Courses

Videos of courses that are "Live-stream + Recorded" will post weekly starting the second Friday of the term, with a new video being added each subsequent Friday. This gives staff the time needed to properly produce and deliver the content.

Show Term

Tuesday, Starts January 19

Pre-recorded Video Only

Conspiracy Theory in Modern History

Tamim Ansary

This encore course is PRE-RECORDED and unavailable for live streaming. YouTube video links will be posted in "Course Materials" on January 19 and available for viewing anytime until March 20.

We will host two livestream Q&A classes with the faculty: Feb. 12, 9:30am - 10:30am and March 12, 9:30am - 10:30am. Live links for these sessions will be accessible through the "My Schedule" section of your Member Dashboard.

We often speak of conspiracy theory as an ominous, metastasizing force in modern history, but what exactly does this term mean? This class defines the phenomenon, sets it apart from mere theorizing, and follows it through four distinct historical eras — from the Crusades to the present — showing how particular conspiracy theories reflect the history of their times. We’ll explore the social and psychological roots of this idea system, the sources of its power, and the underlying mythic structure common to all conspiracy theory. Learn more.

$120.00

Great Cities

Bruce Elliott

This encore course is PRE-RECORDED and unavailable for live streaming. YouTube video links will be posted in "Course Materials" on January 19 and available for viewing anytime until March 20.

We will host two livestream Q&A classes with the faculty: Feb. 12, 11:00-noon and March 12, 11:00-noon. Live links for these sessions will be accessible through the "My Schedule" section of your Member Dashboard.

It can be said that for each stage of Western history there was a capital city, a prime center from which power and culture radiated. This course highlights six magnificent cities that dominated their respective historical epochs: Venice in the High Renaissance; Madrid in the Age of Exploration; Amsterdam, Europe’s 17th century commercial wonder; Imperial Vienna in the Romantic era; and Victorian London in Britain’s Age of Empire. This sweeping historical journey culminates by chronicling the evolution of New York City, history’s first modern metropolis. Learn more.

$120.00

Live-stream Only

9:30am - 11:00am PT

A Country Music Road Trip

Peter Elman

This course will stream LIVE at the scheduled time and will NOT be recorded or available for viewing later. Zoom links are found in the "My Schedule" block of your Member Dashboard. Course materials will remain available until March 20.

This class will explore key movements that contributed to the explosive growth of country music as an industry, art form, and subculture. Focusing on three major regions: Tennesee, California, and Texas, we will concentrate on the period 1950 – 1975. The last two classes will explore the women of country and provide an overview of the country song. We’ll get to know how the lyrics continue to evolve to reflect how our culture has changed, yet come back to a few main themes. We’ll also do an in-depth analysis of why country music is so emotional. Learn more.

$155.00

2:30pm - 4:00pm PT

Introduction to the Art of Memoir: Illuminating Your Life Through Story

Rachel Richardson

The material of your life is a vast trove of stories. But, as Hilary Mantel said, in order for anyone to find that life interesting, "art must intervene." This class will introduce you to the art of memoir writing: it will show you how to approach your life the way a writer does, as raw material to be shaped, and how to make the essential editorial decisions along the way. In our eight sessions, we will consider the craft of memoir in terms of its building blocks, from scene to setting to characterization to symbol to the tricky position of our own speaking "I." We will read excerpts of published memoirs and freestanding essays, and will discuss the ways they succeed (or fail) and what we can borrow from their examples. Each week students will be invited to share a short writing exercise with the group, which may be discussed as class time permits. You will come away from this class with many scenes drafted and the tools to commit to a longer work.

$235.00

Live-stream and Recorded Video

12:00pm - 1:30pm PT

Art as Agency

Annice Jacoby

This course will stream LIVE at the scheduled time. Zoom links are found in the "My Schedule" block of your Member Dashboard. YouTube video links of the recording will post weekly on Fridays by noon, beginning January 29th and remain available for viewing anytime until Mar. 20.

