The Forum with Jim Falk

For years, many scientists believed that after our mid-20s, the brain could only decline. Today, neuroscience tells a very different story. In this episode of The Forum , two neuroscientists from the Center for BrainHealth at the University of Texas at Dallas explain how the brain can continue to grow and adapt throughout our lives. The program begins with a discussion of neuroplasticity , the bra...

It should come as no surprise that images of raids carried out by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement across the country are contributing to rising anxiety here in Santa Fe and throughout New Mexico. At the beginning of the program, immigration attorney Allegra Love, a regular contributor on immigration policy to Source New Mexico (“ICE”) reminds listeners that immigration enforcement, detent...

In a rare convergence of sacred seasons, Muslims began Ramadan on February 17, a month of fasting, prayer, and spiritual renewal; just one day later Christians entered Lent , the forty-day period of preparation for Easter, also marked by fasting, abstinence, and reflection. On this episode of The Forum , retired Lutheran minister Benjamin Larzelere joins co-host Reverend Talitha Arnold in a discus...

On this episode of The Forum , Reverend Talitha Arnold speaks with two remarkable New Mexicans who, through history and music, are helping keep Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream alive today. After a distinguished career as a physician, Bettye Kearse answered her mother’s call to tell their family’s story—one that reaches back to enslavement at Montpelier, the plantation of President James Madison...

On this episode of The Forum , two leading foreign policy experts examine the first year of President Trump’s second term and what it signals for the remaining three years of his administration. Beth Sanner, former Deputy Director of National Intelligence and the President’s daily intelligence briefer, brings decades of experience at the highest levels of national security. She is currently a seni...

The day of his announcement to withdraw from the Democratic Party’s June 2 primary, Ken Miyagishima joined The Forum Plus to explain why he believes many New Mexicans are looking for an option outside the two-party system. This interview was recorded on Monday, February 2, 2026. In the conversation, Miyagishima outlines where his positions on medical malpractice reform, energy, and education diffe...

In this show, William Hartung, senior research fellow at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, takes a hard, unvarnished look at the extraordinary growth of the U.S. defense budget. Now just under $1 trillion, President Trump is requesting a 50 percent increase for FY 2027—pushing defense spending to $1.5 trillion. Hartung explains how, despite hopes to the contrary, the end of the Cold...

For a growing number of Americans, the question is no longer ‘Should I leave?’ but ‘Why stay?’” Americans are increasingly not just thinking about leaving the United States permanently—they’re doing it. As our guests explain, the reasons vary widely, from concerns about gun violence and the rising cost of living to access to affordable healthcare. In a recent New York Times column, Jessica Grose c...

In just over five months, New Mexicans will head to the polls for the state’s primary election, setting the stage for one of the most consequential races on the November ballot: the contest to elect the next governor to succeed incumbent Michelle Lujan Grisham. On this program, the two leading Democratic candidates—former congresswoman and U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland and Bernalillo...

For many years, the Midtown Campus, a 64-acre, city-owned property in the heart of Santa Fe, has fallen short of the expectations of both residents and city leaders. In recent months, however, a renewed sense of optimism has emerged as a growing number of companies, developers, and investors recognize the site’s long-untapped potential. There is now tangible momentum behind efforts to create a vib...

In our first program of 2026, The Forum featured conversations with Congresswoman Teresa Leger Fernández and Senator Ben Ray Luján on their legislative priorities and the issues they see as most critical for New Mexico and the nation as the midterm elections approach. The discussion with Congresswoman Leger Fernández was recorded live in the KSFR studio on January 5, while the conversation with Se...

For several years, Forum host Jim Falk has interviewed Tom Standage, editor of The Economist ’s annual predictive issue, The World Ahead , a wide-ranging collection of articles and guest columns exploring the year to come. Always fast-paced and entertaining, these conversations have become among the most popular programs offered to members of World Affairs Councils nationwide. We are grateful to T...

