Civic Engagement Episodes

Artificial intelligence is the ability of machines to perform tasks, such as learning and problem-solving, that are typically associated with human intelligence. And every single aspect of how we live our lives may ultimately be transformed by this technology. At the start of this year, it seemed as though AI shifted from a relatively niche technology known to industry insiders, into a subject that had suddenly captured broad public consciousness. Especially as ChatGPT burst on the scene as a to...

In our last episode with Dr. David Addiss, Heather Buesseler, Dr. Liz Grant, and Dr. Corinne Reid, we explored the role of compassion in the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, and learned that the SDG’s were motivated by a compassionate desire to end global human suffering across a variety of sectors. This week we’re back with these four researchers, as they offer more personal insight about what draws them to study the science of compassion. This week the researchers’ objective is t...

We begin Season 7 with a friend of the podcast — , who listeners will remember from an emotional episode last year about the role of compassion in healthcare. Dr. Addiss is back for another evocative discussion about compassion, and he’s joined by...

Today is our final episode of the sixth season of Stories of Impact, and is back in conversation with President , looking back over the year of stories we’re just wrapping up, and looking a little bit ahead at what’s to come. Read the ...

Today, we’re back with Richard’s fascinating interview with , the UK’s Astronomer Royal and the co-founder of the at the University of Cambridge. Joining them in conversation are two of the Centre’s research associates, nuclear war expert ,...

Today is the second in a two-part series that explores the subject of forgiveness. We hear more about the ground-breaking, six-site, five-country, four-continent study of Dr. Everett Worthington’s REACH forgiveness method’s effectiveness. We’re joined in conversation with Dr. Tyler VanderWeele, project Research Director; Principal Investigator Dr. Man Yee Ho; and site directors Andrea Ortega Bechara (Columbia) and Dr. Shaun Joynt (South Africa). They describe the impact of the study on individua...

This the conclusion of a special three-part series on polarization. In today’s episode, we hear some good news from three leaders of Templeton World Charity Foundation’s Listening and Learning in a Polarized World Initiative. Dr. Andrew Serazin, president of TWCF; Virginia Cooper, project lead; and Dr. Eric Marshall, Principal Advisor, celebrate the $20 million investment in exploring polarization, and share what innovative tools and solutions will be discovered during the five year open-science...

This the second of a special three-part series on polarization. In today’s episode, we consider what writers, researchers, and scholars say we can learn from the history of polarization in other countries and learn about some of their potential solutions for polarization.Today’s episode features researchers Jay J. Van Bavel and Dominic J. Packer, co-authors of The Power of Us: Harnessing Our Shared Identities to Improve Performance, Increase Cooperation, and Promote Social Harmony. We also h...

The first of a special three-part series, this episode defines polarization and explores its causes and effects. Next, we consider what we can learn from the history of polarization in other countries, share the antidotes to polarization that research has uncovered, and finally, explain why it’s important to make a long-term investment in polarization research.Today’s episode features researchers Jay J. Van Bavel and Dominic J. Packer, co-authors of The Power of Us: Harnessing Our Shared Ide...

Today’s episode is all about the impact we can have when we make informed, ethical choices. It can be nearly impossible as a consumer to know where your clothes are coming from and to ensure that they were ethically and sustainably produced, from the spinner of the cloth to the dyer of the fabric to the person sewing the garment together. This is why Dr. Robert Handfield and Dr. MD Rejaul Hasan of North Carolina State University Poole College of Management are creating an Ethical Apparel Index, ...

Today, we hear from , native of Nigeria, President of the , Harvard-educated economist, expert in sustainable development, and civil rights and Democracy advocate. Dr. Abiola’s father, M.K.O. Abiola, was imprisoned after decisively winning the...

This week we’re bringing you a conversation about human flourishing with Vint Cerf, a man globally recognized as one of the “fathers of the Internet.” In recognition for his extraordinary contributions to the creation of Internet technology, Cerf has been awarded a U.S. National Medal of Technology, the Turing Award, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. And, drawing on his own experience with being hearing impaired, he’s also known as a leading advocate for technology to be made accessible to ...

Today, we’re talking about a pursuit of well-being that impacts us all — climate health. Today’s guest is Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland and the first woman to hold that elected office and former United Nations Commissioner for Human Rights. Since Robinson’s tenure as Ireland’s President ended in 1997, she has continued to work tirelessly to promote gender equity, human rights, and, most recently and most intensively, climate justice. Robinson speaks about the interdependence of peop...

