PODCAST | ep14 | with Arthur Kleinman, Hong-Tu Chen, Ann Forsyth, and Fawwaz Habbal
 

People aged sixty-five and older make up the fastest growing population around the world, posing unique challenges to societies. A Harvard initiative called Social Technology for Global Aging Research is founded on the belief that there’s a great potential for technologies and interventions to benefit the elderly, but only if they are developed with a deep understanding of day-to-day life. In the scope of this collaboration, technology for the elderly covers a wide range of needs—from engineering hardware for mobility to designing living environments and even tackling the logistics of meeting friends for tea. It’s an expansive collaboration between Harvard scholars and their Chinese counterparts. We speak with four collaborators who share fascinating examples of their work.

Listen to episode #14 (44:28) by clicking the play button below:

PODCAST | ep13 | with Sasha de Vogel, Serhii Plokhy, and Alexandra Vacroux

When the Wagner mercenary group staged a near coup in Moscow in June, it was seen as the greatest challenge to Vladimir Putin’s regime in decades. Though it didn’t come to fruition, it nevertheless exposed some of the fissures in Putin’s ironclad control over the military and the course of the war on Ukraine. Could it be a harbinger of future revolts? How do Russian citizens feel about the continuation of the war? We speak with three scholars of history and political science to find out what this event might mean for Russia’s war machine and for Ukraine’s counteroffensive.

Listen to episode #13 (53:04) by clicking the play button below:

PODCAST | ep12 | with Ahmet Akbiyik, Andrew O’Donohue, and SZ

The presidential election in Turkey this spring is shaping up to be the most consequential in decades. Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has led the country for twenty years, is facing the staunchest opposition in his career in the form of an unprecedented coalition of six parties, called the “Table of Six.” Their presidential candidate, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, has been widely described as low-key, bland, and uncharismatic. But could he be the perfect person to unseat Erdogan? To get us up to speed on this exciting election, we speak with three Graduate Student Associates whose research takes us into the governance, politics, and culture of Turkey—past and present.

Listen to episode #12 (31:15) by clicking the play button below:

PODCAST | ep11 | with Dustin Tingley, Jeff Colgan, and Aleksandra Conevska
 

Green technology has come a long way, to the extent that it can, in theory, be scaled up to solve the world’s energy problems. If this is true, then why does the US lag so far behind in transitioning away from fossil fuels? This episode addresses the politics of climate change by looking at the sources of public distrust. To frame the discussion, three scholars investigate the nature of major economic transformations, the youth movement, and what we can learn from other countries.

Listen to episode #11 (52:08) by clicking the play button below:

PODCAST | ep10 | with Susie Petruccelli, Justin Morrow, and Isabel Jijón
 

There’s a shadow over World Cup Soccer this year, and it’s become impossible to separate the sports from the politics. Host country Qatar gained notoriety for bribes, exploitation of workers, and antigay laws. In this episode, a group of athletes and scholars take a close look at the concept of “sportswashing” and consider what’s at stake for professional athletes who might want to take a stand against a host country’s civil and human rights abuses. 

Listen to episode #10 (49:37) by clicking the play button below:

PODCAST | ep9 | with Melani Cammett, Carmen Geha, Nate George, and Lana Salman
 

Lebanon has been called many different things: a gem of the Middle East, a failed state, a geopolitical Gordian knot (or nightmare). Its financial system has recently collapsed, people cannot find basic services, and residents are still recovering from the massive Beirut explosion of 2020. It may be a complex country to wrap your mind around, but our four scholars tell you everything you need to know about daily life in Lebanon: how are people getting by, who is in control, the geopolitics of the region, and the history behind it.

Listen to episode #9 (34:35) by clicking the play button below:

... Read more about Lebanon in Free Fall

PODCAST | ep8 | with Annette Idler, Jytte Klausen, and Fredrik Logevall
 

Pulling out of Afghanistan was the top foreign policy event of 2021. Perhaps overlooked in the collective relief to be done with this twenty-year war is the fact that the US had to negotiate with terrorists to get there. In fact, it ceded an entire country to a violent, extremist group. Throughout history, leaders—including those from the US—have vowed never to negotiate with terrorists, but then reverse course. In this two-part episode, three scholars of history, international relations, and foreign policy discuss historic examples and the complexities of negotiating with violent—even murderous—groups. 

Listen to episode #8 (28:49) by clicking the play button below:

PODCAST | ep7 | with Annette Idler, Jytte Klausen, and Fredrik Logevall
 

Pulling out of Afghanistan was the top foreign policy event of 2021. Perhaps overlooked in the collective relief to be done with this twenty-year war is the fact that the US had to negotiate with terrorists to get there. In fact, it ceded an entire country to a violent, extremist group. Throughout history, leaders—including those from the US—have vowed never to negotiate with terrorists, but then reverse course. In this two-part episode, three scholars of history, international relations, and foreign policy discuss historic examples and the complexities of negotiating with violent—even murderous—groups.

Listen to episode #7 (24:56) by clicking the play button below:

PODCAST | ep6 | with Talia Shiff, Anna Skarpelis, and Elke Winter
 

We think of citizenship as a binary category: you’re either a citizen or you’re not. But the levels of membership can be complex. Refugees and asylum seekers often find that the criteria for acceptance change, as states devise rationales to exclude them. Three Weatherhead Center sociologists reveal the motivations behind various immigration policies, from the colonial past to the present, and discuss the ethics and impact of open borders.

Listen to episode #6 (46:00) by clicking the play button below:

... Read more about The Blurry Lines of Belonging

PODCAST | ep5 | with Alicia Harley, Rob Paarlberg, and Troy Vettese
 

COVID-19 radically reduced global productivity, but isn’t that just what we need to combat climate change? Is there such a thing as a silver lining in this pandemic? In Episode 5, we continue the conversation about the relationship between COVID-19 and climate change. Three Weatherhead Center scholars guide us through the complex environmental and political systems that constrain efforts for systemic change, and discuss what needs to be done today.

Listen to episode #5 (29:21) by clicking the play button below:

PODCAST | ep4 | with Alicia Harley, Rob Paarlberg, and Troy Vettese
 

COVID-19 forced radical change on the world, but isn’t that just what we need to combat climate change? The simple concepts of how we use land and how we eat may very well determine the future of our species—and our planet. Three Weatherhead Center scholars guide us through the complex environmental and political systems that constrain efforts for systemic change, and discuss what needs to be done today.

Listen to episode #4 (27:02) by clicking the play button below:

PODCAST | ep3 | with Vikram Patel, Mary-Jo DelVecchio Good, and Giuseppe Raviola
 

Whether or not you’ve been exposed to the virus, the COVID-19 pandemic impacts everyone’s sense of well-being. Three scholars in the field of global mental health look at the various ways loss, fear, anxiety—and on top of it, a massive global recession—weigh on the mental well-being of different groups. And they anticipate a surge in demand for mental health services as a result of the pandemic.

Listen to episode #3 (35:35) by clicking the play button below:

PODCAST | ep2 | with Jeffry Frieden and Christina Davis
 

It was a momentous day for the UK. The United Kingdom finally exited the European Union on January 31, 2020. So what happens next, and should we care? Our guests both demystify the impact of Brexit and explain the purpose of the European Union in ways you have never understood it before.

Listen to episode #2 (42:40) by clicking the play button below:

PODCAST | ep1 | with Michèle Lamont, Peter A. Hall, and Paul Pierson
 

Despite the decline in global poverty rates over the past five or six decades, the gap between the rich and the poor continues to grow ever wider, especially in the industrialized West. Three scholars—Michèle Lamont, Peter A. Hall, and Paul Pierson—discuss how housing and education can actually reinforce inequality, and who in our society is seen as “deserving” of getting help, or not, and how that has changed over time.

Listen to episode #1 (49:19) by clicking the play button below: