Lowy Institute

In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with the Brookings Institution scholar and Merkel-watcher Dr Constanze Stelzenmüller. Constanze holds the Fritz Stern Chair at Brookings. Michael and Constanze talk about the chancellorship of Angela Merkel, her legacy, and look to the future of German politics. Constanze reflects on the state of transatlantic relations, Germany’s r...

At the Lowy Institute's headquarters at 31 Bligh Street, former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull launched a new book, 'Red Zone: China’s Challenge and Australia’s Future' by Nonresident Fellow Peter Hartcher. Hartcher’s new book explores China’s intentions in relation to Australia, and what lies behind the recent chill between the two countries. The launch event included remarks by Turnbull and Har...

In this episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, Richard McGregor, Lowy Institute Senior Fellow, sits down with Linda Jaivin to discuss her new book, The Shortest History of China. Linda Jaivin is a journalist, writer and translator who has been studying Chinese politics, language and culture for more than 40 years. She is based in Sydney. Conversations is a Lowy Institute podcast in which Institu...

In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with Admiral Harry Harris, the former US commander and diplomat. Harry served as the Commander of the US Pacific Fleet, Commander of the US Indo-Pacific Command, and as President Trump’s Ambassador to South Korea. Harry discusses his military career, which took in postings from Guantanamo Bay to INDOPACOM headquarters in Honolulu, w...

Covid-19 remains a significant challenge for Papua New Guinea. While case numbers appear to have stabilised after a big surge earlier this year, the virus continues to spread and put further strain on already-stretched healthcare resources. Much needed vaccines have arrived and a national rollout strategy has begun. But vaccine hesitancy is a huge concern – with frontline health workers among thos...

In this episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, Roland Rajah, Lowy Institute Lead Economist, sits down with Dr Ross Garnaut to discuss the ideas in his new book, Reset: Restoring Australia after the Pandemic Recession. Ross Garnaut is one of Australia’s foremost public intellectuals. In 2008 he produced the Garnaut Climate Change Review for the Australian government, as well as an update of the r...

When Myanmar’s military seized power on 1 February, it sent the country spiralling into a political and economic crisis. Despite killing hundreds of peaceful protesters and detaining thousands of activists and politicians, the military has been unable to break the civil disobedience movement. It is unable to govern Myanmar, and risks turning the country into a failed state. As the situation deteri...

In this episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, Alexandre Dayant, Research Fellow at the Lowy Institute, sits down with David Malpass, President of the World Bank, to discuss the Bank’s COVID-19 response and developing countries’ long road to recovery, as well as the hurdles the institution has faced during the pandemic. David R. Malpass is the 13th President of the World Bank Group. He previousl...

On Wednesday 21 April, the Lowy Institute's Aus-PNG Network held a panel discussion with health professionals from provinces in PNG to talk about the Covid-19 situation and how local officials are contending with the virus. Papua New Guinea is dealing with a widespread outbreak of Covid-19 that has placed already stretched health services across the country under intense strain. While the situatio...

On Thursday 15 April, the Lowy Institute launched the new Lowy Institute Paper by John Edwards, one of Australia’s leading economists: Reconstruction: Australia After COVID. The book was launched with a panel discussion with Lowy Institute board director, former APEC ambassador and OECD staffer Joanna Hewitt AO, Lowy Institute Papers editor Sam Roggeveen and author John Edwards on the fractured st...

On Monday 19 April, Peter Khalil MP and Dave Sharma MP had a discussion about Australia’s place in the world with Lowy Institute’s Director of Research Alex Oliver. They covered: what Australia should be doing in the world as an engaged middle power, Australia-China relations, and the fight against climate change. Peter Khalil is the Federal Labor Member for Wills, elected to Parliament in 2016 an...

In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with Dr Samir Saran, President of the Observer Research Foundation (ORF), a leading Indian think tank. Michael and Samir talk about India’s devastating second wave of COVID, the time it will take for India to recover from the crisis, and what the pandemic means for US-China relations. Samir speaks about his own experiences with the...

