university and others, built a universally sound -- structurally sound universal headquarters. we know it will be a matter of time before the promise of stem cell research is fully utilize -- realized. we can think of no greater gift to enable this work to advance, encouraging scientists and researchers to move forward with urgency. we think that is a pretty important calling, and we are pleased to be able to have played a small role to make the work possible. thank you very much. [applause] >> thank you. our next speaker is robert klein, chairman of the governing board of the california institute of regenerative medicine. the institute was a state agency

established by proposition 71, a proposition led by robert klein, to manage the process of stem cell research funding, authorized by california voters. i see in the idea it's a number of icoc, or the governing board of cerm, and i wonder if you could stand briefly and the recognized for the work that you do. [applause] bob has been a visionary champion of innovative science and a truly remarkable leader of california's stem cell program, and we are very glad and honored to have him with us this morning. bob. [applause] >> it is only appropriate that i begin today in banking the community of leaders that really

has made this tremendous, spectacular accomplishment possible. i would like to, therefore, start by thanking a few of the champions of stem cell research who are here. they are really the modern medicis of california. we know that the dolbys and brodes really drove the critical contributions for this accomplishment. we also have france's bose here today. bill. richard was going to be here, a great supporter. brian bonds, but kept the agency moving during the litigation.

the robinson family. a community of champions that is extraordinary, for which this state, any state at any time, should be extraordinarily proud. but we also are joined by the critical group of scientific and medical leaders. the former chancellor, dr. michael bishop, who endorsed this initiative early, the current chancellor, who inspired me. the vice chancellor, who, in fact, pushed me into this deal early. a member of our governing board of the agency, and director arnold krickstein. but we must really emphasize that there is 7 million visionary california voters that went all the way down the bottom of the ballot, past all the elected officials, past all the other propositions.

7 million voters. to put that in perspective, the governor was just elected in 2010 with 5.4 million votes. so we have an incredible constituency that is our mandate to serve, and on the board with me here, those members who have stood, the vice chair of facilities board has made this recommendation for this award. a member of this institution, and a member of the facilities board. david, the chair of the facilities board, but not a member of our governing board, and said richard torres, the vice chair of our governing board. tremendous leaders committing thousands of hours of dedicated time.

but it was critical to have richard's support in getting through the uc system. it is critical today to have the president's support, and it is critical and has been phenomenal in san francisco to have the support of the city attorney, who is here today, who drove todaynewsom's vision of making san francisco -- drove mayor newsom's vision of making san francisco the headquarters of some cell research. [applause] but as many of you know, uc san francisco has a special significance for me. because my son with juvenile diabetes -- the disease that destroys the pancreas and can lead to blindness, kidney loss,

a life of amputations, pose a remarkable debt to this institution. back in the days of the mid- 1970's when nobody thought, in dna would any -- would ever lead to any human products, it was here on a day like today when the uc san francisco scientists announced the antecedent critical discovery that led to artificial human insulin that keeps my son alive every day. it is with special significance and a historical knowledge of the potential impact of the research done here that i remind you that your father may have heart disease and your daughter may win her fight with kidney disease. all of us here today on behalf of our families, let us remember and celebrate this day. let us mark this day as a day in

history when the discoveries of this great institution and its scientists create a platform in this great building that can launch a new sea of discovery, can launch science into a new sea of discovery. stem cell research science, built on the early works of uc san francisco doctor margin -- dr. martin, who identified stem cells in mice, building a foundation for this whole new field. it is this research that brings us the possibility of changing human suffering. the extraordinary work of uc san francisco has been lauded and validated by being first nationally in medical research

grants of the nih and has been cited in california. over $112 million in grants from our agency. ucsf is at the spear point of an entire new field of medical research. from the beginning of time, mankind dreamed of one day having the knowledge to rebuild, to restore, to regenerate any part of the human body. we stand here today with a scientist -- the scientists, the post-docs, the grad students, and the facility to deliver on that dream. they we then remember that we were all here, a part of history, from the formal launch for a new chapter of mankind, that a sensible research facility that is the envy of the world with researchers, who may

rescue their families from years of suffering from chronic disease and injury, and if we are in reasonably lucky, these scientists, with their sacrifice and dedication, may indeed save you and i from some of the ravages of the crucible of suffering. with these champions, with the scientific leaders, the milestones of progress ucsf delivers in stem cell research may exceed even our highest hopes and contribute to saving our lives -- yours and mine. this is our building, too. let us not forget, then, this day, the words of the great english religious poet john donne, who, 400 years ago, said

