with Sally Jackson

Sydney Finkelstein

Think Again: Why Good Leaders Make Bad Decisions and How to Keep it From Happening to You Thursday, November 19, 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. C. Walsh Theatre, Suffolk University (behind the State House on Beacon Hill)

History is full of brilliant leaders making incredibly poor choices. From President John F. Kennedy’s Bay of Pigs invasion to Wall Street’s heavy bets in the mortgage market, we see people with extraordinarily powerful cognitive abilities make terrible decisions. Why does this happen? Sydney Finkelstein, bestselling author and Steven Roth Professor of Management for the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College, joins Sally Jackson, public relations consultant and founder of Jackson & Company, to addresses the specific ways our minds are lured into making misguided judgments. Most importantly, he identifies the way wise leaders sidestep these pitfalls, and how you can do the same.

Related Media:

• Sydney Finkelstein’s blog: “The Syd Blog: Insights into the Force and Folly of Leaders”

with James T. Brett

Susan M. Wilczynski

James T. Brett

Brenda Smith Myles

Presented in collaboration with the National Autism Center

Autism: Looking Beyond Cause and Cure

Critical questions surrounding one of

today’s greatest healthcare challenges

Thursday, October 29

6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

C. Walsh Theatre, Suffolk University
(behind the State House on Beacon Hill)

The United States has seen a consistent increase in the number of children diagnosed with autism, with one out of every 150 children now affected by the disorder. What does science tell us about effective treatments? What resources are available for children with autism? How can we best support our friends and neighbors who are impacted by this complex and often misunderstood disorder? Susan M. Wilczynski, Ph.D., BCBA, Executive Director of the National Autism Center, and Brenda Smith Myles, Ph.D., author and consultant with the Ziggurat Group, join James T. Brett, President & CEO of the New England Council and current chair of the Governor’s Commission on Developmental Disabilities, to discuss how we can address this urgent public health issue.

Related Media:

• Susan M. Wilczynski on the National Autism Center’s National Standards Project (Sept 22, 2009) [VIDEO]
• Autism Society’s discussion on “Culture of Autism,” Brenda Smith Myles moderates (Aug 27, 2009) [VIDEO]

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Disclosure: Ford Hall Forum President Dominick Ianno is an employee of Pfizer, Inc and the Pfizer Foundation is a contributor to the Ford Hall Forum. This program was planned well in advance of the Ford Hall Forum’s awareness of Pfizer’s interest in this area and Pfizer, Inc. has no influence over the content or speaker selection for this program.

Moderated by Christopher Lydon

David Ferry	Suji Kwock Kim	Jill McDonough	Gail Mazur
Lloyd Schwartz	Presented in collaboration with the Massachusetts Poetry Festival with media sponsorship from		Ifeanyi Menkiti

Massachusetts Poetry in Hard Times:

What the Best of Bay State Bards Offer

Us in Bad Times and Good

Thursday, October 15

6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Rabb Auditorium, Boston Public Library

700 Boylston Street, Boston, MA

While the Dow tumbles, joblessness soars, and two wars stretch our military abroad, what do the works of Emily Dickinson, Herman Melville, and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow have to offer? What could words, rhythm, and rhyme provide to those down on their luck or even facing crisis? Poets David Ferry, Suji Kwock Kim, Jill McDonough, Ifeanyi Menkiti, Gail Mazur, and Lloyd Schwartz join Christopher Lydon to answer with readings from classic Massachusetts authors as well as those contemporary artists writing their masterpieces today. From lyric and verse to slam and spoken word, they offer their perspective on current affairs, as well as the evolving ways we use language to understand and experience our world today.

Related Links:
Interview with David Ferry regarding his translation of Vergil’s Georgics.

Webcast of Suji Kwock Kim from the Library of Congress’ National Book Festival.

Audio of Jill McDonough reading her poem “Breasts Like Martinis” at Slate.com.

Video of some of Gail Mazur’s lectures at the WGBH Forum Network.

Lloyd Schwartz’s NPR profile, including a link to his podcast.

with Martin Baron and Dan Kennedy

Martin Baron

Paul Starr

Dan Kennedy

Presented in collaboration with the Rappaport Center for Law and Public Service

Public Accountability After the Age of Newspapers

Thursday, October 1, 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Paul Starr, Professor of Communications and Public Affairs at Princeton University and Co-editor of The American Prospect, joins Martin Baron, Editor of The Boston Globe, and Dan Kennedy, Assistant Professor at the Northeastern University School of Journalism and nationally recognized media critic, to discuss the future of journalism and how the rapidly changing media landscape will impact us all. Moderated by Alasdair Roberts, the Jerome L. Rappaport Professor of Law and Public Policy at Suffolk University Law School.

