Town Hall Seattle Civics Series

Erratic weather, blistering drought, rising seas, and ecosystem collapse now affect every inch of the globe. Increasingly, we no longer look to stop climate change, choosing instead to adapt to it. Academics call it maladaptation; simply, it’s about solutions that backfire. In his new book, Over the Seawall, Stephen Robert Miller tells us the stories behind these unintended consequences and the fixes that can do more harm than good. From seawalls in coastal Japan to the reengineered waters in the Ganges River Delta, to the artificial ribbon of water supporting both farms and urban centers in arid Arizona, Miller traces the histories of engineering marvels that were once deemed too smart and too big to fail. In each story, Miller takes us into the land and culture, seeking out locals and experts to better understand how complicated, grandiose schemes led instead to failure, and to find answers to the technological holes we’ve dug ourselves into; urging us to take a hard look at the fortifications we build and how they’ve fared in the past. Miller embraces humanity’s penchant for problem-solving but argues that if we are to adapt successfully to climate change, we must recognize that working with nature is not surrender but the only way to assure a secure future. Stephen Robert Miller is an award-winning independent journalist, author, and editor who covers climate change, environmental conservation and agriculture from his home in rural Colorado. His work appears in National Geographic, Discover Magazine, Audubon, The Guardian, and many others. Stephen was a 2018-2019 Ted Scripps Fellow. His new book, Over the Seawall, takes a global perspective on natural hazards and the challenges of adaptation to climate change. He has reported from across the U.S. and Canada, Southeast Asia, and the Arctic. He graduated with a degree in journalism from the University of Arizona and was previously senior editor of environmental justice for YES! Magazine, as well as editor of a Seattle-based weekly newspaper. Marcus Harrison Green is a columnist for The Seattle Times. A long-time Seattle native, he is the founder of the South Seattle Emerald, which focuses on telling the stories of South Seattle and its residents. Buy the Book Over the Seawall: Tsunamis, Cyclones, Drought, and the Delusion of Controlling Nature Ada’s Technical Books

In 2018, there was a mass shooting with an AR-15 at a Waffle House. The racially charged act of violence led Dr. Jonathan M. Metzl, a Nashville-based gun policy scholar and author, to advocate for gun reform. But how can we stop gun violence in a nation that sees hundreds of mass shootings every year? As Metzl examined the crime, he began having doubts about continuing to approach gun reform through the lens of public health that he had championed long before. The killings led him to examine the limitations of biomedical frameworks for fully diagnosing or treating the complexities of American gun politics. In his new book What We’ve Become: Living and Dying in a Country of Arms, Metzl discusses the long history of distrust of public health as well as larger forces—social, ideological, historical, racial, and political—that he argues allow mass shootings to occur on a near daily basis in America and become normalized. What We’ve Become looks closely at the consequences of mass shootings in this country, the meanings of safety and community, and how obstacles like political gridlock impede progress toward ending these violent crimes. Metzl considers mass shootings to be a symptom of our most unresolved national conflicts and offers his views on what can make things right. Jonathan Metzl is the Frederick B. Rentschler II professor of sociology and psychiatry and the director of the Department of Medicine, Health, and Society at Vanderbilt University. The award-winning author of Dying of Whiteness: How the Politics of Racial Resentment Is Killing America’s Heartland and other books, he hails from Kansas City, Missouri, and lives in Nashville, Tennessee. Florangela Davila has been a journalist in Seattle since 1992. For 14 years she worked at The Seattle Times, covering race and immigration. She was the managing editor and Crosscut Now host at Cascade PBS. Most recently, she led the KNKX newsroom for four years. The child of immigrants from Colombia and Peru, she was born and raised in Los Angeles and graduated from UC Berkeley and Columbia University. She’s earned numerous individual and team journalism honors in print, online and broadcast, including a national Edward R. Murrow award for The Walk Home podcast.

