Chatham House

The Climate Briefing is a monthly podcast from Chatham House, exploring the major issues shaping international debates around climate change.  In this first episode, the team focus on what happened – and what didn’t happen - at the last UN Climate Change Conference, the COP25 in Madrid, and what it will mean for the upcoming COP26 in Glasgow. Anna and Johanna are joined by two guests; Archie...

This week Undercurrents returns with interviews on decolonization and the impact of the coronavirus crisis on China’s economy. Ben is joined by Events team colleague Amrit Swali to interview and about the decolonization process. They explore the role of civic institutions in re-thinking the legacies of the British Empire and breaking down colonial power structures which survive to this day. ...

This week Ben explores the political outlook in Kazakshtan with colleagues from the Russia and Eurasia Programme. Kazakhstan is at a turning point in its history. A partial handover of political power through an orchestrated transition in 2019 has taken the country into uncharted territory. Will it be able to pursue modernization and reform, and break from its authoritarian past? In this episode B...

As the New Year dawned a serious crisis emerged in the Middle East after US President Donald Trump ordered the assassination of Qassem Soleimani, commander of Iran's Quds special forces. In the aftermath Ben and Agnes speak to two experts about the background to the crisis.    , Deputy Director of the Middle East and North Africa Programme, joins Ben to provide some historical context to...

In this final episode before Christmas the team discuss the implications of the UK General Election, before Ben meets Ukrainian opposition politician Svyatoslav Vakarchuk. As the dust begins to settle after an intense general election campaign in the UK, Ben and Agnes are joined by Tom Raines to reflect on the implications of Boris Johnson's victory for British domestic politics and the UK's polic...

This week Ben takes a deep dive into the US-China economic competition over technology, and then discusses intelligence agencies in the Global South.  Marianne Schneider-Petsinger from the Americas Programme and Yu Jie from the Asia-Pacific Programme explain their recent co-authored report on US-China strategic competition, and Zakia Shiraz from the University of Leicester draws on her recent...

Undercurrents returns with interviews on data-driven advertising in media and politics, and why Chile had to give up the COP25 climate conference.  Artificial Intelligence and machine learning have given advertisers the tools to target specific groups of people with personalised messaging. In a new research paper for the International Security Department at Chatham House, Sophia Ignatidou exp...

Undercurrents is back with two new interviews! This week Ben speaks to Ory Okolloh from Luminate about the flows of dark money permeating the global economy, and how they could endanger democracy.  Then Cleo Paskal of the Asia-Pacific programme and Energy, Environment & Resources department at Chatham House joins us to discuss a new project on the geopolitics of the Indo-Pacific region.&n...

In the second summer special episode of Undercurrents, Ben speaks to Allison Gardner about how to prevent bias in AI. Artificial intelligence is widely heralded as a key component of the 'fourth industrial revolution', a wave of technological innovation which will transform the global economy. The concepts of driver-less cars and facial recognition technology have gained many headlines, but have n...

In the first of two summer specials, Ben interviews the former Deputy Foreign Minister of Mexico about the state of Mexican politics under President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. In July 2018, Andrés Manuel López Obrador - commonly referred to as AMLO - was elected president with 53 per cent of the vote on a platform pledging to rid Mexico of corruption, stifle the country’s drug war and offer...

In the last full episode before Undercurrents' summer break, Ben is joined by Chatham House colleague Leah de Haan for two interviews from the annual Gender and Growth Forum.  Ben speaks with Rosamund Ebdon, Head of Policy at Plan International, about a new report looking at girls' perceptions of leadership. They discuss how to improve the gender balance in management, the importance of role...

In the latest episode Ben speaks to Hussein Kesvani about the impact of the internet on British Muslim society.  What does it mean to be Muslim in Britain today? If the media is anything to go by, it has something to do with mosques, community leaders, whether you wear a veil, and your views on religious extremists. But as all our lives become increasingly entwined with our online presence, B...

This week the team explore the changed political landscape in Europe after the European Parliamentary Elections, and discover the obstacles to sustainable development in Colombia.  Average voter turnout across the continent in the recent European elections was higher than at any time since the turn of the century. Agnes meets Tom Raines, Head of the Europe Programme at Chatham House, to discu...

Every sixth child on earth is now affected by armed conflict. The nature of warfare is changing – with devastating impact on children. At the See Me Safe Centenary Symposium, organised by Save the Children and Chatham House, experts and campaigners gathered to discuss how to protect children living through conflict.   In this episode Ben and Agnes speak to three participants at the...

To mark the 2019 European parliamentary elections the Undercurrents team speak to Elisabeth von Hammerstein, Programme Director for International Affairs at the Körber-Stiftung, about the political outlook in Germany.  They discuss among other things the rise of the far-right party Alternative für Deutschland, Germany's stance on European integration and the foreign policy legacy of Chan...

In a bonus episode of Undercurrents, Chatham House Director Robin Niblett travels to California to discuss the linkages between technology and international affairs with Casper Klynge, Denmark's Tech Ambassador.  This podcast is a collaboration with Techplomacy Talk. Listen to more from that series here.  Credits: Speakers: Casper Klynge and Robin Niblett Editor: Ben Horton Recorded in S...

Undercurrents returns with two new interviews this week; on life as a Chinese millennial, and how targeted attacks on infrastructure in the West Bank and Gaza affect the lives of civilians. Karoline Kan, author of Under Red Skies, speaks to Agnes Frimston about being a second daughter under China’s one-child policy and what Brexit looks like from the East.  Next Ben Horton meets Erika We...

This week marks the anniversary of the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 2286, which calls for the protection of healthcare workers in areas of conflict. Three years since its adoption medical professionals are some of the most targeted civilians in warzones across the world.    In this episode Ben discusses the Resolution with Rita Dayoub from the Centre on Global Health Securi...

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) will elect a new director-general in June. The FAO is a central plank of the UN system. Its leader frames the thinking on food and agriculture globally and influences policy on almost any issue to do with what food we produce and eat. This week Ben and Agnes meet up with Tim Benton, Distinguished Visiting Fellow in the Energy, Environ...

Undercurrents is back this week with interviews on India-Pakistan relations and how to regulate cyberspace.  Ben speaks to us from the International Studies Association conference in Toronto, where he discussed the recent crisis in Kashmir with Rajesh Basrur from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Then Agnes meets Emily Taylor, from the International Security Department at Chatham H...

Undercurrents returns this week with interviews on the ongoing trade dispute between the EU and US, and the underlying factors driving Russian foreign policy.  Agnes discusses a new Chatham House report by Marianne Schneider-Petsinger from the US & Americas Programme, assessing the future EU-US trade after the fall of TTIP.  Then Ben explores modern Russian foreign policy and how the...

This week we're celebrating International Women's Day with a special episode looking at the role of women in the early days of Chatham House. Katharina Rietzler is a historian at the University of Sussex, and co-leads a Leverhulme-funded project titled 'Women and the History of International Thought.'  Ben met up with Katharina to find out more about how women experienced work at the institut...

This week we're celebrating International Women's Day with a special episode looking at the role of women in the early days of Chatham House. Katharina Rietzler is a historian at the University of Sussex, and co-leads a Leverhulme-funded project titled 'Women and the History of International Thought.'  Ben met up with Katharina to find out more about how women experienced work at the institut...

This week Agnes and Ben discuss how to the global financial system is experienced by developing countries, and hear about the perilous situation for investigative journalists in Ghana.  David Lubin is head of emerging markets economics at Citi, and an associate fellow in the Global Economy & Finance department at Chatham House. His latest book, Dance of the Trillions, tells the story of w...

This week Agnes and Ben meet with experts on China's economy and the history of UK relations with the gulf states.  Yu Jie joins Ben to explain what's happening to the Chinese economy in 2019, and what's really driving the US-China trade war.  Then Agnes discusses UK foreign policy in the Middle East with David Wearing, drawing on his new book, Anglo Arabia.  Read The World Today ar...