Online events w) Jonathon Porritt, Gilbert Achcar, Mariana Mazzucato, Javier Cordova, etc.

Upcoming Online Events:

Tue, 7/20, 10:30 am -- Sarah Jaffe hosts... Guerrilla Democracy: Mobile Power and Revolution -- Join us on the launch day of the new book 'Guerrilla Democracy: Mobile Power and Revolution in the 21st Century' from Dr Peter Bloom and OUBS academics Dr Owain Smolović Jones and Dr Jamie Woodcock -- Hosted by acclaimed author and labour journalist Sarah Jaffe, the event will discuss key themes from the book and their relevance for contemporary work and social struggles: Has the liberating potential of big data and digital media been dealt a fatal blow by the nightmare of election meddling, privacy invasion and the oppressions of the gig economy? Is there still a pathway for liberation and emancipation through digital technology and what does that look like? Who is the Guerrilla Democrat and how can we all cultivate our inner guerrillas? Sarah and the authors will be discussing these issues and more in relation to current struggles – from Deliveroo, Uber and refuse worker strikes through to battles for human dignity and justice in the face of oppressive state power -- With Dr Peter Bloom, Professor of Management at the University of Essex; Dr Owain Smolovic Jones, director of The Open University's Research into Employment, Empowerment and Futures; and Dr Jamie Woodcock, a senior lecturer at the Open University and author of The Fight Against Platform Capitalism,and The Gig Economy:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/sarah-jaffe-hosts-guerrilla-democracy-mobile-power-and-revolution-tickets-160006127635?aff=erellivmlt&keep_tld=1

Tue, 7/20, 11 am -- Jonathon Porritt - "Hope in Hell" confronts today’s Climate Emergency and is the title of his latest book which he says was the hardest to write because we have left everything too late -- Jonathon is one of the most well-known and longstanding contributors to the environmental movement and is a founding member of Forum for the Future which launched in 1996. The forum works globally with business and government to create a future which is sustainable. Jonathon writes, “I’ve been in that world for a very long time (having joined the Green Party in 1974), but I genuinely can’t recall ever feeling the same intense combination of despair and hope.":
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/jonathon-porritt-hope-in-hell-tickets-161197499059?keep_tld=1


Wed, 7/21, 9 am -- Israel-Palestine: The shift in Western sentiment and the Way Forward -- This will be a panel discussion on how recent months may have potentially led to a shift in western perception on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict -- Our esteemed panelists will explore how the Black Lives Matter Movement, social media, the end of the Trump administration and additionally the political dynamics within both Israeli and other Middle Eastern Countries political systems, including foreign policy, impacted and led to this shift. We also hope to offer a space to discuss where we were, where we are (the recent political developments in Israel, for instance) and where we are going (or should go) regarding the conflict -- With Professor Gilbert Achcar, Professor of Development Studies and International Relations at SOAS, University of London, since 2007, and author of several books, including The Middle East and U.S. Foreign Policy, co-authored with Noam Chomsky; Dr Nadia Naser-Najjab, a lecturer in Palestine Studies at the European Centre of Palestine Studies-Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies at the University of Exeter, and author of ‘Dialogue in Palestine, The People to People Diplomacy Programme and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict’; and Peter Beinart, a Professor of Journalism and Political Science at the City University of New York, and Editor-at-Large of Jewish Currents:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/israel-palestine-the-shift-in-western-sentiment-and-the-way-forward-tickets-161502505341?aff=ebdssbonlinesearch

Wed, 7/21, 9 am -- You are invited to join the Green Swans Book club members in conversation with Mariana Mazzucato to discuss her latest book, Mission Economy: A Moonshot Guide to Changing Capitalism -- Mission Economy looks at the grand challenges facing us in a radically new way, arguing that we must rethink the capacities and role of the government within the economy and society and, above all, recover a sense of public purpose -- Mariana Mazzucato is a Professor in the Economics of Innovation and Public Value at University College London. She is the Founding Director of the UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose, Chair of the World Health Organization's Council on the Economics of Health for All, and a member of the Scottish Government's Council of Economic Advisers, South Africa's Economic Advisory Council and the United Nations High-Level Advisory Board on Economic and Social Affairs:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-green-swans-book-club-with-mariana-mazzucato-hosted-by-volans-tickets-161887617221?aff=erellivmlt&keep_tld=1