VIDEO OF DISCUSSION BELOW:

Introduction by Professor Alasdair Roberts, then opening remarks from Professor Paul Starr:

Remarks from Martin Baron:

Remarks from Dan Kennedy:

Discussion with questions from audience:

with Jasmine Waddell

Dr. Paul Polak

Dr. Jasmine Waddell

Click here to listen to MP3.
Frederic G. Corneel Memorial Lecture

Out of Poverty:

What Works When Traditional

Approaches Fail

Thursday, September 24

6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

C. Walsh Theatre, Suffolk University
(behind the State House on Beacon Hill)

What makes poor people poor? What can they do about it? And why have traditional international aid programs fallen so short of their promise? These questions drove Dr. Paul Polak to work with thousands of farmers in countries around the world — including Bangladesh, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Vietnam, and Zimbabwe — to help design and produce low–cost, income–generating products that allow individuals to create their own wealth and build better lives. Innovations such as the $25 treadle pump and $3 small farm drip–irrigation systems have already generated enormous sums of money and helped to raise millions out of poverty. Dr. Paul Polak, writer and founder of International Development Enterprises, joins Dr. Jasmine Waddell, Senior Officer for Research and Learning for the US Regional Office of Oxfam America, to discuss how innovative entrepreneurial practices are empowering individuals to address poverty at its roots.

Related Media:

• Paul Polak: Global Poverty Fighter, BusinessWeek, January 12, 2009
• Out of Poverty: Paul Polak on Practical Problem Solving, YouTube Video (8:39 min)
• Paul Polak, Tackling Global Poverty His Own Way, NPR, April 23, 2008

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with Peter Kadzis

Wendy Kaminer

Peter Kadzis

Worst Instincts:

Cowardice, Conformity, and the ACLU

Click here to listen to MP3.

“Suppression of dissent.” “Self-censorship.” “Cult of personality.” While such problems are usually associated with corrupt dictatorships or dysfunctional corporations, Wendy Kaminer, lawyer, social critic, and former American Civil Liberties Union national board member, argues that they threaten the effectiveness of all institutions – including civil liberties groups. She joins Peter Kadzis, Executive Editor of The Boston Phoenix and political commentator on FOX25 News, to discuss the virtues of dissent and free speech, as well as the forces that pull organizations of all kinds away from these essential principles.

Thursday, September 17
6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
C. Walsh Theatre, Suffolk University

Wednesday, September 21, 2005 at 6:30 p.m.
Raytheon Amphitheater, Northeastern University

Blogging, the web-based publication phenomenon started in the mid-1990s, has its critics, doubters and triumphalists. Ranging from hard news to personal commentary and with the immediacy of talk radio it is, arguably, revolutionizing how we get our information and how we learn about the world around us. Dan Kennedy and jay Rosen meet to talk about the blogosphere, its future, its impact on news, commentary and journalism.

Friday, December 1st
6:30 p.m.
Old South Meeting House

From Watergate to the confirmation hearings of Samuel Alito, from the Reagan Revolution to war in Iraq – the highly praised and award-winning coverage of Cokie Roberts, Nina Totenberg and Linda Wertheimer has shed light on the people, institutions, and social forces shaping our nation. In print, on television, and, most notably, over National Public Radio airwaves, their groundbreaking journalism has not only changed the way millions of Americans view their country and their world, but also had a profound impact on the profession of broadcasting. They join us tonight to receive the Ford Hall Forum’s Louis P. and Evelyn Smith First Amendment Award and share their thoughts on their life and work.

Thursday, November 9th
6:30 p.m.
Ellsworth Theater, Pine Manor College
Free parking available

For every dollar in assets possessed by the average white family in the United States, the average family of color has less than a dime. Why is the distribution of wealth in our nation so uneven? Does public policy—even when well intentioned—reinforce existing inequalities? Do race and ethnicity continue to play a pivotal role in defining the haves and have-nots in our society? In this panel discussion, three leading experts on the wealth divide will explore the economic histories of Native Americans, Latinos, African Americans, Asian Americans, and European Americans, and tackle the relationship between race and finances in the United States.

Sunday, October 22nd
6:30 p.m.
Faneuil Hall

After Sept. 11th, the Bush administration declared that we must bring freedom to the Middle Eastern nations that threaten us; thus, the Forward Strategy of Freedom. By establishing democracies in key Muslim countries, starting with Afghanistan and Iraq, we would spur a revolution in the rest of the Muslim world—a revolution that would bring free, pro-Western, anti-terrorist governments to power. But the strategy has failed. The Muslim world has grown more militant, radical leaders are being elected to power, and Islamic totalitarian groups like Hamas and Hezbollah are on the rise. Dr. Brook will examine the inherent flaws of the Forward Strategy of Freedom and explore what should replace it.