Global Dispatches -- World News That Matters

Rais Bhuiyan has an absolutely incredible and very moving story. In the days after the September 11th attacks in the United States, Bhuiyan -- an immigrant to the US from Bangladesh -- was working behind the counter at a gas station in Texas when he was shot in the face by a white supremacist who was on a killing spree and looking for foreigners to murder.  After surviving the attack, Bhuiyan emba...

As the Coronavirus Pandemic tore through the world this spring, it resulted in sharply lower demand for oil, driving down prices. Added to this, Russia and Saudi Arabia got into an oil price war that brought the price of oil to near historic low levels.    Needless to say, the low price of oil has deeply impacted countries in the region who rely on oil wealth. This includes not only oil-rich gulf...

Since the Kosovo War of 1999, the status of Kosovo as a country independent of Serbia has not been resolved. Many countries, including the United States and most of Europe, recognize Kosovo as an independent country. But others do not--including Russia, which has blocked Kosovo's aspirations to join the United Nations. This has been the status quo for many years. But in recent months there has bee...

Chile  is one of the most air polluted countries in the world. This is partly a matter of geography  -- many cities are in valleys that trap pollution. But it is also the consequence of how many Chileans heat their homes. Wood burning home heat stoves are very common in much of  Chile , and these stoves burn dirty and emit harmful pollution.    My guest today, Carlos Chavez, is professor of econom...

In recent years, as China has become more powerful on the world stage, the Chinese Communist Party has sought to erode Hong Kong's political independence. In fact, on June 30th, the Chinese government passed a so-called National Security Law that criminalized free speech and political activity in Hong Kong. Additionally, last year at this time there were massive peaceful protests against a law tha...

This episode is part three of a six-part series examining the relationship between climate and security, produced in partnership with CGIAR , the world's largest global agricultural innovation network. This episode was taped live in front of a virtual audience and featured five panelists discussing how sustainable finance can support peace and climate security.   In the context of our conversation...

Burundi's longtime ruler Pierre Nkurunziza died suddenly on June 8th, quite possibly from COVID-19. Nkurunziza has been president of Burundi since 2005, and in recent years his rule became firmly authoritarian.  His death sent shockwaves across Africa and the world On the line with me today is Yolande Bouka, a professor of political studies at Queens University in Kingston, Ontario. We discuss the...

Today's episode is part three of a three-part series that gives you an inside look at how the United Nations is commemorating its 75th anniversary this year. This episode includes a 15-minute interview with Kate Dodson , Vice President for Global Health at the United Nations Foundation. We of course discuss the COVID-19 pandemic  -- specifically how the World Health Organization and other United N...

On June 26, 1945, after months of negotiations in the city of San Francisco, representatives from 50 countries signed the Charter of the United Nations. In October that year, after the requisite number of countries ratified the charter, the United Nations was born.  To mark the 75th anniversary of the signing of treaty that created the United Nations, I am re-leasing a conversation I had with auth...

Mary Fitzgerald a researcher specializing in Libya. When we last spoke, the Libyan conflict was intensifying very rapidly. For months, a renegade general named Khalifa Haftar had been attacking Tripoli, the seat of the UN-backed government. That assault was locked in a stalemate until Russia increased its support of Haftar's forces, seemingly turning the tide. But then, Turkey announced that it wa...

This episode is part two of a six-part series examining the relationship between climate and security. I moderated this session with Grazia Pacillo of CGIAR , the world's largest global agricultural innovation network. Today we had four panelists from diverse fields grapple with how data and technology can be put to better use in the service of peacebuilding, resilience, and other aspects of clima...

The Black Lives Matter movement has spread quickly around the world. Over the last several weeks, there have been BLM demonstrations in nearly every major city in Europe . Tens of thousands of people showed up for protests in Berlin, Amsterdam, Paris, and London, just to name a few. There were also many protests across Latin America, Australia--even Asian cities like Seoul and Tokyo saw Black Live...

