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September 1, 2025 73 mins

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In a polarized political environment, people on the right and left may have knee-jerk reactions that fit their biases when they hear "race, ethnicity, culture." But at Penn State and beyond, these concepts represent something bigger: a world in conversation about how people connect with racial, ethnic, and cultural groups.

Two Penn State sociology professors Dr. Laurie Mulvey and Dr. Sam Richards join the podcast to discuss what makes civil dialogue so valuable in understanding people's social identities around the world. Dr. Mulvey is the Director of the World in Conversation Center for Public Diplomacy, which has engaged in open inquiry and non-partisan engagement with more than half a million participants over two decades. Dr. Sam Richards teaches publicly broadcasted SOC 119, the world's largest race and ethnicity course with 800 students enrolled per semester and nearly 400,000 Youtube subscribers.

Learn more about World in Conversation! 

https://worldinconversation.psu.edu/

Watch and subscribe to SOC 119! 

https://www.youtube.com/@SOC119

Check out the PBS documentary about SOC 119! 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4KLSR-oxuQ

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IMPORTANT NOTE/DISCLAIMER: All views expressed by the host are presented in his personal capacity and do not officially represent the views of any affiliated organizations. All views presented by guests are solely those of the interviewees themselves and may or may not represent the views of their affiliated organizations, the host, Friends & Fellow Citizens, and/or The George Washington Institute.

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