Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Keith Hennessey and Christina Romer: Bank of America/Merrill Lynch Walter E. Hoadley Annual Economic Forecast Jan 27, 2020

Show notes

With an election year looming, trade wars with China and other countries impeding economic progress, health care remaining in flux, housing problems and governmental gridlock continuing on, what does all of this mean for your business, your investments and the overall economy for 2020? Join us for a lively discussion on where the U.S. and global economies are headed and what should be done to keep them on track. NOTES This event is underwritten by Bank of America/Merrill Lynch

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

State Senate Candidate Jackie Fielder Jan 27, 2020

Show notes

Jackie Fielder is challenging State Senator Scott Wiener in this year's November election. She'll sit down with us to talk about what she would do differently if her campaign is successful. Fielder is a Native American, Mexicana, and queer educator and organizer. She has been involved in the battle against the Dakota Access Pipeline, advocated for a public bank in San Francisco, and campaigned against police policies she saw as dangerous. She was handpicked by Black Lives Matter co-founder Alicia Garza to be Garza's successor leading a class on "Race, Women, and Class" at San Francisco State University.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Crusade for Forgotten Souls: Reforming Minnesota’s Mental Institutions Jan 27, 2020

Show notes

In 1940, Engla Schey, the daughter of Norwegian immigrants, took a job as a low-paid attendant at Anoka State Hospital, one of Minnesota’s seven asylums. She worked among the 12,000 Minnesotans who were called inmates and shamefully locked away under the label “insane.” Susan Bartlett Foote tells of Schey's campaign to reform the deplorable conditions of mental institutions and of the politicians and other civic leaders who made her crusade for forgotten souls a success, breaking the stigma of shame and silence surrounding mental illness, publicizing the painful truth about asylums and building support among citizens. The result was the first modern mental health system, which catapulted Minnesota to national leadership and empowered families of the mentally ill and disabled. Though their vision met resistance, the accomplishments of these early advocates for compassionate care of the mentally ill hold many lessons that resonate to this day, when debates about what to do about the homeless and the mentally ill are chilling reminders of our shameful past. MLF ORGANIZER George Hammond NOTES MLF: Humanities

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Your Body Says “Yes”: How to Easily Activate Your Body–Health–Nature Intelligence to Optimize Your Health and Well-Being Jan 26, 2020

Show notes

By combining the latest scientific research and more than 20 years of medical practice, Rachel Carlton Abrams will give you a body roadmap for you to easily find greater health and joy within your body and your life. She will explain how to find and listen to your body’s “yes” as a guide to choosing a life your body will love. She will guide you through exercises that help you listen to your own innate body intelligence—the subtle and not-so-subtle signals that your body uses to communicate with you. When we listen to our body intelligence and enter into the right relationship with ourselves, she says, we have the foundation to cultivate the right relationship with others and with the natural world. Research shows that our personal relationships and our connection to nature have an enormous impact on our health. Lack of connection may increase many health risks, including all chronic diseases (heart disease, diabetes, depression, anxiety and even cancer). Abrams will teach you a method to find your way back to the right relationship with the important people in your life—whether finding the connections you crave or setting the boundaries that keep you safe. You will learn about your deep and abiding connection to the natural world and how you can reimmerse yourself in the healing and calming power of nature. She says we are not separate from nature, and its impact on us is physically and emotionally profound. Abrams has written five books on integrative and holistic approaches to health, relationships and sexuality. She is a much sought-after speaker who integrates the latest science with ancient wisdom to help you heal and finally discover true lasting health. MLF Organizer: Adrea Brier MLF: Health & Medicine This event is the latest in our member-led forums’ Art and Science of Well-Being series. ** This Podcast Contains Explicit Language **

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The College Dropout Scandal Jan 25, 2020

Show notes

Higher education today faces a host of challenges, from quality to cost. But too little attention gets paid to a startling fact: Four out of ten students who start college drop out. The situation is particularly dire for black and Latino students, those from poor families, and those who are first in their families to attend college. David Kirp outlines the scale of the problem and shows that it's fixable. We already have the tools to boost graduation rates and shrink the achievement gap. Many college administrators know what has to be done, but the dropout rate still hasn't decreased for decades. Ironically, it's schools like City University of New York and Long Beach State that are making the most progress at getting more students a better education and a diploma. Kirp relies on vivid, on-the-ground reporting, conversations with campus leaders, faculty and students as well as cogent overviews of cutting-edge research to identify institutional reforms. These reforms include using big data to quickly identify at-risk students, getting them the support they need, and applying behavioral strategies (from nudges to mindset changes) that have been proven to work. MLF: Humanities

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SV Reads 2020: Women Making It Happen Jan 24, 2020

