Episodes
- Advocacy
- Amendment
- Art
- Census
- Child Poverty
- Civic Engagement
- Civil Rights
- College
- Community Activism
- Compassion
- Corruption
- Criminal Justice
- Data
- Democracy
- Education
- Empathy
- Environment
- Equality
- Family Homelessness
- Health Care
- Human Rights
- Immigration
- Interview
- Juvenile Justice
- Latino Rights
- Music
- Political Strategy
- Poverty
- Protest
- Public Health
- Public Policy
- Refugees
- Reproductive Rights
- Season Eight
- Season Five
- Season Seven
- Season Six
- Tech
- U-S- Representatives
- Union
- Vote
- Voter Engagement
- Women Rights
- Workers Rights
The End of Welfare: Kathryn Edin (Rebroadcast)
Kathryn Edin is one of the nation’s leading poverty researchers, who works in the domains of welfare and low-wage work, family, and life, through direct, in-depth observations of the lives of low-income populations. We discuss the evisceration of welfare, the rise of destitution, and the absolute necessity of cash in an advanced capitalist society.
Ending Urban Violence: Thomas Abt
Thomas Abt is a Senior Fellow at the Council on Criminal Justice, and author of Bleeding Out, The Devastating Consequences of Urban Violence--and a Bold New Plan for Peace in the Streets. We talk about why violence must be tackled first, how it is the lynchpin of concentrated urban poverty, and what effective violence reduction strategies should look like.
The Meritocracy Trap: Daniel Markovits
Daniel Markovits is the author of The Meritocracy Trap as well as Guido Calabresi Professor of Law at Yale Law School. His book places meritocracy at the center of rising economic inequality and social political dysfunction. We talk about how the myth of meritocracy feeds inequality and erodes democracy.
Practical Equality: Robert L. Tsai
Robert L. Tsai is a law professor at American University and an expert in constitutional law. His latest book, Practical Equality, is a call to arms for equality and social progress. We discuss why equality is essential for citizens in a democracy and how the law can often serve as the primary mechanism to ensure justice.
Keeping Government Accountable: David Greising
David Greising is the President and CEO of the Better Government Association, Illinois’ only non-partisan full-service watchdog organization. Through investigative reporting and policy advocacy, BGA works towards transparency, efficiency, and accountability in government. We discuss the value of exposing corruption and empowering citizens to engage and act.
Reimagining Civic Learning: Louise Dubé
Louise Dubé is the Executive Director of iCivics, an organization whose mission is to cultivate a new generation of students for thoughtful and active citizenship. We discuss the critical importance of high-quality civics education, the role of iCivics games in effective learning, and the necessity for robust investment and legislation in this space.
The Three Dimensions of Freedom: Billy Bragg
Billy Bragg is an acclaimed songwriter, activist, and author. We recently sat down in front of a live audience at Columbia University's Holder Initiative to discuss his latest book, The Three Dimensions of Freedom, the current state of Western Democracy, how we got here, and what we can do to make it better.
The Blueprint for American Democracy: Ezra Levin
Ezra Levin is the Co-Executive Director of Indivisible, whose mission is to cultivate a progressive grassroots movement. We discuss the urgency of democracy reform, structural issues that relate to our nation’s history, and how we can achieve a democracy that truly reflects the will of the people.
The Ethics of Big Data: Matthew L. Jones
Matthew Jones is a historian of science and technology at Columbia University. We examine the moral and ethical elements of big data, the big business of the surveillance of our personal information online, and how we can demand solutions that reflect our collective values.
Achieving Tolerable Climate: Jonathan Lamontagne
Jonathan Lamontagne is a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Tufts University School of Engineering. In his recent study, he finds that immediate global action is required for robust climate abatement. We discuss the narrow window that still remains for both a tolerable climate future and tolerable economic conditions.
The Crisis in Higher Education: Liz Willen
Liz Willen is the Editor in Chief of the Hechinger Report, an independent, nonprofit, and award-winning newsroom that covers inequality and innovation in education. We discuss who is attending and completing college, who is not, and why higher education must be more widely accessible to all Americans.
The Economics of Health: James Knickman
James Knickman is a health economist and the Director of the Health Evaluation and Analytics Lab, a joint initiative on health policy and population health at NYU. We discuss the necessary components that contribute to better health outcomes in populations and how we can achieve them going forward.
Eradicating Cash Bail: Robin Steinberg
Robing Steinberg is the founder and CEO of The Bail Project, an unprecedented national effort to combat mass incarceration by transforming the pretrial system in the US. We discuss how cash bail has been used to incarcerate millions of innocent people, what the collateral cost of this system is to our society, and how we should reconceive it.
The Human Rights of Women: Lynn Paltrow
Lynn Paltrow is the Founder and Executive Director of National Advocates for Pregnant Women. We take a deep dive into the consequences of recognizing fetal personhood for the human rights of women and how reproductive health is at the center of the fight for equal rights.
Gender Parity: Melissa Mark-Viverito
Melissa Mark-Viverito is the former Speaker of the New York City Council and co-founder of the 21 in ’21 Initiative. She argues that electing women into government is critical for our society and democracy because their perspectives and experiences need to be represented in budgets, public policy, and legislation.
Census 2020: Ashley Allison (Rebroadcast)
“I would tell people to encourage them to participate in the census because when they are counted, they are seen, and resources can come to your community.” This interview with Ashley Allison of The Leadership Conference about the important role of the census for our democracy was originally released on October 5, 2018. She speaks...
Beto O'Rourke (Rebroadcast)
This interview with former Congressman Beto O’Rourke was originally released on May 5, 2018. We are reposting this episode because he is now a candidate for the highest office of the land. He is again running a people-powered campaign, visiting as many communities as possible in order to listen to the needs and concerns of every day Americans.
Kathryn Edin
Kathryn Edin is one of the nation’s leading poverty researchers, who works in the domains of welfare and low-wage work, family, and life, through direct, in-depth observations of the lives of low-income populations. We discuss the evisceration of welfare, the rise of destitution, and the absolute necessity of cash in an advanced capitalist society.
Stephen Pimpare
Stephen Pimpare is a nationally recognized expert on poverty, homelessness, and U.S. Social policy, as well as a Faculty Fellow at the Carsey School of Public Policy at the University of New Hampshire. We discuss the history and deep indignities of poverty, the stubborn misconceptions, as well as successful public policies that can guide our future.
Gail Joseph
Gail Joseph is the Founding Executive Director of Cultivate Learning at the University of Washington and the Bezos Family Foundation Distinguished Professor in Early Learning. We discuss the critical importance of high-quality programs, the costs to society of not investing in this space, and the necessity of a well-educated early learning workforce.