Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

Cycles are hard to break. Once you get into the habit of eating badly, not exercising, or procrastinating, finding purpose and success can seem like an insurmountable goal. No matter how many books you read, podcasts you listen to, or YouTube how-to videos you watch, you're still not where you want to be. But maybe there’s still hope. Award-winning Wharton professor and "Choiceology" podcast host...

Join us for an in-depth dialogue about race relations and turning words into action. Our panelists will explore changing the narratives about critical issues in the deeper layers of race relations. What does "stand together” mean and what are some of the roadblocks? How can communities preach beyond the choir and impact interactions in our daily lives? This timely deep-dive discussion promises to...

There’s always a conversation no one wants to have, whether it's about a tricky financial situation, failing relationships or the often-avoided topic of aging. As the host of the WNYC podcast "Death, Sex and Money," Anna Sale invites people to talk precisely and openly about these uncomfortable topics in a larger effort to foster solidarity and connection with one another. In her new book Let’s Ta...

This month, Governor Gavin Newsom’s administration reported a quarter of a million Californians experiencing homelessness requested help in 2020—numbers that skyrocketed from previous estimates in some Bay Area counties. The Golden State is lauded for its job opportunities and diverse population, but it’s also the state with some of the highest housing and transportation costs in the nation. Now,...

Join us for a special Zoom discussion featuring AAPI women leaders exploring the topic of building coalition and community. About the Speakers Bo Thao-Urabe is a practice-based possibilian who focuses on creating community-centered, asset-based solutions and transforming practices so that there is meaningful change for those most impacted by systemic inequities. Having immigrated to the United Sta...

People from BIPOC communities face a myriad of challenges in the entertainment industry, both in front of the camera and behind the scenes. From on-screen talent and actors to production crews, publicity teams, talent management, writing and film criticism, marginalized groups often remain underrepresented in all aspects of an industry that has major influence on American culture. Despite evidence...

Join us for an inside look at The Adachi Project, a first-of-its-kind storytelling initiative that spotlights powerful stories and unseen perspectives of the U.S. criminal legal system via compelling documentary film, video and photojournalism. Following an introduction to The Adachi Project by Mano Raju and Santhosh Daniel, we'll view one of the films from the project and feature a discussion wit...

"My husband, John McCain, never viewed himself as larger than life—but he was. He had more tenacity and resolve than anybody I ever met. Being with him didn’t hold me back—it gave me flight, a courage I never would have felt on my own." —Cindy McCain John McCain was a respected six-term senator from Arizona, Navy hero, and dedicated family man. No one knew him better than his wife of 38 years, Cin...

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 dir...

Financial interests distort the truths of evidence-based medicine, says Dr. Leemon B. McHenry. By revealing previously confidential documents released in litigation, Dr. McHenry exposes the role that pharmaceutical marketing has in the construction of medical literature, conference presentations and continuing medical education. The marketing spin is designed to be indistinguishable from the genui...

How do our identities and values shape the way we listen to others’ climate experience? Author Nathaniel Rich and journalist Meera Subramanian cover the hopes, fears, and middle-of-the-night concerns affecting the people living closest to climate change.  In Georgia, farmers were convinced that climate is a political issue — until too-warm winters began upending the Peach State’s prized crop. In a...

Climate change threatens the very existence of many small island nations. Sea-level rise, weather extremes and coral reef destruction caused by warming waters have driven untold destruction and outmigration, with some communities fleeing—literally—to higher ground. Fighting for their collective survival, three small Pacific Island nations and two U.S. territories spanning over 2 million square mil...

Amid nationwide reckoning with racial justice and calls to reimagine policing in America's cities, Oakland has moved ahead with plans to change its public safety funding and performance. The Defund OPD campaign was launched by the Anti Policy Terror Project five years ago. Join us for a discussion with two leaders in the effort to change the criminal justice system. About the Speakers Cat Brooks i...

Elsalameen, a prominent activist, social media analyst, political commentator and public speaker will discuss Arab-Israeli progress toward Middle East peace with Jonathan Curiel, journalist and author. As a known critic of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and of Hamas, Elsalameen will also discuss how President Abbas's "reign has been marred by corruption," etc. (Elsalameen recently a...

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 dir...

"I love, love, love this book! The true story of a true heroine for our times—bold, brash and entirely honest about the downs and ups of making dreams come true." —Angela Duckworth, New York Times bestselling author of Grit Have you ever had a glimmer of an idea for a new company, project or product but were convinced you didn’t have the tools to get started? Ellen Marie Bennett, CEO of Hedley & B...

The United States is the world’s leader in incarceration. “Tough on crime” attitudes in the 1980s have shaped the policies that criminalize more people in the United States now than ever before. With this carceral approach, the United States must deal with consequences such as overcrowding, prison violence and unnecessary fiscal burdens. Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner has spent 30 ye...

In the US, we’ve become accustomed to climate – like nearly everything else – being politicized. Even when potential solutions might benefit everyone, a zero-sum mentality has taken hold where there’s an “us” and a “them” and progress for them comes at the expense of us. “Racism in our politics and policymaking is distorting our ability to respond to big problems and to advance collective solution...

The New York Times best-selling Bay Area author Jasmin Darznik returns to The Commonwealth Club to discuss her much-anticipated new novel, The Bohemians, a book that imagines the friendship between photographer Dorothea Lange and her Chinese American assistant in 1920s San Francisco. Darznick's new book captures a glittering and gritty 1920s San Francisco, with a cast of interesting characters, in...

In 2017, Dr. Shanna Swan published an internationally acclaimed landmark study that sparked great concern about declining human fertility. Join us as this award-winning scientist and reproductive epidemiologist outlines steps individuals and society can take to prevent further impairment by everyday chemicals, which she says are severely impacting our reproductive health and imperiling the future...

The pandemic has raised significant issues of concern for a democratic society, including that of balancing personal freedom against the greater good. How should this issue be most appropriately addressed during a time of pandemic or national emergency? How well is America actually equipped to handle this kind of crisis and how can we best reconcile the protection of individual rights with the nee...

Amid an outcry over anti-Asian violence and harassment, filmmaker and writer Bee Vang turns the spotlight in Hollywood and its role in promulgating anti-Asian ideas. The son of immigrants, Hmong-American actor and activist Vang starred as Thao Vang Lor in Clint Eastwood's 2008 film Gran Torino and has appeared in "Modern Family" and Comisery. He has performed in independent films and on stage at B...

Everything we were taught to believe about crime, justice, race, and gender needs to be criticized, says Marlon Peterson: We need to recenter humanity in accountability measures; we must allow room for various identities in criminal justice discourse. Formerly incarcerated author and activist Marlon Peterson is one of the many vanguards in changing the world we live in, and he documents it all in...

In more than a decade as a broadcaster and public figure, Michelle Meow has interviewed politicians, activists, medical experts, authors, sports heroes, actors, musicians and more. Millions have seen or heard her broadcasts of San Francisco Pride, as well as her weekly television show and daily podcast. She has discussed everything from LGBTQ equality to racism to adoption. Now she will discuss so...

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 dir...