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Cambridge Forum hosts free, public discussions that inform and engage, so that people can better explore the varied issues and ideas that shape our changing world. CF broadcasts its live events via podcasts, weekly NPR shows and online presentations via GBH Forum Network on YouTube.

http://www.cambridgeforum.org

Mary McGrath & Jo Radner: The Power of Narrative

Wed, Apr 9, 2014

Radio OpenSource producer, Mary McGrath and award-winning storyteller Jo Radner discuss their materials--facts, memories, voices, pregnant pauses, music, sound effects--and the ways they are put together to create a narrative that inspires the imagination and moves the heart.

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Key Issues: Election 2014

Wed, May 14, 2014

The fall Congressional elections may seem far off in the future. But with Congress experiencing record low approval ratings, voters are primed to look seriously at the policy positions of aspirants for national office. What should voters be attuned to as they sort through candidates in the upcoming Congressional elections? What are the key issues of concern to the new generation of millennial voters? A panel of scholars explores some of the fundamental questions newly elected representatives will have to address. Keith Bentele of the University of Massachusetts Boston looks at poverty and inequality; Alex Hertel-Fernandez from Harvard discusses tax policy and the social safety net; and Jack Schneider of the College of the Holy Cross looks at education reform. The panel proposes research- and experience-based policy solutions in an effort to overcome the ideological divisions that derail so much political debate. Boston University's Michelle Johnson moderates. Produced in conjunction with the Scholars Strategy Network, a national group of scholars seeking to use research to improve policy and enhance democracy.

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Globalization of Labor: Is a Race to the Bottom Inevitable?

Mon, Apr 16, 2012

Out-sourcing. Off-shoring. Even before the Great Recession of 2008 pushed unemployment rates into double digits, Americans worried that traditional jobs were disappearing. Economist** Robert Pollin** addresses questions for American workers raised by the globalization of labor. How has globalization of the labor market affected American employment patterns? Is globalization responsible for the loss of domestic jobs that pay middle class wages? How can the United States respond to the challenges created by the 'globalization of labor?' What can individual workers do to ensure their own employment security? Is a race to the bottom inevitable?

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Globalization of Capital: The Rise of the Multinationals

Mon, Apr 16, 2012

Economist Robert Scott of the Economic Policy Institute discusses the challenges that globalized trade poses for the economic well-being of the United States. Globalization of capital has lessened or eliminated many barriers to trade and put new pressures on traditional monetary and financial systems. If the new ease of moving capital around the world seems to threaten American workers, who see their jobs and way of life sailing off to China, what does it mean for workers in other countries? Are the current international financial agreements, many of which date to the mid-twentieth century, adequate to regulate globalized capital movement? How does the globalization of capital affect the power of the nation-state?

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Harold Meyerson - Globalization of Markets: Do Corporations Need American Consumers?

Mon, Apr 16, 2012

Harold Meyerson, editor-at-large of *The American Prospect*, explores the impact of "Globalization of Markets" on the American economy. When Henry Ford revolutionized American auto manufacturing a century ago, he not only introduced the assembly line; he also paid his workers enough to allow them to buy a Ford. This move was one of the first steps in creating an American economy that is driven by consumption. If globalization is keeping American incomes low, how can consumption rebound to fuel a recovery? If globalization is moving investments overseas, what role will commerce play in the national economy?

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Dani Rodrik - The Globalization Paradox: Democracy and the Future of the World Economy

Mon, Apr 16, 2012

Harvard economist Dani Rodrik argues that we cannot simultaneously pursue democracy, national self-determination, and economic globalization. While the world economy is becoming an international system, the political systems of the world remain based in the construct of the nation-state. And while nations have organized some international political and economic governing authorities, such as the WTO, IMF, and World Bank, a comprehensive and widely accepted international system to regulate the global economy does not exist. When the social arrangements of democracies inevitably clash with the international demands of globalization, national priorities should take precedence. What are the most effective responses to today's globalized economy? Is Rodrik's vision of 'balanced prosperity' based on globalization supported by a light frame of international rules feasible? How can national governments reclaim a role in managing globalization under his proposals?

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Wealth Inequality: The Gilded Road to Ruin?

Wed, Apr 25, 2012

**Chuck Collins**, director of the Institute for Policy Studies Program on Inequality and the Common Good, and journalist **Linda McQuaig** explore the impact of the growing wealth gap, and suggest ways to reverse the increase in economic inequality. The richest one percent of Americans now owns more than 36 percent of all the wealth in the United States, more than the net worth of the bottom 95 percent combined. In 2010, the one percent earned 21 percent of all income, up from only 8 percent in mid-1970s. How has this concentration of wealth come about? What does it mean for the health of American democracy? And for the well-being of Americans? How could the trend of increasing economic inequality be reversed? Where is the political will to make the necessary policy changes? How can an individual nation create economic conditions that overcome what some call a global race to the bottom?

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Creativity and Stress

Sun, Apr 22, 2012

In Terezin, the concentration camp in which Jewish artists, writers, and musicians were imprisoned, the opportunity to practice art'to draw, to write, to perform'provided a kind of spiritual or emotional sustenance for the prisoners. This panel discussion examines the relationship between creativity and stress. How can human creativity survive and assert itself under inhuman conditions? What can modern neuroscience show us about the ways in which extreme stress stimulates or impedes creativity? What can we learn from the experience of the artists of the Holocaust about using the arts to assist victims of torture, rape, and other human rights abuses to cope and to heal? What can we learn about the role of creativity in our own lives? Panelists include Debra Wise, Artistic Director of Underground Railway Theater; Dr. Michael Grodin, Professor of Health Law, Bioethics and Human Rights at Boston University School of Public Health; and Guila Clara Kessous, Carr Center's Initiative in Theater and Human Rights at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

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Obama and Iran: A Single Roll of the Dice

Wed, Mar 14, 2012

Parsi explores this question in his book, "A Single Roll of the Dice: Obama's Diplomacy with Iran." To write it, he interviewed 70 high-ranking officials from the U.S., Iran, Europe, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Brazil—including the top American and Iranian negotiators. From this kaleidoscope of information, Parsi assembles all the pieces of the complex and often misunderstood details of the administration's efforts to end three decades of futility with Iran. Have the diplomatic efforts of the Obama administration toward Iran failed?

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Bad Money: The Global Crisis of American Capitalism

Tue, Apr 15, 2008

Kevin Phillips argues that "bad money has driven out good," in *Bad Money: Reckless Finance, Failed Politics and the Global Crisis of American Capitalism*. Subprime lending. The housing bubble. A falling dollar. Imploding credit. Just how bad is the American financial situation? Analyzing the domestic upheavals and the global dangers resulting from the rising influence of Wall Street over the past twenty years, Phillips demonstrates how every aspect of American life has been put at risk by the "bad money" that has come to dominate the US Gross Domestic Product. How can the nation extricate itself from its current dilemmas? Where is the political will to solve our economic problems? How painful will the coming "correction" be for individual citizens and for a nation that finds itself dependent on, rather than driving, the global economy?

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