“If you make it trend, you make it true.” The cycling of new and buzz-worthy information we face on a daily basis is faster than ever before. As new trends in information, politics, and culture are constantly updating, little time is left for critical analysis before the next headline hits the feed. And when those who hold the power to influence audiences and drive opinions in strategic directions stand to benefit, how does the public know what is based on evidence versus algorithm? In her new book Invisible Rulers: The People Who Turn Lies Into Reality, author Renée DiResta sets out to examine the relationship between the people, their government, and the machinations of digital power dynamics. Invisible Rulers details how public opinion has shifted from being based in belief in the fundamental institutions that make society work to being too easily shaped and sensationalized by the interplay between influencers, algorithms, and online crowds. Adaptation is always challenging but has become more time-sensitive as keener eyes are needed in our information landscape. These alternate systems for engaging with societal realities have become swiftly effective and in the swirling fog of who and what to believe, Renée DiResta advocates for not getting swept up in unexamined messaging. Through original analysis and a distinct voice on the subject of media literacy and trust, Invisible Rulers aims to highlight the risks and consequences of failing to critique leaders and propagandists in the age of rapidly shifting digital information. Renée DiResta is a noted writer, researcher, and advisor in the fields of information integrity, media misinformation, and STEM education. She has served as the Director of Research at Yonder, a co-founder of Vaccinate California, and is currently the technical research manager at the Stanford Internet Observatory. She is an Ideas Contributor at Wired and The Atlantic. Her writing and analysis can be found through The New York Times. Buy the Book Invisible Rulers: The People Who Turn Lies Into Reality The Elliott Bay Book Company

Should Democrats be looking to the other side of the aisle for political strategy? Political scientist and strategist Rachel Bitecofer seeks to explain the intricate dynamics of contemporary politics in her new book, Hit ’Em Where It Hurts. Seeking actionable strategies for Democrats to connect with voters and reclaim the narrative in a pivotal election year, Bitecofer dissects the strategies employed by Republican candidates, offering insights into how to counter these tactics and resonate with voters. The political landscape often sees Republican candidates capitalizing on sentiments of anger, fear, and resentment, effectively swaying voter preferences away from the carefully articulated platforms of the Left. Bitecofer argues that Democrats should counter this tactic by positioning themselves as champions of freedom, health, wealth, safety, and common sense, presenting a stark contrast to the perceived extremism of the Right. This politically charged but cautiously optimistic event will encourage voters to think critically about the future of our democracy and the role each of us can play in shaping it. Rachel Bitecofer is a political scientist and election forecaster turned political strategist. Bitecofer’s interviews and analysis have been featured by The New York Times, The Washington Post, Salon, Politico, The New Republic, Real Time with Bill Maher, CNN, MSNBC, and many other prominent news sources. She worked with Democratic Party candidates and organizations to implement negative partisanship strategy in the 2022 midterms.  

Delve into the complex tapestry of American politics with Juliet Hooker, the Royce Family Professor of Teaching Excellence in Political Science at Brown University. Hooker, known for her expertise in racial justice, democracy theories, and Black political thought, will unpack the themes of her latest book, Black Grief / White Grievance and offer a critical examination of white supremacy’s impact on the political landscape. In her book, Hooker argues that white supremacy creates an environment in which a white majority grows accustomed to civic and political wins, while black citizens are expected to act as lone political martyrs on a long path to justice. For Hooker, the two most important forces driving racial politics in the United States today are Black grief and white grievance. Black grief is exemplified in current protests against police violence — the latest in a tradition of violent death and subsequent public mourning, spurring activism, meanwhile the politics of white grievance imagines the United States as a white country under siege. Hooker will be joined by Megan Ming Francis, an Associate Professor of Political Science and Associate Professor of Law, Societies, and Justice at the University of Washington. She specializes in the study of American politics, expanding into the realm of criminal punishment, Black political activism, and philanthropy. She is the author of the award-winning book, Civil Rights and the Making of the Modern American State. Join Juliet Hooker with Megan Ming Francis for a conversation surrounding the expansion of the Black and white political imaginations. Hooker argues that both must learn to sit with loss, for different reasons, and to different ends. Juliet Hooker is the Royce Family Professor of Teaching Excellence in Political Science at Brown University, where she teaches courses on racial justice, black political thought, Latin American political thought, democratic theory, and contemporary political theory. Megan Ming Francis is the G. Alan and Barbara Delsman Associate Professor of Political Science and an Associate Professor of Law, Societies, and Justice at the University of Washington. Francis specializes in the study of American politics, with broad interests in constitutional law, Black political activism, critical philanthropy, and the post-Civil War South. Buy the Book Black Grief/White Grievance: The Politics of Loss Third Place Books

Can a parliamentary democracy end America’s constitutional crisis? It’s starting to feel to some people that American elections aren’t offering us much choice, instead compounding the continued issues of our outdated voting system and showing our lack of capacity to face common issues together. In Parliamentary America, Maxwell L. Stearns argues that the solution to these complex problems is a parliamentary democracy. Stearns considers alternatives such as ranked choice voting, the national popular vote, and congressional term limits, showing why these can’t solve our constitutional crisis. Instead, three amendments—expanding the House of Representatives, having House party coalitions choose the president, and letting the House end a failing presidency based on no confidence—will produce a robust multiparty democracy. These amendments hold an essential advantage over other proposals: by leaving every member of the House and Senate as incumbents in their districts or states, the amendments provide a pressure-release valve against reforms threatening that status. Stearns takes readers on a world tour—England, France, Germany, Israel, Taiwan, Brazil, and Venezuela—showing what works in government, what doesn’t, and how to make the best features our own. Genuine party competition and governing coalitions, commonplace across the globe, may seem like a fantasy in the United States, but Stearns offers an optimistic vision, explaining in accessible terms how to transform our troubled democracy into a thriving parliamentary America. Maxwell L. Stearns is the Venable, Baetjer & Howard Professor of Law at the University of Maryland Carey School of Law. He has authored dozens of articles and several books on the Constitution, the Supreme Court, and the economic analysis of law. Before joining the faculty at the University of Washington in 1997, Mark Alan Smith completed his undergraduate degree in economics at M.I.T. and earned his Ph.D. in political science at the University of Minnesota. He is Professor of Political Science and Adjunct Professor of Communication and Comparative Religion at the UW. Smith’s research and teaching focuses on American domestic politics, including religion, public opinion, political communication, political parties, and public policy. He is the author of four books, most recently Right from Wrong: Why Religion Fails and Reason Succeeds. He is a regular commentator on national and state politics for various media outlets.    Buy the Book Parliamentary America: The Least Radical Means of Radically Repairing Our Broken Democracy

As we head into another presidential election year, few issues feel as pressing as the spread of political misinformation. How can political campaigns fight back against the barrage of lies and disinformation? As time, tension, and technology all progress in our world, we’re not always prepared for the acceleration and its impact on the political climate. The public can often be left to weed through a seemingly endless digital news cycle and the task of differentiating between fact, misinformed fictions, and intentional disinformation. As the population faces the high-stakes election season once again, Sasha Issenberg turns a critical lens toward the complicated landscape of the American political institution, rising incentives, and the ever-expanding social media landscape. A decade after his last dive into social science and modern political analysis in his book The Victory Lab: The Secret Science of Winning Campaigns, Issenberg returns to expand more on the behind-the-scenes mechanics of politics. His newest book The Lie Detectives: In Search of a Playbook for Defeating Disinformation and Winning Elections urges readers to understand more from a range of high-level journalists, strategists, critics, and political operatives in their efforts to grapple online misinformation. From digital forums of anonymous amateurs to high-visibility government and party officials, the challenges and tactics at play throughout cyberspace have expansive reach and real-world consequences. The Lie Detectives pulls to the forefront the political class striving to tackle these issues as they emerge, and what the threat of disinformation could mean for democracy, especially at pivotal times. Sasha Issenberg is a journalist and author who has been published in New York, The New York Times Magazine, The Atlantic, The Boston Globe, and George, where he also served as a contributing editor. He teaches at the UCLA Department of Political Science and is a correspondent for Monocle. His previous books include The Sushi Economy and The Engagement: America’s Quarter-Century Struggle Over Same-Sex Marriage.   Austin Jenkins is a staff writer at Pluribus News, covering tech policy and other issues in state legislatures. He is also the longtime host of “Inside Olympia” on TVW, the state’s C-SPAN network. Previously, Austin spent nearly two decades as the Olympia correspondent for Northwest NPR stations.   Buy the Book The Lie Detectives: In Search of a Playbook for Winning Elections in the Disinformation Age Third Place Books

