COVID-19 and Disruptive Reconstruction: Making the American Dream Real Again…and for All

Fireside Chat with:

Dr. Pamela Cantor - Founder & Senior Science Advisor, Turnaround for Children

Jim Shelton, Chief Impact and Investment Officer, Blue Meridian Partners

Moderated by Carlos Watson, Co-Founder & CEO at OZY Media

When you see something, you cannot unsee it. COVID-19 and video recordings of racialized violence have laid bare inequities and adversities that far too many Americans – especially Black Americans – experience day in and day out. Since the dismantling of the post-Civil War Reconstruction, when has it been more obvious that the systems we have – whether it be education, health, economic or justice – were designed to work for some, not everyone? At the same time, most Americans are facing more uncertainty and shrinking opportunities, and many are finding themselves out of work and without the skills to compete for well-paying jobs. How can we take this extraordinary moment, this convergence of circumstances, to set a new course and make the American dream real again and for all?

There are emerging pathways – advances in brain science and the science of learning; emerging technologies and new approaches to developing supportive communities and context; better, more equitable use of the investments that this country makes in education, healthcare and defense. We have the knowledge and means to help more young people thrive. But if we do not act, by 2030, according to estimates, half the world’s children, including millions right here, will have reached adulthood without possessing the full set of 21st century skills and competencies to flourish and succeed.

Join Jim Shelton and Pamela Cantor, M.D. as they connect the dots between today’s realities, the frontiers of developmental and learning science, the power of technological advances, and emerging pathways that could lead to social and economic mobility for Americans young and old.