Story in the Public Square is a weekly, 30-minute series that brings audiences to the intersection of storytelling and public affairs. Hosted by Jim Ludes and G. Wayne Miller, Story in the Public Square offers a spirited but respectful dialogue. Often funny, always provocative, each episode of Story in the Public Square moves beyond traditional public affairs programming to consider the impact of narrative and storytelling on public life today.
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Examining the Implications of International Scarcity and Plenty with Francis Gavin
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It may be a scarcity mindset that views plenty as better than a world where nations and people compete over limited, scarce resources. But Francis Gavin explains that even in a world of plenty, there are vexing international challenges for which the United States is not prepared. Gavin is the Giovanni Agnelli Distinguished Professor and the inaugur…
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Eric Deggans on The Stories We Tell and the Truths They Reflect About Our World Today
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The shear amount of media generated and consumed in the United States every day is simply staggering. Eric Deggans reminds us that the stories we tell, tell us something about ourselves—whether those stories are about music, or politics, or race. Deggans is NPR’s first full-time TV critic and media analyst, providing reviews, feature stories, comme…
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Climate Change as a National Security Issue with Sherri Goodman
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The impact of climate change on the world around us is there for everyone to see—from stronger and more frequent storms to the loss of Arctic Sea ice. But Sherri Goodman says the threat isn’t just to crops or the polar bears, but to American national security. Sherri Goodman, Senior Fellow at the Wilson Center’s Environmental Change and Security Pr…
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Francesca Mari on the Power of Story to Explore Personal and Public Issues Alike
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The stories journalists tell can stretch from the personal to the public. Francesca Mari is no different, giving us narratives and an understanding of personal health crises, the challenge of housing, and the kinds of shelter offered by both families and physical structures. Francesca Mari is a contributing writer to The New York Times Magazine foc…
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Annalee Newitz on the Power of Story in Disinformation
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Disinformation has a long history in the United States—often taking the form of storytelling. Best-selling author Annalee Newitz explains how stories have been weaponized—historically and today—and charts a path to a more peaceful future for all Americans. Newitz writes fiction and nonfiction about the intersection of science, technology and cultur…
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Dr. Dean-David Schillinger on Public Health Lessons from an American Public Hospital
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We know healthcare means hospitals and stethoscopes, and x-rays, and bloodwork, and prescriptions. But Dr. Dean-David Schillinger says stories are the key to healthcare—both our willingness to tell them; and our caregiver’s ability to listen and understand them. Schillinger is a primary care physician, scientist, author, and public health advocate.…
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Exploring the Importance of Coexistence in Wildlife Conservation with Ruth Ganesh
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It’s easy to think that people and animals are incapable of coexistence. But Ruth Ganesh warns that mindset is dangerous to biodiversity, to the existence of some of planet earth’s most remarkable creatures, and even to humanity. Ganesh is a creative conservationist and philanthropist with a particular interest in environmental issues. She has spen…
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Exploring Tyranny through Poetry with Leah Umansky
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Tyranny comes in many forms. But Leah Umansky uses her art—poetry—to remind us that whether the tyrant is personal, societal, or political—resistance is possible. Leah Umansky is a poet, writer, artist and writing coach. She has been an educator for over 15 years and teaches 8th and 10th grade English at a private school in New York. She is also th…
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Michael Sobolik on China and the Imminent Cold War
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Over the last 25 years, while the United States fought costly wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the People’s Republic of China has been expanding its influence, its economic relationships, and even the reach of it’s military. Michael Sobolik offers a sober look at the challenge China poses to the West and offers a strategy to guide America’s response. …
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Ray Suarez on the Immigrant Experience in Today’s America
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Immigration has long-been a contentious issue in American politics. But legendary journalist Ray Suarez says immigrants keep coming to the United States, overcoming obstacles, working for better opportunities for themselves and their families, and all the while buying into the idea of America that binds us all together. Suarez is a journalist and a…
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Reflections from a Career on the Front Lines with Sean Carberry
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The last 25 years have produced plenty of conflict and a seasoned community of journalists who have moved towards the sound of fighting. Sean Carberry documents the personal costs of those reporters, producers, photographers, and videographers who, in documenting the worst of humanity, have paid a price with their physical and emotional health. Car…
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Examining the Wealth Gap between Black and White Americans with Louise Story and Ebony Reed
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The myth is that anyone who works hard, saves their money, and makes good decisions, can develop wealth in the United States. But Louise Story and Ebony Reed document the long and painful history of the structures, policies and practices that have resulted in a profound wealth gap between Black and White Americans. Louise Story is a professor at Ya…
