There are two ways for you to listen to the podcast this year. First,
you can subscribe to the entire podcast using your iTunes software.
To subscribe to the podcast simply click the Advance Menu in iTunes
and choose Subscribe to Podcast. Then paste the following URL into the
Subscribe to Podcast dialog box: -
http://courses.ma.org/Conference/Conference_on_Democracy.xml
When you subscribe to the podcast iTunes will load a list of all the
available files in the podcast and download the first file automatically.
Click the Get button to download the other files in the podcast. If
you subscribe to the podcast your iTunes software will automatically
download new recordings as we post them over the next few days.
The second method of listening to the podcast is to select on of the
lectures below and download the file in your web browser.
We hope you enjoy these presentations.
Conference on Democracy: A Brief History -
Any member of the Marin Academy community could likely tell you that our mission statement encourages students to “think, question, and create.” Many overlook the last part of that charge, though, which “challenges each person to accept the responsibilities posed by education in a democratic society.” It is that charge that inspires the Marin Academy Conference on Democracy. The Conference’s origins were modest: a lunch-line conversation between two teachers sparked the idea of integrating the school’s mission more deeply into our daily intellectual and social practices. The Conference has become an eagerly anticipated annual event since its inception in 2004. As its statement of purpose, written by Maxwell Hayman ’04 explains, the Conference on Democracy “provides a wide array of perspectives on political, social, economic, and environmental issues that our communities face locally, nationally, and globally.”
In its first seven years, the Conference has attracted an array of national and global luminaries to share their professional perspectives and personal experiences with the community. Speakers and other distinguished guests have captivated MA audiences while challenging us to engage more deeply in civic life. Well-balanced panels debated hot-button topics such as immigration policy, election integrity, and in a particularly memorable session on the eve of the 2008 election organized by MA Human Development teacher and Dean of Multicultural Life Sanjai Moses, the morality and constitutionality of California’s Proposition 8.
The Conference on Democracy is a unique program that earned national recognition for Marin Academy four years ago when the National Association of Independent Schools named MA a Leading Edge School in the category of Equity and Justice. Thanks to a generous gift from a Marin Academy family, we have begun an endowment fund that will eventually cover all operating expenses of the Conference and ensure its financial viability into the future.
