Graduate Institute What Matters Today

The cost-of-living crisis is affecting many households globally. But how did we get here? We know that the war in Ukraine is fuelling the cost of living crisis, however what are the other causes? What are the potential solutions to this crisis? Salary increases and price controls are often brought up as solutions, but are they effective? And lastly, how will this crisis impact the transition to gr...

Israel has been through several elections in the past few years. In fact, Israel has had five elections in just four years. The most recent elections, the ones that took place on November 1st, saw an important rise of the far right in Israel. In this episode of What Matters Today we look at the impact of the far right in Israel. We also examine how the far right helped Benjamin Netanyahu win the e...

Boris Johnson’s last day as UK Prime Minister was 6 September. On the same day, Liz Truss was elected leader of the Conservatives and thus Prime Minister. However, she resigned after just 44 days in office, making her the shortest-serving Prime Minister in UK history. The current Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, was appointed on 25 October. To recap, the UK has had three Prime Ministers in two months....

In this episode, we look at why the current protests in Iran have mobilized so many. We also examine who is actually participating in these protests and the role students are playing as well. Will these protests end up changing Iran? How will all of this end? Will the current regime fall? These are some of the questions we will examine in this episode. My guest today is Cyrus Schayegh, Professor o...

The energy crisis is expected to get worse as we approach winter in the northern hemisphere. But will it? Are recent declining gas prices a sign that the energy crisis will not be as bad as expected? Will the crisis lead to a faster transition to green energy - and does this crisis actually have a potential beneficial effect on Africa. These are some of the questions that will be addressed in this...

Hair-cutting, hijab burning, mourning the loss of a friend, sister, daughter and woman: these are the images of worldwide protests sparked after 22-year old Mahsa Amini was detained for wearing an “improper” hijab in Tehran, and fell into a coma and died. Yet in many of the western countries where the rights of women are simultaneously being decried in Iran, Muslim women are accosted daily for the...

In 1947, 300 years after British colonisation began, Cyril John Radcliffe was assigned the task of drawing the borders to define two newly independent nation states: India and Pakistan. On 9 August 1947, he submitted the partition, separating the two nations based upon religious majorities. Put into effect on 17 August 1947 – two days after India became independent of the United Kingdom and three...

All eyes are on Brazil as the first round of its upcoming presidential election on 2 October has already stirred heated debate. Incumbent far-right president Jair Bolsonaro and left-wing former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, “Lula”, could again become president, however, neither comes with a sterling political record. Meanwhile, the future of Brazil hangs in the balance. Graziella Moraes Sil...

On Friday 24 June, the United States Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade ending 50 years of federal abortion rights. 26 stats are expected to ban abortion immediately or as soon as possible. The ruling has sent shockwaves throughout the US where pro-choice supporters immediately condemned it while many conservatives praised the decision President Biden condemned the ruling, calling it a “tragic er...

Inflation has been a headline issue over the past few months with key questions being why is it so high right now, what can be done to decrease it, and how long will it last? These are some of the questions that will be addressed in this episode of What Matters Today. Our guest for this episode is Cedric Tille, Professor of International Economics at the Geneva Graduate Institute. Credits: Channel...

On Wednesday 18 May, Finland and Sweden simultaneously handed in their official letters of application to join NATO. Both countries decided to do so following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. How will this impact both countries' relationship with Russia? Will Turkey block Finland and Sweden from becoming NATO members? Could Finland’s and Sweden’s membership and subsequent NATO expansion lead to a new...

With the French Presidential elections taking place this month, this episode of What Matters Today focuses on how topics such as gangs and gang-related violence, the war on drugs, and the social situation in French suburbs (known as “les banlieues”), are impacting campaign discussions and promises.

This episode focuses on how the EU has reacted since Russia invaded Ukraine. What steps has the EU taken since the start of the war, and what are the long-term policy implications. How will the EU respond to Ukraine's - as well as Moldova’s and Georgia’s requests to join the EU? These are some of the questions we will address in this episode. Our guest for this episode is Cédric Dupont, professor...

The Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics have begun and today we are looking at the diplomatic boycotts surrounding the games. So far, countries such as Australia, Canada, Japan, Lithuania, the United Kingdom, and the United States, have announced a diplomatic boycott of the Games in response to the Chinese government's human rights abuses. However, do these types of boycotts have any impact? Should sport...

Now that the US has pulled out of Afghanistan and that the Taliban have taken over the country, what does the future of Afghanistan look like? Did any good come out of the last 20 years? And how will this impact the people of Afghanistan? These are some of the questions that are discussed in this episode of What Matters Today. Professor Alessandro Monsutti is the guest for this episode. Professor...

Climate change has been at the forefront of environmental discussions lately, but there are other aspects of the environmental crisis, one of the most significant being biodiversity loss. Bill Adams is the Claudio Segré Chair of Conservation and Development as well as Visiting Professor of the Interdisciplinary Programme here at the Institute. He was previously the Moran Professor of Conservation...

The topic of this podcast episode is vaccine diplomacy. The term "vaccine diplomacy" has become more prevalent in the media as the Covid pandemic continues to engulf the globe. Now the world is asking “who maintains the rights to the vaccine patents and how are vaccines distributed and to whom?” But there are a number of intricacies to this sort of diplomacy and it brings to the fore a number of c...

How will COVID-19 impact cities moving forward? This is the topic of our 11th episode featuring Dennis Rodgers, Research Professor in Anthropology and Sociology at the Graduate Institute. Prior to joining the Institute in 2018, Professor Rodgers held appointments at the Universities of Amsterdam, Glasgow, Manchester, and the London School of Economics and Political Science. His research focuses on...

The Arab Spring protests started in December 2010. In this episode we examine the impact and legacy of the Arab Spring 10 years on. My guest is Mohamed Mahmoud Mohamedou, Professor of International History and Chair of the International History Department at the Graduate Institute.

With the Brexit transition period officially ending on 31 December, what will happen next between the UK and the EU? This episode features Cédric Dupont, Professor of International Relations and Political Science, and president of Executive Education at the Graduate Institute. In this episode, Professor Dupont discusses the freedom of movement for people and goods as well as the impact of a “No De...

The topic of this episode is the impact of the upcoming US elections on Democracy and features Professor Shalini Randeria. Professor Randeria is Professor of Social Anthropology and Sociology and is director of the Albert Hirschman Centre on Democracy at the Graduate Institute. She is also Rector of the Institute for Human Sciences in Vienna and holds the Excellence Chair at the University of Brem...

In this third episode of our post-coronavirus series, we look at the impacts that the COVID-19 pandemic could have on organisations and governance. Specifically, we examine the effects the pandemic will have on future organisational structures. We also discuss what evolutionary theory can teach us about the global order during and after COVID-19. This episode features Cedric Dupont, Professor of i...

Over the past few months, the coronavirus has had a major impact on many different facets of our daily lives. One topic that isn't often addressed however, is the impact the pandemic has, and will continue to have, on human rights. In this second episode of our special series which examines a post coronavirus world, we examine how the pandemic has changed how human rights are viewed and respected,...

This episode features a discussion about what is happening in the United States at the moment following the death of George Floyd during his arrest by police in Minneapolis last week. This discussion focuses on why this situation continues to happen, what is needed to change it, and is this solely about police brutality or is it about human rights? Mohamed Mahmoud Mohamedou, Professor of Internati...

This episode marks the beginning of a special post-coronavirus series. Each episode will feature separate interviews with two professors and a student from one of our academic departments. The focus of this series is to discuss what a post-coronavirus world will look like from various points of views. This episode focuses on the historical impact of the coronavirus and features Mohamed Mahmoud Moh...