Breaking Boundaries: A podcast from Northwestern University’s Roberta Buffett Institute for Global Affairs

The season of the podcast focused on the role of technology in global affairs. In this episode, Professor Jacqueline Stevens, Professor of Political Science at Northwestern University and Founding Faculty Director of the Deportation Research Clinic at the Northwestern Buffett Institute for Global Affairs shares her expertise on the use of big data technology at the border and its impact on migrati...

Democracies around the world are grappling with the best uses of artificial intelligence (AI), the ethical and legal challenges it can pose as well as the benefits it can bring to citizens. In this episode, Catherine Régis, expert in AI governance and regulation talks about the importance of involving experts and citizens to address AI's ethical challenges, the need for international collaboration...

As more consumer-focused companies harness the power of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning, research on human-machine interactions is becoming increasingly important. In this episode, Venus Jin, PhD, Director of the Communication Program at Northwestern in Qatar, talks with Annelise Riles about her research in this area and examines how AI influences and shapes individuals' choices...

As the 24th President of France, François Hollande was leading the country at the launch of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals—calling them one of the UN’s “most decisive steps toward ensuring the collective well-being of people and the planet.” In this episode, Hollande reflects on progress towards the goals and addresses the need for international reform, the importance of int...

Health and environmental risks surrounding disasters at nuclear power plants have become all the more urgent over the past year as Russia’s war in Ukraine persists and the threat of nuclear disaster looms at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station in southeastern Ukraine. In this episode, radiation expert Gayle Woloschak, PhD, shares insight on the impact of past nuclear disasters,...

This season on the podcast, we are exploring the intersections between emerging technology, global affairs and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. In this episode, Annelise Riles dives into a topic she is personally passionate about: the power of multilingual engagement. Multilingualism has been identified as key to achieving the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Guest...

In this episode, Annelise Riles talks Beatrice Fihn, the Former Executive Director of ICAN - the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons. Under her leadership, ICAN was awarded the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize and played a key role in the adoption of the landmark UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.

Many deepfakes are designed to spread disinformation or cause confusion and mistrust, and therefore are a threat to UN Sustainable Development Goal 16: Peace, justice and strong institutions. How do we combat deepfakes, and can technology help us in any way to address this global challenge? Annelise Riles talks about this topic with V.S. Subrahmanian, one of the world's leading experts on the role...

Combating climate change, and its impacts, is at the heart of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. More specifically, public education is key to addressing UNSDG number 13, which is climate action. In this episode, Spencer Glendon PhD. talks about his efforts to create a public utility for climate change through his nonprofit climate literacy initiative, Probable Futures.

The impact of Russia’s war in Ukraine is far-reaching with some scholars arguing that the conflict threatens progress on all of the UNSDGs, especially UNSDG 16: peace, justice and strong institutions. In this episode, international law expert Oona A. Hathaway, discusses legal recourse to prosecute Vladimir Putin and other top Russian leaders for the crime of aggression, a move that many say is ess...

Three members of Northwestern University’s delegation to the United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP27) reflect on their experiences at the event, which was held November 2022 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. Niloufar Sarvian is a PhD candidate in Earth and planetary sciences at the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences, Regan Seckel is a JD candidate in the Pritzker School of Law a...

In this episode, two foreign career diplomats explain why facilitating communication and cooperation between their homelands and the communities of Chicago is essential, and the role of local diplomacy in addressing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 17, which is partnership for the goals. The current Consulate General of the Republic of Argentina in Chicago, Beatriz Vivas, and former...

Former Ambassador Susan Jacobs spent much of her career in diplomacy focused on international children's issues, including a position as the United State’s first Special Advisor for International Children's Issues, helping to uphold The Hague Conventions on adoptions and abductions. In this episode, Jabobs joins Annelise Riles to talk about her career in the foreign service, as one of the first ma...

Collaboration is a skill set that requires training and practice and it is an essential part of UNSDG 17, which focuses on partnerships between governments, the private sector and civil society. In this episode, guest Blythe McGarvie, shares expert advice on how to collaborate across global spaces and be a better global citizen. McGarvie is an expert in building successful global relationships as...

Racism is a human rights issue and eliminating racism is essential to UN Sustainable Development Goal 16: just, peaceful and inclusive societies and Sustainable Development Goal 10: Reducing inequalities. But what is done globally to combat this problem? Vilna Bashi, PhD, aims to blend her work as an artist and sociologist to explore answers to this question. Bashi is a sociologist and the Osborn...

This episode focuses on United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 16: peace, justice and strong institutions and the role data and information can play in helping developing countries achieve sustainable development. Jean-Louis Sarbib has built a career working across boundaries of public and private international organizations and national governments to address this important challenge. He sha...

The world – and human species – will reach a new milestone. Scientists estimate that the global population will cross the 8 billion mark on November 15th, 2022, ushering in a new age of potential challenges for countries across the globe. What does this population growth mean for achieving the United Nations sustainable development goals? To discuss this issue is John Wilmoth, PhD, director of the...

Combating climate change was at the forefront of the historic U.S.-Pacific Island Country Summit, which was recently held in Washington. It resulted in an important new declaration signed by leaders of 14 Pacific Island countries and the United States. Steven McGann, former U.S. ambassador to Fiji, Nauru, Kiribati, Tonga and Tuvalu, joins Annelise Riles to talk about the summit, the human security...

Education is a basic human right and the foundation for peace and sustainable development according to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). UNSECO recently released the Futures of Education report: "Reimagining our futures together: a new social contract for education." Noah Sobe, PhD, worked on the creation of the report for more than two years as Senior...

Building scientific capacity is essential to strong institutions and supporting problem-solving and innovation, especially in the Global South. Romain Murenzi, PhD, Executive Director of The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) joins Annelise Riles to talk about United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 16, peace, justice and strong institutions, and how TWAS is working to meet this goal.

Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine is no longer a short-term event and its impact is going to shape global affairs for a long time to come, according to Fiona Hill, a leading expert on Russia and Vladimir Putin’s regime. In this episode, Hill shares insight on Putin’s actions, what could happen next, and how the war may impact our world for decades to come. She shares these insights from her vantage...

Solving the world's most complex problems, such as those the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals aim to tackle, requires new ways of thinking. In this episode, Julio M. Ottino, Dean of the McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Northwestern University, discusses his new book “The Nexus,” which is a call to “augmenting” our knowledge in the face of complex global challenge...

Today’s guest is working towards UN Sustainable Development Goal 16: peace, justice and strong institutions. Alison E. Dilworth is a Foreign Service Officer with more than 20 years of experience, serving in countries such as Paraguay, Israel, Egypt, Poland and the United Arab Emirates. She is currently the Director of the Office of Children’s Issues at the U.S. Department of State and President of...

Good cybersecurity is critical to protecting people's rights to privacy and also the security of our economic markets. The companies behind popular digital platforms are critical players in this effort that is central to United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 16, which is peace, justice and strong institutions. Roland Cloutier is the global chief information security officer at TikTok. He has...

Marwan M. Kraidy is a scholar of global communication, a leading authority on Arab media, and the CEO and Dean of Northwestern University in Qatar. One of his first major initiatives as Dean was the creation of the Institute for Advanced Study in the Global South. The Institute will produce and promote evidence-based storytelling focused on the histories, cultures, societies, and media of the Glob...