On the Significance of the Recent Elections in Germany: ADRIAN DAUB on Rushing to the Right

On the Significance of the Recent Elections in Germany: ADRIAN DAUB on Rushing to the Right

ADRIAN DAUB on Rushing to the Right

In this episode on Speaking Out of Place podcast Professor David Palumbo-Liu talks with Professor Adrian Daub about the recent elections in Germany, where we saw a surge in votes for the Far Right AfD party, which is now the second most powerful party in the country.  They discuss the significance of this rise in popularity and the ways the elections reveal a number of shifts in German politics as the various parties stake out positions that align with not just a center-right orientation but, more dangerously, a far-right one. They speak of the parallels to the recent election of Donald Trump to the US presidency, and what it says about the entrenchment of both neoliberalism and a faux populism based on xenophobia and not serving the actual material interests of everyday people.

How Do We Protect Democracy? Writers, Philosophers & Thought Leaders Speak Out

How Do We Protect Democracy? Writers, Philosophers & Thought Leaders Speak Out

Writers, Philosophers & Thought Leaders Speak Out

How can we be more engaged global citizens? How do we fight for truth and protect democracy in a post-truth world? What influence do billionaires have on politics, journalism, and the technology that shapes our lives? Deborah Cahn, Daniel Susskind, Carlos Moreno, Lee McIntyre, Julian Lennon, Darryl Cunningham, and Arash Abizadeh on the future of democracy.

Elon Musk, Putin's Russia, Murdoch's Fox News: How Billionaires Shape Our World with DARRYL CUNNINGHAM

Elon Musk, Putin's Russia, Murdoch's Fox News: How Billionaires Shape Our World with DARRYL CUNNINGHAM

The Lives of Billionaires Comic Artist & Author DARRYL CUNNINGHAM on Making Complex Subjects Simple

No one should be a billionaire because it's damaging. There's a certain level of wealth that's damaging to a country. Billionaires have so much wealth that they have enormous political power, which is undemocratic. There should be a ceiling on wealth. I have nothing against people becoming millionaires or even multi-millionaires. But multi-billionaires are incredibly bad for all of us. If you have so much money that you can buy an entire political party, that's a thing that shouldn't exist.

The SDGs & UN Summit of the Future - Highlights - GUILLAUME LAFORTUNE

The SDGs & UN Summit of the Future - Highlights - GUILLAUME LAFORTUNE

Vice President · Head of the Paris Office
UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network

The SDSN was set up to mobilize research and science for the Sustainable Development Goals. The development goals were adopted in 2015 by all UN member states, marking the first time in human history that we have a common goal for the entire world. Out of all the targets that we track, only 16 percent are estimated to be on track. Currently, none of the SDGs are on track to be achieved at the global level.

How Can We Unite 193 Countries for a Sustainable Future? - GUILLAUME LAFORTUNE - VP, UN SDSN, Paris

How Can We Unite 193 Countries for a Sustainable Future? - GUILLAUME LAFORTUNE - VP, UN SDSN, Paris

Vice President · Head of the Paris Office
UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network

The SDSN was set up to mobilize research and science for the Sustainable Development Goals. The development goals were adopted in 2015 by all UN member states, marking the first time in human history that we have a common goal for the entire world. Out of all the targets that we track, only 16 percent are estimated to be on track. Currently, none of the SDGs are on track to be achieved at the global level.

What Do the June 2024 Elections in India Mean? with Angana Chatterji & Siddhartha Deb

What Do the June 2024 Elections in India Mean? with Angana Chatterji & Siddhartha Deb

What Do the June 2024 Elections in India Mean?

