Events
Click here to see the AI and Democracy Roundtable Discussion.
Fall 2023
Forum in Ethics, Law, and Society (PHIL 205) JOIN US MONDAYS
Mondays, 12:00-12:55 pm, in STEVENSON 1400
Lecture is free and open to the public. General parking is $5 in lots J, E and F with parking permit machines available. Click here to view SSU map.
Scan QR code or click on this link to join live each Monday at noon.
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Fall 2023
September 11 "Ethical Issue in Space Colonization: AI, Robots, and Existential Risk"
Keith Abney, California Polytechnic State University, Philosophy
September 18 "The Privileged Access of the Underprivileged"
Teed Rockwell, Sonoma State University, Philosophy-Emeritus
September 25 "Rethinking 'Democratizing AI'"
Ting-An Lin, Stanford, Interdisciplinary Ethics Postdoctoral Fellow, McCoy Family Center of Ethics in Society (EIS) and The Institute for Human Centered Artificial Intelligence (HAI)
Click here to see Ting-An Lin's lecture.
October 9 "Responsible Use of Generative AI"
John P. Sullins, Sonoma State University, Philosophy
Click here to see Dr. John Sullins' lecture.
October 16 "On Bullshit Engines: The Socioethical and Epistemic Status of GPTs and other 'AI'"
Damien Patrick Williams, University of North Carolina Charlotte, Philosophy and Data Science
Click here to see Dr. Damien Patrick Williams' lecture.
October 30 "Developing Flexibility Awareness"
Anthony Wright, Sonoma State University, Philosophy
Click here to see Anthony Wright's lecture.
November 6 "Small Minds Without Spines: Challenging the Moral Discourse Around Insect Consumption"
Rebekah Sinclair, Oregon State University, Philosophy
November 13 "An Ethics of Gender Affirmation"
Megan Burke, Sonoma State University, Philosophy
Click here to see Megan Burke's lecture.
November 27 Warren Court Prizewinner Presentations
Fall 2022
September 12 "Bay Area Anti-Trafficking Coalition"
Betty Ann Hagenau (BAATC)
September 26 "The Arguments Used to Overturn Roe and their Consequences"
Cynthia Boaz (Sonoma State University)
Click here to see video of Dr. Boaz's lecture.
October 10 "Ethics of AI"
Will Fleisher (Georgetown)
Click here to see video of Will Fleisher's lecture.
October 17 "The Courage to Transform Knowledge into Wisdom"
Anthony Wright (Sonoma State University)
Click here to see video of Anthony Wright's lecture.
October 24 "Artificial Wombs"
Susan Kennedy (Santa Clara University)
Click here to see video of Susan Kennedy's lecture.
October 31 "The Political Realities of Indigenous Communities"
Silvia Soto (Sonoma State University)
Click here to see video of Silvia Soto's lecture.
November 7 "Citational Rebellion and Applied Ethics"
Johnathan Flowers (CSU, Northridge)
November 14 "Military and Business Strategy in an Age of AI-aided Decisions"
Matthew Kwon Johnson (Department of Defense)
November 28 "Warren Court Prize Presentations"
Prize winners
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PREVIOUS LECTURE SERIES
Fall 2021
August 30 “Sylvia Rivera and the Fight Against the Carceral Machine”
Dr. Andrea Pitts, University of North Carolina-Charlotte, Philosophy
Click here to see video of Dr. Pitts' lecture.
September 13 “How White People Listen”
Dr. Storm Heter, East Stroudsburg University, Philosophy
September 20 “Criminal Punishment and Gender-Based Violence: The Limits of Incarceration”
Dr. Amelia Wirts, University of Washington, Philosophy
Click here to see video of Dr. Wirts' lecture.
September 27 “Institutional Timeliness, COVID-19, and Trans Critique”
Dr. Amy Marvin, Gettysburg College, Philosophy
Click here to see video of Dr. Marvin's lecture.
October 4 “Black Films Matter”
Professor Law Ware, Oklahoma State University, Philosophy
Click here to see video of Professor Ware's lecture.
October 18 “Healing at the Intersections: Combating Intersectional Invisibility in Therapy”
RaiNesha L. Miller, PhD., Johns Hopkins University Counseling Center,
Coordinator of Services for Black Students
Click here to see video of Dr. Miller's lecture.
October 25 “Sensorimotor Debility in Digital Cultures”
Professor Simon Penny, University of California-Irvine, Art
Click here to see video of Professor Penny's lecture.
November 1 “Yellow Bodies in White Spaces”
Dr. Boram Jeong, University of Colorado-Denver, Philosophy
Click here to see video of Dr. Jeong's lecture
November 8 “Who am I? A Discussion About Transitions, Moral Injury, and Veteran Support”
David Reese, University of Maryland, Coordinator of Veteran Student Life
Click here to see David Reese's lecture.
November 15 “Mindfulness and Kindness: Resonating with Self and Other”
Dr. Andy Wallace, Sonoma State University, Philosophy
Click here to see Dr. Wallace's lecture.
Previous
2018
Raj Patel
March 2, 2018, 1:00pm, Cooperage 3
Co-Sponsor with SSU Hutchins School of Liberal Studies
Wendell Wallach, Yale University Center for Bioethics
February 8, 12:05-12:55 Stevenson 1002
Co-sponsored with Computer Science
2017
Nov. 14
The Baumgardt Memorial Lecture II
FINDING GOODNESS IN DEATH
Joshua Glasgow, Sonoma State University, Philosophy
Nov. 7
The Baumgardt Memorial Lecture I
GRATITUDE FOR BAD FACTS
Joshua Glasgow, Sonoma State University, Philosophy
Oct. 13
THE FUTURE OF CYBERSECURITY
Betsy Cooper, UC Berkeley, Center for Long-Term Cybersecurity
Oct. 24
TRUST, ANGER, RESENTMENT: ON BLAME AND ITS ASSESSMENT
R. Jay Wallace, UC Berkeley, Philosophy
Sept. 26
FREE SPEECH AND FAKE NEWS IN THE TRUMP ERA
Paul Gullixson, The Press Democrat
Karl Olson, Cannata, O'Toole, Fickes and Almazan, LLP
Sept. 19
CAN RACIAL INEQUALITY BE FIXED BY SEEING RACE AS FLUID?
Aliya Saperstein, Stanford, Sociology
Sept. 12
VALUES AND FEAR IN THE AGE OF TRUMP IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT
Bill Hing, University of San Francisco, Law
Aug. 29
OUR CHANGING OCEANS
Jennifer Stock, NOAA, Cordell Bank Marine Sanctuary
May 2
LAW, ORDER, AND ALGORITHMS: CRIMINAL JUSTICE IN THE AGE OF BIG DATA
Sharad Goel, Stanford University, Engineering
April 25
THE RISE OF THE GOOD FOOD MOVEMENT
Naomi Starkman, Civil Eats
April 18
MAKING A DIFFERENCE: THE FUTURE OF NON-PROFIT WORK--A PANEL OF EXPERTS
Karin Demarest, Vice President for Programs, Community Foundation Sonoma County
Paul Fordham, Deputy Executive DIrector, Homeward Bound of Marin
Matt Martin, CEO, Social Advocates for Youth
April 20, 11:15-12, Green Music Center (part of the Investiture conference honoring President Sakaki)
A CELS Co-Sponsored Event
Democracy Roundtable: How do we understand relationships between citizenship, immigration, and xenophobia?
April 11
ELECTIONEERING VS. GOVERNING: THE CHALLENGES OF A TRUMP PRESIDENCY AFTER THE FIRST 100 DAYS
David McCuan, SSU, Political Science
April 11, 7:30PM, Student Center Ballroom A
A CELS Co-Sponsored Event, with the Schulz Endowment, University Library, and the School of Social Sciences
RUNNING A SUB-20 SECOND 200 AND SPEAKING THROUGH SILENCE
Tommie Smith
April 4
EQUITY, DIVERSITY, AND INCLUSION IN SONOMA COUNTY
Jen Lewis, Special Projects Director, Sonoma County Department of Health Services
March 21
HOW DO BLIND PEOPLE UNDERSTAND RACE, AND WHAT CAN THEY TELL US ABOUT COLORBLINDNESS?
