All posts by host

Scholars’ Circle – MLK legacy on Politics and BLM movement of 21st century ; Book Author interview – By the Numbers – January 14, 2024

To commemorate the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. we explore the impact of Dr. King and his memory on contemporary issues, including the role of women in the movement and the security of people of color as embodied in the Black Lives Matter movement. What is the meaning of Dr. King’s dream today? [ dur: 30mins. ]

*This was part of a panel discussion recorded January 2023. To hear the entire discussion please visit: here.

How did better understandings of mathematical concepts and the rise in numeracy rates change society, politics, philosophy and science? And what did it mean for religion? We explore how educating ordinary people, the adoption of Arabic numerals, alongside related changes transformed early modern England. [ dur: 28mins. ]

This program is produced by Maria Armoudian, Doug Becker, Ankine Aghassian and Sudd Dongre.

Scholars’ Circle – Book interview, Abundant University, remaking higher education for a Digital World; Why is liberal arts education necessary? – January 7, 2024

For many people, access to universities for study and degrees is a means to future economic success. So families sacrifice to pay for this education, or often take out substantial loans to cover the cost. But what if universities opened their access and became truly abundant as a societal resource. Economist Michael Smith, in his new book The Abundant University, makes the case for rethinking access to higher education. [ dur: 28mins. ]

Universities want to appeal to their students, who increasingly look to their schooling as a training period for future employment. But this puts traditional liberal arts departments like philosophy at risk. We examine the future of liberal arts education in light of the trend to silo student training into pre-professional programs at the undergraduate level. [ dur: 30mins. ]

This program is produced by Maria Armoudian, Doug Becker, Ankine Aghassian and Sudd Dongre.

Scholars’ Circle – Knowledge of politics in a democracy and Insight into trees as a way to mitigate CO2 in the atmosphere – December 31, 2023

Why do people seem to know so little about politics? And what does that mean for democracy? We speak with Arthur Lupia author of Uninformed: Why People Know So Little About Politics and What We Can Do About It. [ dur: 27mins. ]

Governments and others have advocated to offset carbon emission by planting more trees. But is this really the long term solution? Our experts say it won’t be enough. And in some cases, in can make matters worse. [ dur: 31mins. ]

This program is produced by Maria Armoudian, Doug Becker, Ankine Aghassian and Sudd Dongre.

Scholars’ Circle – COP28 meeting outcome – December 24, 2023

The latest climate change meetings, Cop-28, just ended in Dubai. After an initial pessimism about an agreement, with controversies over leadership and the location of the meetings, there were some intriguing breakthroughs. The meeting yielded new agreements on a loss and damage fund and a transition from fossil fuels. But many of previous agreements have yet to be implemented. What does that mean for addressing climate change? What exactly was accomplished by this meeting, and what remains on the agenda for future meetings. [ dur: 58mins. ]

This program is produced by Maria Armoudian, Doug Becker, Ankine Aghassian and Sudd Dongre.

Scholars’ Circle – Henry Kissinger forging memorable trail of destruction when he pursued foreign policy for United States and others – December 16, 2023

Henry Kissinger was perhaps among the most influential people on US foreign policy and global events, fr which some consider him a war criminal. How should Kissinger be remembered? What does this answer say about the US in the world?

In 1979 Vietnam invaded Cambodia, a country ravaged by a war partly caused by US bombings, and overthrew the genocidal Khmer Rouge government. What have been the consequences of that decision? We explore the reasons for this invasion with the author of a new book.

This program is produced by Maria Armoudian, Doug Becker, Ankine Aghassian and Sudd Dongre.

Scholars’ Circle – Democracy is eroding in United States, why and how to stop the decline – December 10, 2023

Democracy is eroding in the United States? What are the causes and what should be done? Is the erosion of democracy because of political elites and specifically the reaction of the Republican Party to the 2020 election? Or does it run deeper? [ dur: 58mins. ]

Recorded February 2022.

This program is produced by Maria Armoudian, Doug Becker, Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin and Sudd Dongre.

Scholars’ Circle – Addressing Homelessness in America, what is needed? – December 3, 2023

Over a half million Americans are currently homeless. What is causing this crisis? And what are the solutions? How do we get the resources to build the housing we need to address the homelessness crisis?

We discuss why services to address mental health and addiction are essential to resolving the homelessness crisis. [ dur: 58mins. ]

This recording is from December 2022.

This program is produced by Ankine Aghassian, Doug Becker, Melissa Chiprin, Mihika Chechi, and Sudd Dongre.

Scholars’ Circle – Sounds of nature ; Thanksgiving (history and memory) – November 26, 2023

How does deep listening to nature promote biodiversity and a deeper relationship with the natural world?

Book Cover of Civil War by Other Means has an red X on the title of the book

We discuss the book THE SOUNDS OF LIFE: How Digital Technology Is Bringing Us Closer to the World of Animals and Plants. [ dur: 34mins. ]

References to clips of nature sound recordings included in the interview with Karen Bakker :

The American Thanksgiving story is one of cooperation and coexistence between white European settlers and the native peoples. But the real story is much darker.
How does this Thanksgiving narrative get the history wrong?

We discuss the history, the memory, and the meaning of Thanksgiving in the contemporary relationship between the United States and Indigenous people. [ dur: 24mins. ]

This show was recorded November 27, 2022.

This program is produced by Ankine Aghassian, Doug Becker, Mihika Chechi and Sudd Dongre.

Scholars’ Circle – Osage Nation (tribe): history, oil, murders and gender dynamics – November 19, 2023

With the release of the critically acclaimed new film, Killers of the Flower Moon, there is a new interest in the murders of the Osage tribe following the discovery of oil on tribal lands. But how much do we know about the Osage, their history, and their life experiences? And how typical was this particularly gruesome set of murders on tribes in the US and in particular in Oklahoma. On Today’s show, we will explore the history of the Osage. We will get to know their story in greater detail and ask, what did the film get right and what did it miss? [ dur: 35mins. ]

  • Robert Warrior is Hall Distinguished Professor of American Literature and Culture at the University of Kansas. He is a citizen of the Osage Nation. He is the author of Tribal Secrets: Recovering American Indian Intellectual Traditions. He is past president of the American Studies Association and was the founding president of the Native American and Indigenous Studies Association. Professor Warrior was the founding co-editor of Native American and Indigenous Studies and edits the Indigenous Americas series. In 2018, he was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
  • Robert Miller is Professor of Law at Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University. He is Interim Chief Justice at Pascua Yaqui Tribe Court of Appeals. He is an enrolled citizen of the Eastern Shawnee Tribe. In 2014, he was elected to the American Philosophical Society. He is the author of A Promise Kept: The Muscogee (Creek) Nation and McGirt v Oklahoma. You can access the Scholars’ Circle interview on the book A Promise Kept here. .

In addition to highlighting the violence against the Osage, the film Killers of the Flower Moon focuses on the distinctly gendered relationships between the Osage and their white spouses. The film itself focuses on Osage women (notably Lily Gladstone’s Molly) and their white husbands. So, what were the gender dynamics of the Osage people? [ dur: 23mins. ]

This program is produced by Ankine Aghassian, Doug Becker, Mihika Chechi and Sudd Dongre.

Scholars’ Circle – Insight into LGBTQ+ communities impacted by global politics – November 12, 2023

LGBTQ communities are marginalized in so many places around the world. While their presence in international politics is growing, they still face quite a lot of threats and challenges. We explore LGBTQ communities and their impact on global politics.

This program is produced by Ankine Aghassian, Doug Becker, Mihika Chechi and Sudd Dongre.