I think that the 2024 national elections in India signaled a slowdown in its slide into authoritarianism, but did not halt it. The BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) and the ways in which it secured votes merit analysis. In his June 4th victory speech, Narendra Modi's rallying cry was "Bharat Mata Ki Jai" (Hail to Mother India), a slogan promoted by Hindu nationalists. It objectifies and feminizes the state, linking control over women and control in general to nationalist assertion. "Bharat Mata" is also associated with "Akhand Bharat," or undivided India, the once and future homeland of Hindus. Modi did not show humility in his speech. Instead, he emphasized the exceptionalism of a third consecutive win, stating, "I believe that the country will write a new chapter of big decisions. This is the Modi guarantee." Nevertheless, he also talked about his government's efforts to weed out forms of corruption, which is ironic given the BJP's recent collusion in the electoral bond scandal.

Resisting Fascism & Ecological Collapse with Writer-Organizer-Activist CHRIS CARLSSON

Resisting Fascism & Ecological Collapse with Writer-Organizer-Activist CHRIS CARLSSON

Writer · Organizer · Activist
When Shells Crumble · Shaping San Francisco · Critical Mass

The novel When Shells Crumble begins in December 2024, when the US Supreme Court nullifies the popular vote in the Presidential election and awards the presidency to an authoritarian Republican, who proceeds to demolish democracy and install a fascistic state that hastens ecological havoc. The novel is much more than your usual dystopian tale—it focuses on how to resist political cynicism and defeatism, and rebuild on planetary wreckage. It is a world-building project filled with wisdom, sadness, and joy. We specifically put this fictional text in conservation with his brilliant non-fiction work, Nowtopia, which offers a radical redefinition of “work” that restores dignity and value to their proper places.

How to Protect Bookstores and Why - Highlights - DANNY CAINE, Bookseller, Poet

How to Protect Bookstores and Why - Highlights - DANNY CAINE, Bookseller, Poet

Bookseller · Poet · Author of How to Protect Bookstores and Why · How to Resist Amazon and Why · Picture Window

The thing that unites my poetry and the nonfiction writing is my main obsession as a writer. It's the question of, how do you live meaningfully in late capitalism? As corporations and global capitalist forces take over the world, what does it mean to try to have a meaningful human life? Bookselling captured my imagination and my heart as soon as I started working at the bookstore because I could see the potential for this great, amazing community-oriented work.

What Lies Ahead for Bookstores in the Age of Generative AI? - DANNY CAINE, Bookseller, Poet

What Lies Ahead for Bookstores in the Age of Generative AI? - DANNY CAINE, Bookseller, Poet

Bookseller · Poet · Author of How to Protect Bookstores and Why · How to Resist Amazon and Why · Picture Window

The thing that unites my poetry and the nonfiction writing is my main obsession as a writer. It's the question of, how do you live meaningfully in late capitalism? As corporations and global capitalist forces take over the world, what does it mean to try to have a meaningful human life? Bookselling captured my imagination and my heart as soon as I started working at the bookstore because I could see the potential for this great, amazing community-oriented work.

Voices of the Earth: Reflections on Nature, Humanity & Climate Change

Voices of the Earth: Reflections on Nature, Humanity & Climate Change

Environmentalists, writers, artists, activists, and public policy makers explore the interconnectedness of living beings and ecosystems. They highlight the importance of conservation, promote climate education, advocate for sustainable development, and underscore the vital role of creative and educational communities in driving positive change. Music courtesy of composer Max Richter.

Imagining a New Left Internationalism Outside the Legacies of the Settler State - SPEAKING OUT OF PLACE

Imagining a New Left Internationalism Outside the Legacies of the Settler State - SPEAKING OUT OF PLACE

On Imagining a New Left Internationalism Outside the Legacies of the Settler State

In this episode on Speaking Out of Place podcast, Professor David Palumbo-Liu and Azeezah Kanji have a conversation with critical political theorists Adom Getachew and Ayça Çubukçu on the colonial construction of the international system and its organization around the institution of the nation state. The conversation covers and uncovers so many aspects of the hidden colonial history behind the constitution of this system, but also the resistance and creative appropriations by Black, Indigenous, and colonized peoples, allowing us to imagine possible liberatory futures beyond the forms and strictures of the colonial present.