Anyone who has fallen off the conveyor belt of mainstream health care and into the shadowy corners of illness knows what a dark place it is to land. Where is the infrastructure, the information, the guidance? What should you do next? In her new book, Rebel Health, Susannah Fox draws on twenty years of tracking the expert networks of patients, survivors, and caregivers who have come of age between the cracks of the healthcare system to offer a way forward. Covering everything from diabetes to ALS to Moebius Syndrome to chronic disease management, Fox taps into the wisdom of these individuals, learns their ways, and fuels the rebel alliance that is building up our collective capacity for better health. Rebel Health shows how the next wave of health innovation will come from the front lines of this patient-led revolution. Join us for an event that is both proactive and innovative, as Susanna Fox paves the way for a collective capacity for better health and a patient-led revolution in medical care. Susannah Fox helps people navigate health and technology. She served as Chief Technology Officer for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, where she led an open data and innovation lab. Prior to that, she was the entrepreneur-in-residence at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and directed the health portfolio at the Pew Research Center’s Internet Project. Sally James is a writer whose curiosity about people has taken her from jails to hospitals to schools to research labs. Once a staff member on daily newspapers, she has been an independent writer on medicine and science for many years. She has reported stories for the South Seattle Emerald, Parentmap, Seattle Business, and other outlets. She is a former president of the Northwest Science Writers Association, a nonprofit supporting science communication.   Buy the Book Rebel Health: A Field Guide to the Patient-Led Revolution in Medical Care The Elliott Bay Book Company

Ever wondered how a leader orchestrates large-scale change on a global scale? In his new book, Big Bets: How Large-Scale Change Really Happens, Rajiv J. Shah, President of the Rockefeller Foundation and former administrator of USAID unveils his model for driving large-scale change. Drawing on his experiences, from vaccinating 900 million children with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to combating the Ebola outbreak, Shah reveals the secrets behind executing seemingly impossible endeavors. Through behind-the-scenes stories and reflections on personal growth, Shah shares his philosophy of big bets, emphasizing problem-solving over incremental improvements. Gain strategic insights into the power of bold visions, learning how these approaches attract support, collaborations, and fresh ideas. Trace Shah’s remarkable journey from an Indian-American immigrant family to the Rockefeller Foundation, and be inspired by the global efforts that define his mission to create a better world. Dr. Rajiv Shah is president of the Rockefeller Foundation, a global institution committed to promoting the well-being of humanity around the world through data, science and innovation. Under his leadership, the foundation raised and deployed more than $1 billion to respond to the COVID pandemic at home and abroad, launched a $10 billion Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet to help secure a just and green recovery, and is currently seeking to advance human opportunity even while reversing the climate crisis. Raj serves on President Biden’s Defense Policy Board and is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Council on Foreign Relations.   Buy the Book Big Bets: How Large-Scale Change Really Happens The Elliott Bay Book Company

The subject of disinformation is a well-known part of political rhetoric, but it has implications even outside of the sphere of democracy. From the electoral system to schools; from the workplace to hospitals, the consequences of it are far-reaching and dire. A legal analyst at MSNBC and former U.S. Attorney, Barbara McQuade’s decades of experience in law help inform her authorship of Attack From Within: How Disinformation is Sabotaging America. The book asserts that disinformation has been used deliberately and strategically to polarize, pushing voters to extremes, and disempowering legal structures while empowering a select few. Technological advancements, including rapid developments in artificial intelligence (AI) exacerbate the issue by amplifying false claims and manufacturing credibility. From historical examples of disinformation in dictators such as Mussolini and Hitler, to contemporary examples of the tactics alleged of former Presidents Trump and Bolsonaro, Attack From Within seeks to help readers – and voters – recognize disinformation, and offers suggestions on how to combat it. McQuade’s talk at Town Hall may interest those who have concerns about the reality and future of truth in a civil society. Barbara McQuade is a professor at the University of Michigan Law School, her alma mater, where she teaches courses in criminal law, criminal procedure, national security, and data privacy. She is also a legal analyst for NBC News and MSNBC, and a co-host of the podcast #SistersInLaw. From 2010 to 2017, McQuade served as U.S Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan. She was appointed by President Barack Obama, and was the first woman to serve in her position. Earlier in her career, she worked as a sports writer and copy editor, a judicial law clerk, an associate in private practice, and an assistant U.S. attorney. Jenny A. Durkan was the 56th Mayor of Seattle and previously served as US Attorney under President Obama. As mayor, she worked to make Seattle more equitable, by investing $2.5 billion in affordable housing, providing free transit for youth and two years free college for every Seattle’s high school graduate, and investing millions of new funding in communities of color. Durkan served in leadership positions for the US Conference of Mayors and the C40 Mayors, a global organization focused on fighting climate change. As US Attorney, Durkan increased enforcement of civil rights laws. She served as an advisor to former US Attorney General Eric Holder and chaired the US Department of Justice subcommittee on cybercrime and intellectual property enforcement. Durkan is a fellow in the American College of Trial lawyers and taught as an adjunct professor at the University of Washington School of Law.   Buy the Companion Book Attack from Within: How Disinformation Is Sabotaging America The Elliott Bay Book Company