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A Closer Look at Drugs and the FDA with Mikkael Sekeres
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In 2011, the Food and Drug Administration held a hearing to review a drug previously approved for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer. The hearing was fraught with concerns over the drug’s safety competing with cancer patients who felt they were alive because of the drug. Dr. Mikkael Sekeres was on the panel receiving testimony, and weighing …
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Dr. Elizabeth Comen on the Myths that Have Influenced Malpractice in Women's Healthcare
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For thousands of years, a mix of truth, lies, and down-right myths have shaped medicine’s understanding of the female body. While the modern era has seen progress, Dr. Elizabeth Comen tells us those narratives about women and their bodies continue to shape the care provided women today. Comen is a Medical Oncologist specializing in breast cancer at…
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How a Brush with Death Changed One Man’s Perception of the Afterlife with Sebastian Junger
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As a best-selling author, Sebastian Junger has taken us to sea with an ill-fated fishing boat and, as a documentarian, shown us the reality of war in Afghanistan. But his new book is his most intensely personal, a look at his own health crisis, the near-death experience it triggered, and how it shaped his views on an afterlife. Sebastian Junger is …
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One Immigrant’s Journey from El Salvador to the United States with Javier Zamora
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Immigration remains a hot-button in American politics, but Javier Zamora tells the story of his own entry into the United States—a journey and a story that put a human face on the issue. Zamora is the author of “SOLITO,” his New York Times bestselling memoir and is the 2024 Reading Across Rhode Island Selection. Born in La Herradura, El Salvador in…
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Tricia Rose on Breaking Free from Systemic Racism
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Racism is often described as an individual failing, but Dr. Tricia Rose explains that racism is better understood as the result of a system built over generations and even centuries—and perpetuated by the stories we tell about it today. Rose is the Chancellor’s Professor of Africana Studies and Associate Dean of the Faculty for Special Initiatives,…
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Telling the Story of the World War II Ghost Army with Rick Beyer
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At the height of World War II, American military commanders created a unit dedicated to deception to give Allied forces an advantage on the battlefield. The artists, sound technicians, and radio operators of the so-called Ghost Army remained hidden for decades, but filmmaker Rick Beyer made sure their stories were told. Beyer is a New York Times be…
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Parental Activism and the Politicization of Public Schools with Laura Pappano
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Public education has a long and varied history in the United States. But Laura Pappano says the challenges it faces now from parent-activists and partisan politics is unlike anything America’s schools have seen. Pappano is an award-winning journalist and author who has written about K–12 and higher education for over 30 years. A former education co…
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Vanessa Lillie on the Historical Erasure of Indigenous People and their Current Representation
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The novelist has a way of exploring issues—putting flesh on bones—to tell stories about people that can educate, inform, sometimes inspire, and often anger. Vanessa Lillie uses that art form to shine a light on challenges facing native communities and native women, in particular. Lillie is the author of the 2023 USA Today bestselling suspense novel…
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Exploring Love and Loss as a Muse with Brian Turner
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The poet’s ability to capture meaning with words has long been one of humanity’s great gifts. Brian Turner has that muse and uses poetry to explore enduring questions of love and loss. Turner is the author of five collections of poetry “Here, Bullet;” “Phantom Noice;” “The Wild Delight of Wild Things;” “The Dead Peasant’s Handbook” and “The Goodbye…
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The Contemporary Implications of Europe’s Recent History with Timothy Snyder
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The history of 20th century autocracy seemed to race into the distance with the end of the Cold War. But Dr. Timothy Snyder cautions that in the decades since 1989, the West has seen the rise of new autocratic movements—some in traditional adversaries and some much closer to home. Snyder is the Richard C. Levin Professor of History at Yale Universi…
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News Deserts to Media Startups: Ellen Clegg and Dan Kennedy on America’s News Landscape Today
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Thomas Jefferson famously said he’d prefer newspapers without government over government without newspapers. In large parts of the United States today, government exists without independent news sources—undermining accountability and diminishing civic participation. Ellen Clegg and Dan Kennedy tell us that despite these troubling trends, there’s mu…
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Daniel Schulman on the German-Jewish Immigrants who Built the United States’ Modern Financial Systems
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We take for granted that the “immigrant experience” is part of the American story. But in an epic new history Daniel Schulman tells the story of the Jewish immigrants who built some of America’s biggest financial institutions and transformed America. A best-selling author, Schulman is known for his first book, “Sons of Wichita,” a biography of the …
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Secretary Margaret Spellings on a Path to Bipartisanship in America
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Working together across party lines is anathema to much of political Washington, but Margaret Spellings says doing so is the only way to create solutions that last. A nationally recognized leader in public policy, Spellings serves as President and CEO of the Bipartisan Policy Center. Previously, Spellings was President and CEO of Texas 2036, presid…
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Pete Hammond on This Year’s Best Picture Nominees and Trends at the Oscars
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Hollywood’s annual night-of-nights is upon us with the Academy Awards around the corner. Pete Hammond helps us take stock of the film industry and the films singled out for their powerful storytelling this year. Hammond, widely considered the pre-eminent awards analyst for film and television, is Deadline’s Awards Columnist covering the Oscar and E…
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Kliph Nesteroff on Culture Wars and Why the Problem Isn’t a New One
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It's easy to listen to the news and conclude that we have never been more gripped by the so-called “Culture Wars.” But Kliph Nesteroff argues just the opposite: today’s conflict isn’t a fluke, it’s part of a long history of conflict, controversy and recrimination. Canadian comic Kliph Nesteroff is, according to the New York Times, the “premier popu…
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Analyzing Historical Race Relations and their Contemporary Implications with Françoise N. Hamlin
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To some, the civil rights era seems like ancient history, but to others, it’s within living memory. Françoise N. Hamlin helps put the history of the era into a broader context about who we are as a people and what it means to be an American. Hamlin is the Royce Family Associate Professor in history and Africana studies at Brown University. Prior to…
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Suzanne Nossell on the Importance of Being Free to Read
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Free speech is under assault in educational settings, school committees, university boards and political rallies across the United States. Suzanne Nossell warns the danger isn’t just about our access to books and ideas, but to the fundamental human rights and political freedoms we all hold dear. Nossell currently serves as the Chief Executive Offic…
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Investigating 20th-Century Connections to Partisan Politics and Modern Conservatism with Richard Aldous
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It’s easy to look at American politics, now, and find individuals for whom loyalty to party or an individual leader is the only thing that matters. But Richard Aldous tells us of another time when service to the nation was the highest service in public life. Aldous is the Eugene Meyer Professor of British history and Culture at Bard College and spe…
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Analyzing American Politics Through a Pop-Culture Lens with Joanna Weiss
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Most who write about politics focus on the horse-race of elections or the specifics of policies. But Joanna Weiss says we should view American politics—especially current American politics—through a pop-culture lens. Weiss is the executive director of the AI Literacy Lab at Northeastern University, a project to connect journalists and technologists…
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Daniel Golden on Preserving Journalism’s Instrumental Role in our Democracy
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There was a time in the United States—not that long ago, actually—when local newspapers played an undisputed positive role in holding people in authority to account. Daniel Golden is a journalist practicing his craft in that great tradition. Golden is a Boston-based senior editor and reporter at ProPublica. He has been instrumental in three Pulitze…
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Naomi Baron on Our Future With AI and Human Creativity
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Writing and creative expression have long been among the defining characteristics of humanity as a species. But Naomi Baron chronicles the rise of artificial intelligence and its myriad abilities to write, to compose, to create—and what it means for our humanity. Baron’s research interests include language and technology, reading, first language ac…
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Rainer Lohmann on His Research on Toxic Chemicals in Our Environment and Our Future With Them
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Persistent Organic Pollutants: you don’t need a Ph.D. in chemistry to recognize realize they are dangerous. But Dr. Rainer Lohmann has been studying POPs for some time and their danger to the environment and human beings. Lohmann’s research combines marine organic geochemistry and environmental chemistry to study recalcitrant organic compounds, inc…
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The 2023 Story of the Year: The Rise of Artificial Intelligence with Evelyn Farkas
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The year began with chaos in the U.S. House of Representatives and ended much the same. Along the way, we saw technology demonstrate its potential to reshape human productivity and creativity; we have seen wars and violence; and we have worried aloud about the health of American Democracy. Dr. Evelyn Farkas helps us take stock of all of that and na…
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Navigating the Currents of Global Affairs and Domestic Politics with Tom Nichols
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From the violence in the Middle East to the dysfunction in Congress, the world feels increasingly untethered. Tom Nichols spent his early career analyzing threats to American security and now is unapologetic in his warnings about the threats to American democracy. Nichols is an author and a staff writer for The Atlantic. His expertise encompasses a…
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Unraveling the Violence of Jim Crow South with Tananarive Due
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The elements of a scary story might be exotic, super-natural, or even mundane. Tananarive Due weaves all of those things together in an ethereal world of her creation to explore the violence of the Jim Crow South. Due is an award-winning author who teaches Black Horror and Afrofuturism at the University of California-Los Angeles. She is an executiv…
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Navigating the Future: The Global Landscape in 2076 with Thomas Barnett
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Globalization is often portrayed as the bogeyman in American politics. Thomas Barnett credits it with making the world better, more peaceful, and even more equitable. In the future, he argues, it will continue to drive even more profound shifts in the way the world operates—with real challenges for American leadership and security. Barnett is a s…
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Trauma and the Science of Resilience with Jonathan DePierro
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Everyone faces challenges in life, but when those challenges are born of trauma, the challenge to persevere becomes more daunting. Dr. Jonathan DePierro discusses the science of resilience and how we can all thrive in the wake of adversity. DePierro is the Associate Director of the Center for Stress, Resilience and Personal Growth which provides co…
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Navigating Identity and Race Childhood to Adulthood with Nyani Nkrumah
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The transition from childhood to adulthood ushers in a wide variety of difficult questions like who actually loves us, and why. Nyani Nkrumah explores those coming-of-age themes, as well as issues of race, identity, trauma, and who is responsible for the person we actually are. Nkrumah was born in Boston and grew up in Ghana, West Africa and later …
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American History Through the Perspective of its Indigenous Inhabitants with Ned Blackhawk
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For too long, the history we’ve considered “America’s” has really just been the history of European conquest. Ned Blackhawk argues that there is no American history without its first, indigenous inhabitants. Blackhawk is a Professor of History and American Studies at Yale. He is the author of “Violence over the Land: Indians and Empires in the earl…
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Creating Change for Girls Across the World with Dale Hanson Bourke
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All over the world, girls face challenges—and outcomes—far worse than boys—a fact borne out by research on different continents and in different societies. But Dale Bourke says that the challenges facing girls shouldn’t overwhelm us; they should inspire us. Bourke is an award-winning writer and editor who has served as president of the CIDRZ Fou…
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Discovering Longevity With Bill Kole: How Does Living Longer Impact Society?
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One constant human wish is for the longevity of the people we love. Bill Kole explores the coming era of “super-aging,” where more and more of us will live more than a century, with dramatic consequences for retirement, finances, relationships, and even the politics of the next century. Kole, the author of “The Big 100: The New World of Super- Agin…
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How The Chains Of Poverty Prevent People From Being Free: Putting An End To Poverty In America With Matthew Desmond
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The United States is both the richest country on Earth, and yet beset with a crushing poverty that saddles too many Americans. Dr. Matthew Desmond is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author and sociologist who says the reality of American poverty is sustained by those who benefit from it. Matthew Desmond is a professor of sociology at Princeton Universit…
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Brad Sears on Current Issues Facing the LGBTQ Community
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In 2015, the Supreme Court ruled that love is love is love and marriage equality became recognized in all 50 states. Brad Sears warns, however of legislative efforts across the country to roll back LGBTQ rights. Sears is the Founding Executive Director and Rand Schrader Distinguished Scholar of Law and Policy at the Williams Institute. He is also t…
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Experimental Psychology: Exploring Public Perception of Morality and More with Adam Mastroianni
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Every generation seems to lament the decline in public virtues, morality, and decency. But Adam Mastroianni argues that those perceptions are generally not rooted in reality. Mastroianni is an experimental psychologist and author of the science blog, “Experimental History.” He earned his doctorate in psychology from Harvard in 2021, and his work ha…
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Catalyzing Social Change Through Architecture with Justin Brown
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Architecture is about the built environment. But Justin Brown helps lead a firm whose mission is to use architecture to help move communities forward, promote social justice and healing, and expand the possibilities of tomorrow for cities and their residents. Brown is a co-founder and Principal at MASS Design Group focused on expanding architectura…
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Exploring the Narratives that Have Shaped History and Conflict with Jade McGlynn
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In grade school, we might learn history in class and think of it as a straightforward recitation of facts and dates. Dr. Jade McGlynn however, explains that history’s stakes are high—shaping the collective memories and national narratives that can prepare a nation for great trials and even conflict. McGlynn is an author and Research Fellow at the D…
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Elizabeth Rush Investigates the Impacts of Climate Change with a Journey to the End of the Earth
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For longer than anyone can remember, politicians and concerned citizens have asked ‘what kind of world are we leaving our children?’ Elizabeth Rush grappled with that question in a very personal way when she journeyed to Antarctica’s fragile glaciers to chronicle the work of scientists trying to understand the realities of a changing climate. Rush …
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America’s Educators: Documenting a Year in the Life with Alexandra Robbins
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Schools are at the heart of communities across the United States, and teachers are at the heart of each school. Alexandra Robbins shares a year in the life of three teachers, the schools in which they teach, and the children whose lives they shape Robbins is the author of five New York Times bestselling books, is an investigative reporter and a rec…
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