Reshaping Our World: Climate Change, Education, Mental Health & Advocacy for Nature

Reshaping Our World: Climate Change, Education, Mental Health & Advocacy for Nature

Climate Change, Education, Mental Health & Advocacy for Nature

Climate change gives us a chance to re-imagine the world in a way that every single human being can participate in. And so whether you're in a remote part of the United States or some other country, when you learn about climate change, it shouldn't just be the science. It should be the opportunity. –Kathleen Rogers, President of EarthDay·ORG

Songs of Nature - Musicians, Writers, Ecologists, Philosophers on the Mysteries of the Natural World

Songs of Nature - Musicians, Writers, Ecologists, Philosophers on the Mysteries of the Natural World

The natural world has its own sonic language. Its own fingerprints. And that's one of the beautiful things about being out here. There is another acoustic environment, another sort of sonic fingerprint, and it is always changing. Every day is a sort of a different sound picture. I walk out the door and you do hear it changing over time. The leaves are coming in now, different kinds of bird song. The wind sounds different. Tt's a wonderful thing to be around and experience.
—Max Richter

Does privacy exist anymore? Or are humans just sets of data to be traded and sold? - Highlights - WENDY WONG

Does privacy exist anymore? Or are humans just sets of data to be traded and sold? - Highlights - WENDY WONG

Author of We, the Data: Human Rights in the Digital Age
Professor of Political Science at University of British Columbia

One of the things that we need to remember is that we are data stakeholders and not data subjects. We're often called data subjects if you look at the way legislation is written and tech companies talk about the users of their technology as data subjects. Being a subject casts this sort of '“you can't help but have this happen to you” effect. But we're actually data stakeholders for the reason that data cannot be created without us. If companies were incentivized to follow data minimization for example, where they only collect the data they need, that would change the way we interact with digital technologies.

WENDY WONG - Author of We, the Data: Human Rights in the Digital Age

WENDY WONG - Author of We, the Data: Human Rights in the Digital Age

Author of We, the Data: Human Rights in the Digital Age
Professor of Political Science at University of British Columbia

One of the things that we need to remember is that we are data stakeholders and not data subjects. We're often called data subjects if you look at the way legislation is written and tech companies talk about the users of their technology as data subjects. Being a subject casts this sort of '“you can't help but have this happen to you” effect. But we're actually data stakeholders for the reason that data cannot be created without us. If companies were incentivized to follow data minimization for example, where they only collect the data they need, that would change the way we interact with digital technologies.

MARY HAYASHI - Healthcare Advocate, Former Assemblymember - Author of Women in Politics

MARY HAYASHI - Healthcare Advocate, Former Assemblymember - Author of Women in Politics

Healthcare Advocate · Former Assemblymember · Author of Women in Politics: Breaking Down the Barriers to Achieve True Representation

One of the studies I mentioned in the book is people don't see women as leaders and the barriers you experience as a candidate during a campaign. And even after you win and you're serving inside the government, there are still challenges to overcome. Last year, we had a record number of women elected and becoming leaders in government positions, but it doesn't mean their path is easy or it's set. Because of gender bias, women are supposed to be coalition builders and not supposed to be ambitious. One of the things that I talk a lot about is the ambition gap. When women show ambition, we're penalized. People are often suspicious of our motivation. It's like, why is she running? What is she about? And being an Asian American woman, I was perceived by my colleagues after I won and chaired one of the most powerful policy committees in the legislature, I often felt like people didn't know how to engage with me as a peer. They'd never seen an Asian American woman in that role before and so they would criticize me for being too ambitious or too aggressive, or too opinionated. And that really takes a toll on you just emotionally. I wasn't raised that way, but when you have an opinion, people are just not used to seeing Asian women as peers in that role and that really needs to change. And I think it will over time as they see more people like us serving in leadership roles.

