This month’s episode explores how political expression takes shape. Introducing his new book “Paris in Ruins”, Sebastian Smee discusses how Impressionism emerged in a politically chaotic France, bringing democracy and authenticity to art. Then, Nadia Bilbassy, Bureau Chief at Al Arabiya News, describes what it's like to cover the Biden White House …

From AI hype to Dolly Parton releases, Jonathan Aberman and Mark Walsh explore this month’s trends in finance, culture, and politics. Also, Jonathan sits down with Paulina Bren, author of “She-Wolves”, to honor the women who defied the odds and left their mark on Wall Street in the 1960s and ‘70s. Drawing on Jonathan’s own experience on Ozempic, Jo…

Longer episodes, deeper dives! In our new one hour format, hosts Jonathan Aberman and Mark Walsh explore new trends, share media recommendations, and interview author Corey Brettschneider. "The Presidents and the People: Five Leaders Who Threatened Democracy and the Citizens Who Fought to Defend It" examines how citizen movements have resisted pres…

Exploring and settling outer space may seem like the ultimate form of entrepreneurship – but is it a realistic ambition? Drawing from her latest book "A City on Mars", Kelly Weinersmith sits down with Jonathan to discuss the hurdles we face in our journey to space, from human physiology to resource governance. So human life on Mars is still far-fet…

"Being your own boss" isn't just about getting rich and being independent. In his latest book “One Day I’ll Work for Myself", author and historian Benjamin Waterhouse separates the allure from the illusions of self-employment. He takes a hard look at the mythology of entrepreneurship, from colonial America and the digital revolution of the 1980s to…

Sean Perryman is the Head of Algorithmic Fairness Policy at Uber. He sits down with Jonathan Aberman to discuss the major questions about privacy and bias raised by artificial intelligence, and how policymakers need to respond. From facial recognition technology to Google's Gemini, Perryman calls for greater tech literacy among lawmakers. He lays o…

Ben Foster is co-founder & executive chairman at Prodify. In an increasingly service-based economy, Foster makes the case for enhancing product-driven innovation and entrepreneurship in Washington, D.C.. He discusses his vision for scaleable, efficient product companies to compete with Silicon Valley’s recent interest in national security technolog…

Since its launch in 2007, Bethesda Green has been on a mission to foster innovation and community for sustainable small businesses. Today, Jonathan sits down with executive director Dave Feldman to discuss environmental entrepreneurship in Bethesda, Maryland and beyond. From start-up incubation to environmental awareness efforts, Feldman and Bethes…

This week, Jonathan sits down with Justin Fanelli, Acting Chief Technology Officer for the United States Department of the Navy and Technical Director of PEO Digital. Together, they unpack his strategies for adopting innovation, from iterative improvements to a collaborative, motivated workplace environment. In building stronger tech infrastructure…

Adam Green is a professor at Georgetown University and director of the Lab for Relational Cognition. This week, he sits down with Jonathan to discuss imagination, brain function, and his research in creative neuroscience. As artificial intelligence becomes more powerful and more popular, Green explores human creativity as a source of hope and empow…

Lance Collins is the is the inaugural vice president and executive director of the Virginia Tech Innovation Campus. Set to open in Spring 2025, the new state-of-the-art campus was announced by the university as part of the state’s successful effort to attract Amazon’s HQ2 to Northern Virginia, and aims to produce talented computer scientists and so…

Harry Klaff, Principal and U.S President of Avison Young, joins Jonathan to delve into the fundamental shift in D.C.'s commercial real estate sector. With over two decades of expertise, Harry explores the critical role that commercial real estate plays in a region's economic health, addresses the profound implications of underutilized office spaces…

Tonio DeSorrento is the CEO of GovPort, a technology platform developed specifically for government contractors that offers tools for subcontractor management, compliance, organization, and operational efficiency. On today's episode, Tonio describes the moment he saw an opportunity to create a dedicated software for GovCons, and how his product str…

Clark Mercer is the Director of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) and former Chief of Staff for Governor Ralph Northam. With over twenty years of senior management experience at the state, federal, and local levels, and passionate about driving transformative change across public safety, affordable housing, clean and water, c…

Jason Stanford is the President of the Northern Virginia Transportation Alliance, a nonprofit organization that has been advocating for the region's transportation infrastructure for over 30 years. An expert on transportation policy analysis, Jason explains how public transportation is vital to the economic health of a region and shares his thought…

Terry Clower is the Director of the Center for Regional Analysis at George Mason University, where his research produces valuable insights that help the private, nonprofit, and public sectors understand the region's growth and shortfalls. On today's episode, Terry provides an update on the overall state of the region; comments on the importance of …

"Enjoy your awful basketball team, Virginia," reads the title of independent journalist Matt Connolly's recent op-ed in The Atlantic. On today's episode, Connolly, who currently works for a labor union, joins Jonathan Aberman for a deep-dive on his compelling piece, detailing the economic factors driving the team's move across the Potomac to Alexan…

It's a new year, and What's Working in Washington is back with a new host, Jonathan Aberman! Mark Walsh has passed the torch back to Aberman, who is eager to bring his perspective as an investor and entrepreneur to address the region's issues during this critical election year. Aberman's inaugural guest is Congressman Don Beyer, an American busines…

Steve Balistreri is the Managing Director and National Technology, Media and Telecommunications (TMT) Industry Leader at MorganFranklin Consulting. He is also on the Executive Committee of Mindshare, a 501C6 not-for-profit organization established to support first time CEO's of high-potential emerging technology companies in the Greater Washington …

Tien Wong is the CEO of Opus8, a private investment, advisory, and conference management firm located in the Washington, D.C. area. He is also the Chairman and CEO of the Big Idea CONNECTpreneur Forum, a global community of 25,000+ founders, investors, venture capitalists, and CXOs. In this wide-ranging discussion, Tien and Mark examine capital inf…

Doug Anderson is the founder and CEO of DCA Live, an event company that serves the private equity, start-up/VC/tech, real estate, govcon, HR, CFO, cyber, legal, and non profit/association business communities in the greater DC area. On today's episode, Doug and Mark sit down to discuss how DCA Live uniquely segments the DMV business community to ce…

John Ackerly is the CEO and co-founder of Virtru, a global leader in data privacy and protection. Virtru's data encryption services are trusted by some of the world's largest companies, like Netflix and Verizon, and protect customers from the data mistakes we all make—whether clicking that suspicious link, or using the same password a few too many …

Gary Danoff is the CEO — that's Chief Empathy Ofifcer — of Gary Danoff Coaching & Advising, and the Global Alliances Leader for Google Cloud and Google Workspace. Offering an entire program called "How To Have A Great Day," Gary's storied career has been dedicated to the pursuit of workplace empathy. From clearing up misperceptions surrounding Gen …

Eric Koefoot is the founder and CEO of Public Relay, the leading media intelligence solution for Fortune 500 companies and global brands. Eric's company has helped clients such as Bud Light, P&G, and Ford Motor Company understand their brand perception through data-driven insights, offering useful analyses of the past—and predictive plans for the f…

Jennifer Ives is the cofounder and CEO at Watering Hole AI, a predictive, forward-looking, and adaptive AI strategy consulting firm. Jennifer has a long and rich history of deploying AI inside the corporate arena, with 20+ years of deep expertise in SaaS, B2B tech, cutting edge/high growth products and services, new customer acquisition, and digita…