Curiosity Invited

Marcie Gilbert, the Executive Director of Calibrate, sits down with David for an engaging conversation about this unique program largely facilitated by young people who were exposed to this unique Social Emotional Learning program as youth . Calibrate is a not for profit (501 c3) organization centered in Los Angeles, CA that delivers it's program, CONNECTIONS, to groups throughout Los Angeles. It's mission is to transform and elevate the lives of tomorrow’s leaders from under-resourced communities, particularly the descendants of American slavery, by providing spaces where they experience their best selves, feel valued for the potential they bring to the world, and prepare to reinvest their time and talents back into their communities. Having grown out of educational groups and institutions, Much of its initial work has been with young people in schools and community groups. Calibrate hopes to expand its program to groups of all sorts and throughout the country. CONNECTIONS, Calibrate's primary program, is a data-driven, social-emotional learning (SEL) program. It is a structured process designed to create a protective space, so that participants can listen and speak from their hearts. For Indigenous, Black, and People of Color (IBPOC), who are in survival mode day-to-day, Connections provides a safe place to cultivate intra-personal growth and interpersonal bonds. Connections normalizes the sharing of personal stories and conveys to participants that all voices are important and that each individual is appreciated for their authentic self. Connections is not psychotherapy, but it has a therapeutic effect. Participants are guided by prompts that elicit imagination, reflection, and critical thinking. During Connections sessions, participants are exposed to healthy coping mechanisms and practice aspects of productive/constructive listening and communication. All of these qualities are essential for healing, advocacy, sharing values, and establishing narrative. https://calibrate.earth/

Dr. Zack Bein is a psychologist in the Dan Brown/David Elliott lineage of clinicians who believe strongly in the “3 pillar” approach to healing relational difficulty in adults. I also have clinical experience with substance abuse/dependence, anxiety disorders, mood disorders, impulse-control disorders, psychotic disorders, and several personality disorders. His research is in mindfulness treatments for addiction and posttraumatic symptoms. At the University of California, Berkeley, Zack worked in the schizophrenia lab, examining the relationship between memory, emotions, and negative symptoms in patients with schizophrenia. His approach to therapy is integrative, considering elements from a variety of theories and modalities, as well as evidence-based practices. Some of these include Attachment Theory, mindfulness-based interventions, Humanistic/Existential Therapy, Narrative Therapy, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, Trauma-Focused Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, Seeking Safety, Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT), Three Pillars Therapy and the Ideal Parent Figure (IPF) Protocol. He is trained in administering and scoring the Adult Attachment Interview by Howard and Miriam Steele at the New School in Manhattan. The AAI is the gold standard assessment of attachment styles in adults. Dr. Bein also works closely with David Elliott, Ph,D, the co-creator of the model, to teach the 3 Pillar Model to clinicians, therapists, coaches, who wish to incorporate healing of attachment disturbances in their work. Zack is authored of an upcoming chapter in “Clinical Applications of the AAI, Part 2,” in which he details how the Three Pillars therapist uses the AAI in an ethically minded way to inform the work.

Katalin Hanappi is a Vienna based documentary filmmaker, but likes to refer to herself as an escape artist. She was born in Vienna, Austria into an artistic and rather nomadic family, that is changing its patchwork patterns until this day. Katalin grew up in Austria, Canada, England and the United States, learning soon to adapt to new surroundings and witnessing many forms of education and lifestyles. What was a constant in her life was always storytelling- being the oldest of first one, then two, later three and now a few more siblings, she liked to write stories and books for them. And she used them as actors in homemade plays and films. (note: They later became actors and music composers) As a thirteen year old she stumbled into being a news anchor for a children's' news program on the Austrian National television which she presented every weekend for four years until her family moved away again to England. There Katalin discovered her passion for theater and screenplay-writing. In her early twenties she wrote plays for theaters in Vienna but then decided to enroll to film school and soon started working as a documentary filmmaker. Now over ten years later Katalin has directed more than 3 dozen documentaries for broadcast and cinema, most of them in the genre of wildlife, adventure, science and nature. Her aim is to get everyone excited about this one gorgeous planet. In order to inspire others she feels she needs to keep inspiring herself and spends most of the year traveling. Together with her partner who runs a design studio she shares a secret double life on a sailboat. Together they recently started the production company “Sailing Studio productions” that produces little fun short films with big meanings. Katalin Hanappi is known for her exceptionally sensitive and intuitive approach to challenging stories. In 2015 she received the Austrian „Best 30 under 30“ journalism award. https://katalinhanappi.com/ https://offf.media/index/studio-elast...

