SILL is an all volunteer organization that provides global issues lectures by renowned experts and musical conversations with world-famous musicians.
03/28/2026
The Tables are Turned
In a special twist for our final Music Mondays program, Betsy Hudson Traba and Joseph Holt step out of their hosting roles and onto the stage as guest performers. Betsy, the principal flute for the Sarasota Orchestra, and Joseph, a renowned pianist, conductor, and former Artistic Director of the Choral Artists of Sarasota, will showcase their immense musical talents. Joining them as guest host is Robyn Bell, conductor of the Sarasota Pops and creator of the Suncoast Culture Club podcast.
Music Mondays. March 30th
10:30 AM Church of the Palms 3224 Bee Ridge Rd, Sarasota
3:00 PM Venice Presbyterian Church 825 The Rialto, Venice
03/19/2026
The Rise and Fall of the Mainstream Media: Reflections of a Recovering Journalist
News Headline:
"Trust in mainstream media is at rock bottom. Can it be fixed"
Margaret Sullivan December 2025
The free press once seemed an unshakeable pillar of U.S. democracy. Now, the public has lost confidence in newspapers and TV news and U.S. political culture is in decline. Charles Lane draws on four decades as a print reporter and TV talking head, to offer an explanation and reasons for hope.
Charles Lane is a nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and a former 25-year veteran of The Washington Post, where he served as a reporter, editor, and columnist. A 2009 Pulitzer Prize finalist and author of three books on U.S. history and law, he is a frequent commentator on television and radio. Lane’s career includes stints as a foreign correspondent and editor of The New Republic, where his exposure of journalistic fraud inspired the 2003 film Shattered Glass. His current work focuses on U.S. politics and asylum system reform.
Global Issues Series II. Thursday March 26th
10:30 AM First United Methodist Church 104 S Pineapple Ave
5:00 PM Cornerstone Church 14306 Covenant Way, Lakewood Ranch
Friday March 27th 10:00 AM Venice Community Center 326 Nokomis Ave S, Venice
03/19/2026
News Headline:
Leaflets dropped over the capital referenced Israel’s “success in Gaza” and urged Lebanese citizens to disarm Hezbollah.
New York Times 3/13/2026
New governments in Syria and Lebanon are dealing with tensions with Israel. Elections in Iraq may create a government freer of Iranian influence. Is the Levant turning a corner or are new challenges, and old ones, likely to generate still more war, instability and terrorism? Ambassador Robert Ford will discuss.
Ambassador Robert Ford is a retired U.S. diplomat with a 30-year career in the Foreign Service, most notably serving as the U.S. Ambassador to Syria (2011–2014) during the country’s uprising. A recipient of the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award, he was recognized for his high-risk defense of human rights in the face of the Assad regime. Ford also served as Ambassador to Algeria and as a senior political advisor in Iraq. He is currently a Senior Fellow at the Middle East Institute and a teaching fellow at Yale University.
Global Issues Series I. Tuesday March 24th
10:30 AM First United Methodist Church 104 S Pineapple Av
2:30 PM Venice Community Center 326 Nokomis Ave S,
Wed March 25th 11:00 Cornerstone Church 14306 Covenant Way, Lakewood Ran
03/19/2026
Violin and Cello. Lily and Steven Hoingberg
A violin virtuoso, fiddler, and composer raised in Washington DC, LA based Lily Honigberg seamlessly weaves together a rich tapestry of Irish fiddle, classical, and contemporary improvisation in the music of singer song-writers, rappers, and artists. Steven Honigberg was hired under the leadership of Mstislav Rostropovich to become a member of the National Symphony Orchestra. For a decade, Mr. Honigberg was Director of the Chamber Music series at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC.
Music Mondays. March 23rd
10:30 AM Church of the Palms 3224 Bee Ridge Rd, Sarasota
Music Mondays. March 16th
10:30 AM Church of the Palms 3224 Bee Ridge Rd, Sarasota
3:00 PM Venice Presbyterian Church 825 The Rialto,
Invoke (Nick Montopoli, violin/banjo/vocals; Zach Matteson, violin/vocals; Karl Mitze, viola/mandolin/vocals; Geoff Manyin, cello/vocals) strives to successfully dodge even the most valiant attempts at genre classification. The multi-instrumental quartet encompasses traditions from across America, i
03/14/2026
New Tariff Policies Upend Decades of U.S. Approach:
How's That Working Out?
The US has pursued an open economy on trade and investment for decades. Other countries emulate us, some more than others. President Trump is using tariffs for negotiating leverage. Dr. Christine McDaniel will discuss what could be achieved, what could be lost, and what is at stake for the markets.
Dr. Christine McDaniel is a Senior International Trade Economist at the World Bank. Her research focused on international trade, globalization, and intellectual property rights. She has held several positions in the U.S. government, including Deputy Assistant Secretary at the Treasury Department and senior trade economist in the White House Council of Economic Advisers, and has worked in the economic offices of the U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Trade Representative, and U.S. International Trade Commission.
Global Issues Series II. Thursday March 19th
10:30 AM First United Methodist Church 104 S Pineapple Av
5:00 PM Cornerstone Church 14306 Covenant Way, Lakewood Ranch
Friday March 20th. 10:00 AM Venice Community Center 326 Nokomis Ave S,
03/14/2026
INVOKE String Quartet
The multi-instrumental quartet encompasses traditions from across America, including bluegrass, Appalachian fiddle tunes, jazz, and minimalism. Described as "...not anything but everything: Classical, Folk, Bluegrass, Americana and a sound yet to be termed seamlessly merged into a perfect one" (David Srebnik, SiriusXM Classical Producer), Invoke strives to successfully dodge even the most valiant attempts at genre classification. The multi-instrumental quartet encompasses traditions from across America, including bluegrass, Appalachian fiddle tunes, jazz, and minimalism.
Music Mondays. March 16th
10:30 AM Church of the Palms 3224 Bee Ridge Rd, Sarasota
3:00 PM Venice Presbyterian Church 825 The Rialto,
03/14/2026
AI IN HEALTHCARE: What Patients Need To Know
News Headline:
"AI is speeding into healthcare. Who should regulate it?"
The Harvard Gazette, JAN 2026
Brooke McSwain will provide an overview of the current AI healthcare landscape - the technical, ethical, and legal issues that government and healthcare providers are working on to answer how AI could transform public health systems, including what individuals need to know to be responsible consumers of AI enabled healthcare.
Brooke McSwain is the Senior National Policy Research Analyst for AI, Digital Health, Public Health Infrastructure, and Stroke/Hypertension at the American Heart Association. She also serves as the policy advisor to the Association’s Federal Government Relations department, and is a member of the Association’s AI Task Force leading their efforts on applying ethics frameworks to AI applications. Her husband, David McSwain, MD MPH, will join the lecture and is a Professor of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine and the System Chief Medical Informatics Officer for UNC Health in North Carolina.
Global Issues Series I. Tuesday March 17th
10:30 AM First United Methodist Church 104 S Pineapple Av
2:30 PM Venice Community Center 326 Nokomis Ave S,
Wednesday March 18th. 11:00 Cornerstone Church 14306 Covenant Way, Lakewood Ranch
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Welcome to the 49th season of SILL! From a small startup operation years ago, SILL now offers five venues and last year attracted more than 45,000 attendees. Our newest venue, Longboat Key, offers videos of SILL lectures, with a one week delay, on Thursday mornings at Temple Beth Israel.
SILL's Music Monday series continues to be incredibly popular thanks to program chair Edward Alley. His separate email outlines the 2020 Music Monday season.
Our Global Issues program committee, chaired by Bob Deutsch, has booked some impressive speakers for 2020.With North Korea continually in the news, we have Ambassador Kathleen Stephens addressing North Korea and its nuclear weapons policies. Another very topical issue is mass migration. Daniel Vara will discuss mass migration and its impact on national security. Ambassador Dennis Ross will return to SILL to talk about US/Israeli relations.
For the first time SILL will host a husband and wife speaking jointly. Jessica and Sean McFate's topic "Battles of the Future: How Technology replaces Traditional Weapons of War" should be a exciting lecture.
Focusing on domestic issues, Lauren Bellows returns to discuss the solutions to slavery in the US. Other favorite speakers returning to SILL are Hedrick Smith, Baroness Margaret Jay and Martin Walker.
As you can see we look forward to another exciting season at SILL. Please join us and expand your horizons!
Visit our website for more information. http:/www.sillsarasota.org
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It's going to be another fabulous season at SILL! Come join us.
