Nonviolence Radio
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FM Radio Program out of our Mother Station KWMR, Point Reyes Station; syndicated; transcribed; and podcast across the usual suspects of podcast channels.
Hosted by Stephanie Van Hook and Michael Nagler
Editing and transcripts by Matthew Watrous
Nonviolence Radio is a 60-minute program featuring news about nonviolence culture and movements around the world. The show typically includes inspiring discussions with nonviolence practitioners and movement-builders and The Nonviolence Report with Michael Nagler, an analysis of nonviolence in the news from the week.
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Bonus Content:
The Nonviolence Report and The Nonviolent Moment
The Gandhian Roots of the Sermon on the Mount
During this episode of Nonviolence Radio, Michael and Stephanie welcome Reverend John Dear: activist, author, Nobel Peace Prize nominee and passionate advocate for nonviolence for over 45 years. This rich conversation covers a lot of ground, with a focus on one of the most significant roots of active nonviolence: The Sermon on the Mount. Noting the way this profound text influenced both Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr., this interview dives below the surface of its inspiring words and reveals it to be profoundly practical, a “how to be a human being manual.”
Works for All
Challenging capitalism requires constructive, workable alternatives. Are worker-owned co-ops a viable solution? In this episode of Nonviolence Radio, Stephanie and Michael speak with Kristen Barker, co-founder of Co-Op Cincy, an organization that nurtures and supports a network of worker-owned co-ops in the Greater Cincinnati area. Applying principles from the Mondragon cooperative in Spain, Co-Op Cincy’s network reinforces that cooperatives are not just good for people and the planet, they are good for business. And nonviolence is at its heart: being together in constructive solution-building requires both the vision and skills of nonviolence.
Seven Challenges of Nonviolence
During this episode of Nonviolence Radio, Stephanie and Michael discuss a new resource offered by the Metta Center called, Seven Challenges: nonviolence, new story, third harmony, compassion, constructive program, unity in diversity and from chaos to creativity. Their conversation offers some advice as to how to incorporate them into our daily lives so that over time, they become rooted in us, an active part of who we are.
Nonviolence as a Path to Understanding Palestine and Syria
On this episode of Nonviolence Radio, Dr. Afra Jalabi draws a parallel between the ongoing conflict in Syria, where more than half a million people have been killed, and the ongoing crisis in Israel-Palestine. She warns against media propaganda around the conflicts, encouraging listeners to do better research about the powers at play in the Middle East and warning us to be wary of the willingness of any side to spill blood for their goals. Drawing from the spiritual and political legacy of her late uncle, Syrian nonviolence scholar Jawdat Saïd, she doubles down on the necessity of nonviolence as the way forward.
The Local Peace Economy
Jodie Evans, activist and co-founder of CODEPINK, talks with Stephanie and Michael about possibility of creating and sustaining the ‘peace economy’. More specifically, they explore concrete ways to reorient our distorted ‘war economy’ perspectives, to wean ourselves from destructive ‘addictions’ and provide concrete ways in which we can all – even recognizing the current political and environmental horrors – bring about real change and lasting peace.
How a Measure in Sonoma County is Taking on “Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations”
During this episode of Nonviolence Radio, Stepahnie and Michael welcome Cassie King, from Direct Action Everywhere, to talk about our relationship with animals, and more specifically about proposed legislation in California that aims to end factory farming. Together they explore the way our treatment of animals reflects and in fact is an expression of how we treat each other and ourselves. The depths of the cruelty with which animals are treated is revealed when we look inside ‘factory farms’ or CAFOs (concentrated animal feeding operations).
The Visionary Activism of the Long Civil Rights Movement
Victoria Wolcott joins Stephanie and Michael on this episode of Nonviolence Radio to talk about her recent book, Living the Future: Utopianism and the Long Civil Rights Movement. Victoria, a history professor at the University of Buffalo, explores the long history of utopianism in the US and its relation to nonviolence, specifically nonviolence as manifested in constructive program, that is, the active building of a nurturing and supportive community as an alternative to a discriminatory and oppressive one.
From the Frontlines in Palestine
Amira Musallam is a peace activist from Beit Jalla, Palestine. She joins Nonviolence Radio to share her experiences living in the West Bank. Her family is currently facing eviction from their land by nearby Israeli settlers who are backed by the Israeli military. She is part of a exploratory team for Unarmed Civilian Protection (UCP) in the West Bank and Gaza. She was introduced to the power of UCP when she was 12 years old after her house was bombed by Israel (with American manufactured bombs) and a group of UCP women came to live with her family to prevent further violence and destruction. Since then, she has been actively engaged in nonviolence and UCP.