Highlights - Actress CATHERINE CURTIN (Orange is the New Black) & Artistic Director KATE MUETH (Director, Educator, Choreographer)

Highlights - Actress CATHERINE CURTIN (Orange is the New Black) & Artistic Director KATE MUETH (Director, Educator, Choreographer)

"I don't know why we would really want to tell stories without being connected to the meaning. And I think that's especially for women, but I do think for human beings, that is how we can work as hard and be able to get up the next morning and keep going. Because we are working through the meaning, and it feeds us as we're like making sense of it all, trying to make sense of it, and for being in community and communion.” - Kate Mueth
”What we've done today is we've made everything so fast and so easy that I think there's something to the creative process about it being a little bit more of an exploration than it is wham bam, it's done. Let's go have lunch. And I think there is something to the creative process where it's allowed to develop. It's called process because it is a process. I'm always glad to just relax in the creative process, and I'm always very grateful for that. I think it's why I do so much indie film because it's really fun.” -Catherine Curtin

Actress CATHERINE CURTIN (Stranger Things) & Artistic Director KATE MUETH (Neo-Political Cowgirls)

Actress CATHERINE CURTIN (Stranger Things) & Artistic Director KATE MUETH (Neo-Political Cowgirls)

"I don't know why we would really want to tell stories without being connected to the meaning. And I think that's especially for women, but I do think for human beings, that is how we can work as hard and be able to get up the next morning and keep going. Because we are working through the meaning, and it feeds us as we're like making sense of it all, trying to make sense of it, and for being in community and communion.” - Kate Mueth
”What we've done today is we've made everything so fast and so easy that I think there's something to the creative process about it being a little bit more of an exploration than it is wham bam, it's done. Let's go have lunch. And I think there is something to the creative process where it's allowed to develop. It's called process because it is a process. I'm always glad to just relax in the creative process, and I'm always very grateful for that. I think it's why I do so much indie film because it's really fun.” -Catherine Curtin

Highlights - Nobel Peace Prize-winning Climate Scientist MARK HOWDEN - Director, Climate Change Institute at ANU - Vice Chair of IPCC

Highlights - Nobel Peace Prize-winning Climate Scientist MARK HOWDEN - Director, Climate Change Institute at ANU - Vice Chair of IPCC

Director of the Climate Change Institute at The Australian National University
Vice Chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
Co-recipient of the 2007 NOBEL PEACE PRIZE

We live in a diverse world, and we're in a funny time where we sometimes see the best of humanity and the worst of humanity. And I think what we need to do is be very strong in wanting to lift the game of each other and ourselves. And so I think that's one of the sort of key things. Particularly, young people should be more demanding that we behave better towards each other and care more about each other and the world that we live in. In terms of these heatwaves, droughts, and fires that the world is seeing, which we thought were going to hit us in 2050 or 2070, are hitting us now in 2023. So, those risks are coming much faster and harder than we thought they were going to come. And so, in many cases, we're unprepared for the severity of these changes.

MARK HOWDEN - Vice Chair, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change - Director, Climate Change Institute at The Australian National University

MARK HOWDEN - Vice Chair, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change - Director, Climate Change Institute at The Australian National University

Director of the Climate Change Institute at The Australian National University
Vice Chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
Co-recipient of the 2007 NOBEL PEACE PRIZE

We live in a diverse world, and we're in a funny time where we sometimes see the best of humanity and the worst of humanity. And I think what we need to do is be very strong in wanting to lift the game of each other and ourselves. And so I think that's one of the sort of key things. Particularly, young people should be more demanding that we behave better towards each other and care more about each other and the world that we live in. In terms of these heatwaves, droughts, and fires that the world is seeing, which we thought were going to hit us in 2050 or 2070, are hitting us now in 2023. So, those risks are coming much faster and harder than we thought they were going to come. And so, in many cases, we're unprepared for the severity of these changes.