First, secret heroes. We know the role of presidents and other leaders in shaping history, however we hear little about the unsung heroes; many who have risked their lives to liberate and rescue others. Who might some of those secret heroes be? We are joined by Paul Martin author of Secret Heroes: Everyday Americans Who Shaped Our World. [ dur: 14 mins. ]

Paul Martin is journalist, author and editor. He is the author of Secret Heroes: Everyday Americans Who Shaped Our World.

New sustainable ownership models are emerging with groups, unions, and entire communities coming together to co-own their workplaces, homes, and sources of credit. We speak with Marjory Kelly, author of Owning Our Future: The Emerging Ownership Revolutions. [ dur: 30 mins. ]

Marjorie Kelly is the Senior Fellow and Executive Vice President of The Democracy Collaborative. She is also an Associate Fellow at the Tellus Institute. She is the author of The Divine Right of Capital: Dethroning the Corporate Aristocracy and Owning Our Future: The Emerging Ownership Revolution by Marjorie Kelly (2012-06-04).

Finally, are some green solutions unhelpful for the environment or worse, do they actually harm it? Heather Rogers is the author of Green Gone Wrong: How Our Economy Is Undermining the Environmental Revolution. [ dur: 14 mins. ]

Heather Rogers is journalist and author. She is the author of Gone Tomorrow: The Hidden Life of Garbage and Green Gone Wrong: How Our Economy Is Undermining the Environmental Revolution.

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Scholars' Circle Interviews

Scholars’ Circle – Oceans, life on the line – June 25, 2017

June 24, 2017 host

Ocean life is under threat by multiple stressors: climate change, acidification, plastics, pollution, overfishing, overexploitation. We spend the hour with four experts of the seas. We discuss the realities facing our oceans and strides we’re making to protect, recover, and restore our oceans.

Simon Thrush is Head of the Institute of Marine Science at the University of Auckland in New Zealand. His publications include the research papers Real world biodiversity-ecosystem functioning: A seafloor perspective, The up-scaling of ecosystem functions in a heterogeneous world, Altered sea ice thickness and permanence affects benthic ecosystem functioning in Coastal Antarctica.
Rochelle Constantine is senior lecturer and marine biologist at the University of Auckland in New Zealand. Her publications include the research papers Genotype-based estimates of local abundance and effective population size for Hector’s dolphins, Population structure of humpback whales in the western and central South Pacific Ocean as determined by vocal exchange among populations, and Environmental correlates of nearshore habitat distribution by the Critically Endangered Maūi dolphin.
Mohd Nordin Hassan is the founding director and Professor Emeritus at the Institute for Environment and Development (LESTARI) of the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. His publications include the book chapter International Experience in Ecosystem Services and Management in China, and the research paper Towards sustainable development? The evolution of environmental policy is Malaysia.
Daniel C. Hikuroa is senior lecturer at the Faculty of Arts in the University of Auckland in New Zealand. His publications include the research papers Maniapoto Upper Waipa River Fisheries Plan and Sea Change – Tai Timu Tai Pari.

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Scholars' Circle Interviews

Scholars’ Circle – Promoting GMO to Mexico by US State Department Diplomats -/- Effects of UK and France Elections – June 18, 2017

June 17, 2017 host

Is the US State Department using its diplomatic efforts to push genetically modified foods into other countries? Our guest says yes. She traced US multi-pronged effort to persuade Mexico to allow genetically modified foods.[ dur: 23 mins. ]

Yadira Ixchel Martínez Pantoja, PhD candidate in Politics and International Relations at the University of Auckland. Her recent paper is titled, United States promotion of GM foods: the use of public diplomacy strategies and instruments to target government agencies in Mexico.

Then, what will the elections in UK and France mean for the geopolitics with the US and the world? We’ll explore what may be in the global political forecast. [ dur: 35 mins. ]

Jeroen Dewulf is Associate Professor in the Department of German, Director of the Institute of European Studies, and Director of the Dutch Studies Program at University of California at Berkeley. He is the author of The Pinkster King and the King of Kongo: The Forgotten History of America’s Dutch-Owned Slaves and Spirit of Resistance: Dutch Clandestine Literature during the Nazi Occupation.
Patrick Chamorel is Senior Resident Scholar at the Stanford University Center in Washington DC. He is the author of article Now it’s France’s Turn, Aspirations and Reality: French foreign policy and the 2012 elections, and the book chapter Anti-Europeanism and Euroskeptisicm in the United States
Mark Amsler is Director of the Europe Institute at the University of Auckland and Professor of Languages. He is the author of Affective Literacies: Writing and Multilingualism in the Later Middle Ages.

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Scholars' Circle Interviews

Scholars’ Circle – Political Corruptions it’s history, causes, effects and remedies – June 11, 2017

June 10, 2017 host

We spend the hour discussing corruption, particularly political corruption, its history, causes, costs to society and possible remedies.[ dur: 58mins. ]

Paul Heywood is Sir Francis Hill Professor of European Politics at the University of Nottingham in UK. He is the author of the Routledge Handbook of Political Corruption, and the co-editor of Debates of Corruption and Integrity: Perspectives from Europe and the US.
Susan Rose-Ackerman is Professor of Law and Political Science at Yale University. Her publications include, Corruption and Government: Causes, Consequences, and Reform, Corruption: A Study in Political Economy and Anti-Corruption Policy: Can International Actors Play a Constructive Role?
Bruce Buchan is Professor of Political Science at Griffith University in Australia. His publications include An Intellectual History of Political Corruption: From Antiquity to 1800 and The Empire of Political Thought: Indigenous Australians and the Language of Colonial Government.

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Scholars’ Circle – Future of Europe – June 4, 2017

June 3, 2017 host

Today’s Scholars’ Circle was recorded before a live audience and explored the future of Europe, and whether the election of Macron gave signals about how the European Union would manage both internal and external issues.

Simon Green is Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Executive Dean of the School of Languages and Social Sciences at Aston University, UK. He is the author of The Politics of Exclusion: Institutions and Immigration Policy in Contemporary Germany. He is co-author of The Politics of the New Germany, and co-editor of Understanding the Transformation of Germany’s CDU.
John Morgan is Professor in the School of Education and Pedagogy at the University of Auckland, New Zealand. He is the author of research papers: Schooling the Crisis?, Education in the Aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis, and What do we mean by thinking geographically?
Mark Amsler is Director of the Europe Institute at the University of Auckland and Professor of Languages. He is the author of Affective Literacies: Writing and Multilingualism in the Later Middle Ages

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Scholars' Circle Interviews

Scholars’ Circle – Discoveries about x and y chromosomes -/- Celebrity Industrial Complex – May 28, 2017

May 28, 2017 host

First, scientific discoveries about x and y chromosomes are challenging what we know about what makes us male or female. [ dur: 16 mins. ]

Jeremy Nathans is Professor of molecular biology and genetics, neuroscience and ophthalmology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. His discoveries have changed our understanding of how humans see the world. link to Professor Jeremy Nathan’s lab
Melissa Wilson Sayres is Professor in the School of Life Sciences and The Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University. Her research interests are in sex chromosome evolution, sex-biased processes, population genetics, and comparative genomics. Melissa Wilson Sayres research papers

Then, on the Scholars’ Circle panel, what is the celebrity industrial complex? How does it impact our democracies, our culture and society? [ dur: 43 mins. ]

Joshua Gamson is a Professor of Sociology at the University of San Francisco. He is the author of The Fabulous Sylvester: The Legend, The Music, The Seventies in San Francisco, Freaks Talk Back: Tabloid Talk Shows and Sexual Nonconformity and Claims to Fame: Celebrity in Contemporary America.
David Gilles is a Professor in Media Psychology at the University of Winchester. He is the author of Psychology of the media, Media psychology and Illusions of immortality: A psychology of fame and celebrity.
P. David Marshall is a Professor and Chair in New Media, Communication and Cultural Studies at Deakin University, Australia. He is the author of Celebrity and Power: Fame in Contemporary Culture, New Media Cultures and The Celebrity Culture Reader.

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Scholars' Circle Interviews

Scholars’ Circle – Insight into Russian Politics in Patronal System (2 of 2 ) -/- Discussion on “Just War Theory” – May 21, 2017

May 20, 2017 host

First, while many in the West decry the politics of the former Soviet Union countries as corrupt and anti-democratic, our guest argues that there are much better ways of understanding the processes and politics of patronal systems. This is part 2 of 2 part interview with Professor Henry E. Hale. You can find part one here. [ dur: 24 mins. ]

Henry E. Hale is Associate Professor of Political Science and International Affairs at The George Washington University. His books include Patronal Politics: Eurasian Regime Dynamics in Comparative Perspective, The Foundations of Ethnic Politics: Separatism of States and Nations in Eurasia and the World and Why Not Parties in Russia? Democracy, Federalism, and the State.

Then, on the Scholars’ Circle panel, What exactly is “Just(ified) war theory”? And can it be applied to modern warfare? [ dur: 35 mins. ]

Jeff McMahan is a Professor of Philosophy at Rutgers University. He is the author of Killing in War, The Ethics of Killing: Problems at the Margins of Life and editor of Ethics and Humanity: Themes from the Philosophy of Jonathan Glover
Heather Roff is a Professor of International Studies at the University of Denver. She is the author of Global Justice, Kant and the Responsibility to Protect: A Provisional Duty (Global Politics and the Responsibility to Protect) .
Thomas Gregory is a lecturer of Political Studies at the University of Auckland. He is the author of “Drones – mapping the legal debate”.