Art is everywhere and belongs to everyone. Artists play an ever-changing role as catalysts, visionaries, provocateurs, healers and tricksters. This course will be an exploration of contemporary art’s response to conceptual, aesthetic, social and political ideas and forces. We will highlight celebrated and deliberately anonymous artists working in a range of materials and contexts — from Kehinde Wiley taking over Times Square to global responses to the pandemic. Learn more.

$155.00

2:30pm - 4:00pm PT

The Great Documentaries

Michael Fox

In this course we explore pivotal films that defined the technique, tone, and tenor of the modern documentary. From “Titicut Follies” (1967) through "The Gleaners and I" (2000, Agnes Varda), this screening, lecture, and discussion class appraises key works of lasting power and influence. We’ll discuss the responsibility of the filmmaker to the subject, the thin line between observation and activism, truth vs. storytelling, and our evolving relationship to images. Learn more.

$155.00

Wednesday, Starts January 20

Live-stream and Recorded Video

9:30am - 11:00am PT

Brazilian Culture and Music

Ami Molinelli,Sherry Keith

This course explores the Afro-European roots of Brazilian music through lecture, listening samples, and live percussion. We will begin with the influence of European 20th century music, then move through the development of samba and bossa nova and the traditions of carnival. We’ll end by exploring the protest music that evolved during the military dictatorship of 1964 – 85 and samba reggae that celebrates Brazil’s African roots. Learn more.

$155.00

Live-stream Only

12:00pm - 1:30pm PT

Post-Colonial Science Fiction

Devorah Major

Science fiction from its beginnings was a way to envision and invent the future. Non-Eurocentric characters, however, generally played minor roles, except as aliens. This course will look at how Black, Indigenous and other non-Eurocentric cultures envision the future and analyze current political, historical, and social events through futuristic stories. We will be reading and discussing short stories and looking at how they reflect current events. The authors we will be investigating are skilled wordsmiths who have chosen science fiction as a dynamic way to create philosophical, political, and sociological journeys in imagined spaces and times. Learn more.

$155.00

2:30pm - 4:00pm PT

20th Century African American Women Writers

Stephanie Wells

This course will examine a (sadly small) sampling of groundbreaking poems, essays, short stories, and novels written by African-American women in the twentieth century, with a focus on a handful of thematic and often intersectional threads that run through many of these texts, including racial identity, sexual identity, patriarchal culture, and cultural constructions of the American Black woman. Writers may include Hurston, Larsen, Brooks, Clifton, Walker, Marshall, Morrison, Lorde, Dove, Smith, Gay, Bambara, Rankine, and/or Ward. Learn more.

$155.00

2:30pm - 4:00pm PT

Sustenance and Creative Exploration in Chaotic Times

Lauren Vanett

Since the pandemic, we’ve all had to grapple with many unknowns and still make our lives function in the best possible way. In this interactive, experiential and supportive class, you’ll look back at what you’ve done for sustenance so far and move forward by doing an experiment which will expand your vision by creating something new for yourself — a practice, an experience or something concrete. We’ll use guided meditations and simple breathing techniques along with principles of creativity and evidence-based strategies from positive psychology, neuroscience, and mindfulness to help us gain more flexibility, choice and ease with the challenges of living in chaotic times.

$235.00

Thursday, Starts January 21

Live-stream and Recorded Video

9:30am - 11:00am PT

Extreme Politics: Radicals, Revolutionaries, and Terrorists

Darren Zook

If it is a truism of politics that the center is always stable, then why do certain individuals and movements constantly gravitate toward the extreme left and right? Using contemporary case studies and focusing on politics while also drawing on insights from fields such as psychology, biology, and sociology, this course will investigate the sources and causes of political extremism and radicalism, as well as potential solutions. Learn more.