, "no man is an island for if a clod be washed away from europe, europe is the less. for every man's death diminishes me. so as not for whom the bell tolls, for the bell tolls for thee." [applause] >> thank you, bob. i think you can all see how he convinced 7 million voters. [laughter] finally, let me introduce dr. arnold krickstein. he is the director of the center of regeneration medicine and stem cell research at ucsf. under his visionary leadership, our scientists have been performing groundbreaking work in the fields of the generation medicine. with the help of this new

building, i'm confident we will make even greater steps towards the goals of new therapies for our patients. arnold. [applause] >> thank you. distinguished guests and friends, thank you for being here and participating in these festivities. doctors are often famous for their gallows humor, and i remember 30 years ago, when i was a junior resident, after a very long day when we had eight amputations that we could do very little for -- patients with strokes and als, and so on, very little we could do -- if she neurologist summed up what we could do in those days in two words, and those were diagnosed and adios.

[laughter] over the years, i think all of us have been frustrated by patients that we see with diseases that we really cannot manage or control. now, 30 years later, there is a new science involving, as you all know, cell biology that has the potential to transform the bleak prognosis that we suffered under for so many years. both the disease as i mentioned, and many others. when i first came to ucsf about six years ago, i was asked what my vision was, what the future of some so research would be in five or 10 years, and i remember trying to be bold. i talked about how we could understand cancer mechanisms. perhaps unravel the renewal pathways in stem cells, how they differentiate, become specialized cells in one way or another. possibly, there could be a clinical trial involving cells within a decade or so, and i was wrong. in half the time, we have come much further.

we actually learn how we can take skin cells and turn them into undifferentiated stem cells without the use of embryos, how we can use patient-specifics themselves to study diseases that screen for drugs to improve the safety of conventional therapies, and also, the way to achieve the goal i think we are all after, which is embodied in the term of regenerative medicine, which is restorer and regenerate damaged or diseased organs. in fact, as you have heard already, at ucsf, we are in the midst of a clinical trial that involves no stem cells in a boy suffering from a horrible fatal illness, and this may be a small step in the direction of treating other diseases like multiple sclerosis. so i will not make any more predictions. i'm not very good at that anymore. but it is clear we are in the midst of a revolution that has at its heart nothing less than

the goal of transforming our view of disease. cancer cells -- instead of killing them, we might be able to throw a minute it -- molecular switch and make them behave better, become normal cells. we might be able to take injured and damaged tissues and trigger endogenous repair mechanisms, and ultimately, we might be able to restore tissues with newly regenerated once. the completion of this magnificent building is a step in that direction. visually, i think it embodies exactly what our program is doing. it is bold and innovative. risk-taking, and as you may know, we all moved in about a month ago, so we are delighted to report that it is working as planned. people are interacting. collaborations' have begun. the building is actually a perfect embodiment of the spirit of our program. i'm privileged and honored to represent the talented sciences -- scientists and students and

post box currently working in the building, and on behalf of them, i would like to thank in the end build and francis, who sponsored and started this program, even before there was a program at ucsf, and david. david had the commitment that actually was responsible for bringing us where we are today. and i especially want to thank the dolbys, the brodes, and the citizens of california for their support and trust. thank all of you. [applause] >> before inviting the chancellor back to the podium to close the ceremony here this morning, i invite bob that for just a second to make a couple of other recognitions.

>> i would just like a moment to say that this phenomenal community we have here is joined globally by 10 nations, who are funding partners for scientists in california, and dr. alan townsend, our president, who i got to come all the way from australia. it he could just stand again for a second. [applause] has been a great leader in bringing us together to really have a global mission focused on the work done here, as we are looking at today, and i would also like to say that our vice chair puts in an enormous time every day in guiding the board on this mission, and if we could give him a special recognition. [applause]

>> thank you, bob. i know all of you can hear the excitement in the voices of our speakers today and know how much we look forward to hearing the future of the science in these buildings, so i would encourage everyone who has not had a chance yet to have a tour of the building, meet the scientists, get to know the place. you are all welcome to do so. it is fantastic science and a fantastic location. i'm not going to sing. that is the really good news. are you guys ready? all right, this is our equivalent of a drum roll. i would ask all of you to look upward toward our beautiful new building. ladies and gentlemen, at this moment, looking skyward, we officially celebrate the opening of our spectacular new building

and the hope that it represents. [applause] ♪ [applause]

>> many people are not aware of this building was built in 1936. as a board to preserve the history and make the students aware of that history. the partnering between sfmoma and the arts commission means they will be more aware of the artwork that we have here, the artists that painted a, and the history behind this itself. >> students came from george washington, and it was wonderful to have them on a panel. people from the school board,

those who have been painting for years, some conservative errors from the getty. to have them tell us about the works of their school was important. it represents african-american artists to during the 20's and 30's used an incredible body of work. it is one of the most incredible works of art in the city, bar none. it is a huge mural of incredible works. >> the san francisco civic arts collection has been in existence since the turn of the century. it consists of everything from monument to golden gate park to market street, other works in the collection, from the wpa era, the quite tower, the works from the george washington high school. we have the contemporary

education, where they depict some of the vocational arts that were taught at george washington high school. what is interesting is the artist's and corp. of some of the -- incorporation of some of the architectural elements. they used the speaker from the p a system as part of the design. on the opposite side of the library, we have a large fresco which depicts the academic subjects that were taught at the time. it serves as a foil to the other fresco in the library, we have academic subjects on one side, vocational subjects on the other, and result is the concept of a well-rounded education. additionally, what we plan to do is the academy of hospitality and tourism will be part of, so the students can share with other students, faculty, the

neighborhood, and others to come by and what to look to the artwork we have. >> by working with the students, we hope to raise awareness of the collection and foster stewardship. we brought diego rivera to the city. i think the wpa art work is characterized by stylized robustness and a pervasive occupation with a historical. in this panel, we have a depiction of george washington moving west. what is interesting about it is the image of lewis and clark here is in black and white, something that is occurring in the future, painted as though it was in the past.

what is interesting about it is the very obvious conclusion of slavery. the number of students were expressing unease around some of the themes. the additional mural would be placed in the school, one with more positive representation of the student body. in 1974, they completed three panels that were placed in the library -- in the lobby. they depict native, latino, asian american, and african- american heritage and culture. >> that artist was talking about the history coming alive. that is what we want for the students here. i also think they might share that with past alumni and the

community, so they could no the treasure that we have here in the schools. many people have the same experience i did when i first walked into this building three years ago, being the new principal. the grandeur of these murals is fantastic. many of the students who have come here have come here and are very proud of these murals. they're so happy that they're still here and are being preserved. >> to learn more about the civic art collection, visit >> welcome to "culture wire." today we're headed to smpling f. camera works, a premiere

venue for artists working in photographer, video, and digital media. the latest exhibition lists clearness as a set of political alliances and possibilities that it is behind the sphere of dominant gay and lesbian culture. the curator fills us in on the process of creating this thoughtful exhibition. and what she would like you to take away from it. >> i co-cureated with danny, a chicago-based writer and curator. the conceptual framework is what it means to be clear and radical for our generation. clearness as a set of political alliances and possibilities, not necessarily related to institutions of gender and swam formativity. danny and i wanted the show to

feel funky and to have a really tangible quality to it. so part of that was incorporated handmade objects and installations and beautifully printed photographs and videos. there is also a lot of opportunities to participate and to take postcards or to get the photo taken or sit within a tent made out of afghan blankets to watch videos. the exhibition is organized in three distinct galleries. in gallery one, which is the gallery designated to clear activism, there is an installation by the oakland-based collaboration and it's called "unleashed power." it's all focused on one protest that happened in chicago in 1991 with the activist organization act up, which was

protesting the inadequate health care for people living in aids, and specifically it focuses on an act of police violence that occurred at that protest. the thing that is really interesting for me about that piece is that it brings us back 20 years to what clear activism looked like at the height of the aids crisis. gallery two features work that is related to intentionally communities that exist both within cities, also in rural spaces, and transient communities as well. the return features a no madic clear tribe, the people who join this tribe are often in various states of transition themselves, whether it's leaving behind previous gender assignments or corporate jobs or a life within cities. a lot of the work featured in the exhibition and a lot of the

installations are handmade objects. there is a lot of do-it-yourself aesthetic and that handmade do-it-yourself feeling is something that mimics the idea and the reality of the alternative world making that we're trying to represent here as far as the self-sufficient community goes. gallery three features work that relates to the ideas of self-determinenism, alternative world making and utopia. visits can still participate in this -- visitors can still participate in this project. during the opening, we invite visitors to come in and try on these costumes, pose in front of the backdrop. he was really inspired by comic

books that he read as growing up and thinks of this space as a post-apocalyptic monster portrait gallery where people can remain genderless once they put on the costumes. we think it's important that this be happening in san francisco, which is considered an ekpe center of the queer actual cure. the majority of the queer cultural events happen in june which has been designated as the pride month. which to me translates as the period of time in which people can be in clear arts and culture. in september, it's hashingening back to that and proving that this is something that is scon significantly happening all the time. what danny and i hope visitors take away from this exhibition