In this episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, Roland Rajah, Lowy Institute lead economist, sits down with Dr John Edwards and Jennifer Hewitt to discuss Australia’s economy after COVID-19. Dr John Edwards is a Lowy Institute Senior Fellow, an Adjust Professor at Curtin University, a former board member of the Reserve Bank of Australia, and was senior economic advisor to Prime Minister Paul Keat...

With a priority vaccination program underway, Papua New Guinea is striving to get control of a mushrooming outbreak of Covid-19. The virus is putting immense strain on the country’s health system, with hospitals and facilities struggling to cope. PNG Health Minister Hon. Jelta Wong has been a key figure in the country’s response. Mr Wong was first appointed Minister for Health in 2019, and after a...

In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with the distinguished policymaker and policy entrepreneur Michèle Flournoy. Michèle is a former senior Pentagon official, managing partner of WestExec Advisors, and chair of the Center for a New American Security. Michèle is a leading expert on US defence and strategic policy. She served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for...

In this episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, Director of the Southeast Asia Program Ben Bland sits down with Nathan Law to discuss exile, China’s repressive policies and the long struggle ahead for democracy in Hong Kong. Nathan Law is a Hong Kong democracy activist who was elected as the city’s youngest-ever legislator in 2016 before being disqualified by the government and then jailed for hi...

In this episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, Lowy Institute Research Fellow Lydia Khalil sits down with Zoe Daniel to discuss her new book, Greetings from Trumpland. Zoe Daniel is a three-time foreign correspondent and former ABC News United States Bureau Chief. She was based in Washington, DC from 2015 to 2019 and was the ABC’s Southeast Asia correspondent from 2009 to 2013. Conversations is...

In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with the Australian-American diplomat, Middle East scholar, and author Dr Martin Indyk. Martin worked in both the Clinton and Obama administrations as Assistant Secretary of State, US Ambassador to Israel and Special Envoy for Middle East Peace. He is a Distinguished Fellow at the Council on Foreign Affairs and a long-serving Board...

In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with award-winning journalist, author, and editor Anna Fifield. Anna, the editor of the Wellington newspaper The Dominion Post, has previously reported for the Financial Times and The Washington Post from London, Washington, Seoul, Tokyo and Beijing. Anna is the author of a celebrated biography of Kim Jong-un titled The Great Succes...

We are one year into a pandemic that has upended life as we once knew it. How has the pandemic affected women across the world – in their employment prospects, their caring and household responsibilities, the rate of domestic violence they suffer, their access to education and the mental health challenges they face? COVID-19 has also provided lessons in leadership. New Zealand and Taiwan appeared...

In this episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, Senior Fellow Richard McGregor sits down with Natasha Kassam and Jane Perlez to discuss new Lowy Institute research relating to the bilateral relationship between Australia and China. Natasha Kassam is Director of the Lowy Institute’s Public Opinion and Foreign Policy Program and is working on a series of reports for the Multiculturalism, Identity a...

What are the key issues likely to dominate Australia’s international agenda in 2021? China's economic statecraft, regional friction in the Pacific, the climate-change agenda, and how the world recovers economically from the coronavirus pandemic are covered in this wide-ranging panel discussion between Lowy Institute experts. This event was hosted by the Lowy Institute at our headquarters at 31 Bli...

What are the key issues likely to dominate Australia’s international agenda in 2021? Australia's relations with China and America, the COVID and climate-change agenda, and how the new US administration will approach the region are covered in this wide-ranging panel discussion between Lowy Institute experts. This event was hosted by the Lowy Institute at the National Press Club of Australia on Mond...

In this episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, Ben Bland, Director of the Southeast Asia Program at the Lowy Institute, sits down with Aye Min Thant and Melissa Crouch to discuss the causes and consequences of the coup in Myanmar, and how protesters are using technology and humour to push back against the military. Aye Min Thant is a journalist based in Yangon who was part of a Pulitzer Prize–wi...

In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with international business leader Marcus Wallenberg. Marcus is a fifth-generation member of the Wallenberg Family, a Swedish political and business dynasty that has counted foreign ministers, ambassadors, and prominent business figures among its numbers. Marcus is the chairman of both Saab and the SEB Group. He sits on the board of...