>> you would not want me doing that. believe me. >> still, you have the context switch of being creative, non creative. >> that is true. sometimes you need something to wipe the slate clean. it could be taking a walk. these days, disconnecting. i have a studio. when i go there, is a place to work, i did not need to take my cell phone out there. having a physical location you can go to -- this is where i do this -- even just a quarter of your room. >> from a cognitive neuroscience standpoint, if you dedicate a place, if you are religious about it -- or clock 30 i am going to spend an hour -- 4:30 i'm going to spend an hour here or there.

that contextual aspect helps. inform is now wrapping up all of our events by asking our speakers, ourselves included, the following question. alex, what is your 60-second the idea to change the world? >> i think everybody should listen to music from other cultures. even daniel has said that, you know, we need to have that in printing when we are young to understand balinese monkey chants or something to put it into context. i travel a lot. i just came back from asia. i was given a lot of career in music, a lot of ethnic music -- a lot of korean music. even though you may not have a

cultural context, if you give it a little bit of a chance, it is an opportunity to open up your mind a little bit. when you do that, it may on sub -- some subconscious level give you a better understanding of why people are the way they are in different parts of the world and who they are. i think we should all be listening to each other's music and all try to play a little bit of music or sing. i think it is -- yeah. 60 seconds there? [applause] >> and you, daniel, what is your 60-second idea? >> as an educator and teacher, i think my 60-second idea to change the world is better education. if we could teach the next generation of kids to be critical thinkers, just not accept what they are told but to decide for themselves, to give them the tools to make informed decisions about what is right

and what is not, about what has been established and what is just here say, what really has a grounding in fact versus rumor, i think the world would be a much safer, more peaceful, and more prosperous place. [applause] >> let's get a big, final round of applause for this nice, informed foray into neuroscience and music with myself, daniel levinson, and the great guitarist and composer, alex degrassi. now, this meeting of in forum and the commonwealth club is adjourned. [applause]

>> without much ado, let's move forward to the first order of the day will be a short opening ceremony. we're very honored to receive a welcoming address by san francisco mayor edwin lee, falling by opening remarks by ray lahood and ambassador, executive director of the apec secretariat. let us begin with a welcome from the mayor of san francisco. the city of san francisco is legendary. aides bay, its hills, its bridges, and its distinctive individuality. mayor lee took his position at the beginning of this year, appointed by the city board of supervisors to fulfil the unexpired term of the previous

mayor. and he was tailor-made to lead this great city. as a former city administrator, he knows the city inside and out. he has spearheaded sufficiency measures, moved towards greater government services, prepared for emergency management in times of disaster, and work toward inclusion of all people in this multi-cultural city. he is so well-respected that the board of supervisors unanimously appointed him. this is quite a statement in the tumultuous political times. with that, let us all welcome and a yearly -- well, mayor lee. >> thank you. good morning. we're honored to was the asia- pacific economic cooperative cooperation here in our great city. i want to welcome you to san francisco, which was recently named the greenness city in north america. this gathering is the perfect opportunity to renew our push

for the future that is independent from foreign oil, and to take the steps necessary for a more secure, sustainable, and prosperous future. we're doing our part here in san francisco. san francisco is proud to be a transit-first city. we favor using public transportation or walking or riding bikes to get around town. our transit-first policy promotes public health, build community, and because of 100% of our public transportation system is powered by either carbon-neutral electricity or by a diesel, is significantly reducing our greenhouse gas emissions. we're also building the infrastructure necessary to put in place state of the air public transportation such as high- speed rail and electrified caltrain system, expanding or subway network and bus rapid transit. high-speed rail, as many of you know, needs to be a part of our

transportation future. many of you are already under way with high-speed rail projects in your respective countries. in california in san francisco, we're trying to lead the way. this issue is critical to me as mayor, because our economic future depends upon people being able to move throughout our state with ease on roads, rails, and in the skies. currently, nearly one-third of all of our air traffic in san francisco international airport is for flights from san francisco to los angeles basin. as many of you have noticed, when you flew into our airport, that has no room to expand. what this means is that we have to find ways to shift the san francisco-to-los angeles short haul traffic out of the skies and on to rails. by moving toward a high-speed drill, we not only improve the

transportation system in the state, but we also improve our local economy by providing more opportunities for international flights from the asia-pacific region and the rest of the world. in april of this year, i launched a federally-funded innovative parking program called sfpark, which provides customers real-time information about parking availability and cost and it just parking rates based on that demand. this smart parking management system steer drivers away from more congested areas and toward less congested ones to reduce circling and double parking, speed up public transit times, and create safer streets. we're working on making the bay area the electric vehicle capital of the nation. we already have the largest municipal electric vehicle fit -- fleet in the country, and we're showcasing electric vehicles in our city fleet,