A Holy Devotion to Peace
This episode of Nonviolence Radio welcomes David Hartsough, long time nonviolent activist, former executive director of PeaceWorkers and co-founder of Nonviolent Peaceforce. Stephanie and Michael talk with David about his early exposure to the power of nonviolence through his parents and early upbringing, his later activism in the Civil Rights Movement in the US and abroad in Sarajevo and Gaza – to name just a few places he’s worked bravely and lovingly for peace.
Quantum Activism
This episode of Nonviolence Radio features Dr. Amit Goswami, founder of the Center for Quantum Activism and former professor at the University of Oregon. Amit talks to Stephanie and Michael about the relationship between quantum physics and nonviolence. One of the basic ideas he puts forth as essential to quantum physics is the notion that the universe, at its core and most fundamental, is immaterial consciousness. This challenges the basic tenets of materialism (the theory underlying much contemporary science), which posits that ultimately, the universe is made up of physical stuff and is governed by universal natural laws.
Replanting the Seeds of Jewish Revolutionary Nonviolence after October 7th
Rabbi Lynn Gottlieb is one of the first women to become a rabbi in Jewish history. She’s a storyteller, artist, and community educator. Listen in as she takes us on an inner pilgrimage of revolutionary nonviolence. Rabbi Lynn’s experiences paint a picture of a world where diverse identities intersect, find, and strengthen one another.
Why Sending Unarmed Protection to Gaza is NOT A Radical Idea
This episode of Nonviolence Radio welcomes Mel Duncan, the founding director of Nonviolent Peaceforce and longtime peace activist. Mel talks to Michael and Stephanie about a proposal to bring unarmed civilian protectors to Gaza. Unarmed civilian protection (UCP) – the practice of protecting vulnerable groups by having well trained unarmed people accompany them in areas of danger – has been shown to be extremely effective, even in places entrenched in violent conflict. Too often we are told by conventional history and mainstream media that the appropriate, and indeed, only ‘realistic’ response to violence is yet more violence.
The Danger of a Single Narrative
Tim Chapman, restorative justice practitioner, trainer and former chairperson and board member of the European Forum for Restorative Justice, comes to talk with Stephanie on this episode of Nonviolence Radio.
Echoes of Student Activism
In this episode, we delve into the heart of campus activism sweeping across the United States, spotlighting the recent student protests in support of Gaza and calls to end violence. We connect with a faculty member from Yale to discuss the nuances of the current movement, and journey back to the spirited 1960s with a professor from Berkeley who once walked in similar protests. Join us as we explore how today's demonstrations resonate with the past, uncovering the threads that link generations of students in their pursuit of justice and peace.
Can Mediation Show Us A Way Out?
In this episode of Nonviolence Radio we speak with Mike Fraidenburg who is a mediator and co-author of The Art of Mediation about how this work has changed him, and how it can change the world if we do more of it.
Blessed are the Merciful
This episode of Nonviolence Radio welcomes Dr. Craig Atwood, professor of theology at Moravian Theological Seminary and director of the Center for Moravian Studies. Together with Stephanie and Michael, Craig discusses his research and teaching on the history of Moravian thought and faith with special attention to medieval thinker, Peter Chelčický.
Nonviolence in the Holy Land
As a Palestinian, Sami and his family have suffered directly under the long Israeli occupation and more acutely now, from the current war. Sami speaks candidly about the ways in which politicians and media harness fear and exploit unhealed traumas so that violence seems to be the only response to conflict.
The Unsettling Reality of Settling Refugees
On this episode of Nonviolence Radio philosophy professor, Jen Kling (University of Colorado at Colorado Springs), talks with Michael and Stephanie about refugees and the complex issue of resettling and caring for those who have had to leave their homes. Ensuring that people fleeing hardship at home can find a safe place to live, genuine opportunities to engage in school and meaningful work, to integrate and flourish in a new place is fraught with tensions, tensions which are often overlooked, avoided or simply ignored.
Why Partnering with AI is a Necessity and Not a Luxury for Peacebuilding
This episode of NV Radio offers insight into the ways AI might be used to support peace and nonviolence. Stepahnie and Michael welcome Dr. Heather Ashby of the US Institute of Peace, an expert on technology and its intersection with government and politics. Their discussion explores the ways AI might be used for both ill and for good in the public sphere. This dual possibility gives rise to the urgent need to understand how to orient it towards peace.
What Mondragon Can Teach the World
Georgia Kelly discusses the philosophy and workings of the Mondragón Cooperatives in the Basque region of Spain