New America Voices

Live Chat: Christina Larson on China and the Environment (Tuesday, Noon ET / 9 am PT)

admin — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:55:00 -0500

As Barack Obama embarks on his first trip to Beijing as president -- and with less than a month to go before the Copenhagen climate change summit -- it's worth asking: Is China's rapid economic growth ravaging the environment? Or are that nation's massive investments in green technology an environmental lifeline -- not to mention a huge headstart in a sector that could drive the economy of the 21st century?

New America Foundation Schwartz Fellow Christina Larson will be discussing these questions Tuesday, Nov. 17, in this week's New America Foundation / Politico live web chat.

Update: This chat has concluded, but a full transcript is archived below.

New America's Christina Larson on China's Environmental Paradox

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Past Chats

Previous New America/Politico chats have their full transcripts archived:

Schwartz Fellow Dayo Olopade on the Obama Administration's faith-based initiatives
Education Policy Program staffers Lisa Guernsey and Christina Satkowski on the future of Head Start
Health Policy Program Director Len Nichols on the current state of health reform
Energy Policy Initiative Director Lisa Margonelli on the prospects for real progress with climate policy legislation.
Schwartz Fellow Nicholas Thompson on Cold War lessons for Afghanistan
Global Assets Project Deputy Director Jamie Zimmerman on savings as a path out of poverty
Bernard L. Schwartz Fellows Program Director Andres Martinez on "President Obama: Pragmatist or Ideologue?"

Live Chat: Barack Obama, Pragmatist or Ideologue?

Troy K. Schneider — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:24:00 -0500

Whether the issue is health reform, Afghanistan or gays in the military, progressive supporters of President Obama are dismayed by the pace of change -- while critics continue to warn of radical ambitions being cloaked by moderate talk.

Andrés Martinez, director of New America’s Bernard L. Schwartz Fellows Program, will be here at noon ET / 9am PT today to discuss the true nature of our president -- and the implications of policy decisions he's made to date.

New America Foundation: Andres Martinez

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Past Chats

Previous New America/Politico chats have their full transcripts archived:

Schwartz Fellow Dayo Olopade on the Obama Administration's faith-based initiatives
Education Policy Program staffers Lisa Guernsey and Christina Satkowski on the future of Head Start
Health Policy Program Director Len Nichols on the current state of health reform
Energy Policy Initiative Director Lisa Margonelli on the prospects for real progress with climate policy legislation.
Schwartz Fellow Nicholas Thompson on Cold War lessons for Afghanistan
Global Assets Project Deputy Director Jamie Zimmerman on savings as a path out of poverty

New America Podcast: Elizabeth Carpenter on Health Reform

admin — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:33:00 -0500

In this second New America weekly podcast, Media Relations Manager Kate Brown sits down with Health Policy Program Associate Director Elizabeth Carpenter to discuss the current state of health reform efforts, the debate over the public option, and the prospects for passing legislation.

The MP3 recording is available below. For more on Carpenter, please click here.

Religious Observances Show the Need for Workplace Flexibility

David Gray — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 15:06:00 -0400

This month is National Work Family Month. It is coming on the heels of a month that included significant holidays for religious groups in America that highlights the importance of workplace flexibility. September saw Ramadan, a most significant month for Muslims, and Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, significant for Jewish Americans.

During the past few weeks in particular, conflicts between work and religious observance were significant for many religious Americans. Khalil is a Muslim friend of mine who works in the Midwest. He works at a factory in Ohio where I grew up. Friday prayers are very important to his religious life. However, at a time when Midwestern factory jobs are disappearing and job security is scarce, Khalil feels conflicted in taking time from work for religious observance. Ramadan highlights the focus on his faith. It draws attention to an issue Khalil faces all year, how does he remain a good worker in a scarce job market when has Friday work hours, while staying true to his faith and its requirements for prayer?

Andrew is a member of a Jewish congregation in Maryland. During the High Holy Days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur he takes time for his family and his faith. The problem is that he works for a contractor to the U.S. government and their busiest time of year is September and October when the government's fiscal year is coming to an end and money has to be spent. This raises conflicts as those two significant holidays conflict with the time for work.These examples are but two of the countless religious Americans from a variety of faith traditions who face conflicts between practicing their faith and succeeding at work. As workers try and succeed in their jobs, the economic tensions of the time in which we live place great strains on these workers and their families.

For a generation, working women have been advocating for flexibility in their hours and places of work so that they can meet job and care giving responsibilities. More recently, fathers and older works have gotten involved in arguing that workplace flexibility needs to be the standard of the American workforce. Now a new constituency is emerging - religious Americans. Members of religious minorities have long argued that there needs to be broader support for their taking time for religious observance. Many of seen a broader federal role through legislation such as the Workplace Religious Freedom Act. Others have argued that engaging workers with specific religious observance needs is best handled on an individual basis. Yet religious Americans are no different from most workers. We each have unique situations that require attention. Whether it is caring for a small child, a need for time to have a baby, a desire for more retraining, the obligation to care for an aging parent, or a hope to be more physically and spiritually balanced, there is a broad and growing need for flexibility in the way Americans work. As the needs of workers change and continue to become more complex, the basic structure of the typical American workplace has not kept up.

We need to address workers' ability to have flexibility in the scheduling of hours; ability to have flexibility in the number of hours worked; ability to have career flexibility with multiple points for entry, exit and reentry into the workforce; and the ability to address unexpected and ongoing personal and family needs.

Religious Americans want to be balanced. Many faith traditions suggest we do well to find a balance between our work and our personal lives. Religious Americans have some unique challenges requiring flexibility in how, when and where they work. However, religious Americans are not different from millions of Americans who need more flexibility for a variety of reasons. They are one more constituency in the growing movement towards workplace flexibility.

Two Huffington Blog Posts on Workplace Flexibility

David Gray — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 14:57:00 -0400

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-gray/california-an-example-of_b_334333.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-gray/national-work-family-mont_b_305009.html

Live Web Chat: Nicholas Thompson on Cold-War Lessons for Afghanistan (Tuesday, Noon ET)

Troy K. Schneider — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 19:22:00 -0400

In this week's New America/Politico Live Chat, Nicholas Thompson will be online to discuss the dueling views on U.S. strategy in Afghanistan -- and how foreign policies forged in the Cold War continue to shape today's debate.

Thompson is a Schwartz Fellow at New America, a Senior Editor at Wired magazine, and the author of The Hawk and the Dove: Paul Nitze, George Kennan, and the History of the Cold War.

Update: This real-time, text-based online discussion has concluded. A full transcript is available below.

Nicholas Thompson, author of The Hawk and the Dove

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Past Chats

Previous New America/Politico chats have their full transcripts archived:

Schwartz Fellow Dayo Olopade on the Obama Administration's faith-based initiatives
Education Policy Program staffers Lisa Guernsey and Christina Satkowski on the future of Head Start
Health Policy Program Director Len Nichols on the current state of health reform
Energy Policy Initiative Director Lisa Margonelli on the prospects for real progress with climate policy legislation.

Flu Season Shows the Need for Workplace Flexibility

David Gray — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 16:50:00 -0400

The month of October is National Work Family Month. Families and workers are trying to succeed and survive in this challenging economy. Going into the Fall, the country is focused on health care. Everywhere we go we hear about it. The primary policy debates in Washington focus around health care reform. Throughout the country health care dominates town hall meetings.

Layered on top of this health care debate are the national preparations this month for a possible swine flu pandemic. Schools are setting up quarantine rooms. The government is preparing for the largest inoculation campaign in a generation. Public health officials are engaging in a public education campaign designed to minimize the potential impact of swine flu. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has been issuing advice for how we all can reduce the likelihood of contracting swine flu. However, the Centers for Disease Control estimate that up to 40% of the U.S. workforce could be directly affected.

This piece was originally
published on HuffingtonPost.com.

The swine flu outbreak has potential to create great disruptions for businesses, school, government offices and employers all throughout the nation.

There are many people who are used to going to work when they are a bit under the weather. However, swine flu is changing that equation. Even those who have traditionally prided themselves on going to work while a bit sick are having to rethink their plans and will be staying home now because there is a social price to be paid for going to work "sick" that wasn't there before. More people will notice and react negatively. So many more workers will be staying home.

Millions of businesses are developing contingency plans and continuity of operation plans to keep their businesses and operations going if and when critical employees are out. In just a few weeks, a significant number of American businesses could have their operations negatively affected by swine flu.

The swine flu draws attention for the critical need for more workplace flexibility for American businesses. Workplace flexibility is a concept that gives workers flexibility in the how, where and the quantity of hours they work.

Now is the time for a national conversation and effort to increase that flexibility. Flexible work arrangements such as telework can allow workers to be productive when they are not able to be in the office.

During the swine flu epidemic, it is likely that many workers will be sick enough that they will need to stay away from work, if only to keep their coworkers from being impacted, but they will be well enough to complete substantive work. Or many will be healthy themselves, but they will be needed at home to help care for a family member or a child. Schools across the nation will identify potentially sick children and many will have to stay at home for a week or more, so their working parents will be stuck at home.

During National Work & Family Month, our nation needs to recognize that putting in place legislation that meets the needs of workers and businesses by enhancing the flexibility of workplaces can make an important contribution during these months where the flu poses a risk to the American economy.

The H1N1 virus highlights in dramatic form the need for workplace flexibility in America. Americans need flexibility throughout the year and throughout their lives. Whether meeting the needs of families, caring for children, staying balanced or working longer in life, workplace flexibility is good for America during this flu season and beyond. We should act now to help support the economy during this time.

New America Podcast: Flynt Leverett on Iran and Ahmadinejad

admin — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 17:25:00 -0400

In this "pilot" edition of New America's new weekly podcast, Media Relations Manager Kate Brown sits down with Flynt Leverett to discuss his views on relations with Iran, the latest negotiations, and his recent dinner with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

The MP3 recording is available below. For more on Leverett, please click here.

Live Web Chat: Lisa Margonelli on Climate Legislation

Troy K. Schneider — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 21:09:00 -0400

Has the momentum shifted on climate change? Lisa Margonelli, author of Oil on the Brain and director of New America's Energy Policy Initiative, argues that last week may have been the turning point. And a recent Politico article notes that big business is now pushing the Senate and White House to act.

Margonelli will be taking questions on the current state of the energy and climate debate in this week's New America/Politico Live Chat. This real-time, text-based online discussion will kick off at Noon ET / 9am PT on Tuesday, Oct. 6.

You may submit questions in advance via the comments form below -- or just return to this page at Noon ET / 9am PT on Tuesday to join in the conversation.

<a href="http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php?option=com_mobile&task=viewaltcast&altcast_code=473dcadc04" >Climate policy: Lisa Margonelli, NAF</a>

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Previous New America/Politico chats -- with with Fellow Dayo Olopade on the Obama Administration's faith-based initiatives, and with Education Policy Program staffers Lisa Guernsey and Christina Satkowski on the future of Head Start, and Health Policy Program Director Len Nichols on the current state of health reform efforts -- have their full transcripts archived.

Live Chat With Dayo Olopade

Troy K. Schneider — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 16:04:00 -0400

Dayo Olopade, a new Schwartz Fellow at New America, is taking questions today on the Obama Administration's faith-based initiatives in a live chat co-hosted by Politico.

You may participate in the chat below, or on the Politico website, starting at noon ET.

UPDATE: This chat has concluded, but you can read the transcript below. New America and Politico will be co-hosting chats mid-day each Tuesday.

New America FoundationChat: Faith-based initiatves,