installing nearly 100 publicly- accessible electric vehicle charging stations, offering free carbon-neutral public charging, and installing the first electric vehicle battery switch station in north america. we're also working towards having the cleanest electricity in our city. 100% of our municipal electricity is carbon-neutral. wheat closed down two 30 power plants in the city, and we have set an aggressive goal for our selves to have 100% of our electricity city-wide come from renewable energy. all of the efforts that i just mentioned are a clear indication of our cities full commitment to wean ourselves from foreign oil and to provide a sustainable city for future generations. it is essential that the city employs sustainable and environmentally sound transportation principles, not only for our city's economic and environmental sustainability,

but also to may important and viable options for our residents. we're committed to doing our part for our nation's independence from oil, just starting our grain economy, eliminating our dependence on fossil fuels, eliminate a significant portion of our co2 emissions, and in sharing our sustainable future. again, thank you, and welcome to san francisco. [applause] >> thank you, mayor lee. we will now hear from secretary ray lahood. >> good morning. my year, thank you so much. the mayor is this particular job, but he certainly is not new to running the city of san francisco and has shown extraordinary leadership. he and i had an opportunity to meet and talk about some of the key issues and key problems that need to be solved.

and for those of you that are interested in politics, you'll be interested to know that the mayor is standing for election in november, and there are 37 people that want the job that he has. so for those of you that have taken an interest in politics, you can imagine what he is spending most of his time doing, so we are really grateful to the mayor for taking the time to be with us this morning. and as all of you i am sure will do, wish him well against his 36 opponents. but i want to say, may year, this is a magnificent city, and your contribution to making san francisco a magnificent city has been extraordinary, so to ever taking the time from your busy schedule to join us today. yesterday, we began our

discussion by keying in on strategies for creating jobs, strengthening communities, and protecting our environment and climate at the same time. we address transportation's role in clean -- in the clear -- we addressed transportation's role in a clean future. we export energy efficient transportation systems. we identified the opportunity to promote environmentally sustainable alternatives to petroleum. we discussed ways to forge the public-private partnerships necessary to fund these efforts. today, our work shifts to the related and critically important areas of the safety and security, something we're all especially mindful of as we mark the 10th anniversary of september 11, 2011. two, strengthening in diversifying our transportation work forces. and three, using transportation investments as a way to promote economic growth and expand

trade. let me say that president obama 's administration, these are among our top transportation priorities. along with passing the american jobs act, which the president now has sent a piece of legislation to capitol hill in the last few days, which will put more people back to work and more money into the pockets of our american workers. i have said many times that there is nothing more important than safety. it is the first thing we think about at the department of transportation every day, and it is the thing that keeps us awake at night. that is why we're working together to strengthen aviation and rail safety. that is why we are reminding people to always fasten their seat belts and to never drink behind the wheel. and that is why we have taken on the epidemic that i call an epidemic, distracted driving.

when we think of the world's leading causes of death, heart disease are hiv/aids, malaria or tuberculosis, it is easy to forget that road crashes claimed more than 1.3 million lives each year. that is the equivalent of one death every 30 seconds. the world health organization projects that by 2013, traffic accidents will climb to become the fifth leading cause of deaths worldwide. the global world city partnership estimates that driving behavior, included -- including distracted driving, is responsible for between 80% and 90% of all roadway accidents. in 2009, i travel to moscow for the first global ministerial conference on runway safety. the russian president and i issued a call to end the deadly behavior of texting and talking

behind the wheel. in 2010, the u.n. secretary- general and our ambassador to the united nations and i met in new york or the secretary general imposed a directive barring the u.n.'s employees from texting messages while operating vehicles on official business. this past spring, the international committee kicked off the united nations world health organization's decade of action for road safety 2011- 2020. together, we're making important progress. 17 of the 20 apec economies and a total of more than 50 nations around the world have passed laws that restrict drivers' use of hand-held devices. portugal has given out what all the phone use in the driver's seat, and held our hands-free. congratulations, portugal. and we can do more if we work

together. president obama's administration and the u.s. government stand ready to lend our experience to any country looking for ideas about how to change driver's mind and drivers had good speed up at the same time, we're taking on another major challenge, building the transportation workforce of the 21st century, are a second theme of the day. specifically, if the u.s. -- at the u.s. department of education, we're connecting women with the opportunities to succeed. we have taken a number of steps. we have encouraged young women to pursue steady in stem disciplines. that is science, technology, engineering, and math. stem is one of our highest priorities and president obama's administration. we have developed mentor should programs for young women. we need to get more women into transportation. and we have put in place a

pipeline that will bring a new generation of young women into the transportation industries. the good news is that as we revitalized our nation's transportation system, the opportunities for young women are enormous. we see rising demand for environmental engineers and technicians. we see rising demand for skilled professionals in the high-speed rail business and aerospace industry. or take aviation, where we are making huge technological leaps forward and a transitional from a radar-based air traffic control system to a satellite- based system. this ground-breaking effort requires a new generation of well-trained experts with technical no-out. we need is more a new generation of air traffic controllers and flight data coordinators as this generation retires. we believe women should fill each of these essential roles.

as i have had an opportunity during the last two and a half years to meet with ceo's and executives of the airline industry, as i sit around the table with them, i do not see any women heading those organizations up. as i have had a chance of the last two and a half years to sit around a table with the ceo's of the car companies, i do not see any women sitting at those tables. that is what our goal is, is to allow women to move up to the kind of positions where we can really tap into their talent. so we're looking forward to delving into the topic of transportation as an economic engine. for one thing, we will discuss the importance of aviation liberalization so people and goods can move without hindrance across the asia-pacific region. for another, we will talk about

aligning the public-private partnerships and other funding mechanisms that make big projects again on a plea viable. this is the idea behind president obama's proposal for a national infrastructure bank, included in the american jobs that. it is also the rationale behind our competitive transportation grant-making programs. over the past two years, it has provided the perfect example, how we leverage local, state, federal, and private dollars in the service of a simple goal, putting people back to work today while rebuilding our infrastructure for the years ahead. ultimately, this points to what i hope we all gain from this conference, new perspectives on how to make smart choices at a time when we're all trying to make the most of every dollar. i think we're doing that, and president obama's administration is in the u.s. department of transportation. i look forward to continuing this valuable exchange of ideas so that we can do even better.

thank you very much. [applause] >> our next speaker this morning will be ambassador, executive director of the apec secretariat. as it siccative director, the baptist -- the ambassador advances apec's agenda by executing the work programs as mandated by leaders and ministers. he has had a distinguished career for the government in malaysia, dedicating his life's work to the advancement and prosperity of the malaysian people. let as all welcome ambassador noore. thank you. [applause] >> thank you. san francisco mayor, secretary lahood, leaders, ladies and gentlemen. on behalf of the apec secretariat, i would like to

thank apec, the economy, and the city of san francisco for hosting this meeting, and for the hospitality extended to us. today, i would like to take this time to congratulate the working group from aipac on its 20th anniversary and to recognize the work of the group's. it has been instrumental to implementations and directions. the transportation sector is critical to our economic prosperity. just last week, in his address to a joint session of congress, u.s. president obama said that building a world-class transportation system is part of what made america an economic superpower. the transportation meeting today in the first joint energy

transport news conference yesterday. crucial to aipac's 2011 priorities. as apec hosts in 2011, the u.s. has prioritized compleat initiatives that build a seamless regional economy, looking at outcomes in specific priority areas, including strengthening regional economic integration and expanding trade, promoting green growth, and expanding cooperation. moving this practice forward requires -- [unintelligible] on the transportation sector. from yesterday's joint meeting with leaders, we note that transportation accounts for more than 60% of global oil, some 1.5% of global electricity

consumption. thus, the sector is heavily dependent on energy. the apec energy and transportation ministers had a day of fruitful discussions on issues such as transportation's role for a clean energy future. the supply chain, an energy and transportation for a livable communities. this has a direct and meaningful impact on aipac's prior to promote green growth. today, we're going to delve further into the transportation sector to see how to balance safety, security, and sustainability for the apec region. the safe transportation of people and goods in is key to achieving apec's global growth -- global goals. this is because it involves improving the international

movement of goods, which depends on the reduction of costs of doing business across borders, including notably transportation costs. in a world worthy supply chains are becoming increasingly globalized, the general connectivity is a high priority among apec. the exact issues pertaining to the global supply chain, including the next generation of issues, which have been identified this year. i ain't february 2009, apec's committee on investment, together with other committees, had a dialogue to ratify the elements to be included in a work program. under the rubric of aipac supply chain is connected to the initiatives, the framework has

been developed. identified the points in the supply chain and the necessary things to address the speed of the supply chain connectivity initiative identified eight points for the smooth flow of goods and services throughout the region. specifically, three are impacting bottlenecks related to the transportation sector. ladies and gentlemen, in the interest of time, please allow me to now switch gears and talk about another key priority of apec, security in global trade. in the aftermath of 9/11, apec considered terrorism a direct challenge to the vision of free, open, and prosperous economies, and to the fundamental values that apec members hold. we will implement access to

counter terrorism. in 2003, the apec counterterrorism task force was established to build progress in this area. even before the establishment of the group, leaders launched, in 2002, security in the apec and an all-star initiative in response to terrorism and the potential threat to global trade. today, there have been seven conferences were the discussions were focused on policies and procedures to enhance security and efficiency in the apec regions. the start initiative also fosters coordination between public and private entities that is necessary to counteract terrorist threats throughout the supply chain. the next conference to be held on thursday and friday here in

san francisco will review the apec region's progress in securing -- [unintelligible] over the last 10 years and will define key priorities going forward. in 2005, a set of principles and standards were adopted the provide predictability within the supply chain. by having one set of standards, the framework makes security requirements less burdensome to businesses and the international trade community. a number of major counter- terrorism initiatives related to secure trade in apec have gotten under way since then. ladies and gentlemen, as we pursue the free and open trade in the region, we should continue to strengthen regional efforts to bolster the region while promoting trade

efficiency. the apec secretariat looks forward to a successful apec transportation meeting and to the directions on the agenda that are set. thank you. [applause] >> me remind everyone, we have a very full schedule today. [inaudible]