Commonwealth Club Of California Podcast

How do we navigate the impact of a pandemic on our mental health and wellness? The health fears, social isolation and economic insecurity associated with the COVID-19 pandemic will likely lead to rising incidents of trauma in the United States and across the world. Just as we know that childhood trauma leads to poor health outcomes later in life, experts are concerned about the long-term effects on those who experience this event as a trauma. How significant is this risk, and what steps can we take to mitigate the impact? A panel of experts will outline how uncertainty and extended periods of stress affect the brain and how becoming more aware of your stress while learning how to manage your mental health can mitigate the impact of that trauma. They will also share resources and tools that help people get through a pandemic and discuss what is needed to support communities when it’s over, addressing the impacts of social isolation, including depression, suicidal ideation and substance abuse. NOTES This event

The “Trump effect” on our democracy reaches far beyond 4-year presidential terms. President Trump has highlighted a chasm among the American people, revealing a fierce “us vs. them” mentality that might not be amended depending on who is elected in 2020. Many Americans feel the rest of the country is building a future that doesn’t have a place for them. Why would they want to participate in the systems that have led to their disenfranchisement? Popular political commentator David Frum believes there is a way for those excluded from Trump’s America to reclaim their democracy and reshape the political landscape. In his new book, Trumpocalypse: Restoring American Democracy, Frum outlines a map for the reinvention of American democracy and world leadership in the wake of Trump’s historic presidency. Frum argues that the United States is experiencing great trauma, and we need to do better—for ourselves, for our neighbors, for our nation. Join us for a virtual conversation as David Frum makes the case for believing

According to Dr. Vivian Lee, health care is killing our economy and, in many cases, killing us. Beyond the outrageous expense, the quality of care varies wildly, and millions of Americans can’t get care when they need it. This is bad for patients, bad for doctors, and bad for business. Dr. Lee cuts to the heart of the health-care crisis and offers a blueprint that is both realistic and optimistic. She warns it may not be a quick fix, but she says her concrete action plan for reform―for employers and other payers, patients, clinicians, and policy makers―can reinvent health care, and create a less costly, more efficient, and healthier system for all. NOTES This program is generously supported by the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and a collaborative of local funders and donors. We are grateful for their support and hope others will follow their example to support the Club during these uncertain times. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SPEAKERS Clair Farley Senior Advisor, Trans Initiatives at the City and County of San Francisco Anjali Rimi Parivar SF Bay Area Jack Beck Turnout Akira Jackson Director, TAJA's Coalition Nicole Santamaria Executive Director, EL/LA Para Translatina Michelle Meow Producer and Host, "The Michelle Meow Show" on KBCW/KPIX TV and Progressive Voices Radio; Member, Commonwealth Club Board of Governors—Host In response to the Coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak, this program took place and was recorded live via video conference, for an online audience only, and was live-streamed from The Commonwealth Club of California in San Francisco on May 28th, 2020. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Celebrating API month and recognizing successful Lao-American women. NOTES This program was part of the Club's presentation of "The Michelle Meow Show" at The Commonwealth Club. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Join us for the second in our new series of Lavender Talks—produced in partnership with San Francisco Pride, which is celebrating 50 years in 2020. In this program, we'll explore the status of San Francisco's LGBTQ cultural districts. How and why did they come into being? How are they used today? What's next? Our panel will feature leaders from the LGBTQ Cultural District, the Transgender District, the Leather & LGBTQ Cultural District, and the mayor's manager of cultural districts. NOTES In association with San Francisco Pride Made possible by the generous support of Comcast And thanks to San Francisco Pride Legacy Partners: Bud Light Hilton San Francisco Union Square KPIX 5 CBS Bay Area Kaiser Permanente Genentech Gilead GLBT Historical Society KBCW TV Parc 55 San Francisco Smirnoff Recology T–Mobile This is a free program; please consider making a donation to support our online program production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Empowering girls and women around the world is increasingly seen as an essential aspect of social justice and development. To help to break the cycle of poverty, education in many forms is a critical feature of programs that transform the lives of girls and women. Confidence and believing in oneself can help young girls and women realize their dreams and build sustainable economic growth. Building on the success and increasing the skills of students can enable young women to become successes in the future and make the world a better place. Our panelists represent significant organizations that will impact the lives of individual women and change the world. MLF ORGANIZER Frank Price NOTES MLF: International Relations This is an online-only event; register to receive a link to the live stream This program is free; please consider making a donation during registration to support production of our online programs Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our distinguished panel—led by Michael Pappas and which includes Mahjabeen Dhala, a religious motivational speaker, who is pursuing a doctorate at the Graduate Theological Union; the Rt. Reverend William Swing, president and founding trustee of the United Religions Initiative (URI), and Sam Berrin Shonkoff, Ph.D. assistant professor of Jewish studies at GTU—will discuss the connections among the the Abrahamic faiths, the unfortunate general lack of knowledge of the others' histories, cultures, and beliefs, and how increased understanding, tolerance, acceptance, respect, etc. among all faiths could help bring about a more peaceful world. They will also share expressions of faith and how Interfaith communities interact in the midst of the horrendous COVID-19 crises. MLF ORGANIZER Celia Menczel NOTES MLF: Middle East Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We are experiencing a moment of profound global transformation, a moment that is causing many of us to deeply examine core aspects of our lives that we once took for granted. What is it like to initiate personal transformation in midlife, whether by choice or through crisis? Three women will share their stories of how they are making midlife one of the most profound and powerful times in their lives. Join us for an intimate conversation and discussion. And learn how to find your purpose and passion in the midst of all the external noise; how to overcome the roadblocks to personal change; and discover the gems of wisdom that can help carry you through it. Barbara Mark, Ph.D., has a deeply held passion for working with women in midlife and has enjoyed a decades-long career as an elite leadership, career and life strategies coach and advisor. She has been brought into the confidence of hundreds of professional women seeking to maintain inner balance while facing diverse external demands, personal ambition, and t

Renowned writer Minna Salami’s work is dedicated to the many complex facets of feminism. She founded the award-winning blog MsAfropolitan to connect the dots between intersectional feminism, African diaspora and contemporary culture. She explores these themes and more in her new book Sensuous Knowledge, a collection of essays that also challenges us to rethink our history with power, beauty and knowledge. Join Salami at INFORUM for a youth-centered conversation on what it means to be a feminist, how youth can navigate gender politics, and how young women can build an empowered future for themselves. This conversation will be moderated by Lena Jennings, Equity Strategist at Google and Cinnamongirl, Inc. mentor. This conversation is a part of the Commonwealth Club’s new focus on civics education and is in partnership with Cinnamongirl Inc., an organization aimed at providing access, experiences and a global mindset, empowering girls to be the visionaries our world needs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit

Against the backdrop of Senator Kamala Harris’ historic run for president of the United States, The New York Times asked the question “What does this country demand of Black women in politics?” In this discussion, we will dive into the subject with a powerhouse panel of Black women officials and strategists. The conversation will explore the expectations and demands of Black women who take the step into public service. What makes the journey so unique? What makes it challenging and what it will take to clear the final hurdle into the White House? Join San Francisco Mayor London Breed, Emerge California Executive Director Kimberly Ellis, U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee, and Akonadi Foundation President Lateefah Simon, in conversation with SF Pride President Carolyn Wysinger. NOTES Co-hosted by INFORUM Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ambassador Richard Haass is a veteran diplomat and a prominent voice on American foreign policy. He is now in his 17th year as president of the Council on Foreign Relations, an independent, nonpartisan membership organization dedicated to helping people better understand foreign policy choices facing the United States and other countries. Ambassador Haass previously served as Principal Advisor to Secretary of State Colin Powell as well as U.S. Coordinator for policy toward the future of Afghanistan and and as U.S envoy to the Northern Ireland peace process. He was also special assistant to President George H.W. Bush and senior director for Near East and South Asian affairs at the National Security Council. In his 14th and newest book, Ambassador Haass seeks to help us all navigate a time in which many of our biggest challenges, including pandemics and terrorism, come from beyond our border. Join an important conversation about what Ambassador Haass calls the new normal of the 21st century and the global liter

The coronavirus pandemic has forced communities to face issues of ethics and human value in the health-care system. The higher rates of hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19 complications in communities of color draw focus once again on institutional inequities in access to health care and on hard questions confronting just paths forward. The Northern California Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Foundation’s (NorcalMLK) new Center for Social Impact, Development, and Global Engagement (SIDGE Center) focuses on linking ethics and value as data points to information architectures in health care and IT structures in order to improve equity. Leading ethicists and scholars Dwight Hopkins and Deborah Alvarez-Rodriguez will be in conversation with Norcal MLK’s Aaron Grizzell, as they explore thoughts on ethics and value that the COVID-19 pandemic has caused us all to confront. MLF ORGANIZER Robert Lee Kilpatrick NOTES MLF: Health & Medicine This program is generously supported by the Chan Zuckerberg Initiativ