Today, we hear a fascinating and inspiring conversation having to do with the flourishing of young South Africans. Today’s episode features Richard’s conversation with Nina Callaghan, former Associate Director and current South African Chair of Children’s Radio Foundation. In a post-apartheid country still suffering the social, psychic, and economic wounds of decades of institutionalized racial segregation, the very act of teaching these youth basic journalism 101, including ethics, consent, and...

Today we hear from Dr. Arthur C. Brooks, Professor of the Practice of Public Leadership at the Harvard Kennedy School and Professor of Management Practice at the Harvard Business School. He’s also the former president of the American Enterprise Institute, a leading public policy think tank. You may be familiar with Brooks from his work as a writer — he’s the author of eleven books, including the national bestsellers Love Your Enemies and The Conservative Heart, a columnist for The Atlantic, host...

Today, Richard is in conversation with Dr. Filippo Trevisan, assistant professor at the School of Communication and Deputy Director at the Institute on Disability and Public Policy at American University. Dr. Trevisan talks about our evolving views on social media and offers insight on how we can use — and how we are already using — the Internet as a tool to improve representation in our democratic process.More about Filippo TrevisanMentioned in this episode:Citizenship in a Network...

Today’s conversation is with David O’Brien, Assistant Research Director at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University. Prof. O’Brien talks to Richard about how we as citizens can bring our democratic values to bear on social media platforms; the role privacy plays online in allowing democracy and democratic citizenship to flourish; and more.More about David O’Brien and the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and SocietyMentioned in this episode:Citizenship in...

Today’s episode features a conversation with Colin Mayer, Peter Moores Professor of Management Studies and the former dean at the Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford. Prof. Mayer speaks to host Richard Sergay about the role of business institutions in building resilient and cohesive communities, as well as the necessity of trust in whether civilization itself will be sustained.More about Colin Mayer and his published works, including Prosperity: Better Business Makes the Greater...

Today, host Richard Sergay speaks with Baroness Onora O’Neill, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at Cambridge University. Prof. O’Neill, whose work has focused on international justice and the roles of trust and accountability in public life, discusses the value of privacy in a time of surveillance capitalism, human rights after the digital revolution, and the importance of listening as a civic virtue.Mentioned in this episode:Citizenship in a Networked AgeInternment of Uighurs in China...

As we explore our season focusing on citizenship in the networked age, journalist Richard Sergay explores the rights and responsibilities of being a citizen in the digital era, the individual and community strengths inherent in healthy citizenship, and the threats to our future without it. Today’s conversation is with Sir Paul Collier, a professor of economics and public policy at the Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford. Professor Collier is a world-renowned economist and a best...

Today’s conversation features three intersecting perspectives on the topic of citizenship in a networked age. We’ll hear from Vint Cerf, Google's vice president and chief Internet evangelist, and one of the world’s recognized “fathers of the Internet”; Nuala O’Connor, former president and CEO at the Center for Democracy and Technology; and Michael Wear, a strategist, speaker, and practitioner at the intersection of faith, politics, and public life. Each of them adds dimension to our podcast’s on...

In this episode, we hear from Dr. Andrew Briggs, a professor of nanomaterials at the University of Oxford, and Dr. Dominic Burbidge, a lecturer in politics at the University of Oxford and director of the Canterbury Institute. Along with a team of scholars, their study of citizenship in a networked age has led to a carefully crafted report, including seven recommendations in support of their Agenda for Rebuilding Our Civic Ideals.Learn more about Citizenship in a Networked Age and the Agenda ...

How can we listen to people we don’t agree with? Rebuild trust in an era of “fake news” and “alternative facts”? Create social cohesion, cooperation, and healthy, safe, inclusive societies?If you find yourself asking, “What are our rights as citizens, and what are our responsibilities?,” you’ll want to join journalist Richard Sergay and producer Tavia Gilbert for Season 3 of the Stories of Impact podcast, which explores the timely and vital question of what it means to be a citizen in a netw...

Today, host Richard Sergay is in conversation with David Sloan Wilson, professor of biological sciences at Binghamton University and president of the Evolution Institute. Prof. Wilson describes the core principles of human groups that allow successful cooperation, and discusses how we can implement these principles to alleviate the negative effects of the current pandemic and stop its spread.The fifth and final episode in a special, five-part Covid-19 conversation series.Learn more about...