Philip Yun and Host Michael Lerner

Philip has more than 35 years of leadership experience in security affairs, nuclear nonproliferation, diplomacy, Asia, international development, law, business, politics, and philanthropy. From 1994 to 2001, Yun was a senior policy advisor at the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs of the U.S. Department of State under President Bill Clinton and is well known for his work in international security policy particularly, but not limited to, East Asia and North Korea. Additional highlights of his career include vice president of The Asia Foundation, the executive director and chief operating officer of Ploughshares Fund, the largest United States philanthropic organization focused exclusively on nuclear weapons, as well as stints in private equity/venture capital. Currently Yun serves as the President and CEO of the World Affairs Council of Northern California bringing with him an ambitious agenda for the education and engagement of civil society in the complex issues affecting global security and equity. Yun has published commentaries extensively including in the Los Angeles Times, The National Interest, US News & World Report, and The Hill and made numerous appearances on television programs and networks, including CNN and Fox News.

Michael is the president and co-founder of Commonweal. His principal work at Commonweal is with the Cancer Help Program, CancerChoices.org, the Omega Resilience Projects, the Collaborative on Health and the Environment, and The New School at Commonweal. He was the recipient of a MacArthur Prize Fellowship for contributions to public health in 1983 and is author of Choices in Healing: Integrating the Best of Conventional and Complementary Therapies (MIT Press).