3 minute read
Editor’s Desk By John Zipperer
Commonwealth The
February/March 2021 Volume 115, No.1
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VICE PRESIDENT, MEDIA & EDITORIAL
John Zipperer
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The Commonwealth (ISSN 0010-3349) is published bimonthly (6 times a year) by The Commonwealth Club of California, 110 The Embarcadero, San Francisco, CA 94105. Periodicals postage paid at San Francisco, CA. Subscription rate $34 per year included in annual membership dues. Copyright © 2021 The Commonwealth Club of California.
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EDITORIAL TRANSCRIPT POLICY
The Commonwealth magazine covers a range of programs in each issue. Program transcripts and question-and-answer sessions are routinely condensed due to space limitations. Hear full-length recordings online at commonwealthclub. org/watch-listen, or via our free podcasts on Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts or Spotify; watch videos at youtube.com/ commonwealthclub.
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EDITOR’S DESK
Photo by James Meinerth
Our Brighter Future
From February 1918 through April 1920, The Commonwealth Club presented 132 programs. This despite the Spanish Flu pandemic, which infected 500 million people—about one-third of the planet’s population. There was an estimated 17–100 million dead from the flu.
As you would expect for those years immediately following World War I, there were a lot of programs dealing with the war, the peace treaty, military policy, and the situation in Europe. In fact, by perusing a list of Club events from that time, it looks like WWI and its effects were the topic of most of the programs in the first couple years after the peace treaty. But still the Club found time to talk about Hetch Hetchy, budget problems, the “radio telephone,” and public health.
Now, in February 2021, we are nearing the one-year anniversary of the shutdown of large swaths of the economy and social space in this country. Yet the Club is on pace to have produced about 400 programs during the first year of the pandemic. In addition to many programs about COVID-19, we have also explored history, nuclear weapons, racial justice and economic inequities, the political scene, the environment, astronomy, and more.
Even on many of our programs that have nothing to do with the pandemic, we still get a sense of the personal impact it has had. Our speakers—whether they are former governors of California, presidents of universities, media personalities, musicians, authors, or anything else—usually participate from their homes. Even while they are juggling their jobs, family issues, health fears and more, they take the time to share their expertise on the important topics of the day. Occasionally their conversations are interrupted by their children climbing on them, their dog or cat walking into the video, or delivery people ringing doorbells. And still the programs go on.
I’m proud of all of the programs we have presented this past year. So many great speakers, important (and sometimes fun) topics, and wonderful interaction with our online audiences. I even like those unplanned interruptions by children, dogs and whatever, because they underline how human and connected we all remain, even as we participate in these activities from our homes, sometimes isolated or with only close family nearby.
I’m even more excited about what we have coming up in the next few months and what we’ll be doing once we’re able to resume in-person programs safely. We’ll continue to innovate, bringing with us lessons from this online-only time and combining them with the best of what we’ve done in 118 years of in-person programs to make sure that you get the most out of your membership in this organization, and that we give you hundreds of reasons a year to watch, comment, think, smile and share.
