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Week 1
- Sport in America
Roger Goodell, long-time Chautauquan and commissioner of the National
Football League, will be among the featured lecturers in Week One. Sport looms
large in the American culture, whether from an economic perspective or through
the lens of its impact on our lifestyles and customs. Fun, competitive, entertaining?
Yes. But big business too. Some estimates tag the sports business industry in
the U.S. at over $300 billion annually. From youth and amateur athletics to college
sports to the pros, we will examine the economics and the impact of sports on
our cities, our youth, education, and culture. We will look at Title 9, the influence
of television and escalating salaries, and the future of Olympic sports. And we
will explore whether the interest of the general fan has been eclipsed by big
money. Monday,
June 23
Frank Deford, senior contributing writer, Sports Illustrated; commentator,
National Public Radio Tuedays,
June 24
Clark Kellogg, CBS Sports College Basketball Commentator Wednesday,
June 25
Donna Lopiano, immediate past CEO, Women's Sports Foundation Thursday,
June 26
George Bodenheimer, president, ESPN, Inc. and ABC Sports Friday,
June 27
Roger Goodell, commissioner, National Football League •
Week 2 - Restoring Legitimacy to our Election
System
Most Americans are both proud and grateful to
live in a free and democratic country. But many are growing disenchanted with
our system of electing a president. Are these concerns valid? If so, how do we
go about restoring integrity into our election system? This week we'll look at
some of the basic mechanisms that impact our political system and how they might
be improved, including campaign finance, timing and duration of primaries, voter
registration, the popular vote vs. the Electoral College and how we encourage
or discourage citizen participation. Norman Ornstein, a resident scholar at the
American Enterprise Institute and co-director of the AEI-Brookings Election Reform
Project, will be with us during this week as both a presenter and facilitator. Monday,
June 30
Norman Ornstein, resident scholar, American Enterprise Institute for
Public Policy Research Wednesday,
July 2
Andrew Young, former mayor of Atlanta, U.S. Congressman and U.N. ambassador •
Week 3 - Roger Rosenblatt and Friends: On
Writing
Essayist, author, playwright and television
commentator Roger Rosenblatt has lectured nine times from Chautauqua Institution's
Amphitheater platform. For this week on writing, Roger will be joined by his friends
and fellow authors E.L. Doctorow, Joyce Carol Oates, and Amy Tan, and poet Billy
Collins and cartoonist Garry Trudeau. Monday,
July 7
Billy Collins, former U.S. poet laureate Tuesday,
July 8
E.L. Doctorow, author, The March and Ragtime Wednesday,
July 9
Joyce Carol Oates, author, them and The Gravedigger's Daughter Thursday,
July 10
Amy Tan, author, The Joy Luck Club Friday,
July 11
Garry Trudeau, creator of Doonesbury •
Week 4 - The Ethical Frontiers of Science
There are no shortages of ethical dilemmas arising from rapid advances
in biomedical sciences and new discoveries about how the mind works. What are
the prospects that new drugs and genetic discoveries will enable us to improve
our memories, moods, and cognitive abilities? Should science aim only at treating
disease or also at enhancing our mental and physical capacities, and those of
our children? Is there a risk that new genetic technologies will lead to the quest
for "designer children?" Are we on the verge of discovering a biological
basis for morality, and if so, does this pose a threat to familiar notions of
free will and moral responsibility? This week, Harvard professor Michael Sandel
will help us explore the growing public debate at the intersection of ethics,
biotechnology, and public policy. We'll hear from bioethics experts and scientists
to help us think through the social and ethical implications of biological and
biomedical advances. Monday,
July 14
Arthur Caplan, director, Center for Bioethics, Univ. of Penn Wednesday,
July 16
Judy Norsigian, executive director, Our Bodies Ourselves Thursday,
July 17
Michael Sandel, professor of political philosophy, Harvard University Friday,
July 18
Marc Hauser, professor, co-director of Mind, Brain and Behavior Program,
Harvard University •
Week 5 - American Foreign Policy: Leadership
and Dialogue
Since 1945, the United States has constructed
its foreign policy around the fault lines of the demise of British colonialism,
the contest with Communism and most recently the confrontation with terrorism.