Today's episode is part two of a three part series that gives you an inside look at how the United Nations is commemorating its 75th anniversary this year. Rather than holding a big party or jubilee, the UN is instead embarking on a listening tour. The UN is seeking feedback from as many people in as many communities as possible, all around three big questions: What Kind of World do We Want to Cre...

In late May a confrontation between Indian and Chinese soldiers in a remote border region of the Himalayas descended into what appears to be a massive fistfight. Most accounts describe a giant brawl between as many as 100 soldiers with no shots fired and no deaths. But soon after the fight, India and China mobilized heavy guns and artillery to the region threatening a major escalation of hostiliti...

The podcast has partnered with CGIAR , the world's largest global agricultural innovation network, around a series of live tapings on the topic of climate security. For today's episode, we are examining the link between food security, climate and conflict. My guests include a leading food systems scientist, Dr. Sonja Vermeulen, Director of Programs, CGIAR System Organization and Dan Smith, the dir...

In the Caribbean, where many country's depend on tourism to sustain their economy, COVID-19 is exacting a particularly heavy toll . Millions of people are out of work, and governments that were already deeply in debt are now in even deeper economic and budgetary distress.  My guest today, Geneive Brown Metzger, is the former Consul General of Jamaica in New York. She is also President of the Ameri...

Barbara Saitta is a nurse with Doctors without Borders who specializes in vaccination campaigns, primarily in poorer countries. She tells me that because of supply chain interruptions, a number of countries are running out of routine childhood vaccines. This includes vaccines for measles, polio, and the all-important pentavalent vaccine that protects against five common diseases. What is so alarmi...

Just over 52% of households in Rwanda have access to some form of electricity. This access is not evenly distributed across Rwanda. In rural communities, where most Rwandans live, energy access rates are far lower. Furthermore, the country's geography severely limits the reach of Rwanda's electric grids. This means Rwandans are increasingly turning to off-grid energy solutions, namely solar power...

My guest today, Dr. Mosoka P Fallah is helping to lead Liberia's fight against COVID-19. He is an infectious disease and public health expert and is the Director General National Public Health Institute of Liberia.  Dr. Fallah was a key player in Liberia's successful suppression of Ebola in 2014, for which he was named as one of Time Magazine's Persons of the Year . I mention this because, as Dr....

My guest, David Kaye , is the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression. He has held this position for the last three years, which has given him a unique vantage point--and unique platform--to monitor trends in the suppression of free speech. Today we discuss a new report to the UN Human Rights Council. In this report, David Kaye identifies and explains the ways in which governmen...

The United Nations turns 75 this year. But rather than have a diamond jubilee, the UN is instead embarking on a listening tour. The UN is seeking feedback from as many people in as many communities as possible, all around three big questions: What Kind of World do We Want to Create? Are We on Track? And What is Needed to Bridge the Gap? In today's interview, I talk to Michelle Milford Morse , who...

Lebanon is in the midst of an economic free fall, the degree to which is jaw dropping.  Inflation is out of control, commodities are hard to come by, and its currency is devaluing at a rapid clip. This all was happening months before the coronavirus pandemic. Now, in the midst of the pandemic, a deteriorating economic situation is poised to turn into a major political and social crisis. This is ar...

Today's episode was recorded in front of a live-online audience, and featured an all-star panel discussing how to make the economic recovery from COVID-19 sustainable, just, and resilient. In other words, as governments and institutions prepare their economic rescue and stimulus packages what can they do to ensure that the recovery is a green one?    I moderated and guided the conversation which i...

My guest, Prachi Singh, is an associate fellow at the Brookings Institution, India Center and is a PhD candidate at Indian Statistical Institute, Delhi. Her research analyzed height and weight ratios of children who were exposed, in utero, to air pollution events like crop burning and forest fires. She finds a significant correlation between low weight and low height ratios and exposure to this po...

If you have been following news recently out of the Korean Peninsula, you may have seen a report that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was gravely ill. He had, according to this report, undergone heart surgery and was fighting for his life. The thing is, we have no way of knowing whether or not this is true. Patricia Kim joins me to discuss the significance of the rumor about Kim Jong Un's ill-heal...