The LEGO Foundation provides educational support to refugees and host communities in crisis settings around the world.  What pushes a successful company to invest millions of dollars in education programs for kids living in refugee camps?  LEGO's "Play to Learn" program is an innovative new program from Sesame Workshop and the International Rescue Committee (IRC) that harnesses the power of play to deliver critical early learning opportunities to children and caregivers affected by conflict and displacement.  What kind of impact is it having?  (For other Destination programs, see:  Class #616, #650, and #664) 

The Revolutionary War started as a conflict when English colonists in the New World demanded better representation in the British Parliament. The First Continental Congress organized by the colonists in 1774 issued a statement seeking reconciliation with the British crown and led to a fierce war pitting the colonists against the British superpower. The colonists won the American War for Independence and set in motion a new way of thinking which encouraged ongoing reforms for women and minorities throughout Europe, changing the course of world history.

Käthe Kollwitz (1867-1945) was a German Expressionist painter, printmaker, and sculptor who witnessed and portrayed working-class people without portraiture, but instead through the empathetic and often stinging gaze of social and political criticism. For almost 150 years, Käthe Kollwitz’s art has never lost its power to stay relevant and to move people with her humanist and expressionistic gaze that witnessed two World Wars and worldwide economic Depression. A highly skilled artist, it is Kollwitz’s heart that touches viewers, still.

Scientist, writer, publisher, diplomat, inventor, businessman – in his 84 years Franklin did it all. He contributed to the Declaration of Independence and played a key role in convincing France to join the United States in the Revolutionary War. When the Articles of Confederation proved too weak, he helped craft the compromise that spurred the Constitutional Convention to success in producing the Constitution.  Blaine Davies examines the life of the witty, brilliant and at times irascible Benjamin Franklin who as much as any Founding Father shaped our national identity.

Nadia Hashimi parents left Afghanistan before the Soviet invasion. Hashimi first visited her ancestral homeland in 2002. After she completed her medical training, Nadia started writing about her upbringing and experiences. Her stories portray Afghanistan in all of its perplexing, enigmatic glory and mirror the ongoing struggles of Afghan women. In Hashimi’s latest book, Sparks Like Stars, Sitara returns to her country of birth after 30 years in the United States.

After looking at the origins and values of the liberal and conservative perspectives, a brief exploration is made of the possible neurological (brain function) basis of these differences. Then, contrasting views on three contemporary issues are presented: gun control, immigration and abortion. The audience for this lecture will be encouraged to decide where they stand on each issue.

Physicist Erwin Schrödinger made many great contributions to science, most famously his “wave equation” that became a central part of quantum physics. Like Einstein, Schrödinger never was entirely comfortable with the physics he helped to create, and in discussion with Einstein, proposed the famous thought experiment of a cat simultaneously dead and alive. This talk will describe Schrödinger’s eventful life, the substance and impact of his physics, along with his contributions to other fields. The course will largely be non-technical and include references which participants may explore.