Upcoming Events: San Francisco

Thu 8/22

Image - Dan Ariely: The (Honest) Truth About Dishonesty

Dan Ariely: The (Honest) Truth About Dishonesty

Date: Thu, August 22, 2013
Time: 6:00 PM

 

Dan Ariely, James B. Duke Professor of Behavioral Economics at Duke University; Author, The (Honest) Truth about Dishonesty: How We Lie to Everyone – Especially Ourselves; Twitter: @danariely

Does the chance of getting caught affect how likely we are to cheat? How do companies pave the way for dishonesty? The New York Times best-selling author of Predictably Irrational and The Upside of Irrationality returns to challenge our preconceptions about dishonesty and urge us to take an honest look at ourselves. Ariely contends that we all cheat. From Washington to Wall Street, the classroom to the workplace, unethical behavior is everywhere. And Ariely asserts that it's actually the irrational forces that we don't take into account that often determine whether we behave ethically or not. Join Ariely as he presents his innovative research to the question of dishonesty.

Location: SF Club Office
Time: 5:30 p.m. networking reception, 6 p.m. program, 7 p.m. book signing
Cost: $20 non-members, $12 members, $7 students (with valid ID)
Also know: Part of The Commonwealth Club's Series on Ethics and Accountability. Underwritten by the Charles Travers Family

Fri 8/23

Go to Exploratorium Global Studios in the Middle East

Exploratorium Global Studios in the Middle East

Date: Fri, August 23, 2013
Time: 12:00 PM

 

Sylvia Raker, Creator and Director of Business Development, Exploratorium Global Studios

Adam Tobin, Managing Director, Exploratorium Global Studios

Raker, a trained scientist and business executive, and Tobin, former head of Exploratorium exhibit development, will discuss Global Studios' work to help foreign governments and public/private entities create inquiry-based learning environments, build human capacity and transition to more knowledge-based economies, while respecting their specific cultural and social conditions. One area of significant activity for Exploratorium Global Studios is the Middle East, where countries including Turkey and Saudi Arabia are making substantial investments in education.

MLF: Middle East
Location: SF Club Office
Time: 11:30 a.m. check-in, noon program
Cost: $20 non-members, MEMBERS FREE, students free (with valid ID)
Program Organizer: Celia Menczel 

Mon 8/26

Go to Middle East Discussion Group

Middle East Discussion Group

Date: Mon, August 26, 2013
Time: 5:30 PM

 

Make your voice heard in an enriching, provocative and fun discussion with fellow Club members as you weigh in on events shaping the face of the Middle East. Each month, the Middle East Member-Led Forum hosts an informal roundtable discussion on a topic frequently suggested by recent headlines.  After a brief introduction, the floor will be open for discussion. All interested members are encouraged to attend. There will also be a brief planning session

MLF: Middle East
Location: SF Club Office
Time: 5:30 p.m. program
Cost: FREE

Program Organizer: Celia Menczel

Image - Queen Bees of Citizen Science

Backyards, Beaches, Birds and Bees: Citizen Science

Date: Mon, August 26, 2013
Time: 6:00 PM

 

Gretchen LeBuhn, Ph.D, Professor, Department of Biology, SFSU
Heidi Ballard, Ph.D, Associate Professor, School of Education, UC Davis
Mary Ellen Hannibal, Journalist – Moderator

 

Public participation in scientific research, also known as "citizen science," is a burgeoning practice that is more accessible than ever. As the world is confronted with growing challenges, from climate change to political upheavals, the individuals' ability to record observations to help assess the health of people and ecosystems is a valuable asset. Citizen science programs help empower communities to understand threats to their landscapes and well-being. They also help people understand science and how it is applied.  

Professor Gretchen LeBuhn of SFSU directs the world's largest citizen science undertaking on pollinators, The Great Sunflower Project, which enjoins regular people to make observations of bees in their own backyards. As one in every three bites of food each of us takes depends on pollinator services, she asserts that it is imperative to understand what is causing current bee declines. 

Professor Heidi Ballard of UC Davis is at the forefront of finding out how citizen science works and why it matters, and her work emphasizes citizen science that empowers communities to ask their own questions and thus to more directly serve their own needs. 

These two leading intellectuals will discuss the ways in which people, technology and crowd-sourcing are making a difference. The program will be moderated by award-winning journalist Mary Ellen Hannibal.

 

MLF: Science & Technology/Environment & Natural Resources
Location: SF Club Office
Time: 5:30 p.m. networking reception, 6 p.m. program
Cost: $20 non-members, MEMBERS FREE, students free (with valid ID)
Program Organizer: Chisako Ress
Also know: In association with SFSU and UC Davis

 

 

Tue 8/27

Image - What Is Nature-Deficit Disorder?

What Is Nature-Deficit Disorder?

Date: Tue, August 27, 2013
Time: 6:00 PM

 

Richard Louv, Journalist; Author, The Nature Principle: Human Restoration and the End of Nature-Deficit Disorder

Louv’s best-selling book Last Child in the Woods sparked a national debate that spawned an international movement to reconnect kids to nature. He coined the term "nature-deficit disorder," influenced national policy and helped inspire campaigns in more than 80 cities, states and provinces throughout North America. Now, Louv delivers another powerful call to action, this time for adults, offering a new vision of the future, in which our lives are as immersed in nature as they are in technology.

MLF: Health & Medicine
Location: SF Club Office
Time: 5:30 p.m. networking reception, 6 p.m. program, 7 p.m. book signing
Cost: $20 non-members, $8 members, $7 students (with valid ID)

Program Organizer: Bill Grant

Wed 8/28

Go to The Primary Care Crunch: Anticipating the Doctor Shortage After Obamacare

The Primary Care Crunch: Anticipating the Doctor Shortage After Obamacare

Date: Wed, August 28, 2013
Time: 6:00 PM

 

Lloyd Dean, President and CEO, Dignity Health
Kevin GrumbachM.D., Professor and Chair, Department of Family and Community Medicine, UCSF; Co-director, UCSF Center for Excellence in Primary Care; Co-director, Community Engagement and Health Policy Program, UCSF Clinical and Translational Science Institute
Patricia KnightM.S., J.D., Founder, Pacific Coast Health Advocacy LLC
Lisa Aliferis, Health Editor, KQED – Moderator 

Now that the Affordable Care Act is taking effect, with its health coverage mandate for 38 million more Americans and requisite expansion of Medicaid, California and the nation are anticipating a doctor shortage that could impede access to primary care for many patients. According to a new study, by 2025 the U.S. will need at least 52,000 more primary care doctors to keep pace with a rapidly aging population. Yet many medical students are now choosing higher-paying specialties over primary care, especially when faced with mounting tuition and student debt. What is the best way to handle this expected primary care physician shortage, from the perspective of policymakers, physicians, patients  and the health-care industry? How will health-care organizations adapt? Who is at risk of not having appropriate care? Our panel of experts and insiders will discuss these issues and more in this important program on the primary-care crunch that may worsen as more people gain coverage in 2014.

Location: SF Club Office
Time: 5:30 p.m. networking reception, 6 p.m. program
Cost: FREE
Also know: Underwritten by the California Wellness Foundation

 

Thu 8/29

Go to The Spine of the Continent

The Spine of the Continent

Date: Thu, August 29, 2013
Time: 6:00 PM

Mary Ellen Hannibal, Author, Evidence of Evolution; 2011 Alicia Patterson Foundation Fellow

Hannibal will give a slide presentation and shares her latest work, The Spine of the Continent. Praised by luminaries such as E.O. Wilson and Paul Ehrlich, in the words of Thomas Lovejoy, Hannibal's book "is the biography of a big conservation idea." Hannibal chronicles the development of the science that tells us what can be done to heal the wounds in our life-support system, nature. Hannibal has plenty of tales to tell of heroic people who are doing the right thing by the creatures and landscapes we love, from a hairdresser who relocates beaver to a waitress-turned-whistleblower who was unjustly prosecuted regarding the death of a rare jaguar to the scientists who are racing to apply their knowledge. Hannibal's journalism accolades include Stanford's Knight-Risser Prize for Western Enviromental Journalism and the National Association of Science Writer's Science and Society Award.

