Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

This program is part of our Good Lit series, underwritten by the Bernard Osher Foundation. Former U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry embodies a myriad of life experiences that few can credit themselves with. After graduating college at Yale, he enlisted in the Vietnam War and later served as a national representative for the anti-war movement. His career in public service includes serving 28 years as a U.S. senator, running as the Democratic candidate for president in 2004, and acting as U.S. secretary of state under President Obama. Kerry helped combat ISIS in the Middle East, negotiated the Iran deal, and advanced the fight against climate change with the Paris Agreement. In his profound and telling memoir, Every Day Is Extra, Kerry delves into these accounts as well as many other stories to convey his authenticity and depth. Few accounts contain such broad perspectives in a single tale, where he finds himself at the forefront of the anti-war movement; the growth of hyper-partisanship in Washington, D.C.; and the complexities of American leadership and diplomacy in the international arena. Come listen to Secretary Kerry tell a candid story of a life in public service that has stretched on for 50 years.

In recent years, the National Football League (NFL) has become a never-ending source of controversy. From the reveal that players have been suffering from traumatic head injuries to the widespread protests during the national anthem, the NFL has become nothing short of a circus fueled by madness. In his new book, Big Game: The NFL in Dangerous Times, New York Times Magazine chief national correspondent Mark Leibovich ventures into the chaos to articulate the games beyond the gridiron. Leibovich argues that the NFL is the center of one of America’s most dynamic culture wars. The sport that previously united its fans has now become weaponized for politically and economically motivated conglomerates. Leibovich walks across the sidelines and into the locker rooms to display the internal mechanisms that support one of America’s most coveted sports. Join us for a stirring conversation that brings us on an odyssey into the depths of the NFL.

This event is the latest in our member-led forums’ Crisis in Our Country summer series. Monday Night Philosophy examines America in crisis, convulsed by an array of pathologies that have arisen out of profound hopelessness, a bitter despair and a civil society that has ceased to function. The opioid crisis, the retreat into gambling to cope with economic distress, the pornification of culture, the rise of magical thinking, the celebration of sadism and hate, and a plague of suicides are the manifestations of a society that is being ravaged by corporate pillage and a failed democracy. As our society unravels, we also face global upheaval caused by catastrophic climate change. Although Donald Trump rode this disenchantment to power, Hedges argues that neither political party addresses the systemic problem. Capturing a poignant cry reported from communities across the country, Hedges seeks to jolt us out of our complacency while there is still time. MLF ORGANIZER NAME George Hammond NOTES MLF: Humanities

Our distinguished panel will discuss the San Francisco-Haifa sister city relationship and the two identical, temporary sculptures that sit over 7,000 miles apart. One sculpture can be found on Pier 27; the other can be seen on Haifa’s shoreline. Using art and technology to celebrate both cities’ vibrancies, these sculptures are interactive, cultural collaborations that allow visitors to view live feed across oceans and connect with one another. The remarkable sculptures, resembling lighthouses, were created by Saron Paz, an Israeli experience designer, and the San Francisco artist Matthew Passmore. The sculptures are dedicated to the late Mayor Ed Lee. MLF ORGANIZER NAME Celia Menczel NOTES MLF: Middle East

This week's in-studio guest: Cat Brooks Cat Brooks is an artivist and mother who has spent her life working on many social justice issues. In 2009, Cat joined the fight for Oscar Grant and was instrumental in developing organizing and communications strategies and leading multiple demonstrations. In 2013, Cat co-founded the Anti Police-Terror Project (APTP) whose mission is to rapidly respond to - and eradicate - state violence in communities of color. APTP has successfully developed a model for first response to police violence that is currently being replicated across the state of California and the country. Brooks is also the executive director of The Justice Teams Network. The JTN is a project in partnership with Black Lives Matter co-founder Patrisse Cullors that supports organizations and individuals across the state who are working to rapidly respond to state violence in their communities. Brooks is also the co-host of the morning drivetime radio show UpFront on Pacifica’s KPFA Radio Network. Cat is also a member of ONYX, the Black Power Network, Black Lives Matter-Bay Area and one of the Black Friday 14; a group of Black activists who locked down the West Oakland BART station on Black Friday in 2014. She recently wrote, starred and produced a one-woman show about the in-custody Tasing death of Natasha McKenna in a Fairfax County Jail in 2015. She lives in West Oakland with her daughter and her husband. 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. See more upcoming Michelle Meow Shows at The Commonwealth Club here.