How do tech titans at the top stay on top? According to technology reporter Alex Kantrowitz, it’s by acting like they’re at the bottom. At Amazon, "Day One" is code for inventing like a startup, with little regard for legacy. Day Two is, in Jeff Bezos's words, "stasis, followed by irrelevance . . . then death." Kantrowitz says most companies today are set up for Day Two. They build advantages and defend them fiercely, rather than invent the future. But as he chronicles in his new book, Always Day One: How the Tech Titans Plan to Stay on Top Forever, the tech titans of today remain successful because they are always operating in Day One. Companies like Amazon, Facebook, Apple and Microsoft have endured because they prioritize reinvention over tradition and collaboration over ownership. While these values may seem radical to some, they have proven to be immeasurably successful for major tech giants. But what about those actually at the bottom looking to make a name for themselves? Kantrowitz believes that every

Just as Jacqueline Novogratz’s groundbreaking new book Manifesto for a Moral Revolution: Practices to Build a Better World makes its way to readers, an international pandemic has thrown into sharp relief the gaping wounds of our era, from a broken health system to climate change and skyrocketing inequality and growing divisiveness. Our inadequate systems and institutions are slumping beneath a host of modern crises. Most urgently, moral leaders are proving a scarce commodity. In America and across the world, an anxious public is hungry for clear, conscientious guidance. The stakes are higher than ever. Please join Jacqueline Novogratz in conversation with Keith Yamashita about how we might use this moment of extreme uncertainty to reimagine our institutions and enact a moral revolution—a revolution of character, moral imagination, moral courage, and leadership that acts for the benefit of all of us. MLF ORGANIZER Elizabeth Carney NOTES MLF: Business & Leadership Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megapho

Despite all the media attention given to black holes, dark matter and dark energy, astronomy is actually all about the light—the decillions of photons careening around the universe. Join us virtually for a conversation with Alex Filippenko, a Berkeley astrophysicist who works on deciphering, from all that photonic information live-streaming to Earth, what is really going on out there. Filippenko will also share some of the spectacular images from deep space that our technology has been able to construct from the clues left behind by billions of those wandering photons. MLF ORGANIZER George Hammond NOTES MLF: Humanities Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"I became very good at what I do. When other coaches on the staff would go home at night to their wife and kids, I would stay at the office. I would keep working, keep learning. This helped my career, but I didn't realize the negative effects it would have on my mental health." That's how Matt Lynch described his life hiding his sexuality during his time coaching at UNC-Wilmington. Currently out of work due to the COVID-related layoffs of the coaching staff, Lynch will join us for an online program to discuss his decision to come out publicly as a gay man in an article he wrote for Outsports.com this winter. How did his family respond? How did his players react? How did his school treat him? And what's next for this young coach? Join us for a conversation about being gay in big-time college sports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to affect health and industry, the food that we eat every day has formed a complicated relationship to the crisis. Has social distancing forced us to think more consciously about what and how we cook? Or has panic and misinformation surrounding food safety spread to the masses? The Food Lab’s J. Kenji López-Alt joins INFORUM to explore all of the complex facets of this conversation—and, of course, he will do it using science. We will cover topics such as safe grocery store practices, food serving and preparation, false information regarding transmission via food (especially when ordering takeout) and much more. Tune in live as we explore all things food while in quarantine from one of the industry’s most trusted experts. This program is generously supported by the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and a collaborative of local funders and donors. We are grateful for their support and hope others will follow their example to support the Club during these uncertain times. Learn more a

Governor Jerry Brown is no ordinary politician. Like California, he is eclectic, brilliant, unpredictable, and sometimes weird. Join us virtually as Newton explains how Jerry Brown extended, but still radically altered, the legacy of his father, Governor Pat Brown. In his 16 years as governor (from 1975 to 1983 and from 2011 to 2019), Jerry Brown's blend of compassion, far-sightedness, and pragmatism helped restore the California economy, balance the state budget, combat climate change, and defend immigrants' rights. Newton reveals the blueprint of Jerry Brown's offbeat risk taking: equal parts fiscal conservatism and social progressivism. Newton also reveals other sides of Jerry Brown, whose defeat on the national stage did nothing to diminish the scale of his political, intellectual and spiritual ambitions, and whose legacy demonstrates how politics may once again be effective in the future. MLF Organizer: George Hammond MLF: Humanities Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Join us virtually for a conversation with David Bodanis, Zooming in from London, to discuss his ideas about how the COVID-19 pandemic will influence the future of the world economy, how Einstein grappled with having made a major mistake in trying to solve a physics problem, how Madame du Chatelet, the French aristocrat and married translator of Newton’s works, partnered on her intellectual pursuits with her lover Voltaire, how electricity was changed from a mere curiosity to a transformational force for civilization, and how he got interested in his latest book project, The Art of Fairness: The Power of Decency in a World Gone Mean, which is due out in November. Hear a master storyteller describe the power of ideas that transform civilizations. NOTES MLF: Humanities Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices