Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

Will COVID-19 change our food system for good? Increased coronavirus outbreaks in food markets, food plants and farmworker communities have impacted food access and put a spotlight on food insecurity. Farmers are hurting as supply chains for fresh, perishable foods shrivel. Meanwhile, food banks have seen a surge in demand that has required distribution support from the National Guard. What does COVID-19 mean for agriculture, our food supply systems—and our diets? Join us for a conversation with Lisa Held, senior reporter at Civil Eats, Karen Ross, secretary of the California Department of Food and Agriculture, and Helene York, professor at the Food Business School of the Culinary Institute of America, on feeding a nation under quarantine.

The cost and health burdens of electricity production have long been higher for low-income communities of color than for wealthy white ones. But when it comes to public engagement and trust, the oil and gas industry is often ahead of its clean energy competitors, presenting a friendly face to the same areas it supplies with jobs, tax dollars, and cheap energy. Is the industry an example of community leadership, manipulative greenwashing—or something in between? How can the renewable industry transform its model into one of diversity, equity and affordable energy for all? Join us for a conversation with Derrick Hollie, president of Reaching America; Jacqueline Patterson, director of the NAACP Environmental and Climate Justice program; Ivan Penn, alternative energy reporter with The New York Times; and Vien Truong, director of climate justice for Tom Steyer PAC, on hard truths about the energy industry next door.

Join San Francisco Pride and The Commonwealth Club for the latest edition of Lavender Talks, a moderated panel discussion emceed by Michelle Meow (host of "The Michelle Meow Show" and a former president of the SF Pride Board of Directors). In this program, we'll look at racism and discrimination in the Castro, San Francisco's world-famous LGBTQ district. In association with San Francisco Pride Made possible by the generous support of Gilead and Comcast And thanks to San Francisco Pride Legacy Partners: Bud Light Hilton San Francisco Union Square KPIX 5 CBS Bay Area Kaiser Permanente Genentech Gilead GLBT Historical Society KBCW TV Parc 55 San Francisco Smirnoff Recology T–Mobile

George Bernard Shaw once said that there is no love more sincere than the love of food. Pipo, the main character in the new children's book Every Night Is Pizza Night, holds the sincerest love of all… for pizza. Pipo is determined to prove that pizza is, in every aspect, the best food out there. However, by cooking and tasting foods with six new friends, Pipo discovers that what makes a food “the best” transcends taste as only one ingredient in the melting pot of tradition, family and friendship. Written by the Food Lab’s J. Kenji López-Alt and illustrated by artist Gianna Ruggerio, the book highlights the importance of gastronomic diversity for children and adults alike. Join them both at INFORUM where they will discuss how, like Pipo, even the pickiest eaters can grow an expansive palette and grow to appreciate the various cuisines around them. This conversation will be moderated by SF Chronicle food critic Soleil Ho.

Whether you’re pushing for something big like social change or something as small as getting your family to agree on a restaurant choice, success often relies on the ability to communicate and persuade. Trey Gowdy believes the secret to persuasion lies in asking the right questions to the right people. In his new book, Doesn't Hurt to Ask: Using the Power of Questions to Communicate, Connect, and Persuade, Gowdy draws on his own experiences in the courtroom and the halls of Congress to share what he has learned, giving advice that is tried and true. He believes anyone can learn how to identify an objective, understand their audience, and persuade with passion in a way that drives connection and understanding. Join Trey Gowdy as he shows us how to persuade, no matter the jury and no matter the cause.

Join us virtually for a conversation with Professors Mettler and Lieberman about the social trends that have often threatened our democracy. They have identified four major threats: political polarization, racism and nativism, economic inequality, and excessive executive power. And they have drawn lessons from five serious crises: the 1790s, the Civil War, the Gilded Age, the Depression, and Watergate. Each of these crises could have profoundly―even fatally―damaged the American democratic experiment. But what is most alarming now is that all four threats exist simultaneously―in the midst of a viral pandemic. This convergence could be cause for despair, but history provides valuable lessons about how democracy was eventually strengthened―or weakened―in the past. By revisiting how earlier generations of Americans faced similar threats to our constitutional principles, we can see more clearly what led us to today, and then chart a path toward repairing our civic fabric and renewing our democracy. MLF ORGANIZER George Hammond NOTES MLF: Humanities

Miami might be the poster child of rising waters in the United States, but further inland, states are grappling with torrential flooding that is becoming the new norm. Last year, flooding in the southeast killed 12 people and caused $20 billion in damages. This year’s rains have already driven Mississippi into a state emergency, and Missouri is bracing itself with a levee system still in disrepair from last year’s storms. Can infrastructure like floodplains, wetlands, and engineered barriers save riverside states from their new, saturated norm? How are communities adapting to a changing, wetter climate in some of the most conservative parts of the country? Join us for a conversation with Julia Kumari Drapkin, CEO and founder of ISeeChange, Ed Kearns, chief data officer at First Street Foundation, and Martha Shulski, director of the Nebraska state climate office, for a conversation on flooding in America.

