Other topics

Podcast episodes

• Puerto Rico's history with the United States: "Borinquén," from Throughline, 16 July 2020

• Understanding the Israeli/Palestinian clash: "Palestine," from Throughline, 28 May 2021

• The Uyghurs of China -- who are they? Why does China fear them? "Five Fingers Crush the Land," from Throughline, 13 May 2021

• Why is Earth Day a thing? "Force of Nature," from Throughline, 22 April 2021

• History of the Black Panther movement: "The Real Black Panthers," from Throughline, 15 April 2021

• Why do Sunni and Shia Muslims hate each other? "Outside/In: War of the Worlds," from Throughline, 31 December 2020

• Understanding the US-Iran conflict's history: "Outside/In: Rules of Engagement," from Throughline, 17 December 2020

• The rise of the "White Power" movement: "The Modern White Power Movement," from Throughline, 3 December 2020

• One of the first War on Terror court cases: "Arms Trader (2009)", from This American Life, 7 August 2009

• Life aboard the USS John S. Stennis, six weeks in the Arabian Sea: "Episode 206: Somewhere in the Arabian Sea," from This American Life, 1 March 2002.

• Environment/water: "The Water Crisis in the American West," from Fresh Air, 29 September 2022 -- added 10.30.22

• Environment/recycling: "Recycling! Is it BS?" from How To Save a Planet, 21 January 2021

• Environment/recycling: "Burn, baby, burn," from Today, Explained, September 2019

• Environment/recycling (Taiwain): "Separation Anxiety," from 99% Invisible, 17 May 2016. (Press the play button on the top graphic to play the 22-minute episode)

• Environment & inequality: "One Month Without Water," from What Next, 23 March 2021

• Homelessness: 99% Invisible's five-part series on homelessness, each episode = 1 learning activity

• Iraq war: Season 5 of Slow Burn, from Slate podcasts -- about how and why the US got invaded Iraq (each episode = 1 learning activity)

Videos

• Income inequality: Inequality for All, streaming free on YouTube

• The fragmented global supply system: America's Medical Supply Crisis, streaming free from PBS Frontline

• Environment & inequality: Flint's Deadly Water, streaming free from PBS Frontline

• Globalization and natural resources: Explained: The world's water crisis, streaming on Netflix (subscription required)

• Gender pay gap: Explained: Why women are paid less, streaming on Netflix (subscription required)

• Global food supply: Explained: The future of meat, streaming on Netflix (subscription required)

• Pandemics -- from 2019!!!!!: Explained: The next pandemic, streaming on Netflix (subscription required)

• Modern-day pirates (that's right, arrrrrgh, matey): Explained: Pirates, streaming on Netflix (subscription required)

• Environmental racism: There's Something in the Water, streaming on Netflix (subscription required)

• Economic inequality and capitalism: Saving Capitalism, streaming on Netflix (subscription required)

• Globalization and wealth inequality: Capital in the Twenty-First Century, streaming on Netflix (subscription required)

• Disability politics: Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution, streaming on Netflix (subscription required)

• Cyberwarfare: The Perfect Weapon, streaming on HBO Max (subscription required)

• Chinese companies, the US stock market, and financial crimes: The China Hustle, streaming on Hulu (subscription required)

• Social media: The Social Dilemma, streaming on Netflix (subscription required)

Readings

• Poverty in America: "Why poverty persists in America," by Matthew Desmond, from The New York Times, 9 March 2023. -- added 3.12.23

• Making a better government: "13 Policy Areas Critical to an Effective, Ethical, and Accountable Government," from Project on Government Oversight (POGO)

• Civic education: "Universities are Shunning Their Responsibility to Democracy," editorial by Ronald J. Daniels, published in The Atlantic, 3 October 2021.

• Evictions: "The Landlord and the Tenant," from ProPublica, a nonprofit news organization, 16 November 2022 -- added 11.20.22

• Chapter 7 of The Broken Ladder, "Inequality in Black and White: The Dangerous Dance of Racial & Economic Inequality" (PDF scan of chapter linked)

• The Myth of the American Dream: Reflections on Affluence, Autonomy, Safety, and Power, by DL Mayfield (each chapter = 1 learning activity), Amazon link

• The Fifth Risk, by Michael Lewis (each chapter = 1 learning activity), Amazon link

• The Shadow War, by Jim Sciutto (each chapter = 1 learning activity), Amazon link

• The Premonition: A Pandemic Story, by Michael Lewis (each chapter = 1 learning activity), Amazon link

• The Broken Ladder: How Inequality Affects the Way We Think, Live, and Die, by Keith Payne (each chapter = 1 learning activity), Amazon link