The political world was turned on its head this past week as Bob Woodward's new book and an anonymous op ed were released; meanwhile, the Senate hearings for the Supreme Court nominee were particularly combative, the top races in California tightened up in a new poll, and just two months from now, the nation's voters will go to the polls in one of the most-watched midterms in decades. 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 program to meet other smart and engaged individuals and discuss the news over snacks and wine at our members social (open to all attendees).

Concerned about climate change? One of the best things you can do is welcome taller buildings in your neighborhood. That’s because city dwellers use less energy and water than people living in the suburbs or rural areas. A recent bill in the California State Legislature proposed raising allowable height limits for new buildings near transit lines across the state. Residents in San Francisco and Los Angeles cried foul, and the bill died in committee. Environmentalists worried about climate change were some of the biggest critics of the proposed law. Others saw a green-tinged excuse for more gentrification and displacement. On the other side, Yelp CEO Jeremy Stoppelman and other tech leaders favored the bill as a way to address the state’s affordability crisis. Are you a YIMBY (Yes in My Backyard) or NIMBY (Not in My Backyard)? Are environmentalists hypocrites if they oppose efforts to use one of the biggest levers to fight climate disruption? Does urban infill drive out people of color in the name of going green? Join us for a conversation about shaping the future of Bay Area urban life in a hot and crowded world.

Today’s world is characterized by people clinging to beliefs, hyperpolarization and the degradation of discourse. However, acclaimed author and psychologist Steven Pinker argues the very opposite: The world is actually improving, and there’s never been a safer and better time to be alive. In his book Enlightenment Now, Pinker makes the case that Enlightenment principles of reason, science and humanism are directly enhancing the quality of life for everyone—not just the West. However, a number of Anti-Enlightenment practices threaten the progress of human development. According to Pinker, dedication to romantic ideologies, political affiliations and religions have protected unscientific arguments, preventing resolutions on issues ranging from gun violence to climate change. Join one of the world’s leading thinkers for a powerful conversation about human nature, a defense of knowledge and the case for science, reason, humanism and progress. This program is generously supported by the Ken and Jackie Broad Family Fund. Special thanks to United Airlines.

Hear from a leading tech executive on being gay, black and a C-level executive and balancing family, marriage and career. Join us for an extra edition of Michelle Meow at The Commonwealth Club, featuring AT&T executive Ken McNeely. As president of AT&T's Pacific region, McNeely oversees all AT&T government affairs, public policy, philanthropic and social engagement initiatives in the state of California. Ken leads AT&T's workforce in the state—more than 33,000 current California employees and close to 50,000 retirees. He serves on the Officer Advisory Board for LEAGUE—AT&T’s LGBT and allied employee resource group and the oldest LGBT employee resource group in the nation. In 2013, Ken received the Black Business Association’s Chairman’s Award for Community Service. McNeely serves as a board member for the California Chamber of Commerce, the Silicon Valley Leadership Group, the Bay Area Council, and the CSU (California State University) Foundation Board of Governors. He lives in San Francisco with his husband and their two children. 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. See more upcoming Michelle Meow Shows at The Commonwealth Club here. NOTES Pre-program food sponsored by Pacific Fertility Center

There is an accelerating effort among ocean scientists, advocates and technologists to harness new technologies for marine conservation. These technologies, which include satellite sensors, drones and artificial intelligence, can be used to monitor and manage marine ecosystems—discovering new coral reefs, identifying illegal or unsustainable fishing fleets, and exposing destructive coastal development. Our panel will discuss what's already working in this space and also what technologies might soon be available to protect and create healthy and safe marine environments in the Bay Area and around the world. MLF ORGANIZER NAME Ann Clark NOTES MLF: Environment & Natural Resources

