Tag Archives: Society and Culture

Scholars’ Circle – US and international response to Covid-19 vaccine & Decolonizing the language of arms control – December 13, 2020

December 12, 2020 host

Promise in a new Covid-19 vaccine is tempered by the huge spike in cases in the United States. What lessons will nations learn from the virus response and when can we expect to control the pandemic? [ dur: 27mins. ]

Mark Peterson is Professor of Public Policy, Political Science, and Law at the University of California, Los Angeles. He is the author of Legislating Together: The White House and Capital Hill from Eisenhower to Reagan and the editor of Healthy Markets? The New Competition in Medical Care and co-editor of the volume Institutions of American Democracy: The Executive Branch.
Heather Wipfli is an Associate Professor of Clinical Preventive Medicine and International Relations at the University of Southern California (USC). She is the author of Investigating global mental health: Contributions from political science and Network influences on policy implementation: Evidence from a global health treaty.

Arms control discourses are centered around western notions of modernity and civilization. What does it mean to decolonize the language around arms control? [ dur: 30mins. ]

Ritu Mathur is Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science and Geography at the University of Texas at San Antonio. She is the author of Civilizational Discourses in Weapons Control.

This program is produced by the following team members: Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars’ Circle – Impact of Women who lead nations in times of Covid-19 pandemic – November 29, 2020

November 28, 2020 host

The popular media narrative is that countries led by women are performing better with Covid. But is this really true? And if so, what are the reasons? Is it the nature of leadership or is it the values of society that determine the successes or failures of governments confronting Covid? Hosted by Doug Becker. [ dur: 58mins. ]

Leah Windsor is a Research Assistant Professor in the Institute for Intelligent Systems at The University of Memphis where she directs the Languages Across Cultures and Languages Across Modalities labs. She is co-author of Women_Leaders_and_Covid_Fatalities and Women World Leaders and The Language of the Political Double Bind.
Jennifer M. Piscopo is Associate Professor of Politics at Occidental College. Her research on representation, gender quotas, and legislative institutions in Latin America has appeared in leading academic journals and several edited volumes. With Susan Franceschet and Mona Lena Krook, she is editor of The Impact of Gender Quotas.
Gina Yannitell Reinhardt is Professor in Department of Government at the University of Essex. She is co-author of Women_Leaders_and_Covid_Fatalities and Competing for the Platform: The Politics of Interest Group Influence on Political Party Platforms in the United States.
Courtney Burns is Associate Professor of Political Science at Bucknell University. She is co-author of these articles Women_Leaders_and_Covid_Fatalities, Women World Leaders and The Language of the Political Double Bind and for Journal of human rights Female chief executives and state human rights practices: Self-fulfilling the political double bind

This program is produced by the following team members: Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars’ Circle – Contemporary Politics on overcoming controversial histories -/- Why all undergrad students must explore arts and humanities is explained – July 12, 2020

July 11, 2020 host

States with controversial histories struggle to overcome the memories and how it influences contemporary politics. We explore whether the US is haunted by its racist past and what it must do to overcome this history. [ dur: 19mins. ]

Jessica Auchter is UC Foundation Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science and Public Service at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. She is the author of The Politics of Haunting and Memory in International Relations.

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: 37mins. ]

Robert E. Williams, Jr. is Professor of Political Science at Pepperdine University. He is the co-author of Seeking Security in an Insecure World and the co-editor of Arms Control: History, Theory, and Policy.
Alexandra Monchick is Associate Professor of Musicology at California State University, Northridge. She is the author of Critical Thinking and Writing Strategies in the Music Bibliography Classroom.
Michael Theune is Professor of English and University Writing Program Director at Illinois Wesleyan University. He is the co-author of We Need to Talk: A New Method for Evaluating Poetry.

This program is produced by the following team members: Ankine Aghassian, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars’ Circle – What is the role of psychological first aid in times of crisis? -/- Greenwashing culture – May 10, 2020

May 9, 2020 host

What is the role of psychological first aid in times of crisis? Lillian Ng explores ways to support psychological well being. [ dur: 24 mins. ]

Kerry Gibson is a clinical psychologist and Associate Professor at the University of Auckland. She is the co-author of Young People’s Reasons for Feeling Suicidal and Young Women’s Selfhood on Antidepressants: “Not Fully Myself”
Zubeida Mahomedy is a psychiatrist with a special interest in maternal mental health.

Greenwashing culture. How journalism, the entertainment industry and museums impact our environment. Joining us is Toby Miller author of 30 books, including Greenwashing Culture. [ dur: 32mins. ]

Toby Miller is a Professor Emeritus of Media and Cultural Studies at the University of California, Riverside. He is the author of 30 books including Greenwashing Culture. His Wikipedia page.

