Past Events

The GBH BPL studio will host Outspoken Saturdays, a spoken word poetry event for emerging artists. Every first Saturday of the month, the series will be created in collaboration with spoken word artist Amanda Shea. Join us!

Registration is encouraged for this free event.

Join former U.S. Secretary of Labor Robert Reich and Harvard Kennedy School professor Richard Parker for a powerful and personal conversation on democracy, inequality, and the moral foundations of a good society. In this talk, Reich reflects on his memoir Coming Up Short, shares lessons from decades in public service, and explores the roots of political disillusionment in America.

From the rise of authoritarianism to the erosion of democratic institutions, Reich and Parker examine the forces shaping our political landscape—and offer hope through civic engagement, progressive values, and the next generation of leaders.

Join us for an engaging and informative seminar with BNY Wealth Planning Strategist Jere Doyle designed to help today’s families navigate the complexities of estate planning with confidence. Whether you're planning for children, aging parents, blended families, or charitable giving, Jere will provide practical tools and expert insights to help you protect what matters most. Discover how to create a plan that reflects your values, supports your loved ones, and brings you lasting peace of mind.

Join GBH at the 2025 Open Streets event series, where neighborhood streets are closed to vehicular traffic to create room for community and play. The events allow local businesses to expand into the street and safely makes space for music, games, bicycling, community tabling, and more. On August 10, come to River St. from Hyde Park Ave. and River St. to Fairmount St. and Davison St.

Prominent researcher Gerald Denis explains the tight relationship between medical research and progress in medical care. Recent abrupt cuts to research funding and science agencies such as NIH have disrupted research labs, frequently ending carefully designed studies and upending the training of future scientists. We learn how medical discoveries are developed and tested, how research leads to medical advances and dispels false beliefs, and how young scientists’ lab experience prepares them for their careers. Medical research is absolutely necessary for the protection of our health.

Join the 2025 Create the Vote Boston Steering and Host Committees for a Boston Mayoral Forum on Arts & Culture at the Strand Theatre on Wednesday, July 30, 2025 at 6:00 PM (doors open at 5:30 PM). This forum is your chance to hear directly from Michelle Wu, Josh Kraft, and Domingos DaRosa about their visions for the creative workforce and economy.

The forum will be moderated by Jared Bowen, host of GBH’s The Culture Show.

Join American Ancestors at the Boston Public Library for an illustrated tour of the Gilded Age, seen through the experiences and artistry of two of its celebrated artists: architect Stanford White and the sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens. Author Henry Wiencek and moderator Curt DiCamillo will take us behind the scenes to show how these two cultural trendsetters transcended scandal to enrich their times.

The creator of landmark buildings that elevated American architecture to new heights, Stanford White was a man-about-town and a canny cultural entrepreneur. Augustus Saint-Gaudens’s painstaking work brought emotional depth to American sculpture; he was the son of an immigrant shoemaker, a moody introvert, and a committed procrastinator. These two artists pursued their own careers in Italy and France, then came together again in New York, where they maintained an friendship and partnership that sustained them. White calmed Sant-Gaudens’s troubled spirits and vouched for him when he failed to complete projects. Saint-Gaudens challenged White to take his artistic gifts seriously and supported him even through the sordid debaucheries that led to White’s sensational murder. In Stan and Gus, the acclaimed historian Henry Wiencek sets these men’s relationship within the larger story of the American Renaissance, where millionaires’ commissions and delusions of grandeur collided with secret upper-class clubs, new aesthetic ideas.

Porter Square Books is thrilled to partner with GBH to bring an in-person event featuring "Under the Radar with Callie Crossley." Callie Crossley will be in conversation with Allison King, author of The Phoenix Pencil Company.

This event will take place at their CAMBRIDGE store. They offer validated parking in the lot on Roseland St. behind Lesley's University Hall.

Excavated between 1639 and 1641, the Mother Brook canal in Dedham is arguably the oldest power canal in North America. The waterway connects the Charles and the Neponset Rivers by way of an inland spring-fed brook. This created a fall of water that was strong enough to power the town’s first grist mill.

Join the Charles River Museum for a talk with Judy Neiswander who discusses industrial uses of the canal and East Dedham’s evolution into a powerhouse of textile production.

The Outlaws Motorcycle Club is the oldest biker club in the world. In its 90 year existence, the club has become known for being involved in organized crime, including (but not limited to) drug trafficking, prostitution rings, weapons trafficking, and violent acts directed at rival clubs. Its presence in Massachusetts is longstanding, with chapters in Taunton and Brockton. FBI Agent Scott Payne went undercover in 2005 to help get some of their members off our streets.

Payne’s new book “Code Name: Pale Horse: How I Went Undercover to Expose America's Nazis” depicts his experiences infiltrating this gang, as well as other extremist groups like the KKK.  

Senior investigative journalist Phillip Martin will welcome Payne and lead this conversation about America’s modern era of domestic terrorism. Payne draws from his experiences infiltrating criminal organizations and white supremacist groups, sharing firsthand accounts of their evolving tactics, recruitment strategies, and use of online platforms. Martin, known for his award-winning reporting on race and extremism, will use his expertise to guide the discussion around what ongoing threats these movements pose to American democracy and public safety.

Also joining this conversation is Heidi Beirich, CSO and co-founder of Global Project Against Hate and Extremism (GPAHE) with decades of tracking extremism groups under her belt, and Ellie Atkins, research fellow in History and Political Science at Boston College, who will speak to her observations and study of extremism worldwide. This conversation sheds light on the hidden networks of hate—and the persistent societal need for vigilance, education, and action in addressing these issues.