Wed, 7/21, 10 am -- Debate: Abolish Billionaires -- A recent report by ProPublica showed that many of America’s richest billionaires paid virtually no taxes over the past decade. The Left worries that these concentrations of wealth and inequalities are distorting democracy. The billionaire Koch brothers, for example, have built a network of organizations that pool millions from their own pockets in support of conservative causes, leadership training, election campaigning and advocacy. Abolishing billionaires might sound like a radical idea, but cutting the power of the super rich is necessary to redress inequality and to protect democracy -- That's the view of the radical Left but many believe billionaires are actually a sign of a healthy economy. Take WhatsApp founders Brian Acton and Jason Koum. When they sold to Facebook they pocketed a combined $15 billion - but the 1.5 billion WhatsApp users now have a free way to communicate with their loved ones and colleagues. A blanket assertion that billionaire wealth is impossible in a competitive free market is wrong; and anti-billionaire policies would do significant economic damage to innovation we so vitally need in the post pandemic world -- So who's right and who's wrong? Join the debate on July 21, hear the arguments and make up your own mind.
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/debate-abolish-billionaires-registration-161080051771?aff=ebdssbonlinesearch&keep_tld=1

Wed, 7/21, 3 pm -- Let's Talk... Conversations on Race, Equity, & Belonging -- It's been a year since George Floyd's murder and our nation has been re-awakened to the systemic racism that exists.... So, Let's Talk... -- There is still SO MUCH to talk about when it comes to systemic racism and often times there is not a safe space with which to have these conversations, ask questions, self reflect, learn from others and identify the next action step. Let's Talk...Conversations about Race, Equity & Belonging is a SAFE space for all colors, all races, and all ethnicities in which to grow ourselves and our community to create a more inclusive world -- In July, we will discuss CodeSwitching... Have you ever had to alter your personality, "tone it down", "dumb it down", change the way you speak, use certain words / language in order to fit in and make others feel comfortable. Have you had to "change the REAL you" to be a part of a dominant culture? If you answer yes, this conversation is for you. If you answered no, this conversation is for you. Learn from our expert panelists on the topic of CODE SWITCHING and how we can create a more INCLUSIVE culture where code switching doesn't have to exist...:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/lets-talk-conversations-on-race-equity-belonging-tickets-150565055133

Wed, 7/21, 4 pm -- Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker -- The true story of what took place in Donald Trump’s White House during a disastrous 2020 has never before been told in full. In I Alone Can Fix It, Pulitzer-Prize winning reporters Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker reveal the Trump presidency’s inner workings in unprecedented, stunning detail. Leonnig and Rucker will be in conversation with Nicolle Wallace, the anchor of MSNBC’s “Deadline: White House,” and the former White House Communications Director under President George W. Bush:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/carol-leonnig-and-philip-rucker-tickets-162697794483?aff=ebdssbonlinesearch

Wed, 7/21, 4 pm -- After Dinner Conversations about Peace and Justice -- Our second After Dinner Conversation will feature Guadalupe Ramírez and Ben Blevins of Highland Support Project. We will speak with Lupe on her work in Guatemala and her fair trade store, AlterNatives Boutique, which has been a space where indigenous peoples can compete in the global marketplace. The conversation about development work and social justice issues will include Ben’s work on the Apache White Mountain Reservation and the social justice issues that the Apache reservation faces:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/after-dinner-conversations-about-peace-and-justice-tickets-163212052643?aff=erelexpmlt

Wed, 7/21, 6 pm -- Puerto Rico Colonialism and class struggle by Javier Cordova -- Javier Cordova is Vice President of the Association of University Professors and member of Democracia Socialista in Puerto Rico. We learn about the current struggles of the working class in the colonial context and its relation to US imperialism. He will discuss on this issue from Puerto Rico:
https://laborfest.net/event/puerto-rico-ricardo/


Thu, 7/22, 10:30 am -- Just because you can, does it mean you should? -- Ethics in Artificial Intelligence (AI) -- AI is increasingly used in an ever-wider variety of contexts such as pre-filtering job applicants, assessing credit applications or supporting medical diagnoses. There are an increasing number of examples where such approaches have had unintended and potentially unethical consequences. For example (i) previously established recruitment/selection approaches can be reinforced potentially making decisions based on gender, race and age, and (ii) the ethics of AI usage can become questionable in applications involving autonomous vehicles and/or weaponry -- With Dr Beth Singler, Junior Research Fellow in Artificial Intelligence at Homerton College, University of Cambridge; Maria Luciana Axente, Responsible AI and AI for Good Lead at PwC; and Dr Neil Lawrence, Inaugural DeepMind Professor of Machine Learning at the University of Cambridge:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/just-because-you-can-does-it-mean-you-should-tickets-162256093343?aff=ebdssbonlinesearch&keep_tld=1

