This renowned economist, an advisor to governments around the world, tells the Center for Architecture that to save the planet and increase human happiness, we must study sustainability, read Aristotle, and drink very good coffee. Music from Sam Reider. Continue reading »
Category Archives: Politics and Policy
Episode 247: Dominique Browning
If everyone – everyone! – knows that mercury does horrible things to children, why would anyone weaken the regulations that protect them from exposure? Dominique Browning, co-founder of Moms Clean Air Force, has an answer, and she expounds it eloquently at the Environmental Defense Fund. Music from Stephanie Jenkins and Ben Cosgrove. Continue reading »
Episode 243: Joe Restuccia
Executive director of the Clinton Housing Development Company, he’s lived in the neighborhood for 50 years and offers this advice about burglary: “When they steal your underwear, it’s time to go.” Tales of Hell’s Kitchen at the Irish Arts Center with music from Jacob Tilove. Continue reading »
Episode 237: Blanche Pitt
ICAP at Columbia University sees its international public health work as part of broad commitment to social justice. Nobody personifies those values more than Blanche Pitt, who directs ICAP’s projects in South Africa. With music from Kevin Nathaniel Hylton. Person: Mark Heywood Place:: Joseph Stone Auditorium Thing: South African Constitution Randy’s People: Gilbert & … Continue reading »
Episode 227: Geraldine Byrne Nason & Ciaran Madden
Mary Robinson, Ireland’s first woman president, is a lifelong force for social justice, says Ciaran Madden, Ireland’s Consul General in New York. And she is admired around the world, adds Geraldine Byrne Nason, Ireland’s U.N. Ambassador: “Say the words Mary Robinson and it lights up at the U.N.” Imagine: mention your country’s president and get … Continue reading »
Episode 220: Martin Hayes, Howard Wolfson
Is a musical performance akin to a political speech? Yes. And no. Two friends, an Irish fiddle player and an American political strategist, consider the question at the Irish Arts Center. With music from, well yes, of course, Martin Hayes. We’re not boneheads. Photo by Anthony Mulcahy. PERSON: Hillary Clinton PLACE: Lake Shore Drive … Continue reading »
Episode 214: Azza Karam and Carl Murrell
When a religious group is distinctly sexist, why don’t women abandon it? Savvy answers from Azza Karam, a Muslim at the U.N. Population Council, and Carl Murrell, who represents the U.S. Baha’i community at the U.N. Both work for women’s equality as an expression of their religious beliefs. Faith and Feminism. Person: Malala Yousafzai … Continue reading »
Episode 211: Shira Scheindlin
In her 22 years as a federal judge, she became best known to civilians like me for striking down New York City’s stop-and-frisk policy. And now she can be known for this: she was gym-mates with Justice Sonia Sotomayor. Great legal minds on the treadmill. Not a figure of speech. PERSON: Ruth Bader Ginsburg … Continue reading »
Episode 200: Cedric Alexander
An African American, a PhD psychologist, and a former police chief, he has an interesting perspective on police reform. Citing research from Stanford, he asserts: “Mere political party affiliation, whether you’re republican or democrat, is more powerful than the whole issue around race.” We spoke about race, romance, and the healing power of a … Continue reading »
Episode 199: Peter Staley
During the pandemic we’ll air some pertinent past episodes. This one features AIDS activist Peter Staley, who, 40 years ago, encountered Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Staley didn’t much like Fauci but grew to admire him, as do all of us who are not the president. Plus a segment … Continue reading »
Episode 196: Dr. Mary Travis Bassett
A remastered conversation from the vault with a former New York City health commissioner, who regarded her work as part of a broader fight for social justice, not surprising given her family history: her parents are lifelong activists who met at a demonstration against a segregated restaurant, my idea of a love story. We spoke … Continue reading »
Episode 187: Fred Krupp
Having led The Environmental Defense Fund for more than 3 decades, he knows its history. “The founding motto, informally, of EDF was ‘Sue the bastards,” he recalls. Today its guideline is, “Environmental problems are solvable if people would just get on with solving them and stop shouting at each other.” Has he mellowed or … Continue reading »