Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

Alzheimer’s is a global health problem, with nearly 7 million people living with the disease in the United States alone. Tremendous gains have been made in the understanding of the science and basic biology underlying Alzheimer’s and other dementias. These advances are leading to great strides in strategies for prevention, detection, diagnostics and therapeutic interventions. The Alzheimer’s Association is a global leader in research, mobilizing the field to advance the vision of a world without Alzheimer’s and all other dementia. This presentation will include: Highlights in Early Detection and Diagnosis, Latest Advances in Clinical Trials, Treatments and Lifestyle Interventions, Risk Reduction, and Alzheimer’s Association initiatives and how you can get involved.About the SpeakerClaire Day has been on the staff of the Alzheimer’s Association since 2001. She is the chief program officer at the Northern California and Northern Nevada Chapter and as such oversees all care and support operations and research initiatives. Day is a clinical social worker and in 2018 was appointed the Chapter Lead for the U.S. Study to Protect Brain Health Through Lifestyle Interventions to Reduce Risk in partnership with UC Davis. This is a two-year clinical trial to evaluate whether lifestyle interventions that simultaneously target multiple risk factors protect cognitive function in older adults at increased risk for cognitive decline.MLF ORGANIZER: Patrick O'Reilly A Psychology Member-led Forum program. Forums at the Club are organized and run by volunteer programmers who are members of The Commonwealth Club, and they cover a diverse range of topics. Learn more about our Forums.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Why cultivate creativity? Along with helping us at work and at home, another key reason is to navigate ambiguity and to build a "future-ready mindstate" that can surf the waves of an increasingly chaotic world.Intense, creative play is what helps create powerful childhood friendships, along with rituals and mechanisms for thriving during a transition to a new environment. For children, it's the transition to adulthood; for adults, it's living in a rapidly changing society in which tools like artificial intelligence, synthetic biology, and big data challenge our imagination, our limits and the status quo.Stanford faculty Scott Doorley and Carissa Carter, along with Google's Creative Skills for Innovation Lab founder Frederik G. Pferdt, have published two inter-related books on applying creativity and design to manage our futures. They're going to lead us in some simple (and playful!) exercises to help us learn some foundational design and creativity skills that might also help us steer our way through a world in flux.Join us while we re-awakening our ability to be amazed and to be imaginative with the assistance of the top creativity trainers in the world!MLF ORGANIZER: Eric Siegel A Personal Growth Member-led Forum program. Forums at the Club are organized and run by volunteer programmers who are members of The Commonwealth Club, and they cover a diverse range of topics. Learn more about our Forums. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Immigrants to America have always faced resistance, and have always—over time—assimilated and become vital parts of America. This is a process as old as the nation itself, and it can't be stopped, no matter how many—or how few—new immigrants arrive every year.Leading into November, many people believe we’re in a particularly fraught political moment where “America First'' is threatening their security, and heating up the 2024 presidential election. So what does it mean to be an immigrant in the 21st century? And who decides who is “American” enough?“On Shifting Ground” host Ray Suarez has criss-crossed the country to speak to new Americans from all corners of the globe, and to record their stories for his new book. Join us for a special conversation, as Suarez shares what he learned while reporting and writing We Are Home: Becoming American in the 21st Century.He will be in conversation with Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jose Antonio Vargas, founder and president of Define American, and veteran journalist Shereen Marisol Meraji, assistant professor at UC Berkeley’s School of Journalism.This program contains EXPLICIT language. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Some of the conspiracy theories now gripping American politics contend that Joe Biden was executed and replaced by a clone and that John F. Kennedy, Jr., faked his death and will one day return to slay Trump’s enemies. But who is susceptible to them, and what makes them so politically potent?Investigating the historical roots of our peculiar brand of political paranoia, Arthur Goldwag joins us for a special online-only program to make sense of the senseless and, in so doing, uncover three uncomfortable truths: that it is older than Trumpism and will outlast it; that theocratic authoritarianism is as hardwired in our American heritage as the principles of the Enlightenment; and that the fear that our system is “rigged” is not altogether unfounded. He explored these matters in his surprising and critical examination of America’s paranoid style in his book The Politics of Fear, which sheds new light on the age-old question: What exactly are we so afraid of?Don’t miss this exploration of the bizarre and dangerous conspiracies that have roiled America over the past decade and captured the minds of so many Americans. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On K Street, a few blocks from the White House, you’ll find the offices of some of the most powerful people in Washington. In the 1970s, the city’s center of gravity began to shift away from elected officials in big marble buildings to a handful of savvy, handsomely paid operators who didn’t answer to any fixed constituency.The cigar-chomping son of a powerful Congressman, an illustrious political fixer with a weakness for modern art, a Watergate-era dirty trickster, the city’s favorite cocktail party host—these were the sorts of people who now ran Washington. Investigative journalist Brody Mullins, working with Luke Mullins, says that over four decades, these lobbyists would chart new ways to turn their clients’ cash into political leverage, abandoning favor-trading in smoke-filled rooms for increasingly sophisticated tactics like “shadow lobbying,” where underground campaigns sparked seemingly organic public outcries to pressure lawmakers into taking actions that would ultimately benefit corporate interests rather than the common good. With billions of dollars at play, these lobbying dynasties enshrined in Washington a pro-business consensus that would guide the country’s political leaders—Democrats and Republicans alike—allowing companies to flourish even as ordinary Americans faced stagnant wages, astronomical drug prices, unsafe home loans and digital monopolies. A good lobbyist could kill even a piece of legislation supported by the president, both houses of Congress, and a majority of Americans.Yet, nothing lasts forever. Amidst a populist backlash to the soaring inequality these lobbyists helped usher in, this Washington alliance suddenly began to unravel. The Mullins say that while new ways for corporations to control the federal government would emerge, the men who’d once built K Street found themselves under legal scrutiny and on the verge of financial collapse. One had his namesake firm ripped away by his own colleagues. Another watched his business shut down altogether. One went to prison. And one was found dead behind the 18th green of an exclusive golf club, with a bottle of $1,500 wine at his feet and a bullet in his head.Join us to hear Brody Mullins sketch a dazzling portrait of 50 years of corporate influence in Washington, as laid out in the Mullins’ new book The Wolves of K Street. They trace the rise of the modern lobbying industry through the three dynasties—one Republican, two Democratic—that they say have enabled corporate interests to infiltrate American politics and undermine our democracy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Join us in downtown San Francisco for the second annual summit on some of the hottest topics facing the LGBTQIA+ communities. Robyn Adams, Remembering Nex BenedictModerated by: Oliver Elias Tinoco, a queer, undocumented, community youth advocate hailing from South San Francisco by way of Guanajuato, Mexico,  Ewan Barker Plummer, chair of the San Francisco Youth Commission, which advises the Mayor and Board of Supervisors on all issues impacting young San Franciscans.  Daniel Trujillo is 16 years old and loves drawing, playing guitar, bass, and drums, building Lego, and playing in the Tucson Jazz Institute. Daniel recently helped plan a national action in Washington, D.C., called Trans Prom, a creative action by and for trans youth. Connie Murphy is a trans psychology student and community organizer. She works in youth advocacy and creates environments where queer youths can thrive, most recently organizing LYRIC’s Lavender Ball.  Nano Luksanacom, upcoming senior, Lowell High School Dr. April Silas, LGBTQIA+ AC Bia Vieira, CEO, Women’s Foundation California Roger Doughty, Horizons Foundation Schuyler Bailar, first openly transgender athlete to compete on an NCAA Division 1 men's team Suzanne Ford Michelle Meow  This program is supported by SF Pride. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Join us in downtown San Francisco for the second annual summit on some of the hottest topics facing the LGBTQIA+ communities.  Welcome by San Francisco Human Rights Commission Director Sheryl Davis Suzanne Ford and Nguyen Pham of SF Pride California vs Hate, Chhaya Malik, deputy director for dispute resolution, California Civil Rights Department  Morning Keynote: Honey Mahogany, performer, small business owner and activist Moderator: Michelle Meow Lenny Emson (Kyiv Pride)  Charlene Liu (Shanghai Pride)  Nicolas Rodriguez (PRIDE SV - Marcha Por la Diversidad en El Salvador)  Natalie Thompson (Interpride co-president, World Pride DC 2025)  This program is supported by SF Pride. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There are climate heroes everywhere among us, but few get the public attention they deserve. Matt Scott, director of storytelling and engagement at Project Drawdown, has been shining a light on the work of such people in cities across the country in his documentary short series “Drawdown’s Neighborhood.” In Atlanta, Pittsburgh, New Orleans, the San Francisco Bay Area and more, Scott lifts up underrepresented voices of those working directly in their communities on climate issues. This week, we feature some of those voices.Guests:Matt Scott, Director of Storytelling & Engagement, Project DrawdownGrace Anderson, Founder, The Lupine CollaborativeAshia Ajani, Storyteller, Climate Justice Educator, Mycelium Youth Network📞 Do you work outside, in a kitchen, in a warehouse, or at other place where you’re feeling the heat? How have rising temperatures impacted the way you work? We want to hear your story. Leave us a voicemail at ‪(650) 382-3869‬ and let us know how climate change is affecting you on the job, and we may use it in an upcoming episode. Thanks for sharing!Support Climate One by going ad-free! By subscribing to Climate One on Patreon, you’ll receive exclusive access to all future episodes free of ads, opportunities to connect with fellow Climate One listeners and access to the Climate One Discord. Sign up today for just $5/month. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We, and all living things, are more than inhabitants of Earth—we are Earth! Life and its environment have coevolved for billions of years, transforming a lump of orbiting rock into a cosmic oasis that supports and is shaped by life.. . .Join acclaimed science writer Ferris Jabr as he reveals a radical new vision of Earth where lush forests spew water, pollen and bacteria to summon rain; giant animals engineer the very landscapes they roam; microscopic plankton, some as glittering as carved jewels, remake the air and sea; and humans alter more layers of the planet in less time than any other species, pushing Earth into a crisis.Jabr will draw on the work in his new book Becoming Earth, which delves into the hidden workings of our planet and its many lifeforms and invites us to reexamine our place in it. What we do next will determine what kind of Earth our descendants inherit for millennia to come . . .  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Some San Francisco nonprofits with city contracts have recently come under fire for their business practices and outcomes. With the city's $1.7 billion portfolio of nonprofit services, a lot is at stake in efforts to maximize return on investment, and produce durable outcomes. Come listen to an informed dialog between Laura Marshall, citywide nonprofit policy manager at the independent San Francisco Controller’s Office, and Kevin Fagan, seasoned reporter at the San Francisco Chronicle, as we seek to better understand how nonprofit oversight in San Francisco actually works. About the SpeakersLaura Marshall is the citywide nonprofit policy manager at the San Francisco Controller’s Office, After early work in San Francisco’s nonprofit sector and gaining a Masters in social work at San Francisco State University, Laura quickly identified local government as her preferred venue for helping to improve the lives of the city’s most vulnerable residents. She has worked for the City and County of San Francisco since 2007. Laura’s current role with the San Francisco Controller’s Office allows her to manage a portfolio of projects and initiatives designed to increase the effectiveness of government with a focus on social service programs and the City’s $1.7 billion portfolio of nonprofit services. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Smith College.Kevin Fagan is a longtime, award-winning reporter at the San Francisco Chronicle, specializing in homelessness, enterprise news-feature writing, breaking news and crime. He has ridden the rails with modern-day hobos, witnessed seven prison executions, and covered disasters ranging from the Sept. 11 terror attacks at Ground Zero to California’s devastating wildfires. Homelessness remains a core focus of his, close to his heart as a journalist who cares passionately about the human condition.MLF ORGANIZERIan McCuaig A Social Impact Member-led Forum program. Forums at the Club are organized and run by volunteer programmers who are members of The Commonwealth Club, and they cover a diverse range of topics. Learn more about our Forums. This program contains explicit language. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices