Performance by comedian Marcus Brigstocke. Climate change is no laughing matter, but when all else fails, perhaps it's time to take humour a bit more seriously? Humour has long been a powerful tool in the social-change arsenal, but is it powerful enough to help us break through the static on this colossal issue? Is 'laughing-it-off' just about evasion, or is it the key to transforming public perspective at scale, in time?

With the climate clock ticking we witness a seemingly endless cycle of public talks, journalistic comment pieces and debates on old turf, mostly reinforcing what we already know and fear. 

In a bid to generate a new dialogue that sparks enduring change, the RSA is embarking on a series of climate events with a difference, starting with a comedy night.

Judith Rodin advises:  preparing for the future means building better cities. New York; Athens; Wenzhou; Boston; Oslo; Dhaka; New Orleans; Nairobi. In recent years, dozens of cities across the globe have beenhit by large-scale catastrophes of every kind: natural disaster, geopolitical conflict, food shortages, disease and contagion, terrorist attacks. If you haven't been directly touched by one of these cataclysms yourself, in our interconnected world you are sure to have been affected in some way. They harm vulnerable individuals, destabilise communities and threaten organisations and even whole societies.

We are at greater risk than ever from city-wide catastrophe, and as the severity and frequency of these disasters increase, we must become better at preparing for, responding to and recovering from them. Why did more girls than boys drown in Japan's 2011 tsunami, and what does the case of Haiti's humanitarian aid tell us about the future?

Dr Judith Rodin, President, Rockefeller Foundation, author of The Resilience Dividend, and one of the world's leading public thinkers, brings together ground-breaking research to help build a radical future in which individuals, companies and entire societies avert disaster by creating more dynamic, more resilient cities. To order her book from Amazon, just click on the image or visit your local book store. Streamed live on Jan 20, 2015

Joni Lane, LEED Green Associate, is a recent graduate of Boston Architectural College with a Masters in Sustainable Design Studies. She is passionate about creating valuable, sustainable and regenerative solutions by which humans can continue to live without threatening to render our planet uninhabitable. She believes great design has the power to change the world and has decided to focus her energy on healing our built environment with bio-based materials, specifically Hempcrete. Focusing on addressing indoor contaminants and their effect on our health, She strives to advance education and awareness of this very important public health issue to promote safe and healthy buildings. Published on Dec 31, 2014

Kirby Dyess, OR Board of Higher Education, '04-'08; John von Schlagell, OR Board of Higher Education, '04-'08; Donald Blair, OR Board of Higher Education, '04-'08

"In 2004, Governor Kulongoski wanted to create an innovative and entrepreneurial system of administration that would stabilize income and costs for Oregon’s public universities. To accomplish this, he appointed a number of prominent businesspeople to the Oregon State Board of Higher Education. In 2008, three of these appointees completed their terms and have since claimed that outdated organizational structures prevented their ability to make the fundamental changes necessary to achieve the Governor’s higher education goals.
On October 23, City Club welcomes these three former Board of Higher Education members – Kirby Dyess, Donald Blair and John von Schlegell – who will discuss their experiences on the Board.  Local news story is here.

Speakers: Adam Davis, founder and principal at DHM Research and Dave Miller, host of Think Out Loud

Results of the Oregon Values & Beliefs Study conducted every 10 years by DHM Research and sponsored this year by the Oregon Community Foundation, Oregon Public Broadcasting, Oregon Health & Science University, and Oregon State University.

Adam Davis, DHM co-founder and John McConnell of OSHU will join Think Out Loud's Dave Miller and a diverse group of community members to discuss how Oregonians value education, healthcare, the environment, religion and a host of other issues. With over 30 years of experience in all phases of public opinion research, Adam Davis' expertise ranges from survey research design to focus group moderating. He has conducted projects throughout the United States and on-site in Europe and Japan.

John McConnell is the director of OHSU's Center for Health Systems Effectiveness. Dr. McConnell is a health economist and an associate professor in OHSU's departments of emergency medicine and public health & preventive medicine.

Speakers: Brian Emerick, Principal at Emerick Architects; Julie Garver, Housing Development Director at Innovative Housing; Jeff Joslin, Director of Current Planning at the City and County of San Francisco; Peggy Moretti, Executive Director at Restore Oregon; and Ethan Seltzer, Professor of Urban Studies and Planning at Portland State University. Moderating the panel will be Chet Orloff, Manager at Pamplin International Collection of Art & History.Published on Jun 24, 2014 by the City Club of Portland.