We will consider those historic roots and their influence on the current play
of American interests on such issues as access to energy, markets, human rights
and issues of military security. We will hear voices from other countries expressing
their perspectives on U.S. foreign policy, and we will engage in dialogue about
the prospects for the future. Monday,
July 21
Shashi Tharoor, former under- secretary- general for communications
and public information, United Nations Tuesday,
July 22
Melvyn Leffler, prof. of American history, Univ. of Virginia Thursday,
July 24
Javad Zarif, former Iranian Ambassador to U.N. Friday,
July 25
Dennis Ross, fellow at Washington Inst. for Near east Policy
Frank Wisner, career ambassador, U.S. Foreign Service, vice chair, AIG •
Week 6 - Healing the Globe
In this Global Village, the health of one affects the health of all.
In partnership with the Global Health Council, we will examine such twenty-first
century challenges as maternal and child health, AIDS, TB, malaria, diseases related
to global warming, the consequences of natural disasters, and response mechanisms
to famine and pandemics. We will bring to the platform powerful voices who have
invested themselves and their resources in this struggle for a healthy world. Monday,
July 28
Stephen Lewis, former UN special envoy for HIV/ AIDS in Africa Tuesday,
July 29
Abdallah Daar, co-director, program of life sciences and global health,
Univ. of Toronto Wednesday,
July 30
Helene Gayle, MD, president and CEO, CARE USA Thursday,
July 31
Thomas R. Frieden, NYC Dept. of Health commissioner •
Week 7 - Faith in Public Life
The United States is one of the most religiously plural nations in the
world. The Abrahamic religions differ widely within and among their respective
traditions, especially with regard to whether religion is solely a private matter
or has a role to play in public life. In this year of national elections, the
compelling questions become: How best are different religious perspectives expressed
in the give and take of democracy, and what is the responsibility of people of
faith in a democracy? Monday,
August 4
Jon Meacham, editor, Newsweek; author, American Gospel Tuesday,
August 5
Rabbi David Saperstein, director, Religious Action Ctr. of Reform
Judaism Thursday,
August 7
Eboo Patel, founder and exec. dir., Interfaith Youth Core; author,
Acts of Faith •
Week 8 - What's For Dinner: Food and Politics
in the 21st Century
Food - from the old family recipe
to the culinary arts - consumes a central role in our lives and is our most intimate
and direct connection to nature. It elicits both passion and guilt, it comforts
and satisfies, it sustains the body and is a source of beauty and art. What we
eat and how it arrives in our kitchens and restaurants is also influenced by political
and economic decisions. From the 100-mile diet, five-star restaurants and peppy
television chefs to giant agri-business, this week will add context to our understanding
of how food is produced, biologically altered and distributed, the rise of organic
agriculture and the simple joys of eating. Monday,
August 11
Michael Ruhlman, journalist, author, The Soul of a Chef
Eric Ripert, chef, co-owner, Le Bernardin Tuesday,
August 12
Greg Page, chairman of the board, CEO and president, Cargill, Inc. Wednesday,
August 13
Tim Zagat, founder, Zagat Survey, and panel of restaurateurs Thursday,
August 14
Marion Nestle, professor of nutrition, food studies and public health,
NYU; author, Food Politics •
Week 9 - Darwin and Linnaeus: Their Impact
on Our View of the Natural World
2009 will mark the
celebration of Darwin's 200th birthday as well as the 150th anniversary of the
publication of On the Origin of Species. The public debate surrounding his theory
of evolution seems to have diminished little in that span of time. This week we
will focus on all that has followed, including the scientific, social, religious
and legal ramifications of Darwin's work. In addition, this year marks the 250th
anniversary of the 1758 publication of Swedish scientist Carl Linnaeus' system
for giving Latin names to animals, indeed, cataloging the natural world. We will
consider the legacy of that important work as well. Monday,
August 18
Kenneth Miller, prof. of biology, Brown University; author, Finding
Darwin's God Tuesday,
August 19
Beth Shapiro, asst. prof. of biology, Penn State Univ.; researcher
in field of ancient DNA Wednesday,
August 20
Edward Larson, prof. of law, Pepperdine Univ., Pulitzer Prize-winner
for Summer for the Gods Thursday,
August 21
Spencer Wells, population geneticist; director of Genographic Project Friday,
August 22
Mattias Klum, nature photographer; documentary filmmaker, "The
Linnaeus Expedition" |
