Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

Variously referred to as the “Nation’s Attic” or “Octopus on the Mall,” the Smithsonian is an institution that is 172 years old and comprised of 19 museums; 9 research centers; 21 libraries; and the National Zoo, which is bound to have secrets. (Well, maybe not secrets, but certainly the uncommon, rare, curious, extraordinary—even perhaps bizarre.) Nancy E. Gwinn will delve into the fascinating hi...

This week, attorney Kate Kendell talks about her work with Pack the Courts, a new organization aimed at doing exactly what its name says—add additional justices to the U.S. Supreme Court to counter the court's current conservative majority. Is it a good idea? Is it fair? Does it set a good or bad precedent for future political movements in the country? Join us for a discussion of the organization...

San Francisco is changing at warp speed. Famously home to artists and activists, and known as the birthplace of the Beats, the Black Panthers and the LGBTQ movement, in recent decades the Bay Area has been reshaped by Silicon Valley, the engine of the new American economy. The richer the region gets, the more unequal and less diverse it becomes, and cracks in the city’s facade―rapid gentrification...

Bret Easton Ellis, the best-selling novelist and screenwriter of the darkly incisive American Psycho and other hugely popular novels, is diving into nonfiction for the first time with his provocatively titled new book White, which blends his personal perspective in the entertainment industry and his sharp cultural insight into our digital age, simultaneously defining and defending the concept of f...

William J. Burns is widely acknowledged as a diplomatic legend, with the experience to match. He spearheaded talks that resulted in the elimination of Libya’s illicit weapons program, served as the U.S. ambassador to Russia and, most famously, initiated the opening of back channels that led to the historic Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action regarding Iran’s nuclear program. He is only the second c...

Plastics are a ubiquitous, inescapable part of daily life. They have many seemingly irreplaceable, inexpensive and convenient uses. But there is a dark side to some of them that goes far beyond the painful photographs of albatross chick tummies stuffed with discarded cigarette lighters or turtle necks strangled by six pack rings. Some of them are exceedingly hazardous to life, even at what appear...

Religion has always been something that both unites and divides us humans. To Reza Aslan, it seems that we focus more and more on the differences. Many people would be surprised to learn how much collaboration there was between the major religions at the time of their development, and how many similarities there are as a result. Aslan, a renowned scholar of religious history, delves into this in h...

With the Green New Deal in the national spotlight, a vigorous debate is happening: how ambitiously and broadly must the U.S. act on climate? Are issues like economic equity, job security and public health outside the frame of climate action — or fundamental to its success? Greg Dalton welcomes two key members of President Obama’s climate team: former White House Science Advisor John Holdren and fo...

Coming into power in 2000, Vladimir Putin had a message: Russia must be “lifted off its knees.” He spent the next 19 years implementing this vision—removing constraints on presidential power, rolling back civil society and reforging an ideological state that he markets domestically as “great Russia.” Has his strategy to reverse territory losses and status left Russians in a better place—and at wha...

This is the third annual panel about how the Trump presidency is affecting the Middle East. Some experts continue to believe that Trump is destabilizing the region with his impulsive decisions and dangerous rhetoric and actions, while others believe that he is making America safer. Our distinguished panel will continue the conversation. MLF ORGANIZER NAME Celia Menczel NOTES MLF: Middle East Learn...

This program is part of our Good Lit series, underwritten by the Bernard Osher Foundation. Despite the almost constant streams of media reporting on the White House, very few people know what really goes on in the West Wing. Valerie Jarrett, senior adviser to the president in the Obama administration, is one of those people. From the day she interviewed a young Michelle Robinson in July 1991 to th...

Foursome is the spirited account of the intense relationship among four artists whose strong personalities, passionate feelings and aesthetic ideals drew them together, pulled them apart and profoundly influenced 20th-century art. In 1921, Alfred Stieglitz, the most influential figure in early 20th-century photography, celebrated the success of his latest New York City exhibition, whose centerpiec...

Who will claim the Iron Throne and why? On the eve of the premiere of the final season of “Game of Thrones,” Max Brooks and ML Cavanaugh’s new book brings together 30 expert strategists to answer that question and engage in questions surrounding the most popular television series of our time. As characters battle for power and control, there is magic and witchcraft, fiery dragons, frozen zombies,...