$155.00

2:30pm - 4:00pm PT

EPA: 2021 and Beyond

Alexis Strauss Hacker,Dan McGovern

EPA Region IX administers EPA’s programs in Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, the Pacific Islands, and 148 Tribal Nations. In this course, a dozen current and former Region IX managers will explain how EPA’s air pollution, water pollution, drinking water, hazardous waste, climate change, pesticide and toxics programs work. The critical role of science in developing and administering environmental regulations will be underlined, topical case studies of environmental challenges featured, and the environmental justice concerns of underserved communities highlighted. A wrap-up panel of Bay Area non-governmental organizations will explain how you can get involved. Learn more.

$155.00

Live-stream Only

12:00pm - 1:30pm PT

Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin: Psychedelic Trailblazers

Richie Unterberger

Between 1966 and 1970, Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin rose from unlikely origins to superstardom after years of hardship and struggle. They created remarkable, explosive bodies of work before dying only weeks apart. Combining a wealth of film and audio clips with expert commentary, this course celebrates the music and lives of these icons. Learn more.

$155.00

2:30pm - 4:00pm PT

Writing in Place

Tony Platt,Cecilia O'Leary

In this extraordinary and tumultuous moment of history, when our mobility is limited and our daily life minimized, writing can help us to find our bearings and make sense of an unstable world. Our topics include: living with restrictions on our movement and interactions; the meanings of home; what it means to be an inessential worker; our neighborhood, street, or building; changing definitions of aging, health, and personal and family relations; political participation in the age of a pandemic; fears and hopes for the future.

$235.00

Monday, Starts January 25

Live-stream and Recorded Video

9:30am - 11:00am PT

Realism in World Politics: The United States and Germany

Matthew Specter

The history of foreign policy "realism" begins with transatlantic exchange of ideas between the US and Germany in the late 19th century. This course explores how and why a transatlantic realist tradition evolved in the 20th century US, identifies its strengths and weaknesses, and its legacy for US foreign policy today. Learn more.

$120.00

12:00pm - 1:30pm PT

Tempered Ambition: India's Rise in Global Politics

Vasundhara Sirnate

In this course, we will explore key questions in our assessment of India’s relationship with several countries such as: How has the Indian state shifted away from an idealistic vision of “non-alignment”? What motivated the growth of India’s aspirations to be seen as a great power? Is there a grand strategy in Indian foreign policy? What underlies India’s international relations and how have they evolved over time? How do India’s domestic politics affect its international outlook and relations with other countries? Learn more.

$120.00

2:30pm - 4:00pm PT

Diving Into the Movies

Harry Chotiner

In this course, we’ll take a look at six films that seem worthy because of the interesting nature of their themes, issues, storytelling, and acting. Students will receive notes before each class with suggestions regarding what to look for when watching the film. After the lecture, there will be a discussion about the different elements of the film and whether or not it should be considered a work of art. The class aims for the fun, vitality, and warmth of friends sharing a conversation about a great film they’ve just seen. Learn more.

$120.00

Monday, Starts September 21

Pre-recorded Video Only

ONLINE ONLY - Cutting Edge Issues in Law

William Sokol

This encore course is PRE-RECORDED and unavailable for live streaming. YouTube video links will be posted in "Course Materials" on Sept. 21 and available for viewing anytime until Dec. 31. We will host two livestream classes — Sept. 25, 11-12:30 (PT) with Berkeley Law Dean Erwin Chemerinsky discussing the recent Supreme Court term, and Oct. 2, 10:30-noon (PT) with Jonathan Simon on criminal justice reform.

It seems that each vital social and political issue of our times finds its way to our court, and Berkeley School of Law’s renowned professors are engaged in all of them. OLLI has the honor to present six professors in six weeks who will discuss some of the most critical legal issues being addressed by our courts and legislatures. From religion and the Supreme Court and building a just economy through labor-law reform, to cybersecurity, the death penalty, and the use of lethal force by American police. Join us for what will be intellectually invigorating deep dives into these fraught issues.

$120.00

ONLINE ONLY - Planets!