Tune in to listen to some of the highlights of the past year conversations between David and his guests. Karen Bass, Marianne Williamson, Michael Abels, Daryl Davis and Jeff Schoep, Professor Larry Birnbaum, Aura Sunada Newlin, Chrysta Bilton, Leila Steinberg

Drs. Peter Schnall and Marnie Dobson speak about the ways in which work can have long-term disastrous consequences on the immediate and long term wellbeing of workers, organizations, and our economic system. Their research shows the scientifically verified effects of many work environments and what can be done about it. Marnie Dobson, Ph.D. is currently the Director of the Healthy Work Campaign and the Associate Director of the Center for Social Epidemiology, a non-profit organization and sponsor of the HWC. The Healthy Work Campaign is a public health campaign focused on raising awareness in the U.S. about the impacts of work stress on mental and physical health. For over 17 years she has been a researcher in occupational health and work stress research and was an Assistant Adjunct Professor at the University of California, Irvine, Center for Occupational and Environmental Health. She developed the Healthy Work Survey in collaboration with a team of university researchers, as well as intervention tools to guide organizations in preventing occupational diseases caused by stress and designing healthier work. Peter Schnall, MD, MPH has been studying the effects work environments can have on the wellbeing of workers as well as the quality of work for nearly 50 years. The Founder and Director of the Center of Epidemiology, Peter's work is widely respected for his understanding of the effects of our modern way of life on individual and community wellbeing. https://healthywork.org https://unhealthywork.org/ https://unhealthywork.org/healthy-wor... https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-sch... https://twitter.com/pschnall

Daryl Davis and Jeff Schoep are two of the most inspirational gentlemen I've ever met. Both work at the forefront of a hands-on social movement aimed at building bridges of understanding and friendship ordinarily thought to be impossible. Having had the opportunity to sit down with each of them individually (Davis Episode 24; Schoep Episode 29) they agreed to sit down with me at the same time to speak about what it will take to overcome the growing factionalism in our society. Daryl Davis has worked to improve race relations by seeking out, engaging in dialogue with, and befriending members of the Ku Klux Klan. In 1983, he was playing country western music in a "white" bar in Frederick, Maryland, when a patron came up to him and said it was the first time he had "heard a black man play as well as Jerry Lee Lewis". Davis explained to the man that "Jerry Lee learned to play from black blues and boogie-woogie piano players and he's a friend of mine". The white patron was skeptical and over a drink admitted he was a member of the KKK. The two became friends and eventually the man gave Davis contact information on KKK leaders. A few years later, Davis decided that he wanted to interview Klan members and write a book on the subject, to answer a "question in my head from the age of 10: 'Why do you hate me when you know nothing about me?' That question had never been answered from my youth". Davis eventually went on to befriend over twenty members of the KKK, and claims to have been directly responsible for between forty and sixty, and indirectly over two hundred people leaving the Klan.Over the course of his activities, Davis found that Klansmen have many misconceptions about black people, stemming mostly from intense brainwashing in their youth. When they got to know him, Davis claims, it was more difficult to maintain their prejudices. The artist has recounted his experiences in his 1998 book, Klan-destine Relationships: A Black Man's Odyssey in the Ku Klux Klan. Davis is not on a mission to "convert" bigots, white supremacists, Klansmen, or Nazis. Rather because of the earnest respect he offers all human beings and his core beliefs in the power of love, respect, fairness and his willingness to listen and find the heart of "the other," people are moved and transformed. Over 200 Neo-Nazis, Klansmen and others who belong to organizations that preach hate have chosen to leave those organizations and give Daryl their robes, flags, insignia, and other symbols of hate. https://www.daryldavis.com/ https://twitter.com/RealDarylDavis Jeff Schoep, once America’s most notorious neo-Nazi, now a consultant for the Simon Wiesenthal Center and an inspirational speaker for Conscious Campus, tirelessly holds keynote talks, lectures, and workshops from his unique vantage point. For over 2 decades, Schoep led America’s largest neo-Nazi organization, the National Socialist Movement (NSM), overseeing its growth to a nationwide movement. Beginning in 2016, through interactions with a black musician, Daryl Davis, and a Muslim film maker, Deeyah Khan, Jeff began to question not only his work, but his entire life. Experiencing relational dialogue and interpersonal relationships with those he once vilified changed Jeff’s life forever. In 2019, he left the the NSM and publicly denounced the ideology. Jeff Schoep transitioned from mastering propaganda that promoted hatred and fear dedication to speaking about our shared humanity. He provides unique insights into the inner workings of far-right extremism from first hand knowledge and personal experience. Jeff has spoken nationally and internationally, from synagogues to universities, from broadcasts to speaking at the Nobel Peace Center in Oslo, Norway with Deeyah Khan. In 2020, Jeff founded Beyond Barriers, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to a world devoid of extremism, radicalized organizations, hate, violence, coercive and violent ideologies. In addition to working alongside both community and government agencies, such as the Office of Juvenile Justice Department (OJJDP), Jeff and his organization, Beyond Barriers, have worked with the Simon Wiesenthal Center, RAND Corporation, International Center for the Study of Violent Extremism (ICSVE), mental health professionals, academic research and development teams, as well as religious and educational institutions across the United States and abroad. https://twitter.com/SchoepJeff https://beyondbarriersusa.org/ https://jeffschoep.com/ #JeffSchoep #DarylDavis #podcast #dialogue #peaceandlove #community

Robert Ochs, MS, LCSW, has worked in the criminal justice system since 1979, at the local, state, and federal levels For many years, his work was predominantly in forensic mental health. He trained at an LA County Probation Camp, worked in juvenile delinquency at the California Youth Authority, became a licensed clinician in 1983, and began a private practice. Bob’s forensic mental health work also included evaluating insanity acquitees, mentally-disordered offenders, and sex-offenders for appropriateness of hospital release, and directing programs for these offenders. Bob also directed the Adult Division of a large Community Mental Health Center in Los Angeles (Didi Hirsch) Bob transitioned into the world of County Probation and served as Sonoma County’s chief probation officer from 2005 to 2016, following 4 years as deputy chief. After retiring from Sonoma County, he served as the Mendocino County interim Chief probation officer for several months in 2017/2018. Bob was a Chief Justice appointment to the Judicial Council’s “Task Force on Criminal Justice Collaboration on Mental Health Issues”. He has served on other similar panels, e.g., describing “Best Practices in Competency Restoration”, and “Mental Health in the Juvenile Justice System". In 2017, Bob received the Christine M. West Award from the Forensic Mental Health Association of California for significant contributions to the field of forensic mental health. Bob currently consults and speaks on issues at the intersection of the criminal justice and mental health systems. Finally, more than 20 years in Sonoma County can’t overcome a lifetime in Southern California – Bob remains a proud Dodger fan.

Erin Whalen seems young to have accomplished as much as he has... but he has, and he is just getting started. Erin and Da Vinci RISE High School's co-founder Kari Croft designed their school for those who are least served by traditional education in conventional settings. With profound insight into the needs of the homeless, the transient, and foster children populations, the RISE model is quickly becoming a model that can be replicated appropriately. Listening to this young school and community leader will give you hope for a tomorrow that can so often be difficult to find. Erin Whalen, born and raised in Santa Monica, California is co-founder and Executive Director of Da Vinci RISE High School. At a young age, Erin found himself enticed by education’s power to provide people with a sense of self that could be leveraged as a powerful force in the world. After graduating from New Roads High School, Erin moved away to study Anthropology at Grinnell College in Iowa and at the University of Cape Town in South Africa. Throughout the years Erin and Kari Croft, co-founder, worked together with students, families and partners to develop concepts for RISE High. In 2016, Whalen and Kari Croft applied for and won a highly competitive $10 million grant from XQ: The Super School Project, funded by Laurene Powell Jobs and Russlynn Ali. Opening in 2017, RISE now has three locations around Los Angeles County serving upwards of 210 students. Erin received his master’s degree at the LMU School of Education’s Institute of School Leadership and Administration (ISLA) in 2020 and an honorary doctorate from Grinnell College in 2022. Erin Whalen M.Ed, D.S.Sc Ewhalen@Davincischools.org #Erin Whalen #education #podcast #DaVinci RISE #davincischools

