Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

In a democracy, meaningful change often requires adapting views and building coalitions. Some believe finding common ground and building rapport is the best way to change minds. Others believe activism and protests are key to raising awareness. Increasingly, however, the acts of listening and persuasion are left out, as each side is convinced that the other is unmovable. Anand Giridharadas is a journalist, columnist, on-air political analyst, and author. His latest book, “The Persuaders: At the Front Lines of the Fight for Hearts, Minds, and Democracy,” explores how the tactics of persuasion can help strengthen democracy and foster positive societal change.Guests:Anand Giridharadas, Journalist, Author, “The Persuaders: At the Front Lines of the Fight for Hearts, Minds, and Democracy”For show notes and related links, visit https://www.climateone.org/watch-and-listen/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Recently, CNN wanted to find out, “What Happened to San Francisco?” They called Willie Brown. As two-term mayor of San Francisco and legendary speaker of the California State Assembly, he is still the go-to guy in California politics, government and civic life.With the national media spotlight on the Bay Area as San Francisco faces twin crises of homelessness and drug addiction, Mayor Brown returns to The Commonwealth Club to give us the lowdown. He will separate hype from reality and talk about what local leaders can do to address the city's multiple challenges. A strong advocate for health equity, his focus is on ways to ensure access to quality health care regardless of income or background. He’ll also share his take on state and national politics as well as on the country’s growing polarization. Join us for Willie Brown’s annual conversation with The Commonwealth Club. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The United States faces a public health crisis on its roads. In 2021 alone, almost 43,000 people died in traffic crashes and millions more suffered serious injuries. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg calls the situation a preventable crisis—one for which we must take responsibility by recognizing that human lives are not a price to pay for modernity. New funding available through the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) provides a significant opportunity to reduce crashes through infrastructure redesign.Join the Mineta Transportation Institute and a panel of national experts to discuss the role of infrastructure redesign in achieving a national goal of zero traffic fatalities.NOTESThis program is supported by the Mineta Transportation Institute at San José State University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Billions of dollars from the Inflation Reduction Act have started flowing into renewable energy projects and manufacturing. That’s bringing jobs and revenue back to the country and to some areas abandoned by the oil, coal and gas industries. Despite the massive investments in their districts, some Republican politicians aren’t fans of the green energy companies moving into their backyards and are doing everything they can to repeal the Inflation Reduction Act – putting them at odds with their constituents. How do we advance the clean energy transition when it’s seen as a partisan issue?Guests: Emma Dumain, Reporter, E&E NewsHeather Reams, President, Citizens for Responsible Energy SolutionsTerry Weickum, Mayor, Rawlins WY Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

El Ultímo Sueño de Frida y Diego (2022) by local composer Gabriela Lena Frank is the first-ever San Francisco Opera production by a female composer, and the first ever in Spanish (libretto by Nilo Cruz).The opera tells the story of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera reliving their tumultuous love for 24 hours on El Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) through their paintings, embracing the passion they shared and the pain they inflicted upon one other.Artists Kahlo and Rivera were and are icons of Mexican arts and culture, magic and realism. This Commonwealth Club panel will focus on the impact of their artistic motivation, clothing, design and the famed murals across the Americas. Their fashion and lifestyles have continued to inspire many in the arts world today, including the costumes in El Ultímo Sueño de Frida y Diego, the incredible co-commissioned production of San Francisco Opera you can see on stage from June 13–30, 2023.MLF ORGANIZERAnne W. Smith and Robert Melton Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The last several years have seen a big increase in the number of lawsuits focused on the climate crisis. Some lawsuits challenge governments for their support for fossil fuels and for their failure to take climate action, while other cases target the fossil fuel companies themselves for knowingly misleading the world about the climate disrupting impacts of burning their products. Some of these cases seek monetary damages, others seek to hold governments accountable to their emissions reduction pledges. As more of these cases get their time in court, how powerful can litigation be in forcing action around the climate emergency?Guests:Delta Merner, Lead Scientist, Science Hub for Climate Litigation, Union of Concerned ScientistsKorey Silverman-Roati, Senior Fellow, Sabin Center for Climate Change Law, Columbia Law SchoolLucy Maxwell, Co-Director, Climate Litigation Network, Urgenda FoundationFor show notes and related links, visit https://www.climateone.org/watch-and-listen/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Government at all levels has limped into the digital age, widening the gap between the policy outcomes we intend and what we get.Jennifer Pahlka served as President Barack Obama’s former deputy chief technology officer. Join us for an in-depth talk as she offers a bold reexamination of how our government operates and the improvements that she says need to be made to end bureaucratic dysfunction.It’s not more money or more tech we need; Pahlka calls for "recoding" American government to reclaim it for the people it is supposed to serve.NOTESThis program is presented in collaboration with the USC Dornsife Center for the Political Future. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

No elemental force has done more to shape life on this planet than water, from originating the earliest forms of life, to sculpting our landscapes, to determining patterns of human civilization. Humans have tried to control water for thousands of years, and access to this precious resource has caused conflict and also unlikely partnerships. In an era defined by climate disruption, the control, access, and quality of water will continue to determine our ability to survive and thrive. How can we ensure a future where clean water exists for all who need it – including the ecosystems we depend on – and navigate the challenges of too little or too much? Guests:Peter Gleick, co-founder, The Pacific Institute; author, “The Three Ages of Water”Contributor: Luke Runyon, Managing Editor & Reporter, Colorado River Basin, KUNC RadioFor show notes and related links, visit https://www.climateone.org/watch-and-listen/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Few drugs in history have generated as much controversy as MDMA—or held as much promise, according to some. Once vilified as a Schedule I substance that would supposedly eat holes in users’ brains, MDMA (also known as Molly or Ecstasy) is now being hailed as a therapeutic agent that could transform the field of mental health and outpace psilocybin and ketamine as the first psychedelic approved for widespread clinical use.Award-winning science journalist Rachel Nuwer separates fact from fantasy, hope from hype, in the drug’s contested history and still-evolving future. Hear more as Nuwer explains the cultural and scientific upheaval that is rewriting our understanding of our brains, our selves, and the space between.This program contains EXPLICIT content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Alzheimer's disease is the most common type of dementia. It begins with mild memory loss and progresses to more severe effects, in some cases leading to the loss of the ability to carry on a conversation or respond to the surrounding environment. According to the CDC, in 2020, 5.8 million Americans were living with Alzheimer's; the number of people living with the disease doubles every five years beyond the age of 65; and as many as 14 million people in the United States are projected to have Alzheimer's by the year 2060.The disease and its impact can be experienced in different ways in different communities. Join us live as television host Michelle Meow leads a discussion with health experts and Alzheimer's advocates. They'll discuss Alzheimer's awareness, caregiving and the API stigma, filial piety, a personal caregiving story, LGBTQ caregiving and family dynamics, early detection, and brain health.This is a free event—your chance to learn more about this disease affecting millions of people.NOTESThe Michelle Meow Show thanks Kaiser Permanente for its support of independent LGBTQ media producers.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices