Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

Celebrate Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day with an intimate conversation with San Francisco Mayor London Breed. Following her election in 2018, Mayor Breed is the city’s first African-American female mayor and just the second woman to ever hold the office, elected during a historic year for women’s representation in local and national politics. The mayor has lived a life of public service. Prior to her election as District 5 supervisor in 2012 and her service as Board president from 2015–2018, she served as executive director of the African American Art and Culture Complex in the Western Addition for 10 years. She also served as a San Francisco Redevelopment Agency commissioner for five years and in 2010 was appointed by the then Mayor Gavin Newsom to be a San Francisco fire commissioner. Join INFORUM as we hear from Mayor Breed on the priorities for her administration, with a lens of economic justice, on the biggest issues of our day, including housing, criminal justice reform, education and public safety.

This program is part of our Marin Conversation Series, which is supported in part by the Marin Community Foundation and Relevant Wealth Advisors. Art is good for you: It nourishes your spirit and feeds your mind. Home to a diverse, vibrant and rapidly-expanding art scene, the Bay Area is a hive of creativity, brimming with artists, gallerists and curators who labor tirelessly to make, collect and present art for our enjoyment and contemplation. And yet they face ever-mounting challenges: lack of space and skyrocketing rents; market pressures and cautious patronage; competition for private funding and institutional support. These challenges threaten the very health of Bay Area art and culture. Please join three of the Bay Area art scene’s leading lights—Wendi Norris, sharon maidenberg and Natasha Boas—at The Commonwealth Club’s Marin Conversations series. They will provide a “report from the field of aesthetics,” discussing the challenges and opportunities of making, collecting and curating art in the Bay Area and beyond. This conversation is part of an extended series of discussions that The Commonwealth Club will present in Marin over the course of 2019 on an expanded notion of health. Future conversations will address political and democratic health, China and trade health, as well as youth, creativity and physical health.

New technology is constantly being developed for home care. What solutions work best, and how can technology successfully enhance the very personal side of home care? We will explore how to find the right balance between using and not using technology with home care. This technology may allow your aging parents and loved ones to remain safely at home. MLF ORGANIZER NAME Denise Michaud NOTES MLF: Grownups

Everyone is looking down—but especially kids. There is something unnatural about a 15-month-old using an iPad to soothe him or herself. Many assume this is just the natural progression of our high-tech society. But what if this is causing us harm? And what if children are more vulnerable than adults? Numerous politicians are calling for reining in of the Internet. Is this necessary? Robert Lustig will answer five key questions: Is there such a thing as tech addiction? Is it similar to or different than drug addiction? Does technology lead to depression and suicide? Have our minds been hacked? Are children at more risk? The answers to these questions will provide us with a blueprint to harnessing technology for good. MLF ORGANIZER NAME Patrick O'Reilly NOTES MLF: Psychology

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. Today's in-studio guest: Rimi Born in Hyderabad, India, blossomed in Toronto and living in Oakland, Rimi has been on the gender journey proudly with confidence and realness. She has performed at various South Asian queer events through dance forms and poetry, depicting the anguish and eventual liberation of her gender journey, transcending the paths of survival, rejection, isolation and stress. Rimi lives in Oakland, is working in a leadership role at Walmart.com, and leads PRIDE Associate Resource Group as well, driving inclusion for TGNC lives at workplace inclusion. While staying visible and present for TGNC, Rimi finds herself vulnerable and targeted at times. Rimi seeks to have the world to accept transgender identities as equals and as capable individuals for holding jobs, earning degrees, and having relationships and a dignified life. **This program contains explicit language.**

For most Americans, water will be the primary delivery system through which they personally experience the effects of climate changes: drought, floods, storm water and wastewater discharges. Horror stories abound about the massive infrastructure costs needed to address these potential catastrophic issues. But the reality is that we have solutions that are both environmentally sustainable and affordable. Our speaker will explore new options to finance and scale investments for localized consumer and neighborhood created strategies that ensure a resilient future for water flow. These options should be capable of providing safe, clean reliable water for everyone. MLF ORGANIZER NAME Ann Clark NOTES MLF: Environment & Natural Resources

When Norman Eisen moved into the U.S. ambassador’s residence in Prague and returned to the land his mother had fled after the Holocaust, he was startled to discover swastikas hidden beneath the furniture in his new home. These symbols of Nazi Germany were remnants of the residence’s forgotten history, and evidence that we never live far from the past. Looking into the building’s history, Eisen discovered a remarkable story stretching back over 100 years. In his new book, The Last Palace, Eisen tells a captivating tale of the upheavals that transformed Europe over the past century and of four remarkable people who have called the ambassador’s residence home. Otto Petschek, an optimistic Jewish financial baron who built the palace, and Shirley Temple Black, famed child star and U.S. ambassador, both lived there. Eisen dives into the personal and political history that shaped both a country and a continent. Join us for a conversation about history, diplomacy and the triumph of liberal democracy in the face of tragedy and dictatorship. This program is part of our Good Lit series, underwritten by the Bernard Osher Foundation.

Steven Campbell's talk is an eye-opening presentation on cognitive psychology, which began in the 1960s. He explores how our brains conform to the messages we give them. When we optimize those messages, our brains literally rewire themselves to create new, positive self-images of who we want to be and how we want to learn and grow even more. However, Campbell's presentation does not stop there. Since we are not thinking people who feel but feeling people who think, we also explore where those feelings are coming from. It turns out that our feelings do not primarily come from how we were raised or what has happened to us. Instead, they come from our beliefs about how we were raised and our beliefs about what has happened to us. By first learning that when we change our beliefs, our feelings follow, we learn how to change those beliefs. It's not magic … it’s science! MLF Organizer Name: Denise Michaud Notes: MLF: Grownups

Authors Julio Moreno and Thomas O’Keefe debate the current state of U.S. hegemony in Latin America and the Caribbean, a region where the United States first made its appearance as a world power in the late 19th century. In his new book, Bush II, Obama, and the Decline of U.S. Hegemony in the Western Hemisphere, O’Keefe assets that U.S. economic dominance and leadership in the Americas has been in noticeable decline since the start of the 21st century. In his recent co-authored book, Beyond the Eagle’s Shadow, Moreno posits that even at its height during the Cold War, U.S. power and influence in the Western Hemisphere was often contested and never complete. MLF Organizer Name: Linda Calhoun Notes: MLF, International Relations

We've just completed seven years of Week to Week, and you're invited to join us for the celebration as we kick off our eighth year! As usual, we will 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! 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).

The news media is facing unprecedented crises: plummeting public trust and unrelenting attacks from the president of the United States. How do the “merchants of truth” navigate this new world? Jill Abramson worked as executive editor for The New York Times and offers an unparalleled view into the story of the news business, fighting for survival through a series of crises—first the digital revolution and then the president’s unprecedented war on the press. Abramson’s new book, Merchants of Truth, profiles four powerful news organizations as they grapple with upheaval: Buzzfeed and Vice, upstarts that captivated young audiences, and The New York Times and The Washington Post, two legacy papers that were slow to adapt to digital changes. Each struggled with crises in business, technology, resources and credibility. Abramson’s book focuses on the digital revolution and disruption of the news business, but the last sections of the book focus on fight for facts during a presidency whose war against journalists as “enemies of the people” has fueled public distrust of news sources. While the industry changes, the vital question remains: Can an informed press stand its ground?

This program is part of our Good Lit series, underwritten by the Bernard Osher Foundation. Chris Wilson offers a fresh perspective on our criminal justice system, on crucial issues of mass incarceration and on the importance of second chances. Growing up in Washington, D.C., Wilson was surrounded by violence and despair. He feared for his life as his family was shattered by trauma, his neighborhood was beset by drugs and his friends died one by one. One night when he was 17, Wilson was cornered by two men. He shot one of them, killing him. A year later, at 18, he was sentenced to life in prison with no hope of parole. Wilson writes, “I just got on this planet. I don’t even have a mustache yet. And my life is over.” But his life wasn’t over. Behind bars, Wilson began reading, working out and learning languages. He even started a business. He wrote a list of things he intended to accomplish. He called it his master plan. He revised it regularly and followed it religiously. And, in his 30s, Wilson did the impossible: He convinced a judge to reduce his sentence. Six years later, he came out of jail determined to teach others about the selflessness, work ethic and professional skills that led to his second chance. MLF ORGANIZER NAME George Hammond NOTES MLF: Humanities

How many of us go crazy trying to do it all, and do it all perfectly? How many obsess over tiny errors and avoid taking on big opportunities or challenges for fear of failing or embarrassing ourselves? Why is failure, big or small, not seen as a viable option for so many of us? Girls Who Code CEO Reshma Saujani’s popular TED Talk called for the need to teach bravery, not perfection, especially for women constantly finding themselves under enormous amounts of pressure to perform. In her new book, Brave, Not Perfect, Saujani asks us to rethink what our goals are supposed to look like and instead live life boldly, assuring us that it is more powerful to find something unexpected in the mistakes than it is to play it safe. Join us as Saujani offers stories from other brave women, shares best practices for making bravery the new standard for women across the country and details her own journey in getting there. *This program contains explicit language*

Everyone has a family history — some of it they know, and some of it they have yet to discover. The surging popularity of genealogy research is encouraging more and more people to find out about their ancestors and how their actions and decisions affected who they are today. Bill Griffeth and Paula Williams Madison will share their own personal stories and the shocking discoveries they made as they learned more about their family histories. Notes: In association with Santa Clara County Library District, Santa Clara County Office of Education, the San Jose Public Library and DeAnza College

The United States was once the hope of the world, a beacon of freedom and the defender of liberal democracy. Nations and peoples on all continents looked to America to stand up for the values that created the western world and to oppose autocracy and repression. Even when America did not live up to its ideals, it still recognized their importance at home and abroad. But as Bernard-Henri Lévy lays bare in his powerful and disturbing analysis of the world today, America is retreating from its traditional leadership role, and in its place have come five ambitious powers, former empires eager to assert their primacy and influence. Lévy shows how these five powers―Russia, China, Turkey, Iran and Sunni radical Islamism―are taking steps to undermine the liberal values that have been a hallmark of western civilization. Please join us for a special talk with Bernard-Henri Lévy, one of the world's leading intellectuals.