Los Angeles Mayor, Karen Bass has been in her role for six months. The mayor agreed to sit down with David on the six month anniversary of her position as LA's mayor. Mayor Bass' complete bio can be found here. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayor_o...

Larry Birnbaum's research and teaching focus on applied AI and human-AI collaboration. He and his students develop, study, and apply new technologies in natural language processing (NLP), conversational interfaces, intelligent information systems, social media data analytics, machine learning, and computational journalism and media. Key areas of research include methods for the automatic generation of content by machine, including specifically the automatic generation of narratives from data, and on natural human-AI collaboration using conversational interaction. Larry's research also spans intelligent information systems, including models of automatic and contextual search and information diversity; preference predication and recommendation using social media data; and applications of AI to journalism and media. Another important area of Larry's research is intelligent information systems, including models of automatic and contextual search and information diversity. A third focus is on preference predication and recommendation using social media data. More generally, projects in Larry's lab are aimed at automating and supporting all aspects of the "content pipeline," including research, content generation, content distribution, and user interaction with content. Dr. Birnbaum is a Professor of Computer Science at the Northwestern University. He is also the Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Advisor, Narrative Science. His research and teaching focus on applied Artificial Intelligence, Natural Language Processing (NLP), intelligent information systems, social media data analytics, machine learning, with applications to media and journalism. A key focus is on methods for the automatic generation of content by machine, including specifically the automatic generation of narratives from data.

Daryl Davis and Jeff Schoep are two of the most inspirational gentlemen I've ever met. Both work at the forefront of a hands-on social movement aimed at building bridges of understanding and friendship ordinarily thought to be impossible. Having had the opportunity to sit down with each of them individually (Davis Episode 24; Schoep Episode 29) they agreed to sit down with me at the same time to speak about what it will take to overcome the growing factionalism in our society. Daryl Davis has worked to improve race relations by seeking out, engaging in dialogue with, and befriending members of the Ku Klux Klan. In 1983, he was playing country western music in a "white" bar in Frederick, Maryland, when a patron came up to him and said it was the first time he had "heard a black man play as well as Jerry Lee Lewis". Davis explained to the man that "Jerry Lee learned to play from black blues and boogie-woogie piano players and he's a friend of mine". The white patron was skeptical and over a drink admitted he was a member of the KKK. The two became friends and eventually the man gave Davis contact information on KKK leaders. A few years later, Davis decided that he wanted to interview Klan members and write a book on the subject, to answer a "question in my head from the age of 10: 'Why do you hate me when you know nothing about me?' That question had never been answered from my youth". Davis eventually went on to befriend over twenty members of the KKK, and claims to have been directly responsible for between forty and sixty, and indirectly over two hundred people leaving the Klan.Over the course of his activities, Davis found that Klansmen have many misconceptions about black people, stemming mostly from intense brainwashing in their youth. When they got to know him, Davis claims, it was more difficult to maintain their prejudices. The artist has recounted his experiences in his 1998 book, Klan-destine Relationships: A Black Man's Odyssey in the Ku Klux Klan. Davis is not on a mission to "convert" bigots, white supremacists, Klansmen, or Nazis. Rather because of the earnest respect he offers all human beings and his core beliefs in the power of love, respect, fairness and his willingness to listen and find the heart of "the other," people are moved and transformed. Over 200 Neo-Nazis, Klansmen and others who belong to organizations that preach hate have chosen to leave those organizations and give Daryl their robes, flags, insignia, and other symbols of hate. https://www.daryldavis.com/ https://twitter.com/RealDarylDavis Jeff Schoep, once America’s most notorious neo-Nazi, now a consultant for the Simon Wiesenthal Center and an inspirational speaker for Conscious Campus, tirelessly holds keynote talks, lectures, and workshops from his unique vantage point. For over 2 decades, Schoep led America’s largest neo-Nazi organization, the National Socialist Movement (NSM), overseeing its growth to a nationwide movement. Beginning in 2016, through interactions with a black musician, Daryl Davis, and a Muslim film maker, Deeyah Khan, Jeff began to question not only his work, but his entire life. Experiencing relational dialogue and interpersonal relationships with those he once vilified changed Jeff’s life forever. In 2019, he left the the NSM and publicly denounced the ideology. Jeff Schoep transitioned from mastering propaganda that promoted hatred and fear dedication to speaking about our shared humanity. He provides unique insights into the inner workings of far-right extremism from first hand knowledge and personal experience. Jeff has spoken nationally and internationally, from synagogues to universities, from broadcasts to speaking at the Nobel Peace Center in Oslo, Norway with Deeyah Khan. In 2020, Jeff founded Beyond Barriers, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to a world devoid of extremism, radicalized organizations, hate, violence, coercive and violent ideologies. In addition to working alongside both community and government agencies, such as the Office of Juvenile Justice Department (OJJDP), Jeff and his organization, Beyond Barriers, have worked with the Simon Wiesenthal Center, RAND Corporation, International Center for the Study of Violent Extremism (ICSVE), mental health professionals, academic research and development teams, as well as religious and educational institutions across the United States and abroad. https://twitter.com/SchoepJeff https://beyondbarriersusa.org/ https://jeffschoep.com/

