Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

2020 is a year unlike any other in modern history. Of the many sectors of human life turned upside down by the COVID-19 pandemic, the American workplace has been particularly affected. The lines between work and home are blurred more than ever before, and the uncertainty many industries face have overwhelmed employees and their plans for the future. What do these shifts in workplace culture mean f...

In late October, as the long presidential campaign wound down to its denouement, President Donald Trump's daughter Tiffany appeared at a Florida rally to proclaim her father as the most pro-LGBTQ president ever. But instead of helping the president with LGBTQI voters, the event caused many people to reflect on the president's policies that they say have targeted members of the community by removin...

Dr. Michael V. Drake, M.D., was appointed as the 21st president of the University of California this past summer. He oversees UC’s world-renowned system of 10 campuses, five medical centers, three nationally affiliated labs, more than 280,000 students and 230,000 faculty and staff. Dr. Drake previously served as president of The Ohio State University from 2014 through June 2020. Prior to his six y...

The 2020 campaign season has finally come to a close. And days after November 3rd has passed, the country is still reeling. About seventy percent of Americans - Democrats, Independents and Republicans - say the election caused a significant amount of anxiety and stress in their lives. That’s up from fifty percent four years ago. How should we process those difficult emotions surrounding the electi...

It’s natural to feel protective of our favorite movies—they can inform the way we see the world, introduce us to complex themes, or remind us of a simpler time (like before we knew what racism and sexism were). Writer Lindy West argues, however, that liking a movie doesn’t always mean that it’s actually good. In her new book Shit, Actually: The Definitive, 100% Objective Guide to Modern Cinema, We...

SPEAKERS Malhar Shah Attorney, Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund; Former Family Law Staff Attorney, National Center for lesbian Rights Janet Sinhbandith Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA); Behavior Specialist, Castro Valley Unified School District; CEO, Positive Support Services, LLC Kristy Woerz Retired Special Education Teacher, Program Specialist, and Trainer to District Staff,...

America’s Latinx population is diverse, complex and has plenty of untold stories to share. Paola Ramos, a correspondent for Vice and former deputy director of Hispanic media for Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign, has spent the past 2 years exploring the changing nature of Latinx identity. In her first book, Finding Latinx: In Search of the Voices Redefining Latino Identity, Paola presen...

Join us for a virtual conversation with award-winning historian David Reynolds to discuss his new biography of Abraham Lincoln, which also illuminates the riotous tumult of American life in the decades before the Civil War. It was a country growing up and being pulled apart at the same time, with a democratic popular culture that reflected the country's contradictions. From New England Puritan sto...

Join us for a special post-election Week to Week political roundtable. Less than a day after polls closed, will we know the victor in the race for the White House? What about control of the U.S. Senate and House? Our panelists will discuss the results of the election, covering significant local, state and national results. Whatever the outcome, there will be many important impacts on our country,...

What is the role of power in deciding the fate of a planet? 2020 has seen a reckoning with various forms of power embedded in racial, gender, and generational identities. As we think about a transfer of U.S. presidential power, what can we learn about how other types of power are shaping our climate and our future? “It is precisely for people when they vote to not just think of the vote as voting...

Shellye Archambeau is a well-respected business leader, former tech CEO, and sought-after advisor. She is also a black woman who has taken risks throughout her career and blazed new trails in a predominantly white male-driven industry. Through her journey, Archambeau says she discovered that ambition alone is not enough and offers a blueprint with key takeaways and actions to increase the odds of...

Nicholas Christakis is a physician and sociologist at Yale University who explores the ancient origins and modern implications of human nature. Christakis’ research focuses on the social, mathematical and biological rules that form social networks as well as the implications of human connection that influences thoughts, feelings and behaviors. In his new book Apollo’s Arrow, Christakis explores th...

Fox Business anchor Maria Bartiromo and The Wall Street Journal's James Freeman say that America needs an economic revival after the coronavirus shutdowns and argue that the playbook that resulted in "the greatest job market in history" can now put Americans back to work. Bartiromo and Freeman say that President Trump's cutting of red tape and slashing business tax rates spurred corporate investme...