MLF: SF Book Discussion
Location: SF Club Office
Time: 5:30 p.m. networking reception, 6 p.m. program, 7 p.m. book signing
Cost: $20 non-members, $8 members, $7 students (with valid ID)
Program Organizer: Barbara Massey

Thu 9/5

Image - How to Navigate Epic Estate Battles Before They Start

How to Navigate Epic Estate Battles Before They Start

Date: Thu, September 05, 2013
Time: 5:15 PM

 

John E. O'Grady, Esq., Immediate Past Chair, The Estate Planning, Trust & Probate Section, The Bar Association of San Francisco

 

Attorney and mediator O'Grady will reveal the latest approaches to the age-old estate planning questions raised in film clips from familiar movies such as A Thousand Acres, Mommy Dearest and Zorba the Greek, which tap into the limitless depths of the human psyche. Join in a lively and enlightening session that opens the door for participants to fully explore their estate planning questions.

 

MLF: Grownups
Location: SF Club Office
Time: 4:45 p.m. networking reception, 5:15 p.m. program
Cost: $20 non-members, $8 members, $7 students (with valid ID)
Program Organizer: John Milford
Also know: In association with San Francisco Village

 
Go to Explore the World from The Commonwealth Club

Explore the World from The Commonwealth Club

Date: Thu, September 05, 2013
Time: 5:30 PM

 

Explore the World from The Commonwealth Club 

All interested Club members are welcome to attend bimonthly one-hour planning meetings of the International Relations Member-Led Forum. We focus on Europe, Latin America, Africa and worldwide topics. Join us to discuss current international issues and plan programs for the rest of 2013.

MLF: International Relations
Location: SF Club Office
Time: 5:30 p.m. planning meeting
Cost: FREE
Program Organizer: Norma Walden 

 

Wed 9/11

Image - Surefire Strategies for Jobseekers over 50

Surefire Strategies for Jobseekers over 50

Date: Wed, September 11, 2013
Time: 5:15 PM

 

Mary Eileen Williams, Author

How well is your job search going? If you’re a midlife job seeker, you've probably dealt with your share of disappointments and are fed up with being passed over and watching the jobs go to younger, less experienced candidates. What if you could learn a few simple, yet powerful job search techniques that would change all of that and give you an extra egde? Learn how you gain the skills to successfully navigate the market of today and maximize your chances for landing your next position. And learn how to find a job you will actually enjoy.

MLF: Grownups
Location: SF Club Office
Time: 4:45 p.m. networking reception, 5:15 p.m. program
Cost: $20 non-members, $8 members, $7 students (with valid ID)
Program Organizer: John Milford 
Also know: In association with San Francisco Village 

 

Fri 9/20

Go to Your Fatwah Does Not Apply Here

Your Fatwah Does Not Apply Here

Date: Fri, September 20, 2013
Time: 12:00 PM

 

Karima Bennoune, Human Rights Activist; Author; Professor of Law, UC Davis

Bennoune was raised in Algeria and the U.S. and has more than 20 years of human rights research and activism under her belt. Over a period of three years, Bennoune interviewed everyone from the deeply religious to the secular from Lebanon to Minneapolis. Join us as she discusses the results of her research and her new book, Your Fatwah Does Not Belong Here: Untold Stories from the fight against Muslim Fundamentalism, which contains impassioned accounts of heroic resistance and grassroots opposition. 

MLF: Middle East
Location: SF Club Office
Time: 11:30 a.m. check-in, noon program
Cost: $20 non-members, MEMBERS FREE, students free (with valid ID)
Program Organizer: Celia Menczel 

Mon 9/23

Go to Pit Stop in the Paris of Africa

Pit Stop in the Paris of Africa

Date: Mon, September 23, 2013
Time: 6:00 PM

Julie R. Dargis, Independent Writer and Publisher

Pit Stop in the Paris of Africa author Dargis will take you on a trip around the world through selected excerpts of stories and verse from her book. In addition, she will share reflections on her humanitarian aid work with African and Eastern European populations affected by war and natural disasters, and include how she dealt with adversity in her day-to-day life in some of the most difficult and dangerous countries in the world. She will close with a brief discussion on how she came to write about and publish her experiences, including ideas on how others can recount stories of their own.