SEGMENT 1 Are you looking to do good and still run a profitable business? Learn from globally recognized CEOs, professors and inspirational business leaders who have already taken action on their passion to change the world. From powerful keynotes to panel discussions and Q&As, you will leave with new ideas to innovate for good at your enterprise. Schedule: 11:45–12:30 p.m.—Check-in and lunch 12:3...

SEGMENT 2 Are you looking to do good and still run a profitable business? Learn from globally recognized CEOs, professors and inspirational business leaders who have already taken action on their passion to change the world. From powerful keynotes to panel discussions and Q&As, you will leave with new ideas to innovate for good at your enterprise. Schedule: 11:45–12:30 p.m.—Check-in and lunch 12:3...

SEGMENT 3 Are you looking to do good and still run a profitable business? Learn from globally recognized CEOs, professors and inspirational business leaders who have already taken action on their passion to change the world. From powerful keynotes to panel discussions and Q&As, you will leave with new ideas to innovate for good at your enterprise. Schedule: 11:45–12:30 p.m.—Check-in and lunch 12:3...

Join us as Michelle Meow brings her long-running daily radio show to The Commonwealth Club one day each week. Meet fascinating—and often controversial—people discussing important issues of interest to the LGBTQ community, and have your questions ready. This week's guest is Manohar Raju. Raju is the newly appointed public defender for San Francisco. Before being chosen by Mayor London Breed to succ...

Join us as we discuss the biggest, most controversial and sometimes the surprising political issues with expert commentary by panelists who are smart, are civil and have a good sense of humor. Our panelists will provide informative and engaging commentary on political and other major news, and we'll have audience discussion of the week’s events and our live news quiz! And come early before the pro...

Monday Night Philosophy investigates the painful reality that succeeding in business is not always an advantage in America. In fact, if you were black in the Jim Crow South, it could get you killed. Elmore Bolling, a successful entrepreneur, was lynched in Lowndes County, Alabama in 1947 when his youngest daughter, Josephine Bolling McCall, was five years old. Over 70 years later, Bolling is now h...

Gun violence. #BlackLivesMatter. Climate change. Voting rights. Despite a sense of alienation from civic engagement in today’s political atmosphere, young leaders continue to take up the charge across these and other critical issues, demanding a better future, wielding their votes and pushing the country forward to create change. In his book Generation Citizen: The Power of Youth in Our Politics,...

One of the best-kept secrets in combating the climate crisis and the loss of biodiversity and agricultural productivity is a return to an agriculture model that sustained people and the planet prior to the age of industrial agriculture. The answer to the future of farming is to look to the past. Beginning from the modern sustainable agricultural and slow food movement, California's early pioneers...

Nora Bateson’s cinematic vision will help you to see the world in a different way. At the bottom of the climate crisis is the problem of how we think and how we encounter the world. In conversation with Gil Friend, they will have a conversation about new forms of leadership. In today’s complex world, the tools they are offering can be applied to problem solving the pressing dilemmas of our time. J...

When we think of the people behind the most influential technological advances of our day, we usually imagine the leaders of the industry but forget the armies behind them: coders. Dedicated to the pursuit of higher efficiency, these lovers of logic and puzzles are able to withstand unbelievable amounts of frustration; they are arguably the most quietly influential people on the planet. In his new...

Retired Vice Admiral Charles W. Martoglio of the U.S. Navy will discuss America’s greatest security challenge of the 21st century, the increasingly competitive rivalry posed by China and Russia teaming against American interests at home and around the world. He’ll discuss the global security environment, how China and Russia are challenging America, internal challenges faced by Russia and China, a...

In her book Sacred Voices: Stories from the Caravan of Women, Mariam Baker shows how we are all connected, and how women can lead the way. Finding herself strongly connected to Islam and Sufism since she was 20 years old, Baker, who grew up Catholic in the United States, conducts workshops all over the world, bridging the divide between Islam and the West. Believing it’s about time the greatness o...