Osagie Obasogie, UC Berkeley School of Public Health
March 7
THE NEXT PHASE IN IMMIGRATION LAW AND POLICY
Bernice Espinoza, Sonoma County Public Defender
February 28
KILLER ROBOTS AND DEMOCRATIC WARS
Christopher Kutz, UC Berkeley Law
Feb. 21
INEQUALITY IN FILM: ON SCREEN AND BEHIND THE CAMERA
Stacy Smith, USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism
Feb. 14
THE ROBOTIC MIRROR: FINDING HUMANITY IN MACHINE VALUES
Shannon Vallor, Santa Clara University, Philosophy
2016
Oct. 12
THE SCIENCE OF HAPPINESS: INSIGHTS AND PRACTICES
Dacher Kelter, UC Berkeley Psychology and Co-Director of the Greater Good Science Center
April 18
SUPPORTING EMBODIED LEARNING AT THE SONOMA COUNTY OFFICE OF EDUCATION'S LEGO ROBOTICS CHALLENGE
Rick Phelan, Coordinator of Staff Development for Curriculum and technology at the Sonoma County Office of Education, Faculty member of SSU School of Education and Extended Education
March 24
COMPASSION
Erika Rosenberg, Stanford University
2015
Nov. 17
A PANEL OF EXPERTS: THE FUTURE OF THE LEGAL PROFESSION
Susan Hollander, K&L Gates
Judge Brad Seligman, Superior Court of Alameda County
Cometria Cooper, Assistant Director of Career Development, University of San Francisco School of Law
This event was supported in part by St. Joseph Health--Sonoma County and SSU Instructionally Related Activities
Nov. 10
WHO OWNS YOUR STUFF? COPYRIGHT, EULAs, AND THE FUTURE OF USER CONTROL
Corynne McSherry, Electronic Frontier Foundation
This event was supported in part by St. Joseph Health--Sonoma County and SSU Instructionally Related Activities
Nov. 3
FOOD, OUR BIOSPHERE, AND YOU
Jeff Baldwin, SSU, Geography and Global Studies
This event was supported in part by St. Joseph Health--Sonoma County and SSU Instructionally Related Activities
Oct. 27
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF A GUILTY MIND
Tania Lombrozo, U.C. Berkeley, Psychology
This event was supported in part by St. Joseph Health--Sonoma County and SSU Instructionally Related Activities
Oct. 20
CALIFORNIA'S WATER CHALLENGES: LESSONS FROM THE CURRENT DROUGHT
Caitrin Chappelle, Public Policy Institute of California
This event was supported in part by St. Joseph Health--Sonoma County and SSU Instructionally Related Activities
Oct. 6
RACIAL BIAS IN POLICING: PSYCHOLOGICAL CAUSES AND POLICY IMPLICATIONS
Jack Glaser, U.C. Berkeley, Goldman School of Public Policy
This event was supported in part by St. Joseph Health--Sonoma County and SSU Instructionally Related Activities
Sept. 22
FINDING A PATH TO BENEFICIAL A.I.
John Sullins, SSU, Philosophy
This event was supported in part by St. Joseph Health--Sonoma County and SSU Instructionally Related Activities
Sept. 15
THE PROBLEMS WITH PRIVATIZATION
Debra Satz, Stanford University, Philosophy
This event was supported in part by St. Joseph Health--Sonoma County and SSU Instructionally Related Activities
Green Music Center, Weill Hall, Wednesday, September 9. 6:30pm
GLOBAL POVERTY AND WHAT WE OUGHT TO BE DOING ABOUT IT
The Big Ethics and Law Lecture
Peter Singer, A.C. Princeton University and the University of Melbourne
Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2-4pm, Student Center Ballroom B
READING RACE: FROM FERGUSON, MISSOURI TO MORRISON'S A MERCY AND BACK AGAIN
Paula Moya, Stanford University
Co-sponsored with the SSU Philosophy Club, with the support of Instructionally Related Activities
Monday, Feb. 23, 10:30am-noon, Student Center Ballroom B
PROSTITUTION AND HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS
Melissa Farley, Prostitution Education and Research
Co-sponsored with the Sonoma Freedom Project, with the support of Instructionally Related Activities
Tuesday, April 14, 7:30pm, Schroeder Hall (Green Music Center)
WHAT IS VEILING?
Dr. Sahar Amer, University of Sydney
Co-sponsored with the School of Arts & Humanities, Dept. of Modern Languages
2014
Wednesday, April 16, 2-3:30, Student Center Ballroom B
MULTIRACIAL BELONGING AND BETRAYAL
Ron Sundstrom, Ph.D., University of San Francisco
Co-hosted by CELS and the SSU Philosophy Club
Friday, April 11, 9-noon, Weill Hall
IMAGINE YOURSELF: A DIALOGUE AND SYMPOSIUM WITH THE CHIEF JUSTICE OF CALIFORNIA
Chief Justice of California, Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye
with Angelica Quirarte, Jonathan Gomez, and Doug Bosco
Presented by 10,000 Degrees Sonoma County and CELS
September 2
RISKS AND LIABILITIES IN CYBERSPACE
Eric Sinrod, Duane Morris LLP
This event was supported in part by Instructionally Related Activities
September 9
A REVERENTIAL REYDRATION REVOLUTION
Brock Dolman, Occidental Arts and Ecology Center
This event was supported in part by Instructionally Related Activities
Sept. 16
COMPASSION AND HAPPINESS
Andy Wallace, SSU Philosophy
Sept. 23
DOG WHISTLE POLITICS: HOW CODED RACIAL APPEALS HAVE REINVENTED RACISM AND WRECKED THE MIDDLE CLASS
Ian Haney- López, Boalt Hall (UC Berkeley Law) and Demos
This event was supported in part by Instructionally Related Activities
Sept. 30
NSA SPYING, THE CONSTITUTION, AND YOU
Cindy Cohn, Electronic Frontier Foundation
This event was supported in part by Instructionally Related Activities
Oct. 14
PHILOSOPHY OF WATER USE TECHNOLOGY
Irene Klaver, University of North Texas
This event was supported in part by Instructionally Related Activities
Oct. 28
WHALE AWARE: HOW INDUSTRY, GOVERNMENT, AND NGOs ARE WORKING TOGETHER TO REDUCE STRIKES TO WHALES BY LARGE BOATS
Michael Carver and Jennifer Stock, Cordell Bank Marine Sanctuary (NOAA)
Nov. 18
THE RIGHT TO SPEAK OUR MINDS AND OUR LANGUAGES: TOWARD AN ETHICS OF MULTILINGUALISM IN SCHOOL AND SOCIETY
Robert Train, SSU Modern Languages
Dec. 2
Warren Court Prize Presentations
2013
Tuesday, November 19, Noon-1pm, Carson Hall 56
THE WORLD OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING: A Q&A WITH DR. MARY BURKE
Mary Burke, Executive Director, The Project to End Human Trafficking and Director, Doctoral Program in Counseling Psychology, Carlow University
Wednesday, October 30, 2-3:30, Cooperage 2
STAKEHOLDING AND SAFETY NETS: A CRITIQUE OF LIBERTARIANISM
Teed Rockwell, SSU Philosophy Department
Wednesday, September 25, 12-1pm, Darwin 103
PROBLEMS WITH "BORN THAT WAY": SEXUAL ORIENTATION, SCIENCE, AND THE LAW
Ed Stein, Vice Dean, Professor of Law, and Director of the Gertrud Mainzer Program in Family Law, Policy, and Bioethics at Cardozo Law
Thursday, April 11, Location: Schulz 3001, 1:30-3:00
NEGLIGENCE AND RESPONSIBILITY
Manuel Vargas, University of San Francisco, Philosophy and Law School
Friday, April 5
Frank Wu, Chancellor and Dean, Hastings School of Law
2-3 PM: Q & A about law school with Frank Wu, the Dean and Chancellor of Hastings. Co-sponsored by CELS and the Pre-Law Society. Carson 56
Dean Wu also led a discussion of the film, Who Killed Vincent Chin?, at 7 PM.
Wednesday, March 27
Title IX events
Gender Equity Concerns Workshop for Students and Community Members, 4:30-6 pm in the Cooperage.
Donna Lopiano “Gender Equity and Title 9: It Isn’t Just About Sports," 7:30 pm The Cooperage
- Dr. Lopiano has served for 18 years as the University of Texas at Austin Director of Women’s Athletics and is a past-president of the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women. During her tenure at Texas, she constructed what many believed to be the premiere women’s athletics program in the country; twice earning the top program in the nation award. Recognized as one of the foremost national experts on gender equity in sport, Dr. Lopiano has testified about Title IX and gender equity before three Congressional committees and served as a consultant to the U.S. Office for Civil Rights Department of Health, Education and Welfare Title IX Task Force. The Sporting News has repeatedly listed her as one of “The 100 Most Influential People in Sports.”
Gender Equity Issues Workshop for Faculty, Staff, Coaches and Administrators, 10-11:30 am in Schulz 3001
Wednesday, February 6, 4 PM
The Center for Ethics, Law, and Society Inaugural Lecture
Judge Brad Seligman: Big Law, Small Law: Old and New Civil Rights in the 21st Century
Come join us hear Judge Seligman, SSU alum and accomplished class action civil rights lawyer, speak about civil rights! Judge Seligman's talk will help us officially open the Center. Wine and cheese reception to follow.
Location: Ives 101 (Warren Auditorium).
Center for Ethics, Law, and Society at Sonoma State University
707.664.3280 • Rachel Carson Hall 56 • 1801 East Cotati Ave • Rohnert Park, CA 94928
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