Dessert is easy to enjoy but harder to make. Watching Claire Saffitz’s viral videos might not help ease the anxiety of new bakers. While a contributing food editor at Bon Appetit, Saffitz’s claim to fame was "Gourmet Makes"--a web series where the acclaimed chef reverse engineered sweet and savory snacks with an incredible amount of skill. While her expertise in baking might seem unattainable to t...

San Francisco Chronicle columnist Gary Kamiya and artist Paul Madonna are two of the most critically acclaimed contemporary chroniclers of San Francisco. Now, they join forces for a new book, Spirits of San Francisco, marrying image and text in a way no book about the city has done before. Kamiya's captivating narratives accompany Madonna's masterful pen-and-ink drawings, breathing life into San F...

Many people have the next great idea for a company, but what does it take to make a dream a reality? Kara Goldin decided to start the unsweetened flavored water brand Hint in 2005 after observing how sugary and artificial most drinks were. In her new book Undaunted: Overcoming Doubts and Doubters, Kara shares her advice for tackling the obstacles that are holding you back from achieving your dream...

Join us for a virtual conversation with Edmund Fawcett to discuss his sharp-eyed history of political conservatism, a tradition as much at war with itself as with its opponents, from its 19th century origins to today’s hard Right. For 200 years conservatism has defied its reputation as a backward-looking creed by confronting and adapting to liberal modernity. By doing so, the Right won long period...

Is 2020 a year of a tidal shift in loyalties for a key voting block? Vietnamese Americans have long voted for Republican candidates, but this year, many have been shifting their vote toward Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden. What is causing the shift? Is it immigration policies that have targeted Vietnamese communities? The president's leadership style? Pandemic mismanagement? Join us fo...

Much of the time we take it for granted that we have a safe water. This panel explores the creative ways in which these two organizations provide clean and safe water for those who do not have it. Jon Kaufman is the Director of H2OpenDoors, a project of Rotary International. Kaufman brings together the best-in-class providers of water purification, smart solar nanogrids and satellite internet tech...

Join us for a lively discussion on Generation Z and its response to these times. The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award engages with more than 1.1 million young people aged 14–24 globally, helping them find their purpose, passion and place in the world. His Royal Highness The Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex KG GCVO, chair to the global movement, will engage in a conversation with recent Princet...

Twenty-three years after Britain's handover of Hong Kong to China, the government in Beijing has begun to deepen its control over the politics of the special administrative region. Despite mass protests and muted criticism from the West, Beijing's communist government has put into place rules constraining democracy and free speech. Joshua Wong was born just one year before the handover. He came on...

Many of us are cooking at home more often than ever before, but we still struggle to find new, quick recipes. Ayesha Curry knows this better than most—she’s a veteran cookbook author and working mother with limited time to make meals. But she also knows that finding balance between work and family life starts with gathering around the table to enjoy a home-cooked meal. In her new book, The Full Pl...

Join us for a virtual conversation with Professor Eddie Cole, whose research has revealed how closely intertwined some of America’s most pressing civil rights issues―desegregation, equal educational and employment opportunities, housing discrimination, and free speech―have been with higher education institutions. Cole supplements the common knowledge about the roles that college students and other...

Hard as it is to remember, there was a time when Democrats and Republicans weren’t all that far apart on climate change. As recently as 2008, both presidential candidates Obama and McCain supported a cap and trade system, including mandatory limits on greenhouse gas emissions from power plants and oil refineries. Now, pushing a climate plan forward requires reaching out to some disenfranchised, di...

Since leaving his role as White House press secretary in 2017, Sean Spicer has launched a successful talk show and written a best-selling book. Now, he’s focusing on the hardened state of politics in America. In his new book, Leading America, Spicer argues that too many look at the world as a zero sum game—either you're with them 100 percent, or you're the enemy. Whether you're in politics, media,...