[Vital Aging] Embodying Safety: Resilience, One by One, with Amelia Barili

Special Event

[Vital Aging] Embodying Safety: Resilience, One by One, with Amelia Barili

Thursday, November 12, 2026
Thursday, November 12, 2026

Just days after the midterm elections, join Amelia Barili for an experiential hour focused on calming an overstressed nervous system. Drawing on ancient wisdom and neuroscience, we’ll practice simple embodied tools to reset stress, restore clarity, and rebuild resilience — one person, one breath, one relationship at a time. Because democracy has a nervous system, too — one shaped by how we show up for each other. Leave steadier, calmer, and ready for the long run.

This gathering is part of our Vital Aging program.

About the Speaker

Amelia Barili, former journalist (BBC, La Prensa) and UC Berkeley educator, integrates ancient wisdom and neuroscience to help people reset their nervous systems and build resilience. Her community-based teaching earned the Chancellor's Award for Public Service. She leads Embodying Safety, now in its seventh cohort at the Polyvagal Institute.

Event Details

  • For OLLI members only
  • Thursday, November 12, 3:30–4:30 PM
  • The event will be livestreamed and recorded
  • The Zoom link will be included in the registration confirmation email, in a reminder sent before the event, and in your Member Dashboard
[Vital Aging] Embodying Safety: Resilience, One by One, with Amelia Barili

[Field Trip] "Little Castle: Julia Morgan's Berkeley City Club"

Special Event

[Field Trip] "Little Castle: Julia Morgan's Berkeley City Club"

Friday, October 16, 2026
Friday, October 16, 2026

Join us for a guided tour of Julia Morgan’s stunning Berkeley City Club. Learn about this trailblazing architect, the first woman certified by the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, as we explore the vaulted halls, arcades, courtyards and plunge pool of this 1930 architectural gem — affectionately known as the “Little Castle.”

 

After the tour, you're invited to stay for complementary tea/coffee, tea sandwiches, sweet treats, scones, and conversation with Club members — many of whom have been part of the OLLI community for years. A lovely Friday afternoon. Organized by OLLI's Member Engagement Committee.

Details ✨

  • Tour takes place Friday, October 16, at 2 PM and will last about one hour
  • Please arrive by 1:50 PM
  • Stay for a complementary afternoon tea from 3–4 PM
  • BCC is located at 2315 Durant in Berkeley
  • $10 (cash) per person — OLLI staff will collect when you arrive and then give to the BCC
  • Limited to 30 members
  • Mobility access: The tour takes place on the first and second floors, both accessible by elevator. The swimming pool is not wheelchair accessible and can only be viewed from the visitors’ gallery, which is up eight steps. Because the building predates ADA standards, some doorways are narrow.
[Field Trip] "Little Castle: Julia Morgan's Berkeley City Club"

[Field Trip] Gardens in the Sky: Salesforce Transit Center and Rooftop Park Walking Tour

Special Event

[Field Trip] Gardens in the Sky: Salesforce Transit Center and Rooftop Park Walking Tour

Friday, September 25, 2026
Friday, September 25, 2026

Join us for a guided tour of San Francisco's Salesforce Transit Center and its stunning 5.4-acre rooftop park with botanical gardens galore — hundreds of trees and thousands of plants arranged into themed ecosystems from Mediterranean Europe to Western Australia. Also on the itinerary? A redwood grove, a gondola, a soaring Grand Hall, and a 1,200-foot "Bus Fountain," one of the longest water features in the world. Organized by OLLI's Member Engagement Committee in collaboration with San Francisco City Guides.

Details 🌿

  • Tour takes place Friday, September 25, 1–2:30 PM
  • Please arrive by 12:45 PM
  • We'll meet in Salesforce Plaza on the South West corner of Mission and Fremont street, by the sky gondola.
  • $25 (cash) per person — OLLI staff will collect it when you arrive to pay San Francisco City Guides
  • Our guides will be Rodney Paul (from our Berkeley in the 60s walking tour) and Robin Seeley, a longtime member of the OLLI community.
  • The tour is flat and includes use of elevators, escalators, and/or a gondola lift
  • Limited spots available

[For members only] 

[Field Trip] Gardens in the Sky: Salesforce Transit Center and Rooftop Park Walking Tour

The Role of Fire in East Bay Ecosystems, with Alan Shabel

Speaker Series

The Role of Fire in East Bay Ecosystems, with Alan Shabel

Friday, September 18, 2026
Friday, September 18, 2026

Fire has shaped the East Bay's hills for thousands of years. Decades of suppression, flammable non-native trees, and a warming, drying climate have combined to raise wildfire risk in this landscape where wildland and neighborhoods meet. Join Berkeley biologist Alan Shabel for a look at fire's historical and ongoing role in local ecosystems.

About the Speaker

Alan Shabel received his B.A. in Biology at Dartmouth College and Ph.D. from Berkeley where he currently teaches in the Department of Integrative Biology. He also serves as the Director and General Manager of UC's Point Reyes Field Station.

About OLLI

OLLI at UC Berkeley is a member-driven community dedicated to connection and intellectual engagement. We offer 100+ courses per year, speaker events, field trips, socials and more. Learn more.

Event Details

  • Friday, September 18, 10:30–11:30 AM
  • Free and open to all
  • The event will be livestreamed only
  • The Zoom link will be included in the registration confirmation email, and in a reminder email sent before the event
The Role of Fire in East Bay Ecosystems, with Alan Shabel

Defending Democracy Online Through Social Media: Deep Fakes and Our Cognitive Security, with Alexa Koenig

Special Event

Defending Democracy Online Through Social Media: Deep Fakes and Our Cognitive Security, with Alexa Koenig

Friday, October 2, 2026
Friday, October 2, 2026

Digital technologies are rapidly transforming how people live their lives, including their access to information. Social media and smartphones are affecting both the creation and consumption of news — trapping consumers in information "silos" that obscure alternate points of view — while deep fakes are threatening the quality of information found online. All of this raises significant risks for the functioning of our democracy. Dr. Alexa Koenig will discuss this new information environment, some of the challenges it poses for democracy — including our sense of cognitive security — and opportunities for uncovering the truth in this digital age.

About the Speaker

Dr. Alexa Koenig is faculty director of Berkeley’s MacArthur-Award Winning Human Rights Center; co-founder of U.C. Berkeley’s Investigations Lab; and a research professor at Berkeley Law, where she focuses on the role of new and emerging technologies in human rights research and investigation.  

About OLLI

OLLI at UC Berkeley is a member-driven community dedicated to connection and intellectual engagement. We offer 100+ courses per year, speaker events, field trips, socials and more. Learn more.

Event Details

  • Friday, October 2, 10:30–11:30 AM
  • Free and open to all
  • The event will be livestreamed and recorded
  • The Zoom link will be included in the registration confirmation email, and in a reminder email sent before the event
  • The video will be shared with registrants as soon as it's captioned — typically in about a week.
Defending Democracy Online Through Social Media: Deep Fakes and Our Cognitive Security, with Alexa Koenig

Back-to-School Night, OLLI-Style: Come One and All!

Special Event

Back-to-School Night, OLLI-Style: Come One and All!

Thursday, September 10, 2026
Thursday, September 10, 2026

Join us for our second annual Back-to-School Night, OLLI-style, at Fieldwork Brewery in West Berkeley at 1160 6th Street on Thursday, Sept. 10, at 4PM — a fun chance to socialize and sip as we gear up for the start of our fall term. New members, please come at 3:30 PM for a special welcome just for you! As with all Happy Hour gatherings, you're responsible for your own drink and food orders. Street parking is available and the 12-Bus runs right past. No need to RSVP. All are welcome! Hope to see you there. Thank you to OLLI's Member Engagement Committee for organizing.

Back-to-School Night, OLLI-Style: Come One and All!

Fall Preview: Join Us!

Special Event

Fall Preview: Join Us!

Wednesday, September 9, 2026
Wednesday, September 9, 2026

Join us for our Fall Preview — a great opportunity to hear from faculty and meet and mingle with members and staff as we gear up for the start of a new academic year. Want to chat about upcoming courses? Now's the time! Get a feel for the community? Come on over! Learn about ways to get involved? You bet. You can even register on the spot! Fall courses start in mid-September through mid-October, in person and online. Many are recorded, too. Whether you're OLLI-curious or a longtime member, we'd love to see you. And bring a friend!

🍁 Details 

  • Wednesday, Sep. 9, 10:30–noon
  • 1995 University Ave., Suite 202/204 (2nd floor), Berkeley
  • Faculty (we're still finalizing the lineup) will speak briefly beginning at 11 AM
  • We’re just a hop from a bus stop and a short stroll from the Downtown Berkeley BART station
  • Paid parking is available on site (enter via an alley between Milvia and MLK Jr. Way) and on neighboring streets
  • All are welcome! 
Fall Preview: Join Us!

Faculty Q&A: Lowry Yankwich on the Enduring Magic of the Bach's Goldberg Variations

Lowry Yankwich is an award-winning podcaster, pianist, and lawyer. His podcasts, “30 Bach” and “The Tonic,” probe music’s place in history, society, and others’ lives. He has taught music and podcasting at Harvard, Stanford, and Temple University. He is teaching “Bach’s Muse: The Goldberg Variations” with us this fall.

Solano Stroll: Stop By Our Table

Special Event

Solano Stroll: Stop By Our Table

Sunday, September 13, 2026
Sunday, September 13, 2026

Stop by our table at the always-fun — and always-packed — Solano Stroll on Sunday, Sept. 13, from 10 AM–5 PM. We'll be in front of 1746 Solano Ave., so come say hi! We'll have fall brochures, good cheer, great info, hopefully-not-melting candy, and some snazzy pens at the ready.

Solano Stroll: Stop By Our Table
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