Gibor Basri

This encore course is PRE-RECORDED and unavailable for live streaming. YouTube video links will be posted in "Course Materials" on September 21 and available for viewing anytime until December 31. We will host two livestream Q&A classes with the professor: Oct. 23, 10:30-noon and Nov. 13, 10:30-noon.

The Earth wasn’t always called a planet. Now Pluto is having problems. What defines a planet? How do they appear, live, and die? Planetary exploration started 50 years ago, exoplanets (around other stars) were first discovered 25 years ago (garnering the latest Nobel Prize), and it has been less than a decade since we have understood that most stars have planetary systems. Many of those turn out to be quite different from ours. Explore the progress we have made, how we have made it, and what we have learned about other planets, including whether they may sustain life.

$120.00

Live-stream and Recorded Video

9:30am - 11:00am PT

ONLINE ONLY - The Business and Policy of Healthcare

Christopher Ohman

This course will stream LIVE at the scheduled time. Zoom links are found in the "My Schedule" block of your Member Dashboard. YouTube video links of the recording will post weekly on Fridays by noon, beginning October 2nd and remain available for viewing anytime until Dec. 31.

In the United States, we pay twice what other industrialized countries pay for health care, yet we live shorter lives afflicted with more disease. While nearly one-fifth of the U.S. economy is devoted to health care, many people are not getting the services they need. The political debate about health care has focused primarily on finance. Figuring out who pays the bill, while critically important, is not enough. The bill is too big in the first place. This course will focus on policy proposals that control costs and aim to change the business of health care.

$155.00

12:00pm - 1:30pm PT

ONLINE ONLY - COVID-19 and Economic Policy Issues

Jon Haveman

This course will stream LIVE at the scheduled time. Zoom links are found in the "My Schedule" block of your Member Dashboard. YouTube video links of the recording will post weekly on Fridays by noon, beginning October 2nd and remain available for viewing anytime until Dec. 31.

Economics plays a central role in every aspect of society, primarily through the actions of governments at the federal, state, and local levels. This course will address a set of policy issues that revolve around economics, exploring their origins and associated underlying data. Rather than prescribing specific policy solutions, the course will focus on what the economics profession collectively understands to be true about each issue. There will be a special emphasis on the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

$155.00

2:30pm - 4:00pm PT

ONLINE ONLY - Photographs and American Land Use

Sandra Phillips

This course will stream LIVE at the scheduled time. Zoom links are found in the "My Schedule" block of your Member Dashboard. YouTube video links of the recording will post weekly on Fridays by noon, beginning October 2nd and remain available for viewing anytime until Dec. 31.

This course offers a chronological examination of photography related to American land use, from daguerreotypes to digital images. While photography was used around the world to document the control of nature for agriculture and other purposes, in the United States, land has also been used for pleasure. Sites such as Niagara and Yosemite are as characteristic of land use in this country as are the construction of the transcontinental railroad and mining operations. We will examine the history of American land use, how the ideas of conservation evolved, and photography’s role in this aspect of our culture.

$155.00

Live-stream Only

2:30pm - 4:00pm PT

ONLINE ONLY - How to Write Children's Picture Books

Dashka Slater

This course will stream LIVE at the scheduled time and will NOT be recorded or available for viewing later. Zoom links are found in the "My Schedule" block of your Member Dashboard. Course materials will remain accessible until December 31.

Children’s picture books are an enduring and unique form — but how do you go about writing one, especially if you can barely draw a stick figure? This workshop-style class will take you through the process of developing an illustrated children’s book from the idea to the finished manuscript (no illustrating required — this is a writing class!). There

will be weekly writing assignments, and we will workshop student work in-class. This class is designed for both experienced and beginning writers wishing to delve into the process of writing for children.

