13 years in our nation’s experience through his analysis of an impressively vast array of topics. In this stirring examination, George Will reveals the ways in which expertise, reason and manners are continually under attack in our institutions, courts, political arenas and social venues. Will covers topics including his perspective on American socialists, anti-capitalist conservatives, drug policy, the criminal justice system, climatology and the coronavirus. Join us as we delve into this stunning account of American politics and culture from one of the preeminent columnists and intellectuals of our time. SPEAKERS George F. Will Columnist, The Washington Post; Auth

Film and television director Barry Sonnenfeld has outrageous and hilarious stories to tell—from his idiosyncratic upbringing in New York City to his breaking into film as a cinematographer with the Coen brothers to his unexpected career as the director behind such huge film franchises as The Addams Family and Men in Black and beloved work such as Get Shorty, Pushing Daises and A Series of Unfortunate Events. Barry Sonnenfeld's philosophy is, "Regret the Past. Fear the Present. Dread the Future." Will Smith once joked that he wanted to take Sonnenfeld to Philadelphia public schools and say, "If this guy could end up as a successful film director on big budget films, anyone can."  Come for an engaging conversation that will inspire anyone who thinks they can't succeed in life because of a rough beginning. SPEAKERS Barry Sonnenfeld Director, Men in Black, Addams Family, Get Shorty; Author, Barry Sonnenfeld, Call Your Mother: Memoirs of a Neurotic Filmmaker In Conversation with John Boland President Emeritus, KQ

In his new book Say It Loud, acclaimed Harvard Law Professor Randall Kennedy chronicles his reactions over the past quarter-century to arguments, events and people that have compelled him to put pen to paper. Three beliefs that are sometimes in tension with one another infuse these pages. First, Professor Kennedy says a massive amount of cruel racial injustice continues to beset the United States, an ugly reality that Kennedy says has become alarmingly obvious with the ascendancy of Donald J. Trump and the various political, cultural and social pathologies that he and many of his followers display and reinforce. Second, Kennedy observes there is much about which to be inspired when surveying the African American journey from slavery to freedom to engagement in practically every aspect of life in the United States. Third, he says an openness to complexity, paradox and irony should attend any serious investigation of human affairs. Join a compelling conversation with this acclaimed legal scholar and public inte