The People, Arkansas Launch Session
Tuesday, April 2 at 5:30-8:30 p.m. (Sturgis Hall)
Founded by well-known conservative pollster Frank Luntz, social activist Andrew Shue, and television producer Patty Wolfe, The People set out to see if the American people had irreconcilable differences. The mission of The People is to bring Americans together to engage in civil discourse, establish and carry out nonpartisan governmental reforms. By doing so, people will live in a truly representative democracy. By activating all citizens and bringing the country together, one collective voice will be established and the average person can be heard. The organization will help individuals organize around common causes, rounding out strengths and weaknesses, and connecting them with others to accelerate their efforts. This will help the organization to facilitate productive dialogue between those with variation in beliefs and promote action to address needed governmental reforms.
Join us for the Arkansas launch session with a representative from The People.
M.L. Cavanaugh – “Winning Westeros: How Game of Thrones Explains Modern Military Conflict”
Monday, April 8 at Noon (Sturgis Hall)
Book signing to follow
Who will claim the Iron Throne and why? On the eve of the premiere of the final season of Game of Thrones, M.L. Cavanaugh’s new book brings together 30 expert strategists to answer that question and engage in questions surrounding the most popular television series of our time.
As characters battle for power and control, there is magic and witchcraft, fiery dragons, frozen zombies, chaotic combat, swordplay and brutal intrigue, creating one of the most intense worldwide strategy plot lines in contemporary television. By applying the theories of our actual world to the examples in fictional Westeros, including Tyrion Lannister’s unlikely success, Daenerys Targaryen’s fire-strafing dragons and Jon Snow’s abilities as a leader, Cavanaugh will discern the fascinating connections between George R. R. Martin’s fantasy world and real war and politics.
Siva Vaidhyanathan – “Antisocial Media: How Facebook Disconnects Us and Undermines Democracy”
Tuesday, April 9 at 6 p.m. (Sturgis Hall)
Book signing to follow
Siva Vaidhyanathan is the Robertson Professor of Media Studies and Director of the Center for Media and Citizenship at the University of Virginia and the author of “Antisocial Media: How Facebook Disconnects Us and Undermines Democracy.”
If you wanted to build a machine that would distribute propaganda to millions of people, distract them from important issues, energize hatred and bigotry, erode social trust, undermine respectable journalism, foster doubts about science, and engage in massive surveillance all at once, you would make something a lot like Facebook. Of course, none of that was part of the plan.
In this fully updated paperback edition, Siva Vaidhyanathan explains how Facebook devolved from an innocent social site hacked together by Harvard students into a force that, while it may make personal life just a little more pleasurable, makes democracy a lot more challenging.
Eileen Richardson, Founder and CEO of Downtown Streets Team
Wednesday, April 10 at Noon (Sturgis Hall)
Downtown Streets Team is ending homelessness by restoring the dignity and rebuilding the lives of unhoused men and women. Founded in 2005, Downtown Streets Team is now beautifying thirteen Bay Area communities: Palo Alto, San Jose, Sunnyvale, San Rafael, Novato, Hayward, San Francisco, Santa Cruz, Sacramento, West Sacramento, Oakland, Berkeley, and Modesto, with more on the way. It serves over 750 unhoused men and women a year with almost 50 staff members and growing. The goal is to end homelessness in our lifetime, one community at a time. Eileen has been building and refining a non-conforming solution to homelessness, called Downtown Streets Team for close to 15 years. She has relentlessly pursued her vision to build positive communities which include and empower unhoused people throughout Northern California.
Ben Farley – GTMO, Original Sin, and Policy Failure
Thursday, April 11 at 6 p.m. (Sturgis Hall)
Benjamin R. Farley is a trial attorney and law-of-war counsel at the U.S. Department of Defense, Military Commissions Defense Organization. He is assigned to the team representing Ammar al-Baluchi, one of the five codefendants in the 9/11 conspiracy case who face capital charges before the military commission at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
From 2013 until 2017, he served as a Senior Adviser to the Special Envoy for Guantanamo Closure at the U.S. Department of State. A 2012 Presidential Management Fellow, Farley received a J.D. with honors from Emory University School of Law, where he served as the editor-in-chief of the Emory International Law Review. He also holds an M.A. in international affairs from the Elliott School of International Affairs at The George Washington University. Farley has published on topics including sovereignty, statehood, and international humanitarian law in various law and policy journals such as the Michigan Journal of International Law, the Fordham International Law Journal, and World Politics Review.
Combating the Opioid Crisis and Chronic Pain
Friday, April 12 at 10 a.m.-2 p.m. (Sturgis Hall)
Limited seating available
In partnership with University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and the UAMS Arkansas Geriatric Education Collaborative
This program is geared toward older adults in Arkansas managing chronic pain issues. A panel discussion and scenarios will facilitate discussion on the current opioid epidemic, understanding opioids and how pain works in the body, and the issues surrounding chronic pain and non-opioid pain alternatives.
Scenarios (demonstrations) of doctor and patient visits during various treatment options and stages of a typical chronic pain journey will be conducted.
Panelist include UAMS experts Michael Mancino, M.D.; Teresa Hudson, Pharm.D., Ph.D.; Masil George, M.D.; Heejung Choi, M.D.; and Leah Tobey, D.P.T. Additional segments include Kirk Lane, Arkansas drug director, and a video story with Johnathan Goree, M.D.
Panel Discussion with The Rep on Native Gardens
Thursday, April 18 at Noon (Sturgis Hall)
What makes a good neighbor?
When a young, up-and-coming Latinx couple move in next door to an older, well-established white couple, everything is downright neighborly until it’s discovered that the fence separating their backyards is over the property line — a property line that cuts right through a prize-winning flowerbed! Cultures and generations clash with comedic results in this hip and hysterical new play written by one of the nation’s leading Latina playwrights, Karen Zacarias.
Audiences will love this sidesplitting contemporary comedy that critics have called a “‘woke’ DICK VAN DYKE SHOW for the stage.”
Zacarias is one of the most produced playwrights in the nation. She is one of the inaugural Resident Playwrights at Arena Stage in Washington D.C, and is a core founder of the LATINX THEATRE COMMONS. She is founder of Young Playwrights’ Theater, an award-winning company that teaches playwriting in public schools in Washington D.C.
Alice Driver – “On the Road with the Migrant Caravan”
Monday, April 22 at 6 p.m. (Sturgis Hall)
For the past two years, Alice Driver has covered migration along the United States-Mexico border and throughout Central America, witnessing how U.S. policies have affected migrants and people living along the border. Driver will explore the border with curiosity and you will travel with her as she discusses her work on migration with National Geographic, Time, Longreads, Reveal and CNN.
Dr. Driver is a bilingual journalist based in Mexico City whose work focuses on migration, human rights and gender equality. She writes for National Geographic, Time, Longreads and CNN and is currently producing a radio story for Reveal from the Center for Investigative Reporting.
Story Slam For Equity
Wednesday, April 24 at Noon (Sturgis Hall)
In partnership with Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation
“A lost coin is found by means of a candle; the deepest truth is found by means of a simple story.” – Anthony De Mello
This year, the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation (WRF) changed its mission for the first time in decades. As WRF embarks on AR Equity 2025, a relentless pursuit of equity, we invite you to join us for a special afternoon of personal storytelling to inspire bold ideas that engage all Arkansans in the pursuit of equity for themselves, their families, and their communities.
Join us for the Story Slam For Equity. Come ready to share how you believe we can ensure equity to all Arkansans.
Josh Sharfstein – The Opioid Epidemic as a Public Health Crisis
Thursday, April 25 at 6 p.m. (Sturgis Hall)
Dr. Joshua M. Sharfstein, MD, is the Vice Dean for Public Health Practice and Community Engagement for the Bloomberg School of Public Health. He oversees the Office of Public Health Practice and Training, the General Preventive Medicine Residency and major practice activities, including collaboration with public health agencies. He also holds a faculty appointment in the Department of Health Policy and Management.
Dr. Sharfstein is also the Director of the Bloomberg American Health Initiative overseeing implementation of its key components. Previously, he served as the Secretary of the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, the Principal Deputy Commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Commissioner of Health for Baltimore City, and health policy advisor for Congressman Henry A. Waxman.
Introduction to Participatory Budget Project
Monday, April 29 at 5:30 p.m. (Sturgis Hall)
It’s a difficult time to work on engagement and democracy. People are tired of politics as usual, and are tired of their voices not being heard. Democracy is not working.
There is a solution: Share real power over real money and launch PB in your community. Thousands of people across North America and around the world are already taking budgets into their own hands and building civic power with PB. Are you ready to get started?
The Participatory Budgeting Project’s Introduction to PB Session provides a solid foundation in the principles and mechanics of PB by taking participants through a lightning speed mock PB process. Hear case studies, develop a deep understanding of how PB works, and gain insights into challenges and ways to overcome them. Leave energized with the tools you need to move PB forward in your community.
Helene Gayle, President and CEO of Chicago Community Trust
Tuesday, April 30 at Noon (Sturgis Hall)
Helene D. Gayle is president and CEO of The Chicago Community Trust. Dr. Gayle was previously the CEO of McKinsey Social Initiative, a nonprofit that builds partnerships for social impact.
For almost a decade, she was president and CEO of CARE, a leading international humanitarian organization. An expert on global development, humanitarian and health issues, Dr. Gayle spent 20 years with the Centers for Disease Control, working primarily on HIV/AIDS. She also worked at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, directing programs on HIV/AIDS, and other global health issues.
Dr. Gayle serves on public company and nonprofit boards including The Coca-Cola Company, Colgate-Palmolive Company, the Rockefeller Foundation, Brookings Institution, the Center for Strategic and International Studies, New America and the ONE Campaign. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the American Public Health Association, the National Academy of Medicine, the National Medical Association, and the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Named one of Forbes’ “100 Most Powerful Women” and one of NonProfit Times’ “Power and Influence Top 50,” she has authored numerous articles on global and domestic public health issues, poverty alleviation, gender equality, and social justice.
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