Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

Travel and tourism make up one of California’s most important and powerful industries. Every day before the pandemic of 2020, travelers injected hundreds of millions of dollars into communities across the Golden State, infusing hundreds of billions of dollars into the state’s economy. In 2019, this spending generated $12.2 billion in local and state tax revenue and supported 1.2 million jobs for Californians.That all changed when the pandemic spread in March 2020, and the tourism industry largely shut down, hitting cities like San Francisco particularly hard. The industry recovery began to take shape earlier in 2021. However, just as the pandemic was receding and the tourism economy was starting to recover, the highly contagious delta variant of the coronavirus has again negatively impacted the tourism economy, slowing chances of a full recovery any time soon and raising questions about the future of the industry and, most important, the workers who rely on it for employment. These issues are particularly challenging in the Bay Area, as it is significantly impacted by shifts in tourism to San Francisco.As one of the most challenging periods in the state's tourism history continues, we are pleased to be joined by two of the state's top tourism leaders, as well as tourism workers directly impacted by the changes brought about by the pandemic, to discuss the future of the industry in the fifth-largest economy in the world, The discussion will touch upon why the tourism economy is so important to the California economy, why travel and tourism is so significant to all Californians, and what we all can do to support the industry and its workers during this challenging time.NOTESThis program is funded by a grant from The California Wellness Foundation (Cal Wellness). The foundation’s mission is to improve the health of Californians. Cal Wellness is dedicated to promoting equity through advocacy and access.SPEAKERSCaroline BetetaPresident & CEO, Visit CaliforniaJoe D'AlessandroPresident and CEO, SF TravelDaniela PuccinelliDirector of Event Management, The Westin St. Francis San Francisco on Union SquareSpud HiltonFormer Travel Editor, San Francisco Chronicle; Editor, Where Traveler Magazine, San Francisco Bay Area EditionIn response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently hosting all of our live programming via YouTube live stream. This program was recorded via video conference on September 10th, 2021 by the Commonwealth Club of California. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Water is essential for life, and throughout history we have sought to control and make use of it. As Giulio Boccaletti explores in his new book, Water: A Biography, that relationship with water has underpinned human civilization, forming an integral part of society, government and land use systems. But despite its essential nature, access to water has never been equal or entirely fair. Climate disruption will further destabilize the systems we’ve built to control water in our environment – even as it remains a public good without fair and equal public access. What can 10,000 years of history teach us about how we should handle water in our current and future climate?Guests:Giulio Boccaletti, Author, Water: A BiographySara Aminzadeh, Vice President of Partnerships, U.S. Water Alliance Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Extraction: Art on the Edge of the Abyss is a special project of the Codex Foundation. Extraction is a multimedia, multi-venue, cross-border art intervention focused on the suicidal consumption of the planet’s natural resources, which the artists say is the most pressing environmental issue of our time, encompassing all others, including climate change.Extraction is an international "art ruckus" for 2021! Peter Koch's intervention includes a multimedia focus on dual aspects of Northern California and his native state of Montana and the impact of Extraction.The project is culminating in a constellation of nearly 50 overlapping exhibitions, performances, installations, site-specific work, land art, street art, publications, poetry readings and cross-media events throughout 2021 and beyond.NOTESMLF: ArtsSPEAKERSPeter KochPeter Koch PrintersSam PeltsCoordinator, Extraction ProjectDr. Anne W. SmithCo-Chair, Arts Member-Led Forum, The Commonwealth Club of California—ModeratorIn response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently hosting all of our live programming via YouTube live stream. This program was recorded via video conference on August 31st, 2021 by the Commonwealth Club of California. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As with many aspects of American life, the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately impacted BIPOC communities. For Black businesses, this meant closing their doors and for Black workers, either being laid off or made to work in unsafe conditions. In a system where Black workers are proportionally overrepresented in low-wage work and sharply underrepresented in executive positions, this negative impact is exacerbated. However discouraging this reality is, it serves as a call to action to close the wide, possibly widening, racial gap.At INFORUM, a panel of experts on the economic state of Black America will provide insight on what a path to equal and just recovery looks like, expanding upon research by McKinsey & Company. Further, juxtaposing the current reality with the prosperity offered by a better future, they will drive home the need to make change, and do so quickly.SPEAKERSShelley Stewart IIIPartner, McKinsey & Company; Co-author, "The economic state of Black America: What is and what could be"Michael ChuiPartner, McKinsey Global Institute; Co-author, "The economic state of Black America: What is and what could be"Dr. Kristen E. BroadyPh.D., Fellow in the Metropolitan Policy Program, The Brookings InstitutionJeffery WallaceCEO and President, LeadersUpJennifer AblanU.S. Assistant Managing Editor, Financial Times—ModeratorIn response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently hosting all of our live programming via YouTube live stream. This program was recorded via video conference on August 27th, 2021 by the Commonwealth Club of California. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Join us as we discover and learn how these four dynamic returned women Peace Corps volunteers crafted their careers to become important leaders. We will also find out what hurdles they had to overcome and how they became influential and creative leaders. Their stories are valuable for all to hear, and we can all learn from their experiences.Lisa Curtis is the founder and CEO of Kuli Kuli, the leading brand pioneering the sustainably sourced superfood moringa. Kuli Kuli works with farmers in the developing world to access the nutritional power and economic opportunities of moringa. Curtis began working on Kuli Kuli while serving in the Peace Corps in Niger and has grown it into a multi-million dollar social enterprise. Previously, Lisa wrote political briefings for President Obama in the White House, served as a United Nations Environment Programme Youth Advisor, and worked at an impact investment firm in India.The moderator for today's program is Frank Price, the vice president of the Northern California Peace Corps Association and Shriver Circle Member of the National Peace Corps Association. Price served in the Peace Corps in Côte d'Ivoire. He is currently president of the Stewardship of the Commons FoundationMLF ORGANIZERFrank PriceNOTESMLF: International RelationsSPEAKERSLisa CurtisFounder & CEO of Kuli Kuli; Served in NigerKaren DeWittJournalist; Digital Newsroom Director, School of Global Journalism and Communication, Morgan State University; Served in EthiopiaNalini ElkinsCEO and Founder of Inside Products, Inc.; Served in TogoRahama WrightFounder and CEO of Shea Yeleen Health and Beauty; Served in GhanaFrank PriceVice President, Northern California Peace Corps Association; Shriver Circle Member, National Peace Corps Association; Served in Côte d'IvoireIn response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently hosting all of our live programming via YouTube live stream. This program was recorded via video conference on August 26th, 2021 by the Commonwealth Club of California. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

U.C. Berkeley Law Dean Erwin Chemerinsky is one of the country's most respected constitutional scholars. In his new book Presumed Guilty, he says that the U.S. Supreme Court has allowed the perpetuation of racist policing by presuming that suspects, especially people of color, are guilty before being charged.Dean Chemerinsky argues that the fact that police are nine times more likely to kill Black men than other Americans is no accident but rather the result of an elaborate body of doctrines. He says the pro-defendant Warren Court was a only brief historical aberration and that this more liberal era ended with Nixon’s presidency and the ascendance of conservative justices, whose rulings have permitted stops and frisks, limited suits to reform police departments, and even abetted the use of chokeholds.Come hear Dean Chemerinsky's thoughts on necessary steps to create a more robust court system that will enhance civil rights.SPEAKERSErwin ChemerinskyDean, University of California, Berkeley, Law School; Author, Presumed Guilty: How the Supreme Court Empowered the Police and Subverted Civil RightsIn conversation with Brian WattKQED News AnchorIn response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently hosting all of our live programming via YouTube live stream. This program was recorded via video conference on August 30th, 2021 by the Commonwealth Club of California. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“Everyone’s someone’s somebody.” That’s the tagline of Miracle Messages, a nonprofit organization tackling homelessness by rekindling relationships and reconstructing support systems.Inspired by his Uncle Mark, CEO Kevin Adler launched Miracle Messages in 2014. Growing up, Kevin watched his beloved and loyal uncle, who suffered from schizophrenia, battle homelessness on-and-off for 30 years. When Mark passed away at the age of 50, Kevin’s family ensured that Mark’s life would never be forgotten within their own family. However, Kevin realized that while his uncle was lucky to have a family to remember and support him, thousands of others living on the streets were not connected to their family members or friends.Kevin and Miracle Messages volunteers offer homeless individuals a chance to reconnect with their family members and friends. Through Miracle Message’s reunion service, they have helped reunite over 425 people experiencing homelessness with support systems from which they have been separated, sometimes for decades. Dozens of reunions have resulted in individuals moving off the streets. Miracle Messages’ buddy system has also connected members of the homeless population with volunteers who offer companionship and support through calls and text messages. They provide cell phones so homeless individuals can stay in touch, and are experimenting on a small scale with universal basic income for those who are homeless.Our CEO, Dr. Gloria Duffy, will join Kevin for a conversation addressing how homelessness can be addressed on the individual and familial level. This topic is deeply personal for Gloria, as it is for Kevin, since a family member of hers has battled homelessness. Over the past 15 years, Gloria and her family have developed a system that supports her relative with a home and other basic needs. Please join us as Kevin and Gloria reimagine how we fight homelessness, and learn how Miracle Messages has reunited hundreds of families.SPEAKERSKevin F. AdlerFounder and CEO, Miracle Messages; Social Entrepreneur; SociologistIn Conversation with Dr. Gloria DuffyPresident and CEO, The Commonwealth Club of CaliforniaIn response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently hosting all of our live programming via YouTube live stream. This program was recorded via video conference on August 30th, 2021 by the Commonwealth Club of California. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is your Commonwealth Club week in review. Hear what you missed this week, and what we’ve got lined up for you next week.We’re always adding new programs - check out commonwealthclub.org/online for all of our upcoming events.If you haven’t already - please consider becoming a member of the Club. Enjoy exclusive discounts and access to special programs all while knowing your contributions directly support our many public programs and civic initiatives.Visit commonwealthclub.org/special, for special rates on memberships.Thanks for your support and as always - thanks for listening! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hundreds of people have been arrested in Minnesota in ongoing protests against Line 3, a pipeline that will move Canadian tar sands oil, and which could be operational as soon as this month. Pipeline advocates, like Mike Fernandez of Enbridge (Line 3’s builder), argue that as long as people are still using oil, we need a way to transport it — and pipelines are the safest, least carbon-intensive means of doing so. Opponents, like Sierra Club’s Kelly Sheehan Martin, argue that oil companies bolster markets for oil and gas as a way to justify continued profits from building pipelines and extracting oil. Sheehan Martin argues that to seriously address the climate crisis, we need to keep the oil in the ground, and listen to the voices of those worried about harm to waterways and tribal lands. Why have oil pipelines become such a point of contention in the environmental movement? And what can all sides agree on to work toward the same less-carbon-reliant future?Guests:Mike Fernandez, Senior Vice President, Public Affairs, Communications & Sustainability, EnbridgeDaniel Raimi, Fellow, Resources for the FutureKelly Sheehan Martin, Senior Director of Energy Campaigns, Sierra Club Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"I Love New York." "Keep Portland Weird." "Virginia Is For Lovers." "Don’t Mess with Texas." We all know them. We all say them—but how do we sum up the Bay Area?The Bay offers the world culture, diversity, natural beauty, innovation and commitment to progress. Yet the Bay wrestles with persistent housing challenges and news stories about the “Bay Area exodus.” Layer on the COVID-19 pandemic, and it's no surprise that regional pride and confidence in the Bay Area is taking a hit. But this moment of unprecedented crisis can be a turning point for the Bay Area.Join a panel of Bay Area locals and legends who will discuss how The Bay shaped who they have become, why they call this region home, and different solutions to rebuilding and strengthening the Bay Area. This panel will wrestle with how we can not only recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, but create the vibrant, equitable region that we all aspire to live in.NOTESIn partnership with Tipping Point Community.SPEAKERSSam CobbsCEO, Tipping Point CommunityHeather KnightColumnist, San Francisco ChronicleNed SegalChief Financial Officer, TwitterLenny MendoncaFormer Chief Economic and Business Advisor, State of California—ModeratorIn response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently hosting all of our live programming via YouTube live stream. This program was recorded via video conference on August 25th, 2021 by the Commonwealth Club of California. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices