Video Library

Explore our collection of videos from past institute events and conferences, research and public discourse-related talks, and explainer videos from our projects and programs. Find diverse perspectives and useful strategies that aid organizers in turning ideas into real-world solutions.

Corporations at Climate Crossroads: Book Talk with Lily Hsueh

With climate risks growing, climate action facing political headwinds in many countries, and international cooperation increasingly challenged, Lily Hsueh’s Corporations at Climate Crossroads illuminates how and under what conditions the world’s largest corporations have taken proactive action on climate change during the years leading up to and after the Paris Agreement.
Building Belonging Showcase 2025

The Institute for Social Transformation hosted an end-of-year celebration and student showcase event to honor the work that has been accomplished in the Building Belonging Program. Students involved in the program in 2024-2025 presented their contributions to research projects. This annual event provides Building Belonging Fellows an opportunity to share their research with the community.

Since the program launched in 2020, we have awarded over 560 student scholarships–totaling more than $840,000 going directly to students–and supported over 187 faculty research projects.
Women’s Activism, Indigenous Rights, and the Environment

Featuring three distinguished Right Livelihood Laureates whose work has transformed communities and sparked global movements. Joan Carling (Philippines)–Indigenous Peoples Rights International; Reema Nanavaty (India)–Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA); Ryoko Shimizu (Japan)–Seikatsu Club Consumers’ Cooperative Union. Moderated by Madhavi Murty, a UCSC Professor of Sociology.
Lithium Valley: Opportunities for Batteries, Jobs, and Equitable Development

Professors Chris Benner and Manuel Pastor, along with Politico reporter Blanca Begert, discussed the issues of a “just transition” in the Salton Sea region. What are the possibilities for economic and environmental transformation, how will the transformation affect local communities, and what can and should California and national leaders do to maximize the opportunity the region provides to the state and country? This event was hosted by the UC Student and Policy Center
A Just Transition for Whom?

On December 5, 2024, the Center for Labor and Community hosted a conversation with Dr. J. Mijin Cha (author of A Just Transition for All: Workers and Communities for a Carbon-Free Future, MIT Press) and Labor Notes’ Labor-Climate Organizer, Keith Brower-Brown. This event brought together academics, labor organizers, and workers from across the region to think together about how to move beyond a fuel-based economy
Decoding the Headlines: Top News Stories, Misinformation, and the 2024 Presidential Campaign

This virtual panel brings together critical media literacy experts who will analyze the top news stories of the campaign, examining how they are reported and how misinformation spreads.
Engaging Digital Democracy: Tools to recognize political dis- and mis-information

Learn to decipher credible online information with Sylvanna Falcón from the UCSC Human Rights Investigations Lab for the Americas who will be in conversation with Sally Lehrman from the Trust Project. Their research helps to address concerns about online information integrity, including fake news, voter suppression, and how to effectively determine useful standards for lawyers, journalists, and the public to participate in judicious and healthy democratic discourse.
Charging Forward – Lithium Valley, Electric Vehicles and a Just Future

Professors Chris Benner and Manuel Pastor discussed the discovery of lithium in California’s Salton Sea region and the role of the mineral in the electric vehicle industry. The Commonwealth Club of California in San Francisco hosted this event in October 2024. View the recording on CSPAN Book TV.
Moving Money and Moving Power: Philanthropy Isn’t Neutral

Carmen Rojas, Ph.D., President and CEO of the Marguerite Casey Foundation, in conversation with Chris Benner explore the role of philanthropy to impact economic and social power. The central vision of the Marguerite Casey Foundation is to work towards a country where our government prioritizes the needs of excluded and underrepresented people, families, and communities.
U.S. Elections and Democracy in Deeply Polarized Times: What are the Stakes and Opportunities?

An interactive discussion with UCSC professors on the conditions and debates surrounding voters and institutions and what concerns are being raised about our constitutional democracy. This discussion will dive into representative politics and ballot initiatives and how toxic polarization, political distrust, and negative views affect progress from the presidency to Congress and the Supreme Court.
Identity in Focus: Media Representations and the 2024 Presidential Election

The media plays a crucial role in shaping public perceptions of identity, including race, gender, class, and ethnicity. This virtual panel features critical media literacy scholars and practitioners who will discuss how media representations of identity influence political narratives and voter behavior. The panel will provide a deeper understanding of the intersection between media, identity, and politics in the context of a high-stakes election year.
Navigating the Media Landscape: Critical Media Literacy in the 2024 Elections

As the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election approaches, the media landscape is more complex and influential than ever. This virtual panel brings together leading scholars and practitioners in critical media literacy to engage students and the public on the importance of analyzing, evaluating, and understanding the media’s role in shaping public perception and political discourse.
Solidarity Economics Series: Inclusive Business

How can we work to build business standards that promote an inclusive economy? Hear from Lisa Fu (California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative), Lyzzeth Mendoza (Inland Coalition for Immigrant Justice) and Jocelyn Cuesta (Small Business Majority) as they talk us through the ways they have considered inclusive approaches to business which uplift the people-centered industries in their communities.
Resource Extraction & the Future of a Green Economy

Large investment projects conceived to deliver “progress” and “development” often underdeliver on social progress, destroy vital ecosystems, and create vast “sacrifice zones.” Phyllis Omido (Kenya) and Juan Pablo Orrego (Chile), two Right Livelihood Award recipients, led iconic struggles against the devastating effects of extractivist projects. Displaying courage, wisdom, and initiative, they embody visions of the future and collaborative perspectives we urgently need more of to confront the challenges of the present.
Silicon Valley & the Just Transition to a Green Economy: A Conversation w Right Livelihood Laureates

The transition to renewable energy and electric vehicles promises a more sustainable economy, but it comes with challenges. These include ensuring that the demand for resources like lithium, copper, cobalt, and aluminum doesn’t lead to environmental degradation or human rights violations. Additionally, there’s a need to support those whose livelihoods rely on fossil fuels in finding new opportunities. Silicon Valley has already been influential in driving this transition, particularly in developing electric vehicle technologies. It can further contribute to a just transition by innovating technologies for battery reuse and recycling, conflict-free batteries, and environmentally friendly mineral extraction processes like direct lithium extraction.