$235.00

Tuesday, Starts September 22

Live-stream Only

9:30am - 11:00am PT

ONLINE ONLY - Dreamwork

Barry Friedman

Dreams are vehicles to help us realize who we are, who we can become, and help us understand our relationship to the world and the divine. Learn how to work deeply with your dreams through personal sharing and response. We will discuss major archetypal motifs that appear in our dreams and connect us to mythology and meaning. This creative process is at once enlightening, transformative, and healing.

$235.00

9:30am - 11:00am PT

ONLINE ONLY - It's All About the Song

Peter Elman

Whatever the genre, the song is the essence of popular music. We will study the contributions of Chuck Berry, Buddy Holly, Brian Wilson, Paul Simon, Jackson Browne and Joni Mitchell, as well as the teams of Carole King and Gerry Goffin, and Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil. With audio, video, and live in-class performance, we will explore the musical and lyrical components of songs by these composers, gaining new understanding of the artistry and social context they brought to popular music.

$155.00

Live-stream and Recorded Video

12:00pm - 1:30pm PT

ONLINE ONLY - Global Lens

Michael Fox

This course will stream LIVE at the scheduled time. Zoom links are found in the "My Schedule" block of your Member Dashboard. YouTube video links of the recording will post weekly on Fridays by noon, beginning October 2nd and remain available for viewing anytime until Dec. 31.

Foreign filmmakers speaking primarily to viewers in their own countries offer us a refreshing and occasionally jarring view of the world. In this course, we will explore a range of documentary approaches used by films from abroad — most of which haven’t screened in the United States — and discuss strategies, aesthetics, and ethics. We will examine central aspects of nonfiction filmmaking, including the representation of reality, the properties of storytelling, and the interplay between advocacy and art.

$155.00

2:30pm - 4:00pm PT

ONLINE ONLY - The Use (and Misuse) of the American Military

Michael Baker

This course will stream LIVE at the scheduled time. Zoom links are found in the "My Schedule" block of your Member Dashboard. YouTube video links of the recording will post weekly on Fridays by noon, beginning October 2nd and remain available for viewing anytime until Dec. 31.

Over the last 75 years, the U.S. military has been used as a foreign policy cudgel in an often inexplicable fashion, making our country appear imperialistic, hypocritical, and erratic. The results are embarrassing — the world’s most powerful military has not won a war since 1945, has destroyed numerous societies, created millions of refugees, spawned disdain for our policies, and created many enemies who will seek payback for U.S. hubris. We will look at case studies of American foreign policy fiascos that have eroded the reputation of America around the world.

$155.00

Wednesday, Starts September 23

Live-stream Only

9:30am - 11:00am PT

ONLINE ONLY - Cultural Treasures of the Soviet Era

Elena Sheygal-Placzek

Throughout the seven decades of Soviet rule, the state exerted a tremendous pressure on the artist. In spite of severe censorship and repression, Russian culture produced works of extraordinary genius, such as the novels Doctor Zhivago, Master and Margarita, Quiet Flows the Don, and Stalingrad; the music of Shostakovich and Prokofiev; and many outstanding films and ballets. We will study the reflection of Soviet history in works of culture, explore the relationship between the artist and the state, and take a close look at some of the masterpieces and great personalities.

$155.00

2:30pm - 4:00pm PT

ONLINE ONLY - The Classical String Quartet Part 1

Alexandra Amati

The string quartet was a novel genre in the later 18th century, a kind of musical conversation mirroring polite social interaction in Viennese society. Initially a sort of wordless song with accompaniment, it gradually evolved into an egalitarian discourse, with all four instruments sharing in the melodic and harmonic roles. This course will focus on the birth and structure of the genre and explore the quartets Haydn and Mozart composed, played together, and gifted each other, including the ones Haydn composed well after Mozart had died, which toy with romanticism and individuality.

$155.00

Live-stream and Recorded Video

12:00pm - 1:30pm PT

ONLINE ONLY - The Political Economy of China (1978-2020)

Douglas Lee

This course will stream LIVE at the scheduled time. Zoom links are found in the "My Schedule" block of your Member Dashboard. YouTube video links of the recording will post weekly on Fridays by noon, beginning October 2nd and remain available for viewing anytime until Dec. 31.