Thu, 7/22, 11 am -- #restartingthefuture - Reflections on a better future for people and planet -- A collaboration between Icarus Complex, Where the Leaves Fall and It's Freezing in LA -- We have created an event series exploring themes around climate change and nature connection -- Icarus Complex: As the social and ecological systems become more grievously impacted by the climate crisis, designers have had to not only reexamine the raw material of designed objects and ideas but also the flow of resources and power that makes design possible -- Where The Leaves Fall: Writer and editorTim Leeson will be in conversation with ecological artist, and founder of the Seed Bibiloteek, Zayaan Khan to discuss how food can be used as a tool for healing, feeding, creating and problem solving -- It's Freezing in LA: IFLA will discuss interspecies collaboration, economics and neighbourhood activism through the work of the Phytology project, a London based land initiative focused on nurturing a range of creative and eco-centric strategies to regenerate and protect public space:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/restartingthefuture-reflections-on-a-better-future-for-people-and-planet-tickets-163015061437?aff=ebdssbonlinesearch

Thu, 7/22, 11 am -- Our biggest experiment: a history of the climate crisis -- Our exploration of the Earth’s fluctuating environment is an extraordinary story of human perception and scientific endeavour. It also began much earlier than we might think -- Join Alice Bell as she explores climate change science’s earliest steps in the 18th and 19th centuries, through the point when concern started to rise in the 1950s and right up to today, where the ‘debate’ is over and the world is finally starting to face up to our reality -- In this talk, Alice discusses the hopeful message that harnessing the ingenuity and intelligence that has driven the history of climate change research can mean a more sustainable and bearable future for humanity:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/our-biggest-experiment-a-history-of-the-climate-crisis-tickets-156883955133?aff=ebdssbonlinesearch&keep_tld=1

Thu, 7/22, 11:30 am -- Reflection and Action on Climate in your Parish/Local Community -- The Focolare Movement in Great Britain invites you to the third and final event in our series Countdown to COP26: Time to Think – Time to Act -- This November, the UK is hosting the crucial UN climate talks (COP26) in Glasgow. This offers a vital opportunity to call on our leaders to deliver a successful summit that protects the most vulnerable and the Common Home on which we all depend -- With Maria Elena Arana, Campaign Outreach Coordinator at CAFOD: Climate Sunday and CAFOD's climate campaigns; Eileen McQuade, Focolare Volunteer; and John Paul de Quay and Eleanor Margetts, Ecological Conversion Group:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/reflection-and-action-on-climate-in-your-parishlocal-community-tickets-161804384269?aff=ebdssbonlinesearch&keep_tld=1

Thu, 7/22, 11:30 am -- Cultivating Community Imagination: The New Economy -- Learn from our panelists about the ways in which they are engaging their imagination to reimagine land ownership and our local economies -- With Deric Gruen, co-convener of the People's Economy Lab, whose mission is to connect and align visionary community-based leaders and build their capacity to reshape our local economy, and Co-Executive Director for Policy and Programs at Front and Centered, a statewide coalition of communities of color for climate justice; and Tepa Vaina, who was born and raised on the island of Tutuila in American Samoa, and whi serves on the staff of UTOPIA WA as the Program Director:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/cultivating-community-imagination-the-new-economy-tickets-157271656759?aff=ebdssbonlinesearch


Sat, 7/24, 5 pm -- People’s Park, UC and Privatization -- The ongoing battle to prevent the development of People’s Park in Berkeley by the millionaire UC Regents continues unabated. This panel will talk about this history and how the corporatization and privatization of UC is pushing to privatize the University for the profiteers -- With Harvey Smith, President, National New Deal Preservation Association and Michael Delacour, Boilermaker Local 6 and Organizer of Fight To Defend People’s Park:
https://laborfest.net/event/world-poets/


Fri, 8/6, 8 am thru Sat, 8/7, 5 pm -- 7th Soil Not Oil Virtual Conference "Our Food Our Medicine".-- This conference, will focus on practical solutions to the various problems that impact us all -- From the four crises humanity currently faces --on public health, job loss, climate instability and extensive food insecurity-- a local, sustainable, organic production of food following key agroecological principles can serve as a holistic solution that can easily be implemented planet wide -- Organized by the Soil Not Oil Coalition -- We are part of a global-growing movement leaded by scientists, environmental organizations and citizens who share concerns and collect data that proves the decline in soil health, which is the result of the use of fossil fuels since the 1800's and the extended use of agro-chemicals in industrial agriculture since the 1960's. Those factors, along with deforestation, acidification of the ocean and disruption of ecological cycles, have created a problem that only can be solved with educating on tools available to sequester carbon back into the soils. We believe that restructuring land management practices is key to combating climate change, restoring water cycles, reducing global environmental pollution, stopping ocean acidification, re-establishing biodiversity, improving food production and revitalizing local economies across the planet. The Soil Not Oil Coalition promotes research and further understanding to optimize soil carbon sequestration and sustainability, to aid in the development of adequate food production for future generations and to help reverse the effects of global warming:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/7th-soil-not-oil-virtual-conference-our-food-our-medicine-tickets-158259914665?aff=ebdssbonlinesearch