We had originally planned for this week’s Forum to focus on the Jewish Festival of Lights, Hanukkah (or Chanukah). But in the wake of the tragic December 14 attack on Bondi Beach in Australia, we felt it was essential to begin our conversation with Rabbi Martin Levi about the global rise of antisemitism, the impact of such violence on Jewish communities, and what must be done to confront and count...

Santa Fe resident Matt Gatton is a respected scholar of the use of physical light in ritual spaces during prehistory and classical antiquity. His latest book, The Shadows of Socrates: The Heresy, War and Treachery Behind the Trial of Socrates, draws on original research to reopen the philosopher’s trial, sentencing, and execution. In our conversation, Gatton explains how he first became intrigued...

Last night on The Forum , 84 years after the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, we revisited the tense days leading up to that pivotal moment with author Pulitzer Prize winning author/journalist Steve Twomey. His insights into the intelligence failures, missed signals, and human decisions that preceded the attack highlighted the chain of events that ultimately drew the United States into World War I...

This week on The Forum , we spoke with Mayor Alan Webber and longtime City Councilors Signe (“Sig”) Lindell and Carol Romero-Wirth as they prepare to step down from their roles in the coming weeks. With each having the option to seek another term, we explored their personal paths to public service, the reasons behind their decisions not to run again, and the lessons they’ve learned in office. They...

This week, The Forum turns its spotlight on Santa Fe’s two institutions of higher learning — Santa Fe Community College and the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA). In the first half of the show, newly appointed IAIA president Shelly Lowe (Navajo) speaks with host Jim Falk about her long-standing commitment to Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) and her excitement at the opportunity to le...

This week, the Forum was broadcast live from the New Mexico Military Museum before an audience of nearly 300 people, most of them members of Global Santa Fe and Friends of KSFR. They gathered to hear Stanford professor and former U.S. ambassador to the Russian Federation Michael McFaul discuss his latest book, Autocrats vs. Democrats: China, Russia, America and the New Global Disorder . However, p...

Jason Isaacson, Chief Policy and Political Affairs Officer, is a longtime analyst of U.S. political and strategic affairs and an advocate for Arab-Israeli peace. 

 Mark Lee Gardner is a noted authority on the American West, recipient of numerous literary awards for his books including Rough Riders and To Hell on a Fast Horse. In his latest work, Brothers of the Gun: Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, and a Reckoning in Tombstone (published November 11th), Gardner takes a deep dive into the surprising bond between Earp and Holliday. Despite their very different backg...

Santa Fe’s incoming mayor shares his priorities, plans and approach to transforming City Hall Lifelong Santa Fean Mike Garcia, soon to be the city’s 44th mayor, talks about his journey from City Council to the mayor’s office. With advanced degrees from the University of New Mexico and more than two decades of public service with AmeriCorps Vista, Garcia shares why he chose a career dedicated to se...

This week on The Forum , the conversation focused on two local issues that will shape Santa Fe’s future: the proposal to raise the city’s living wage from $15 to $17.50 an hour, and the $150 million General Obligation Bond on the November 4th ballot to fund capital improvements within the Santa Fe Public Schools District. ________________________ In his final months in office, Mayor Alan Webber de...

This week on The Forum making Santa Fe a safer community for people riding bicycles was discussed with three of our community’s advocates to encourage more people to ride bikes on safer streets and bike paths. The topics ranged from making our streets safer for bicyclists to the larger issues of health, environmental improvement, stronger local communities and neighborhoods, and strengthening the...

This week on The Forum, we turn to the Middle East at a critical moment — one marked by both hope and uncertainty. The conversation was recorded just two days after President Trump’s announcement of an agreement to free the remaining Israeli hostages, both living and deceased, in exchange for the release of approximately 250 Palestinians. This development represents the first phase of a 20-point p...

This week on The Forum, we remember the life of Matthew Shepard, a young gay student at the University of Wyoming, on the 27th anniversary of his murder. Brad Ellingboe, artistic director of Coro Lux, and Joe Mitchell, director of El Faro Youth Chorus, join co-host Rev. Talitha Arnold to discuss the upcoming performance of Considering Matthew Shepard. Throughout the program, listeners will hear ex...