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Scholars' Circle Interviews

Scholars’ Circle – Insight into Russian Politics in Patronal System (1 of 2 ) -/- Past History of US Corporation’s Public Purpose – May 14, 2017

May 13, 2017 host

First, while many in the West decry the politics of the former Soviet Union countries as corrupt and anti-democratic, our guest argues that there are much better ways of understanding the processes and politics of patronal systems. This is part one of a two part discussion with Professor Henry Hale. You can find Part 2 here. [ dur: 22 mins. ]

Henry E. Hale is Associate Professor of Political Science and International Affairs at The George Washington University. His books include Patronal Politics: Eurasian Regime Dynamics in Comparative Perspective, The Foundations of Ethnic Politics: Separatism of States and Nations in Eurasia and the World and Why Not Parties in Russia? Democracy, Federalism, and the State.

Finally, on the Scholars’ Circle panel, once upon a time, corporations were required to have a public purpose and once they fulfilled it, they were dissolved. How did we get to where we are today & what does it mean for democracy? [ dur: 36 mins. ]

Richard Abrams, is Professor of History, UC Berkeley. He is the author of America Transformed: Sixty Years of Revolutionary Change, 1941-2001
Paul Pierson, is Professor of Political Science, UC Berkeley. He is the co-author of Winner-Take-All Politics: How Washington Made the Rich Richer–and Turned Its Back on the Middle Class
Scott Bowman, is Professor and Chair of Political Science Department at California State University, Los Angeles (CSU-LA). He is the author of The Modern Corporation and American Political Thought: Law, Power, and Ideology

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Scholars’ Circle – Media for Ultraconservative movement -/- Since LA unrest, what has changed? – May 7, 2017

May 6, 2017 host 1 Comment

First, the roots of the ultraconservative media movement. Nicole Hemmer is the author of Messengers of the Right: Conservative Media and the Transformation of American Politics.

Nicole Hemmer is Professor of Presidential Studies at University of Virginia. She is the author of Messengers of the Right: Conservative Media and the Transformation of American Politics

Then, 25 years after the LA civil unrest, what has changed?

Manuel Pastor is Professor of Sociology and American studies and Ethnicity at University of Southern California ( USC ). He is co-author of following books, Equity, Growth, and Community: What the Nation Can Learn from America’s Metro Areas, This Could Be the Start of Something Big: How Social Movements for Regional Equity Are Reshaping Metropolitan America, Uncommon Common Ground: Race and America’s Future and Just Growth: Inclusion and Prosperity in America’s Metropolitan Regions

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Scholars' Circle Interviews

Scholars’ Circle – Brexit implications -/- North Korea Insight – April 30, 2017

April 30, 2017 host

The political implications of Brexit. [ dur: 29mins. ]

Paul P. Craig is currently Professor of English Law at the University of Oxford and a Fellow of St John’s College. Professor Craig is a specialist in Administrative and EU Law. He is the author of Britain Alone. The Implications and Consequences of United Kingdom Exit from the EU [Brexit].

Then, on the Scholars’ Circle, making sense of the politics of North Korea. This discussion was recorded and originally aired on April 2013. [ dur: 28mins. ]

For a transcript of this interview, please visit: TheBigQ

Stephan Haggard is the Lawrence and Sallye Krause Professor of Korea-Pacific Studies, director of the Korea-Pacific Program, and distinguished professor of political science at the School. He is the author of the book Witness to Transformation: Refugee Insights into North Korea
Jacques E.C. Hymans is associate professor of international relations at the University of Southern California. He is author of Achieving Nuclear Ambitions: Scientists, Politicians, and Proliferation and The Psychology of Nuclear Proliferation: Identity, Emotions and Foreign Policy.
Charles K. Armstrong, Professor of Korean Studies at Colombia University. He is the author of The North Korean Revolution, 1945-1950

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The Scholars' Circle Interviews

Scholars’ Circle – Secret Heroes -/- Ownership Revolution -/- Green Gone Wrong – July 2, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Oceans, life on the line – June 25, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Promoting GMO to Mexico by US State Department Diplomats -/- Effects of UK and France Elections – June 18, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Political Corruptions it’s history, causes, effects and remedies – June 11, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Future of Europe – June 4, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Insight into Russian Politics in Patronal System (2 of 2 ) -/- Discussion on “Just War Theory” – May 21, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Insight into Russian Politics in Patronal System (1 of 2 ) -/- Past History of US Corporation’s Public Purpose – May 14, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Media for Ultraconservative movement -/- Since LA unrest, what has changed? – May 7, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Brexit implications -/- North Korea Insight – April 30, 2017

By Maria Armoudian