Institutions

Global Democracy Commons

Recap

Published December 17, 2024

Making Sense of the Elections of 2024

Presented as part of the Global Democracy Commons initiative, this panel featured UC Berkeley scholars discussing the 2024 elections in different parts of the world. The panel included James Vernon, Helen Fawcett Distinguished Professor, History; Alison Post, Associate Professor, Political Science; Trevor Jackson, Assistant Professor, History; Aarti Sethi, Assistant Professor, Anthropology; and Kwanele Sosibo, Lecturer, Art History.

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New Directions

Recap

Published December 16, 2024

New Directions in the Study of Labor

In this panel, an interdisciplinary group of UC Berkeley graduate students explored the evolving dynamics of work, management, and labor organization. The panel featured presentations by William Darwell (Jurisprudence and Social Policy), Kristy Kim (Economics), and Vera Parra (Sociology). Moderated by John Logan, Visiting Scholar at the UC Berkeley Labor Center.

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Authors Meet Critics

Recap

Published December 16, 2024

Sin Padres, Ni Papeles: Unaccompanied Migrant Youth Coming of Age in the United States

This Authors Meet Critics panel focused on "Sin Padres, Ni Papeles: Unaccompanied Migrant Youth Coming of Age in the United States," by Stephanie L. Canizales, Assistant Professor of Sociology at UC Berkeley and Faculty Director of the Berkeley Interdisciplinary Migration Initiative. With Kristina Lovato, Caitlin Patler, and Sarah Song.

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Authors Meet Critics

Recap

Published December 12, 2024

Authoritarian Absorption: The Transnational Remaking of Epidemic Politics in China

Watch the video (or listen to the podcast) of or our Authors Meet Critics panel featuring "Authoritarian Absorption: The Transnational Remaking of Epidemic Politics in China," by Yan Long, Assistant Professor in the UC Berkeley Department of Sociology. Professor Long was joined in conversation by Matthew Kohrman and Rachel E. Stern, with Tom Gold moderating.

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Matrix On Point

Recap

Published November 26, 2024

Shifting Alignments in the 2024 Election

Recorded on October 25, 2024, this panel examined the shifting demographic and political forces that are redefining the traditional bases of the Democratic and Republican parties and their efforts to build new electoral coalitions. The panel featured Ian Haney López, David Hollinger, and Omar Wasow, and was moderated by G. Cristina Mora.

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Podcast

Interview

Published November 19, 2024

The Imperiled Place of Universities and Democracy in the USA: An Interview with Todd Wolfson

This Matrix Podcast episode features a conversation between James Vernon, Director of the Global Democracy Commons initiative, and Todd Wolfson, the new President of AAUP, about how public disinvestment from higher education and the culture wars have transformed colleges in ways that make them less democratic places — and imperil democracy across the country.

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Authors Meet Critics

Recap

Published November 11, 2024

Authors Meet Critics: “Partisan Nation: The Dangerous New Logic of American Politics in a Nationalized Era”

Watch the video (or listen to the podcast) of our Authors Meet Critics panel "Partisan Nation: The Dangerous New Logic of American Politics in a Nationalized Era," by Paul Pierson and Eric Schickler, who were joined in conversation by Francis Fukuyama and Didi Kuo. Moderated by Mark Danner.

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Podcast

Interview

Published November 1, 2024

Free Speech, Academic Freedom, and the Fragile History of American Democracy

This Matrix Podcast episode features a conversation between James Vernon, Director of the Global Democracy Commons initiative, and Hank Reichman, Professor Emeritus at Cal State East Bay, and author of Understanding Academic Freedom.

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Podcast

Interview

Published September 27, 2024

Prisoner Labor Legacies: An interview with Elizabeth Hargrett and Xander Lenc

While recent news has highlighted how prisoners have fought wildfires, prison labor is not a new phenomenon. Although incarcerated people have built highways, dams, and buildings, their contributions to American infrastructure are often made invisible. Both Elizabeth Hargrett and Xander Lenc have studied how prisoner labor has shaped America’s infrastructure with a focus on North […]

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Interview

Published September 11, 2024

Agricultural Modernization in China: Interview with Ross Doll and Coleman Mahler 

This episode of the Matrix Podcast features Matrix Postdoctoral Fellow Julia Sizek interviewing Ross Doll and Coleman Mahler, two scholars from different disciplines whose work focuses on the modernization of China. Ross Doll is Ciriacy-Wantrup Postdoctoral Fellow in the UC Berkeley Department of Geography. He researches agrarian change in Asia drawing on political ecology, cultural […]

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Alumni

Interview

Published June 25, 2024

Anti-Mining Politics in Colombia: A Visual Interview with Ángela Castillo

What can the battle around a new mine in Colombia tell us about the past and future of environmentalist organizing in Latin America? Matrix Postdoc Julia Sizek interviewed Ángela Castillo, who is a recent PhD graduate from UC Berkeley’s Anthropology Department and is now Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Pitzer College.

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Podcast

Interview

Published May 31, 2024

The Emotions of Dyadic Relationships: An Interview with Jenna Wells and Felicia Zerwas

This episode of the Matrix Podcast features an interview with Jenna Wells and Felicia Zerwas, who at the time of the interview were Ph.D. candidates in the UC Berkeley Department of Psychology. The interview was conducted by Julia Sizek, Matrix Postdoctoral Fellow.

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