This program is produced with contributions from the following volunteers: Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Anaïs Amin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars’ Circle – Interview with Suicide Bombers -/- Transmission of Trauma from parent to child – March 8, 2020

March 7, 2020 host

First, from broken heart to suicide bomber we explore the various drives that fuel deadly terror. [dur: 17mins. ]

Ken Ballen, author of Terrorist in Love.

Then, is the transmission of trauma multi-generational? Do the children of survivors of mass atrocities have higher risk of developing psychological disorders? What are the social and behavioral factors that result in the trauma of successive generations? We look at the impact of survivors’ post-trauma adaptational style in their children’s eyes. [ dur: 40mins. ]

For a transcript of this interview, please visit: TheBigQ

Andrei Novac is Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the University of California at Irvine, School of Medicine, and Founding Director of the Traumatic Stress Program. He is the author of the research papers Traumatic Stress and Human Behavior, Special Treatment Issues in Children of Holocaust Survivors and Free Artistic Expression: A Clinical Exploration of Resiliency and Healing After Trauma.
Yael Danieli is Director of the Group Project for Holocaust Survivors and their Children. She is the Founding Co-President of the International Network of Holocaust and Genocide Survivors and their Friends, and a Founding Director of The International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies. She is the author of the pubications International Handbook of Multigenerational Legacies of Trauma, International Responses to Traumatic Stress and the research papers Multigenerational Legacies of Trauma: Modeling the What and How of Transmission, and Differing Adaptational Styles in Families of Survivors of the Nazi Holocaust.

Produced by the Scholars’ Circle team: Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars’ Circle – Agriculture and Food system for the 21st century – December 1 , 2019

November 30, 2019 host

We spend the hour on good food politics, the food revolution, and the movements to build equitable and sustainable food systems. First, we’re joined by Will Allen author of Good Food Revolution. [ dur: 25 mins. ]

Will Allen is the author of Good Food Revolution and the founder of the non-profit Growing Power.

Then, our guests have studied the food system and what it means to have an equitable and sustainable system. What are the problems in the system and what are the solutions? [ dur: 33 mins. ]

Saru Jayaraman is Director of the Food Labor Research Center at University of California, Berkeley . She is the co-founder and co-director of the Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC United) which has more than 18,000 worker members, 200 employer partners, and several thousand consumer members in a dozen states nationwide. She is the author of Behind the Kitchen Door and her latest Forked: A New Standard for American Dining.
Raj Patel is a Research Professor in the Lyndon B Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas, Austin. He is the author of Stuffed and Starved: The Hidden Battle for the World Food System, The Value of Nothing: How to Reshape Market Society and Redefine Democracy – a New York Times and international best-seller – and his latest, co-written with Jason W. Moore, A History of the World in Seven Cheap Things. He co-hosts the fortnightly food politics podcast The Secret Ingredient .

Raj Patel and Saru Jayaraman are contributors to The Nation magazine’s special issue, “The Future of Food: Setting the table for the next generation“.

This program is produced with generous contribution from Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars’ Circle – Gender associated with x and y chromosomes challenged -/- How Celebrity impact our society, culture and democracy- September 29 , 2019

September 28, 2019 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.

Find book authored by our guest scholars on this Book Shelf .

This program is produced with contributions from the following volunteers: Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars’ Circle – Insight into Mental health treatment within cultures – September 15 , 2019

September 14, 2019 host

How culture shapes our understanding and treatment of mental health. We speak with three experts. [ dur: 58 mins. ]

Roberto Lewis-Fernandez is Professor of Clinical Psychiatry at Columbia University. He is also Director of NYS Center of Excellence for Cultural Competence and Hispanic Treatment Program and Co-Director of Anxiety Disorders Clinic at New York State Psychiatric Institute. He is the author and co-editor of the book DSM-5(R) Handbook of the Cultural Formulation Interview. He is also the co-author of the research publications Impact of motivational pharmacotherapy on treatment retention among depressed Latinos, and Conditional risk for PTSD among Latinos: A systematic review of racial/ethnic differences and sociocultural explanations.
Tanya Marie Luhrmann is the Watkins University Professor in the Anthropology Department at Stanford University. She is the author of When God Talks Back: Understanding the American Evangelical Relationship with God, Of Two Minds: An Anthropologist Looks at American Psychiatry and Our Most Troubling Madness: Schizophrenia and Culture.
Andrew G. Ryder is Associate Professor of Psychology and Co-Director of the Centre for Clinical Research in Health at Concordia University. He is the co-author of the research publications Culture and psychopathology, Revisioning psychiatry: Cultural phenomenology, critical neuroscience, global mental health, Depression in cultural context: Chinese somatization and Towards a cultural-clinical psychology.

This program is produced with contributions from the following volunteers: Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Anaïs Amin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars’ Circle – Mass Shooting connection to Identity Politics – August 11, 2019

August 10, 2019 host

On the heals of more mass shootings in the United States, we examine the mindset, the trends and changes of a globally connected rightwing movement, then turn to solutions to the growing animosity between identity groups.[ dur: 58 mins. ]

For a transcript of this interview, please visit: TheBigQ

Dr. Lawrence Rosenthal is Chair and Lead Researcher of the Berkeley Center for Right-Wing Studies. He is the co-editor of STEEP: The Precipitous Rise of the Tea Party, and The New Nationalism and the First World War.
Brian Levin is Director of the Center for the Study of Hate & Extremism and Professor of Criminal Justice at California State University, San Bernardino. He is co-author of the book The Limits of Dissent and the publications and co-author of Report to the nation: hate crimes rise in US cities and counties in time of division and foreign interference and Posing the Why Question: Understanding the perpetration of racially motivated violence and harassment.
Ervin Staub is Professor Emeritus of Psychology and Founding Director of the Psychology of Peace and Violence Program at University of Massachusetts, Amherst. His extensive publications include Psychology of Evil: The Origins of Genocide and Other Group Violence, The Roots of Goodness and Resistance to Evil: Inclusive Caring, Moral Courage, and Altruism Born of Suffering, Active Bystandership and Heroism.

Produced by the Scholars’ Circle team: Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Anaïs Amin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars’ Circle – Feeding Humanity in the Near Future – March 9, 2019

March 9, 2019 host

Today’s program was recorded in front of a live audience. In this symposium about the future of food, we look at food insecurity, food shortages, food justice and sovereignty. We explore the threats to long term availability of health food: climate change, chemical contamination, soil depletion, loss of land, power politics, mass death of pollinators and host of big business practices. We look at solutions and the changes we need to make to be sure of system is just, sustainable and resilient. [ dur: 58 mins. ]

For a transcript of this interview, please visit: TheBigQ

Ann Elizabeth Bartos is a Lecturer in the School of Environment at the University of Auckland. She has authored book chapters including ‘Food sovereignty and the possibilities for an equitable, just and sustainable food system”’in Eating, Drinking, Surviving: The international year of global understanding – IYGU and journal articles including ‘The body eating its food politics: reflections on relationalities and embodied ways of knowing‘ in Gender, Place and Culture.
Gerhard Benjamin McDonald Sundborn is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Population Health at the University of Auckland. His has coauthored journal articles including ‘Low sugar nutrition policies and dental caries: A study of primary schools in South Auckland‘ in the Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health and ‘Sugar, dental caries and the incidence of acute rheumatic fever: A cohort study of Māori and Pacific children‘ in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.
Daniel Carl Henare Hikuroa is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Māori Studies and Pacific Studies at the University of Auckland. He coedited the book Ara Mai he Tetekura: Visioning Our Futures: New and Emerging Pathways of Maori Academic Leadership and has coauthored journal articles including ‘Ensuring objectivity by applying the Mauri Model to assess the post-disaster affected environments of the 2011 MV Rena disaster in the Bay of Plenty, New Zealand‘ in Ecological Indicators.
Mike Joy is a Senior Lecturer at the Institute of Agriculture and Environment at Massey University. He authored the book Polluted Inheritance: New Zealand’s freshwater crisis; authored book chapters including ‘Our deadly nitrogen addiction’ in The New Zealand Land & Food Annual; as well as coauthored journal articles including ‘New Zealand dairy farming: milking our environment for all its worth‘ in Environmental Management.

This program is produced with contributions from the following volunteers: Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Anaïs Amin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.

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The Scholars' Circle Interviews

Tag Archives: Society and Culture

Scholars’ Circle – US and international response to Covid-19 vaccine & Decolonizing the language of arms control – December 13, 2020

Scholars’ Circle – Impact of Women who lead nations in times of Covid-19 pandemic – November 29, 2020

Scholars’ Circle – Contemporary Politics on overcoming controversial histories -/- Why all undergrad students must explore arts and humanities is explained – July 12, 2020

Scholars’ Circle – What is the role of psychological first aid in times of crisis? -/- Greenwashing culture – May 10, 2020

Scholars’ Circle – Interview with Suicide Bombers -/- Transmission of Trauma from parent to child – March 8, 2020

Scholars’ Circle – Agriculture and Food system for the 21st century – December 1 , 2019

Scholars’ Circle – Gender associated with x and y chromosomes challenged -/- How Celebrity impact our society, culture and democracy- September 29 , 2019

Scholars’ Circle – Mass Shooting connection to Identity Politics – August 11, 2019

Scholars’ Circle – Feeding Humanity in the Near Future – March 9, 2019

By Maria Armoudian