Speaker(s): Mark Salling, Professor, CSU College of Urban Affairs and Chairman, Cleveland Census Statistical Areas Committee; Freda Levenson, Legal Director, Ohio ACLU Voting rights are under attack.  Over 45 states have introduced 360 bills to restrict voting.  The new Ohio House and Senate redistricting maps should be introduced in mid-September.  Will they follow voter-approved rules … Continue reading Voting, Redistricting, & Political Power: What’s at Stake?

Speaker(s): Mark Sniderman, CWRU Weatherhead School of Management and former Executive Vice-President, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland. How is the US economy recovering from the Covid 19 pandemic?  Rising real estate prices, inflation, and help wanted signs are everywhere. Given the trillions spent on economic aid to the US population, when will the debt ceiling … Continue reading The National Economy: Future Bumps in the Road?

Speaker: Mark Weber, former Dean, Kent State University Libraries, and member, UU Congregation of Cleveland. Today's issues are overwhelming. Join us for an interactive, engaging "Sanibel Discussion" on today's current events. What community issues do you want to discuss? Audience members have up to 90 seconds to give their opinion and re-focus the discussion. Via … Continue reading A World in Crisis: A Rousing Sanibel Discussion

Speaker(s): Randy Partain, Minister, UU Congregation of Cleveland; Elliott Ingersoll, Professor, CSU Department of Counseling, Supervision and Adult Learning. As religious faith has declined, political polarization has dramatically increased. Has religious belief become politicized? What is the current role of religion in our personal and public life? Why does loyalty to a political party or … Continue reading Intersection of Religion & Politics

Speaker: Scott Osiecki, CEO, Cuyahoga County Alcohol, Drug Addiction, and Mental Health Services, (ADAMHS). The Cuyahoga County Diversion Center opened in May. It provides treatment rather than jail for non-violent, low-level offenders, along with services for the mentally ill and drug addicted. The Center is staffed with psychiatrists, doctors, nurses and treatment specialists. Are police … Continue reading Cuyahoga County Diversion Center: How Does It Work?

Speakers: Christopher Prewitt, Chief Technology Officer, MRK Technologies and Rockie Brockway, CSO Chief Information Security Office, TrustedSec. Cybercrime and ransomware are growing nationally and internationally.  Ransomware is extortion.  It gains unauthorized access to our individual accounts as well as private computer systems in corporations, government agencies, and infrastructure systems.  All of us are vulnerable.  Can … Continue reading Ransomware & Cyberattacks:  How Am I Affected?

Speakers: Jonathan Entin, CWRU Professor of Law and Political Science; Ryan Claassen, Political Science Professor, Kent State University. What do the results of the November 2nd election mean? Low turnout usually produces surprising results. Multi-racial and unaffiliated voters are increasing. Can democracy exist when political parties are increasingly polarized? How are the parties handling the … Continue reading Political Parties, Polarization and the Future

Speaker: Bryan Adamson, CWRU Professor of Law. GAFAM (Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon and Microsoft). How does GAFAM’s power and size affect capitalism, democracy, and our personal lives? These companies measure our attention, collect user data from us, and lock in the means to get messages (including disinformation) into our consciousness via advanced technology and tailored … Continue reading Social Media, the Internet, and Technology: Monopolies vs Accountability

Speaker(s): Arin Miller-Tait, Community Development, Program and Project Manager, University Circle; Mittie Imani Jordan, Entrepreneur, Pastor, Hough Resident, and Neighborhood Organizer. Voted the best arts district in the US by USA Today, University Circle (UC) is an extraordinary epicenter of culture, education, art, and healthcare. How are UC organizations directly serving their surrounding, underserved neighborhoods? … Continue reading University Circle: Excellence, Impact & Surrounding Neighborhoods

Speaker: Akram Boutros, M.D., CEO and President, MetroHealth System Cuyahoga County ranks 75th out of Ohio’s 88 counties in health outcomes. MetroHealth has transformed its healthcare system to address the social determinants of health. Example: the H.O.P.E program (Health, Opportunity, Partnership, Empowerment) addresses health disparities due to social isolation, food, housing and employment insecurity. A variety … Continue reading Transforming Health Care: What’s Coming?

Speakers: Bob Rosenbaum, Co-Chair, Heights Observer. Panel: Sharon Broussard, Project Manager, NEO Solutions Journalism Collaborative, and Jim O’Bryan, Founder, Observer Media Project. Factual, independent news media is the bulwark of democracy. Fake news, lies, and manipulation of facts influence a large majority of the population via social media, radio and TV. Are local, non-profit media … Continue reading Democracy, Non-Profit News, and the Future

Speaker: Robert Rich, Director, Center for Inflation Research, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland Inflation has multiple impacts on our lives and communities, and it has surged over the past year. The consumer price index, a broad-based measure of inflation, rose 6.8% last November, the largest increase since 1982. The current elevated readings serve as a … Continue reading The Pandemic and the Inflation Outlook