Cascade PBS Ideas Festival

Adam Jentleson and Ellie Mystal discuss the structural issues they say threaten how we govern, and the solutions they believe are within reach. The battle over the fate of American democracy has heated up in the past few months, as pundits and political leaders spar over issues of accountability and reform.  Much of the conversation has revolved around what some consider immediate threats: state l...

The senior senator from Montana discusses the challenges facing Democrats as they try to convince red state voters to go green. The impacts of climate change are felt across the political spectrum, from the blue coastal cities contending with rising oceans to the red rural communities where drought and deluge upend growing seasons.  Yet convincing residents of America's more conservative areas has...

The congresswoman from Seattle speaks about the importance of grassroots activism and how to make it effective. Rep. Pramila Jayapal embodies change. As a progressive lawmaker, the Democratic congresswoman from Seattle is someone whose job is to press for political change. But she also represents a sea change in the world of activism.  Jayapal's life as a change-maker began around the turn of the...

The historian discusses how the battle between North and South lives on in American politics today. Deep partisanship defines American politics in the 21st century. But division is nothing new to the country. Long before modern Democrats and Republicans were at loggerheads over health care and tax policy, Americans fought over the fate of the country.  The Civil War was obviously the most conseque...

Months after losing the presidency and the Senate majority, the Republican Party is at a defining moment. Which way will it go? That the Republican Party is undergoing a very public reckoning isn't really in question. But, depending on where you sit on the political spectrum, that reckoning can look very different.  Is a GOP in free fall doomed to shatter once it hits bottom? Is the party still in...

Three Seattle artists discuss disruption, unrest and the pain — and healing — that comes from making art. All art, whether searingly relevant or seemingly superficial, has a kind of political weight to it. Murals, photography, printmaking and performance can help shape our perception of reality, challenging certain ways of living and thinking, and giving power to others.  In the past year, in part...

Almost a year since the protests that led to her resignation, Former Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best tells us what she thinks should be done to fix the force. When Best was appointed Seattle police chief in 2018, many in the community celebrated. As the first Black woman to hold the post, her ascent was notable, especially for a department that was under federal supervision for using excessive fo...

The famed scientist says she sees threats everywhere, but she also sees reasons to believe humans can save themselves and the environment. It has been a difficult year for everyone, and Dr. Jane Goodall is no exception. The famed primatologist, anthropologist and ethologist has been waiting out the pandemic at her family home in England at a time when she had planned to be out and about. She didn'...

‘Hidden Barriers’ producer Jen Dev and health justice educator Edwin Lindo on raising awareness of and seeking solutions to systemic racism in the health care industry. When Dr. Ben Danielson resigned in protest from his post with Seattle Children's late last year, he provided a rallying point for those seeking changes to a health care industry that produces disparities in care based on race.    D...

Dr. Nicholas Christakis discusses the future course of COVID-19 and the world it will leave behind.  It's been a little over a year now since the novel coronavirus was declared a pandemic and normal life in America -- and around the world -- came to a screeching halt. Since then, vaccines have been developed and deployed, but uncertainty remains. Variants of the virus are helping to drive spikes i...

Citizen University CEO Eric Liu talks about all that separates Americans and whether coming together is really possible. Division has become an everyday reality for most Americans. Reading or scrolling through the news inevitably leads to  some kind of partisan rancor or social conflict. And it can be difficult to think that there is anything other than deeper division in the country's future.  Of...