MLF: International Relations
Location: SF Club Office
Time: 5:30 p.m. networking reception, 6 p.m. program, 7 p.m. book signing
Cost: $20 non-members, MEMBERS FREE, $7 students (with valid ID)
Program Organizer: Karen Keefer
Also know: In association with the NorCal Peace Corps Association

Tue 9/24

Image - Changing Shores: What the Bay’s Past Can Tell Us about Its Future

Changing Shores: What the Bay’s Past Can Tell Us about Its Future

Date: Tue, September 24, 2013
Time: 6:00 PM

 

John Gillis, Ph.D., Professor of History, Emeritus, Rutgers University; Presenter, "What Happens when Shores Become Coasts”
Susan Schwartzenberg, Senior Artist, San Francisco Exploratorium; Presenter, "The Bay Observatory: Musings on the Water's Edge"
Robin Grossinger, Ph.D., Environmental Scientist, San Francisco Estuary Institute; Presenter, "Second Chance: Shaping the Future Bay”
Gray Brechin, Ph.D., Geographer – Moderator

The Save the Bay moment of the 1970s was a premier regional effort at environmental protection and presented a model to the world. It remains an unfinished project, however, for the San Francisco estuary, like all shores, is what Rachel Carson called an “elusive and indefinable boundary,” which can never be saved once and for all.

Today, we are working with perspectives of the Bay that are informed by a deeper, more fluid understanding of both geography and history. Research by Robin Grossinger and his colleagues at the San Francisco Estuary Institute informs us of what it was like before the arrival of Europeans. This is supplemented by John Gillis’ historical study of coasts and coastal peoples. Exploratorium artist Susan Schwartzenberg offers us the artist’s capacity to explore the future through the powers of the imagination.

Together, these three panelists will open up for us the future of the Bay as perceived by science and the arts. They will explore their subject as a regional enterprise, an ecological whole that must take into account all the Bay’s species, including our own.

MLF: Science & Technology / Arts / Environment & Natural Resources
Location: SF Club Office
Time: 5:30 p.m. networking reception, 6 p.m. program
Cost: $20 non-members, $8 members, $7 students (with valid ID) 
Program Organizer: Chisako Ress 
Also know: In association with the San Francisco Estuary Institute

Mon 9/30

Image - How to Turn Your Memories into History

How to Turn Your Memories into History

Date: Mon, September 30, 2013
Time: 5:15 PM

 

Francine Brevetti, Author; Biographer; Journalist

Brevetti transforms audiences into authors with her interactive, informative and entertaining presentations. You will be transported through time as you start writing your own life stories and begin the journey of turning memories into history. She will help explore why you want to write this story, what you want to achieve, and who will read it. Brevettiwill also provide guidance through visualization and exercises to revive memories, overcome writer’s block and realize that you can write a valuable life story.

MLF: Grownups
Location: SF Club Office
Time: 4:45 p.m. networking reception, 5:15 p.m. program
Cost: $20 non-members, MEMBERS FREE, $7 students (with valid ID)
Program Organizer: John Milford
Also know: In association with San Francisco Village 

 

 

Go to Middle East Discussion Group

Middle East Discussion Group

Date: Mon, September 30, 2013
Time: 5:30 PM

 

Make your voice heard in an enriching, provocative and fun discussion with fellow Club members as you weigh in on events shaping the face of the Middle East. Each month, the Middle East Member-Led Forum hosts an informal roundtable discussion on a topic frequently suggested by recent headlines.  After a brief introduction, the floor will be open for discussion. All interested members are encouraged to attend. There will also be a brief planning session