On our nutrient-poor, narcotic-rich techno-diet, close to 50 percent of us are obese and fully 50 percent of us have been diagnosed with some form of diabetes. Highly pleasurable, addictive and ultra-processed foods also share the blame for our rising cancer rates, including a 12 percent increase in breast cancer. The apocalyptic battle between our fundamental need to eat well to maintain our health and our compulsion to eat poorly to maintain our blissful habits is a silent one. It’s being decided in the microscopic cells that generate pleasure and regulate our appetites by producing powerful neurotransmitters like serotonin, endorphin, and dopamine. Julia Ross asserts that we can win this cellular war if we can strengthen and protect the cells that are now under such heavy assault from drug-like foods. Come hear the story of how Ross and others have been waging and winning this war with the help of a few well-researched nutrients called amino acids. Ross will use case examples to describe how nutritional brain repair stops cravings for even the most bliss-producing commercial food products. Julia Ross is a pioneer in the use of innovative nutritional therapies for the treatment of eating disorders, addictions and mood problems. She is the author of the best-selling books The Mood Cure and The Diet Cure and is now launching her new book, The Craving Cure. The founder of several integrative treatment programs in the San Francisco Bay area since 1980, Ross now trains and certifies health professionals, lectures widely and oversees an entirely virtual clinic for food cravers. Her work has been featured in publications from Vogue to The Journal of Molecular Psychiatry as well as online and on radio and television. MLF ORGANIZER NAME Patty James NOTES MLF: Health & Medicine

Our guest this week: Isa Noyola Isa Noyola is a Latina transgender activist and national leader in the LGBT immigrant rights movement. She is the deputy director of the Transgender Law Center, the country’s largest trans-led national organization that changes law, policy and attitudes so that all people can live safely, authentically and free from discrimination regardless of their gender identity or expression. In 2015 she organized the first national trans anti-violence convening, an event that brought together more than 100 activists, mostly trans women of color, to address the epidemic of violence faced by trans communities. Isa is also one of the foremost experts on the experiences of trans communities, particularly that of trans women of color, within the prison and immigration enforcement systems in the United States. She works extensively for the release of transgender women from ICE detention and an end to all deportations. She recently was named as one of the world’s most-qualified women fighting for gender equality and one of the top 50 Woman Visionaries from Quartz Magazine's online campaign How We’ll Win. 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.

Fossil fuels have helped bring people out of poverty around the world, and many people working in the industry are proud of their contribution. William Vollmann writes about the lives of laborers and executives in different parts of the vast fossil fuel system. Discussing an alternative path for these communities, National Director of Green for All Michelle Romero advocates, “for some, retraining is a viable option and for others nearing retirement...maybe providing a benefit package that will help.” Explore the lives of those who remain captives of an economy run on carbon.

This program is part of our Good Lit series, underwritten by the Bernard Osher Foundation. Steve Israel represented New York as a member of Congress for sixteen years. He left in 2016, undefeated and unindicted. He served as House Democrats’ chief political strategist between 2011–2015. President Bill Clinton called him “one of the most thoughtful members of Congress,” which, Israel states, “isn’t really saying much at all.” He is currently Distinguished Writer in Residence at Long Island University in New York and has published two critically acclaimed satires of Washington, D.C. His latest, Big Guns, skewers the gun lobby. His New York Times op-ed, “Nothing Will Change After the Las Vegas Shooting,” went viral. His Mic.com video on gun violence received nearly 3.5 million views. Israel is also chairperson of the Global Institute at Long Island University and a strategic advisor to both the Democratic Governors Association and the think tank Third Way. Come for a wide-ranging conversation about all things political and the possibilities for change.

On New Year’s Day 2014, Brittany Maynard discovered that she had terminal brain cancer. Despite an eight-hour surgery and extensive assessments, it was concluded that she had six months to live. Choosing peace over pain and to die with dignity, Maynard and her husband, Dan Diaz, moved from their home in California to Oregon, one of four states at the time that offered a terminally ill patient the option of medical aid in dying. She died on November 1, 2014 at the age of 29. Before her death, Maynard publicly proclaimed the necessity to expand end-of-life options. Her husband continues this message, tirelessly advocating to government officials, medical institutions and communities across the nation. Prior to Maynard’s death, only four states legalized medical aid-in-dying programs. With the help of Diaz and others, legislation has been successfully passed in California; Colorado; Washington, D.C.; and Hawaii. Diaz continues to be a passionate advocate for the expansion of medical aid-in-dying programs with The Brittany Fund, an initiative of Compassion & Choices, the patients’ rights nonprofit. Come listen to Diaz share a powerful story of dying with dignity and the movement towards legalization. This program is generously supported by Northern California Grantmakers.