From his earliest years growing up between a clinic and hospital in his native Guatemala, Miguel Rivera has been learning and practicing healing. Veering from traditional medical paths of his parents and family Miguel's journey led him to the drum and ceremonies rooted in the earth. For over 50 years, Miguel's work has included talking circles, vision quests, Sundances and he has participated in well over 5,000 sweat lodges. He is a founding member of the Western Gate Roots and Wings Foundation, a member of the Guild of Future Architects and a Board Member for Wolf Connection. David and Miguel discuss his journey to learn these ceremonies from Native American elders, how he uses these teachings to help youth, veterans, as well as his work with people from all cultures. His journey has led him to work with Robert Bly, Dan Hillman, native elders Wallace Black Elk, Raymond Stone, Grace Spotted Eagle and so many others. Through all of his work, Miguel looks to bring people into a collaborative, kind, inclusive and prosperous world. An accomplished drummer, and a man in love with the language of sound, Miguel taught drumming at the Men’s Conferences in Mendocino and Los Angeles from 1991 to 1995 and in Minnesota from 1993 to the present. He also serves on the Board of Directors for Soldier’s Heart, Shade Tree, a mentoring group in Los Angeles. Along the way he has translated all the works of Humberto Akabal, outstanding Maya- K'iche' poet and artist from Guatemala. In addition Miguel has accumulated a lengthy list of film and tv credits for his work in sound effects and editing. https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0729365/

Chrysta Bilton is an American writer and memoirist. Her first book, the memoir Normal Family: On Truth, Love, and How I Met My 35 Siblings, was published in July 2022 by Little, Brown in the US and Octopus in the UK. The book was listed among Kirkus's Best Nonfiction Books of 2022 and named a 'best' or 'must-read' book of Summer 2022 by The Washington Post, The LA Times, Vanity Fair, People Magazine, Amazon, and many others. The Sunday Times called Normal Family "a testament to human resilience, forgiveness and humour" and People Magazine called it "a riveting debut." The Atlantic wrote that "Normal Family will, in the very best way, leave you wondering what [family] actually means." Chrysta lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two children. Chrysta's 'family' is spread widely across the country. Please tune into our delightful, humorous and enormously touching conversation.