This course is divided into two parts. Part one provides an historical overview of the rise and triumph of communism in China from 1921 to 1997. Part two centers on a wide-ranging discussion of the contemporary Chinese political economy, with special attention on how the Chinese communist party manages China’s economic development. We will discuss domestic politics, leadership, ideology, government, law, public policy, national security and defense, foreign policy and international relations, and economic reform and modernization, and the resultant impact on contemporary Chinese society and culture.

$155.00

Thursday, Starts September 24

Live-stream Only

9:30am - 11:00am PT

ONLINE ONLY - Building a Great Memoir

Louise Nayer

There are many ways to uncover potent moments from our past, such as swinging through the trees at twilight as a child or gazing out the window after the death of a loved one. Learn about the basic elements of memoir, including sensory detail, scene versus summary, dialogue, time shifts, tension, and character development. We will read great memoirists, do in-class exercises, and work with one another. Each week, you will hand in pages and receive comprehensive feedback from the instructor, and by the end of the class you will have a substantial body of writing.

$235.00

Live-stream and Recorded Video

9:30am - 11:00am PT

ONLINE ONLY - The Politics of Everything

Darren Zook

This course will stream LIVE at the scheduled time. Zoom links are found in the "My Schedule" block of your Member Dashboard. YouTube video links of the recording will post weekly on Fridays by noon, beginning October 2nd and remain available for viewing anytime until Dec. 31.

We almost always think of governments and policymakers when we think of politics, but politics, as it turns out, can be found just about anywhere. This is a course that goes out into the world and looks for politics in the most unexpected of places. For example, none of the questions of “what time is it?”, “how do I get there?”, or “how tall is the Campanile?” can be answered without a heavy dose of politics. Don’t like to get involved in politics, you say? Too late — we are all quite literally born into politics, but that doesn’t mean we can’t have some fun with it and marvel at the wonders of the political worlds we live in.

$155.00

2:30pm - 4:00pm PT

ONLINE ONLY - The Many Faces of Abraham Lincoln

Mick Chantler

This course will stream LIVE at the scheduled time. Zoom links are found in the "My Schedule" block of your Member Dashboard. YouTube video links of the recording will post weekly on Fridays by noon, beginning October 2nd and remain available for viewing anytime until Dec. 31.

This course will examine the different visions of Lincoln that Americans have held from his own time to the present. While most Americans have granted him a place in the pantheon of our nation’s greatest heroes, others have ridiculed him as a country bumpkin or decried him as a dictator. Most contemporary historians see the “Great Emancipator” as the foremost advocate for African American freedom and equality, but others view him as a racist and hypocrite. We will sift through the kaleidoscopic images of Lincoln as they evolved over the years, and assess which views are valid and which are unfair.

$155.00

Thursday, Starts October 1

Live-stream and Recorded Video

12:00pm - 1:30pm PT

ONLINE ONLY - Why Shakespeare Matters Today

Michael Moran

This course will stream LIVE at the scheduled time. Zoom links are found in the "My Schedule" block of your Member Dashboard. YouTube video links of the recording will post weekly on Fridays by noon, beginning October 2nd and remain available for viewing anytime until Dec. 31.

The purpose of this course is to explore why Shakespeare’s masterpieces continue to remain relevant centuries after they were written. Tackling these works from the perspective of a director and actor, the class aims to reveal what has fascinated and inspired artists for centuries and the timeless paradoxes, inherent in these classics, that lie at the core of the human condition. This course will focus on how Hamlet, Coriolanus and King Lear speak to our current unprecedented moment of an impending Presidential election, global warming and a pandemic. We will explore how the themes of apocalypse, revelation and plague deeply inform Shakespeare’s masterpieces and how theatre artists use these masterpieces to create meaning from moments such as the one we are living in today.

$155.00

Pre-recorded Video Only

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