MLF: Middle East
Location: SF Club Office
Time: 5:30 p.m. program
Cost: FREE

Program Organizer: Celia Menczel

Wed 10/9

Go to Our Soil, Ourselves: What Ecological Farming Can Teach Us About Health and Healing

Our Soil, Ourselves: What Ecological Farming Can Teach Us About Health and Healing

Date: Wed, October 09, 2013
Time: 12:00 PM

Daphne Miller, M.D., Associate Clinical Professor, Department of Family and Community Medicine, UCSF; Author, Farmacology

 

Did you know that our biological makeup is similar to that of soil? This fascinating fact led practicing family physician Miller to ask: What can a family farmer teach a family doctor? So she spent time on seven ecological family farms, meeting inspiring farmers and renowned biomedical scientists. She will present their insights and research along with stories from her own medical practice.

MLF: Health & Medicine
Location: SF Club Office
Time: 11:30 a.m. check-in, noon program, 1 p.m. book signing
Cost: $20 non-members, $8 members, $7 students (with valid ID)
Program Organizer: Bill Grant

Wed 10/16

Go to Alzheimer's Disease: The Powerful Role of Nutrition

Alzheimer's Disease: The Powerful Role of Nutrition

Date: Wed, October 16, 2013
Time: 12:00 PM

Steve Blake, Doctor of Science, Nutritional Biochemistry; Author, Nutritional Approach to Alzheimer¹s Disease

What you eat may play a powerful role in determining your chance of developing Alzheimer's disease. Learn how folate and vitamin B12 lower the buildup of amyloid plaques by lowering homocysteine. Recent research shows that cooking methods can reduce the inflammation and oxidation in Alzheimer's disease. Blake will also discuss medical studies linking lowered risk of Alzheimer's disease to intake of antioxidant fruits and vegetables, as well as double-blind studies demonstrating which supplements and medical plants have been shown to be effective in reducing the risk and progression of this common dementia.

 

MLF: Health & Medicine
Location: SF Club Office
Time: 11:30 a.m. check-in, noon program, 1 p.m. book signing
Cost: $20 non-members, $8 members, $7 students (with valid ID)
Program Organizer: Bill Grant

 
 

Thu 10/17

Image - Ask Me Anything Live with Alexis Ohanian

Ask Me Anything Live with Alexis Ohanian

Date: Thu, October 17, 2013
Time: 6:30 PM

 

Alexis Ohanian, Co-founder, reddit, Breadpig and Hipmunk; YCombinator Ambassador

Reddit Founder Ohanian is ready to bare it all. INFORUM is going reddit-style with an AMA Live (Ask Me Anything) with Ohanian – so come ready to put this serial entrepreneur in the hot seat. He has funded startups through his company Das Kapital Capital, worked in Armenia for three months as a Kiva Fellow, and successfully led a campaign to overturn two Internet-affecting congressional bills. In his latest endeavor, Ohanian has taken to long form with his book Without Their Permission, detailing what the future of the Internet holds for aspiring entrepreneurs. Join us as we give Ohanian the third degree, Live at INFORUM – and you won’t miss a beat as we document the AMA with a real-time reddit stream.

Location: SF Club Office
Time: 6 p.m. check-in, 6:30 p.m. program, 7:30 p.m. reception and book signing
Cost: General: $20 non-members, $12 members, $7 students (with valid ID); Premium (includes book, reserved seating and premium reception with speakers. Limited to 65 guests): $50 non-members, $35 members
Also know: Photo courtesy of Flickr user Roo Reynolds

Mon 10/28

Go to Middle East Discussion Group

Middle East Discussion Group

Date: Mon, October 28, 2013
Time: 5:30 PM

 

Make your voice heard in an enriching, provocative and fun discussion with fellow Club members as you weigh in on events shaping the face of the Middle East. Each month, the Middle East Member-Led Forum hosts an informal roundtable discussion on a topic frequently suggested by recent headlines.  After a brief introduction, the floor will be open for discussion. All interested members are encouraged to attend. There will also be a brief planning session

MLF: Middle East
Location: SF Club Office
Time: 5:30 p.m. program
Cost: FREE

Program Organizer: Celia Menczel