Since 1931, the California Book Awards have honored the exceptional literary merit of California writers and publishers. Each year a select jury considers hundreds of books from around the state in search of the very best in literary achievement. This year, we will be saluting the winners virtually. The California Book Awards have often been on the vanguard, honoring previously unknown authors who go on to garner national acclaim. John Steinbeck received three gold medals—for Tortilla Flat in 1935, In Dubious Battle in 1936 and The Grapes of Wrath in 1939. Award winners in recent years include Adam Johnson, Jared Diamond, Karen Fowler, Kay Ryan, Bill Vollman, Joyce Maynard, Andrew Sean Greer, Yiyun Li, Adrienne Rich, Chalmers Johnson, Richard Rodriguez, Michael Chabon, Philip Levine, Rebecca Solnit, Galen Rowell, Jonathan Lethem, Peter Orner and Kevin Starr. Join us for this special celebratory event.

Death—it is the most human experience and yet the topic humans run away from at every opportunity. Why is this? What if we reimagined what death means to each of us personally and collectively as a society? Columbia University physician Dr. L.S. Dugdale sets out to answer these questions and change the approach to death in her new book, The Lost Art of Dying. Dr. Dugdale’s long career in medicine has forced her to become intimate with death in a way very few are, as she is often tasked with guiding her patients through their final phase. Her unique position has gifted her with a new perspective on death that she now hopes to share with the world. She says death is something that we as a culture should celebrate, not be frightened of—but in order to die well, we must first live well. By recovering our sense of finitude, confronting our fears, accepting how our bodies age, and involving our communities in end-of-life care, we can discover what it means to both live and die well. Join us for an honest and soulful conversation with Dr. Dugdale as we run toward the topic of death—freeing ourselves from the fear of the finite.

Today we are on the brink of a much-needed transformative moment for health care. The U.S. health care system is designed to be reactive instead of preventive. The result can be diagnoses that are too late and outcomes that are far worse than our level of spending should deliver. In recent years, U.S. life expectancy has been declining. Fundamental to realizing better health, and a more effective health-care system, is advancing the disruptive thinking that has spawned innovation in Silicon Valley and throughout the world. That's exactly what Stanford Medicine has done by proposing a new vision for health and health care. In Discovering Precision Health, Lloyd Minor and Matthew Rees describe a holistic approach designed to set health care on the right track: keep people healthy by preventing disease before it starts and personalize the treatment of individuals precisely, based on their specific profile. MLF ORGANIZER Patty James NOTES MLF: Health & Medicine

Join artist and journalist Dana King as she interviews two scholars who traveled on the Club’s trip, “On the Road to Freedom: Understanding the Civil Rights Movement” in March of 2020. The group spent time in Jackson, Little Rock, Memphis, Birmingham, Selma and Montgomery. Hear about key events and people involved in the movement, and what it means for these young women in terms of what is happening today and their vision for the future. NOTES In partnership with Cinnamongirl Inc.

Long before the coronavirus began disrupting America’s trillion-dollar meat industry, lab-grown proteins were upending the way we consume chicken, pork and beef. With an environmental footprint far smaller than traditional animal agriculture, are cell-cultured and plant-based meat products—now on the menus of major chains like Burger King—still the future of food? Will food science and tech help us make better-informed decisions for our bodies and the planet, or do we need to get back to basics? Join us for a conversation on the future of food with Sophie Egan, author of How to Be a Conscious Eater: Making Food Choices That Are Good for You, Others, and the Planet, and Chase Purdy, author of Billion Dollar Burger: Inside Big Tech’s Race for the Future of Food.

Join us to learn about individuality, finding your voice amidst a sea of homogeneity, and the triumph of intellect over the ideologue. Local filmmakers Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine explore these themes in their new film Boys State, airing on Apple TV+ beginning August 14. Boys State is a political coming-of-age story, examining the health of American democracy through an unusual experiment: a thousand 17-year-old boys from across Texas gather to build a representative government from the ground up. High-minded ideals collide with low-down dirty tricks as four boys of diverse backgrounds and political views navigate the challenges of organizing political parties, shaping consensus, and campaigning for the highest office at Texas Boys State—governor. In a primarily conservative setting, part of what makes the two prominent progressive participants—Steven and René—so extraordinary is their ability to self-advocate, their perseverance and their drive. The Boys State program epitomizes the real-world experience of many Americans and is how many of our leaders first engaged in the world of politics. Alumni of Boys State, such as Senator Cory Booker, President Bill Clinton, Senator Lamar Alexander and Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, fall on both sides of the aisle.

BlueSky initiative supports mental health for middle- and high school students in California by providing additional mental health clinicians in schools, training teachers on the signs of mental health issues, and empowering students with in-person and online mental health support resources. With schools now shuttered and distance learning part of the norm because of COVID-19, educators, mental health specialists ,and others are pivoting to address the need virtually. Join us for a special program to learn more about this important initiative.

Join us for a rare visit with one of America's most trusted medical figures and leading experts on infectious disease, and take advantage of this unique opportunity to ask your questions directly. Dr. Fauci was appointed director of NIAID in 1984. He oversees an extensive portfolio of basic and applied research to prevent, diagnose, and treat established infectious diseases including HIV/AIDS, respiratory infections, tuberculosis and malaria as well as emerging diseases such as Ebola and Zika....and of course, COVID 19. He has advised six presidents on domestic and global health issues. He was one of the principal architects of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), a program that has saved millions of lives throughout the developing world. Dr. Fauci is the recipient of numerous prestigious awards, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom (the highest honor given to a civilian by the president of the United States) and the National Medal of Science.