Show notes

Julian Guthrie shares the untold story of four dynamic women, Magdalena Yesil, Mary Jane Elmore, Theresia Gouw and Sonja Hoel Perkins, who helped shape the tech landscape of Silicon Valley. Through grit and ingenuity, these trailblazers rewrote the rules and conquered the challenges of working in a male-dominated venture capital industry. Hear more about their personal stories as we celebrate the achievements and relentless perseverance of these extraordinary women. In association with Santa Clara County Library District, Santa Clara County Office of Education, the San Jose Public Library and DeAnza College.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rick Wilson: Saving America from Trump (and Democrats from Themselves) Jan 23, 2020

Show notes

Rick Wilson built his career as a star Republican political strategist. But following Donald Trump’s ascendancy during the 2016 campaign, the lifelong conservative became a vocal critic of the new Republican Party. His Twitter feed and columns for The Daily Beast give his followers a hilarious and refreshing take on national politics. In his new book, Running Against the Devil: A Plot to Save America from Trump, Wilson gives Left-leaning and anti-Trump voters a guidebook to win again in 2020. As a conservative strategist against Trump, Wilson critiques what he sees as Democrats’ inability to run the campaign and candidate needed to beat Trump. Wilson analyzes the damage that Trump has done and predicts the prospective damage Trump could bring in the next four years. Drawing on his plethora of political experience, Wilson exposes the tactics that brought Trump to victory in 2016—and the tactics that he will use again in 2020. Throughout Running Against the Devil, Wilson gives Democrats the tools to avoid the impending catastrophe of Trump’s 2020 victory. In this way, Wilson provides essential and much-needed advice for progressives, conservatives and civic participants to change the course of America’s future. ** This Podcast Contains Explicit Language **

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Daniel J. Levitin: Successful Aging Jan 22, 2020

Show notes

As American society continues to have a growing older population, understanding all aspects of aging is a critical national priority. Perhaps no subject is more important than understanding what happens to our brains as they age and what people can do to enhance cognition as they get older. And there is, perhaps, no better person to explain this all than best-selling neuroscientist Daniel J. Levitin, author of the iconic best sellers This Is Your Brain on Music and The Organized Mind. In his latest book, Successful Aging, Levitin turns his keen insights to what happens in our brains as people get older and, based on a rigorous analysis of neuroscientific evidence, what people can do to make the most of their 70s, 80s and 90s. Successful Aging uses research from developmental neuroscience and the psychology of individual differences to show that 60+ years is a unique developmental stage that, like infancy or adolescence, has its own demands and distinct advantages. Levitin looks at the science behind what we all can learn from those who age joyously as well as how to adapt our culture to take full advantage of older people's wisdom and experience. Successful Aging inspires a powerful new approach to how readers think about our final decades and has the potential to revolutionize the way we plan for old age as individuals, family members and citizens within a society where the average life expectancy continues to rise.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ayesha and Stephen Curry: The Commonwealth Club Equality Series Jan 18, 2020

Show notes

Three-time NBA champion and two-time MVP Stephen Curry and entrepreneur, host and best-selling author Ayesha Curry want to make sure that everyone has a chance to succeed. That's the mission of their new Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation, which focuses on youth in underserved communities and works to ensure every child has access to nutritious food, a quality education, and a healthy and active lifestyle. The Currys join us for a unique Equality Series program, in which they discuss their work, their lives, and their efforts to improve the lives of children in the Bay Area and beyond. Ayesha Curry is a renowned restaurateur, chef, New York Times best-selling author, television host and producer. She has been on Forbes' 30 Under 30 List, one of the faces of Covergirl cosmetics, a frequent guest on "The Rachael Ray Show" and "Good Morning America," a columnist for Woman’s Day magazine, and a popular lifestyle expert in the media. This fall, Curry teamed up with Ellen DeGeneres for a new Ellentube digital series, "Fempire," in which she uses her wisdom and business savvy to help female entrepreneurs of any age achieve the goal of building their own “fempire.” Stephen Curry’s on and off court legacy is marked by transformation and innovation. His nine-year career in the NBA with the Golden State Warriors is marked by many firsts. He was the first person to be named Most Valuable Player by unanimous vote in NBA history and one of a select few to win MVP awards two years in a row. He holds five NBA all-star selections and three NBA championships. Off the court, he is an emerging figure in the tech space with direct investments in companies such as Pinterest and TSM, an eSports organization. He is also the founder of the film and television company Unanimous Media, specializing in faith, family and sports content in tandem with Sony Studios. This is the second program in The Commonwealth Club Equality Series, made possible by the support of Salesforce

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Journalist David Talbot: A Life-Changing Year Jan 17, 2020

Show notes

This program is part of our Good Lit series, underwritten by the Bernard Osher Foundation. Acclaimed writer, best-selling author and founder of Salon magazine, David Talbot has brought us masterful and explosive headline-breaking stories for over 25 years with books such as The New York Times best sellers Brothers and The Devil's Chessboard and nationally recognized Season of the Witch. But, over the past year, all of that took a back seat to Talbot’s own personal health struggle following a stroke. Join this renowned journalist and historian for intimate journey through the life-changing year following his stroke, a year that turned his life upside down and ultimately saved him, changing the way he looks at the world.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected