Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

Pulitzer Prize-winner Ed Larson returns to The Commonwealth Club with a revealing look at how the twin strands of liberty and slavery were joined in the nation’s founding. New attention from historians and journalists has been raising pointed questions: Was the American revolution waged to preserve slavery? Was the Constitution a pact with slavery, or was it a landmark in the antislavery movement? Leaders who called for American liberty are scrutinized for enslaving Black people themselves, such as George Washington’s consistent refusal to recognize the freedom of those who escaped his Mount Vernon plantation.Larson insightfully synthesizes these issues in his new history of the founding that fully includes Black Americans in the Revolutionary protests, the war, and the debates over slavery and freedom that followed. With slavery thriving in Britain’s Caribbean empire and practiced in all of the American colonies, the independence movement’s calls for liberty proved far too narrow — though some Black observers and others made their full implications clear. In the war, both sides employed strategies to draw needed support from free and enslaved Blacks, whose responses varied by local conditions. But by the time of the Constitutional Convention, a widening sectional divide shaped the fateful compromises over slavery that would prove disastrous in the coming decades.Larson delivers poignant moments that deepen our understanding: We witness New York’s tumultuous welcome of Washington as liberator through the eyes of Daniel Payne, a Black man who had escaped enslavement at Mount Vernon two years before. Indeed, it is the voices of Black Americans that prove the most convincing of all on the urgency of liberty.MLF ORGANIZERGeorge HammondSPEAKERSEdward LarsonUniversity Professor of History, and Darling Chair in Law, Pepperdine University; Author, American Inheritance: Liberty and Slavery in the Birth of a Nation, 1765-1795In Conversation with George HammondAuthor, Conversations With SocratesIn 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 January 24th, 2023 by the Commonwealth Club of California. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When most of us think about using nature to remove carbon dioxide from the air, we think of trees. Yet blue carbon, a new name for storing carbon dioxide in coastal and marine ecosystems where it can no longer trap heat in our atmosphere, may have even greater potential. Salt marshes and mangroves have carbon-capturing capacity that may surpass that of terrestrial forests. Seagrasses, for example, currently cover less than 0.2% of the ocean floor, but store about 10% of the carbon buried in the oceans each year. How can natural, ocean-based solutions benefit both the planet and the people who live in and depend on coastal ecosystems? Guests: Ralph Chami, Assistant Director, Western Hemisphere Division, Institute for Capacity Development, IMFEmily Pidgeon, Vice President, Ocean Science And Innovation, Conservation InternationalIrina Fedorenko-Aula, Founder, Co-CEO, VlinderIsabella Masinde, CEO, UmitaFor show notes and related links, visit ClimateOne.org Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On January 25, 2021, in one of his first acts as president, Joe Biden reversed the Trump administration’s widely condemned ban on transgender people in the military. In With Honor and Integrity, Máel Embser-Herbert and Bree Fram introduce us to the brave individuals who are on the front lines of this issue, assembling a powerful, accessible and heartfelt collection of first-hand accounts from transgender military personnel in the United States.Their eye-opening accounts show us what it is like to serve in the military as a transgender person. From a religious affairs specialist in the Army National Guard, to a petty officer first class in the Navy, to a veteran of the Marine Corps who became “the real me” at age 49, these accounts are personal, engaging, and refreshingly honest. They describe their experiences from before and during President Trump’s ban―what barriers they face at work, why they do or don’t choose to serve openly, and how their colleagues have treated them. Fram, a lieutenant colonel who is serving openly as a transgender woman in the U.S. Space Force and has advocated for open-service policies, shares her experience in the aftermath of Trump’s announcement of the ban on Twitter.At a time when LGBTQ rights are under siege, and the opportunity to serve continues to be challenged, join us for an online program with Embser-Herbert and Fram as they provide an inspiring look at the past, present and future of transgender military service. SPEAKERSMáel Embser-HerbertPh.D., Professor of Sociology, Hamline University; U.S. Army Veteran; Author, Camouflage Isn’t Only for Combat: Gender, Sexuality, and Women in the Military and The U.S. Military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” Policy: A Reference Handbook; Co-editor, With Honor and Integrity: Transgender Troops in Their Own WordsBree FramLieutenant Colonel, U.S. Space Force; President, SPART*A; Co-editor, With Honor and Integrity: Transgender Troops in Their Own WordsIn 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 January 19th, 2023 by the Commonwealth Club of California. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From Peabody Award-winning filmmaker Vivian Kleiman (Color Adjustment) comes an in-depth look at the evolution of queer comics, starting in the 1970s when LGBTQ+ stories were not a part of the popular culture. Through the careers of five scrappy and pioneering cartoonists who depicted everything from the AIDS crisis to “coming out” to same-sex marriage, Kleiman's new film No Straight Lines captures the beginnings of queer comics, from its origins as an underground art form to its progression into a social movement, culminating with its long-awaited mainstream acceptance into comic books, newspaper strips, and graphic novels.No Straight Lines premieres on the PBS documentary series "Independent Lens" January 23, 2023, at 10 p.m. EST (check local listings). The film will also be available to stream on the PBS Video app.Join us for a conversation with filmmaker Vivian Kleiman and cartoonists Jennifer Camper and Justin Hall.Note: This is a discussion of the film; it is not a screening.SPEAKERSJennifer CamperCartoonist, Rude Girls and Dangerous Women, SubGURLZ; Editor, Juicy Mother anthologies; Founding Director, Queers & Comics ConferenceJustin HallCreator, True Travel Tales, Hard to Swallow, Theater of Terror: Revenge of the Queers, and No Straight Lines: Four Decades of Queer Comics; Producer, No Straight Lines; Chair, MFA in Comics Program, California College of the ArtsVivian KleimanDirector and Producer, No Straight LinesMichelle MeowProducer and Host, "The Michelle Meow Show," KBCW TV and Podcast; Member, Commonwealth Club Board of Governors—Co-hostJohn ZippererProducer and Host, Week to Week Political Roundtable; Vice President of Media & Editorial, The Commonwealth Club of California—Co-hostIn 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 January 18th, 2023 by the Commonwealth Club of California. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you took the economic might of Amazon, and added the penetration of Facebook, the ubiquity of Google, and the cultural significance of YouTube, you might have something starting to resemble Alibaba.Commonly mischaracterized as a kind of Chinese eBay for businesses, Alibaba and its interlinked network of products and services have exploded into global markets, disrupting conventional businesses, and creating previously unimaginable opportunities for millions of small businesses worldwide.Brian Wong, a long-time executive and former special assistant to Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma, details the company’s unique culture and “tai chi” management principles that has propelled its global success.Hear more about the “secret sauce” behind the company’s distinctive business philosophy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Join us for our first Week to Week political roundtable for the new year, as we look at the impact of the November 2022 election, the relationship between the Biden administration and Congress, plus local and state political news.As always, our panelists will share their expertise with civility and good humor. And come early to enjoy our pre-program members social (open to all attendees) with some wine and snacks. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The pandemic put into stark relief the undue burden faced by working poor women in America. Many were laid off or had to quit for COVID-related reasons, such as school closures. Often, they struggled in low-paid jobs as essential workers, while facing greater demands at home.But even in the best of times, women in low-wage industries must cope with daunting challenges. In their new book Getting Me Cheap, sociologists Lisa Dodson and Amanda Freeman argue that the conveniences many Americans enjoy—things such as grocery delivery and nanny care—are made possible by the sacrifices of these women. The book reveals how discrimination, unpredictable work schedules, and lack of affordable childcare trap women in poverty and make “work-life balance” impossible.Join us as we hear from Dodson and Freeman about their research and possible solutions.SPEAKERSLisa DodsonResearch Professor Emerita, Boston College; Co-author, Getting Me Cheap: How Low Wage Work Traps Women and Girls in PovertyAmanda FreemanAssistant Professor of Sociology, University of Hartford; Writer and Researcher of Motherhood and Work; Co-author, Getting Me Cheap: How Low Wage Work Traps Women and Girls in PovertySaru JayaramanPresident, One Fair Wage; Director, Food Labor Research Center, University of California, BerkeleyBernice YeungManaging Editor, The Investigative Reporting Program, University of California, BerkeleyThis program contains EXPLICIT languageIn 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 January 19th, 2023 by the Commonwealth Club of California. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Does stress really age us? Everyone experiences different levels of stress from family, friends, work, or just uncertainty in the world. And while we can’t avoid living with stress, we can learn how to embrace it and transform it.Stress scientist Dr. Elissa Epel and Nobel Prize winner Dr. Elizabeth Blackburn will discuss the latest science on how we age and the role of stress and well-being. They will also address what we can do to improve mental health and slow aging.Hear more on how to develop a more robust mindset and “stress better.”SPEAKERSElissa EpelPh.D., Director of the Aging, Metabolism, and Emotion Center, University of California San Francisco; Co-author, The Telomere Effect; Author, The Stress Prescription: Seven Days to More Joy and EaseIn Conversation with Dr. Elizabeth BlackburnNobel Laureate, Morris Herzstein Professor of Biology and Physiology, University of California San Francisco; Co-author, The Telomere EffectIn 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 January 17th, 2023 by the Commonwealth Club of California. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Art can inspire community and conversation, provide fresh insights into understanding history, and cultivate connection. It can challenge your worldview and shift perspectives. This week we discuss how art and activism can work together to elevate some of the vast inequities that exist between those who benefit from fossil fuel energy and resource extraction and those who suffer its impacts.Guests:Ladonna Williams, Program Director, All Positives PossibleDoug Harris, documentary filmmakerChristine Abadilla Fogarty, Associate Director, Global Museum at San Francisco State UniversitySofía Córdova, multimedia artist and musicianFor show notes and related links, visit https://www.climateone.org/watch-and-listen/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jeff Korzenik will be in conversation with Ken Oliver, the executive director of San Francisco-based Checkr Foundation. Oliver leads one of the country’s most important initiatives for encouraging second chance/fair chance hiring within technology and other industries. With perspective gained from his own experience incarcerated in the California prison system, Oliver will question Korzenik on the origins on the business perspective on people involved in the justice system, the barriers to employment faced by returning citizens, and why he believes business is a critical partner to a more just world. The conversation will rely heavily on real-world examples or success and the necessary investments employers must make for fair chance hiring to succeed in business terms.Jeffrey Korzenik is the author of Untapped Talent: How Second Chance Hiring Works for Your Business and the Community (HarperCollins Leadership, April 2021). The chief investment strategist for one of the country’s largest commercial banks, Korzenik is an unlikely advocate for those with a criminal record. From speaking engagements to his regular appearances on CNBC, Bloomberg and Fox Business News, and in his articles in Harvard Business Review, the Stanford Social Innovation Review and numerous regional outlets, Korzenik argues that offering career opportunities to those overlooked because of a mistake in the past are our single best solution to our labor shortage. Such second chance/fair chance hiring, in his view, not only strengthens the economy, but offers a critical path to safer and healthier communities. In 2020, Korzenik was elected to membership in the Council on Criminal Justice in recognition of his work on the intersection of the labor force and the justice system. Korzenik is a graduate of Princeton University and has served on numerous nonprofit boards.MLF ORGANIZERPatrick O'ReillySPEAKERSJeffrey KorzenikAuthor, Untapped Talent: How Second Chance Hiring Works for Your Business and the Community Ken OliverExecutive Director, Checkr FoundationIn 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 December 14th, 2022 by the Commonwealth Club of California. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices