Institute of Welsh Affairs

In this episode, IWA Co-Director Joe Rossiter discusses how we can transition to a  fairer, more resilient food system in Wales alongside: restaurateur and food policy advocate Simon Wright; farm business owner Aled Evans; and Alexander Phillips, Policy and Advocacy Manager at WWF Cymru. This episode is brought to you in partnership with WWF Cymru. Support the IWA’s work today by visiting: https:/...

In the first in this collaborative series with WWF Cymru, IWA Co-Director Joe Rossiter discusses how we can create healthier seas in Wales. Joining him in discussion are: scientist, filmmaker and wildlife host Lizzie Daly; CEO of Project Seagrass Dr Leanne Cullen-Unsworth; and Shea Buckland-Jones, Head of Policy and Advocacy at WWF Cymru. Support the IWA’s work today by visiting: https://www.iwa.w...

In this wide-ranging discussion IWA Co-Director Joe Rossiter discusses skills, education and training, net zero and Wales’ economy.  Joe is joined in conversation by: Dave Hagendyk - Chief Executive of ColegauCymru Lisa Thomas - Chief Executive and Principal of The College Merthyr Tydfil and Chair of ColegauCymru Mark Picton - RWE Belal Al Haka - Competitor at this year's WorldSkills UK Finals and...

In this episode, we bring you the live recording of the keynote speech given at the IWA's 2025 Annual General Meeting held on the 25th of September. This wide-ranging and high level speech was given by Mick Antoniw MS, long-standing Senedd Member for Pontypridd and former Counsel General for Wales. His speech is entitled: Democracy at a precipice: the challenges facing our democracy and devolution...

This podcast is a recording of the launch of the IWA's latest report: A Flourishing Wellbeing Economy for Wales, produced in partnership with Oxfam Cymru.  This launch event recording sees report author and the IWA Co-Director Joe Rossiter present key findings and in discussion with Oxfam Cymru's Sarah Rees and Hade Turkmen. The report presents a compelling case for Wales to reorient its economy a...

In the ninth episode of our series Wales: A Work in Progress, the IWA's Co-Director Joe Rossiter speaks to David Melding and Glyndwr Cennydd Jones about their new booklet: The Federal-Confederal Letters. You can read the booklet at: https://simplebooklet.com/thefederalconfederalletters1#page=1

In the eighth episode of our series Wales: A Work in Progress, the IWA's Co-Director Joe Rossiter speaks to Senior Lecturers in Economics at Bangor University, Dr Edward Jones and Dr Rhys ap Gwilym. We discuss what is devolved to Wales when it comes to tax (as well as what isn't) and consider the options available for future changes to taxation.

In this episode, Victoria Kioi, editor in residence at the welsh agenda, talks to actor Gabin Kongolo about the creative sector in Wales, learning Welsh later in life, his Congolese heritage, and navigating the creative industry. Gabin Kongolo is a poet and actor. His work includes film-poem Ndako and he was recently featured in Bariau (2024).

In the seventh episode of our series Wales: A Work in Progress, the IWA's Policy and External Affairs Manager Joe Rossiter talks to Steph Coulter from the Bennett Institute for Public Policy. Wales: A Work in Progress is the companion piece of our project on the constitutional future of Wales supported by the Legal Education Foundation. In this series, we explore options for Wales' future in conve...

This is a recording of Building from the Bottom: Delivering wellbeing and resilience through community ownership held by the Institute of Welsh Affairs in partnership with Bangor University. Despite our best efforts, we apologise that part of the recording is unintelligible due to equipment issues on the day. A transcript of the episode is available here.

You can now listen to the launch of our latest report, Sharing Power, Spreading Wealth. Read the full report here: https://www.iwa.wales/our-work/work/sharing-power-spreading-wealth/

Welcome to the welsh agenda podcast. In this episode, our resident editor Matthaus Bridge reflects on his journey as a bilingual English and Welsh speaking journalist as he enters the professional world after learning the language in school. A few words from Matthaus: 'Like many people my age, I learnt Welsh in school, and am now the first and, to date, only, fluent Welsh speaker in my family. In...

Welcome to the welsh agenda podcast. In this episode, our resident editor Matthaus Bridge reflects on his journey as a bilingual English and Welsh speaking journalist as he enters the professional world after learning the language in school. A few words from Matthaus: 'Like many people my age, I learnt Welsh in school, and am now the first and, to date, only, fluent Welsh speaker in my family. In...

The IWA are delighted to bring you a discussion between Chris Stark, CEO of the UK Climate Change Committee (UKCCC) and Wales’ Future Generations’ Commissioner, Derek Walker. In this conversation we will touch on where Wales stands on its net zero journey, how we compare to other nations, and how we can accelerate our transition and adaptation to the climate emergency.

In the sixth episode of our series Wales: A Work in Progress, the IWA's Policy and External Affairs Manager Joe Rossiter talks to Professor Mark Barry about the future of Wales' transport networks. Wales: A Work in Progress is the companion piece of our project on the constitutional future of Wales supported by the Legal Education Foundation. In this series, we explore options for Wales' future in...

This week, we release the recording of our recent event Social Security Spotlight with Mairi Spowage.  Mairi is a Professor of Practice and Director of the Fraser of Allander Institute, at the University of Strathclyde in Scotland. In this event, she and Auriol Miller discussed Scottish Government's policy on social security. Scotland has a significantly larger package of powers devolved in this a...

This week, instead of an episode, enjoy a recorded version of our recent event with Akash Paun, Programme Director at the Institute for Government. Akash came to speak to the IWA's Director Auriol Miller to discuss his recent paper, submitted to the Independent Commission for Wales' Constitutional Future. In it, Akash proposed a comparison of the UK nations' settlements. In this event, Akash discu...

In the fifth episode of our series Wales: A Work in Progress, the IWA's Policy and External Affairs Manager Joe Rossiter talks to Yvonne Murphy, the mind behind the Talking Shop, an innovative space created for people wishing to learn more about their institutions in order to become more active in their communities. Wales: A Work in Progress is the companion piece of our project on the constitutio...

In the fourth episode of our series Wales: A Work in Progress, the IWA's Policy and External Affairs Manager Joe Rossiter talks to the IWA's own Media and Democracy project lead Dylan Moore. Dylan discusses the aims of his research on media and democracy, the causes and impact of the media and information deficit in Wales, and what can be done to address it. Wales: A Work in Progress is the compan...

Welcome back to Wales: A Work in Progress. In our third episode, we tackle dialogue and democratic renewal. The IWA's director Auriol Miller speaks to Dr Anwen Elias, a member of the Independent Commission on the Constitutional Future of Wales and a reader at the University of Aberystwyth, and to Dr Jennifer Wolowic, Principal lead at Aberystwyth University's Dialogue Centre. Wales: A Work in Prog...

Welcome to the second episode of our podcast series Wales: A Work in Progress , the companion piece of our project on the constitutional future of Wales supported by the Legal Education Foundation. This week, we continue our in-depth exploration of federalism. In this series, we explore options for Wales' future in conversation with experts and people interested in shaping the way forward for our...

Welcome to the first episode of our podcast series Wales: A Work in Progress , the companion piece of our project on the constitutional future of Wales supported by the Legal Education Foundation. This week, we explore federalism. In this series, we explore options for Wales' future in conversation with experts and people interested in shaping the way forward for our country. In keeping with the I...

Today, we kick off a new podcast series to accompany our new project supported by the Legal Education Foundation: Wales: A Work in Progress . In this series, we will explore options for Wales' future in conversation with experts and people interested in shaping the way forward for our country. In keeping with the IWA's independence, we don't take position - rather, we want to give voice to differe...

This is a recording of the launch of our report 'Broadcasting Regulation in Wales: What can we learn from Europe?', which took place on 9 March 2023.  This event was chaired by the IWA's Director Auriol Miller and included a presentation from the authors of the report, Dr Marlen Komorowski (Media Cymru), Dylan Moore (Media and Democracy Policy Lead, IWA) and Enrique Uribe-Jongbloed (Media Cymru)....

Hear from Harry Thompson, author of the IWA's report Beyond Social Partnership? Devolved Levers to support Trade Unions in Wales, which was launched on 16 February 2023. This podcast is a recording of a discussion about the role of trade unions. Harry Thompson, the IWA's Economic Policy Lead, spoke to Hannah Blythyn MS, Deputy Minister for Social Partnership, and to Nisreen Mansour, a Policy Offic...