OECD Podcasts

Global environmental emergencies such as climate change call for us to put our money where our mouth is. An increasing number of governments, companies and financial institutions have committed to reach net zero emissions by 2050. Is that enough to help us meet the goal of the Paris Agreement of limiting the average global temperature increase to 1.5 °C? If not, what more can be done to bridge thi...

La planète est aujourd’hui en proie à des sécheresses dévastatrices. L'été 2022 a été décrit comme une saison en enfer, avec un changement climatique qui est devenu très concret : on a pu constater l’assèchement des cours d’eau et les ravages de très violents feux de forêt. Un rapport publié en août 2022 par l'Observatoire européen de la sécheresse indiquait que près des deux tiers du territoire e...

The world is suffering from a devastating drought. According to an August report from the European Drought Observatory, nearly two-thirds of European territory is either experiencing drought or on high alert, due to stifling heatwaves and minimal rainfall. The consequences are far-reaching: electricity production, crop yields, and inland shipping are just a few of the sectors being hit, as wildfir...

It’s been a tough two years for women. Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, women were hit harder by job losses, leading many to call it a “she-cession”. But as the pandemic worse on we started to see wider impacts too. We saw women on the front line of the crisis response, making up 75% of the workforce in health and social care. Women were taking on more work at home due to school and childcare closu...

The European Parliament and Council are currently negotiating the Artificial Intelligence Act, which introduces common regulatory and legal framework for Artificial Intelligence (AI) in all domains except the military. However, the negotiations pose several challenges for legislators. How should the risk categories be established? Do they take into account unintended impacts of AI? What divergence...

Cultural and creative sectors have been profoundly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The overall contribution to global gross value added (GVA) of the sector fell by around 21% between 2019-20. 10 million jobs were lost worldwide in these industries. However, the impact of the pandemic has been uneven. Businesses with strong digital content have done very well, such as the gaming and music stream...

Lower your thermostat and bring a reusable bag. Commute by bicycle and recycle. These are all everyday life actions, promoted to help the climate change crisis. But how is it decided what changes we should make in our lives? How easily do people change their behaviour? Can it actually make a difference? Understanding human behaviour works hand-in-hand with climate change policy and we're speaking...

Artificial intelligence played a pivotal role during the COVID-19 pandemic, from hastening diagnoses to supporting contract tracing and more. In this sense, the pandemic has already shown us how A.I. can benefit healthcare. But this seems just the beginning of revolution. What else can be done? What are the limits and risks of using artificial intelligence in health care? And how can we best ensur...

James Henderson was 10 years old when he experienced how policies designed with the best intentions can have devastating effects for families affected by domestic violence. He tells OECD’s Monika Queisser about his personal journey from surviving family abuse to becoming a Social Worker, Probation Officer, Battering Intervention Provider and Expert Trainer on Tackling Domestic Violence. He explain...

Everyone relies on data and statistics for making decisions in everyday life, whether at home or at work. Not having data would be like flying blind. But with so much information out there, how can we trust the numbers we read in the media or in official government sources, or for that matter, from the OECD? What are official statistics anyway, who produces them and what makes them so reliable? Do...

Russia's late February invasion of Ukraine has unleashed a devastating and ongoing humanitarian crisis in Ukraine, with thousands of civilian deaths. At least four million Ukrainians have fled the country and nearly seven million are internally displaced. Beyond Ukraine, the conflict is upending the global economy, deepening pressure on vulnerable households still reeling from the pandemic. And wi...

The gender equality gap in the tech industry has worsened in the last 40 years. How can we lessen this the divide and make the tech industry more welcoming for everyone? We speak with Ayumi Moore Aoki, founder of Women in Tech, a global organization aiming to eliminate the gender digital divide by helping women learn digital skills, get hired in tech jobs and become leaders in the tech industry. H...

The data is clear: environmental degradation especially affects women, and women are more motivated to do something about it. Why is this so? Join us as we discuss the complex, multi-faceted relationship between women, climate change, air pollution, domestic violence, and green technology patents with Ingrid Barnsley, Deputy Director of the Environment Directorate at the OECD. For more information...

AI is everywhere, bringing many benefits but also reinforcing unfairness, misinformation and privacy invasion. What steps need to be taken to keep these risks in check? We find these answers and more, in our conversations with Karine Perset, head of the AI unit of the OECD Division for Digital Economy Policy and the OECD Policy Observatory and Dr Sebastian Hallensleben, co-chair of the AI Classifi...

In this episode of Truth Hurts, Monika Queisser speaks with Margaret Johnston-Clarke, the Global Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer for the L'Oréal Group, about actions employers can take. In the One in Three Women Network, multinational companies work together to support survivors amongst their own employees with concrete measures. For more information and how to join the network, plea...

This year OECD Podcasts brought you interviews with policymakers, OECD experts, academics and more, on the topics making headlines in the world today. Take a listen to hear snippets from some of our most listened to podcasts from 2021 as well as what you can expect from us in 2022. Get the latest OECD content delivered directly to your inbox! Subscribe to our newsletters: www.oecd.org/newsletters...

Not everyone has an equal opportunity to transform their ideas into a business. There could be an additional 9 million people starting and managing new business in the European Union (EU) – and 35 million across OECD countries – if everyone was as active in business creation as core age men (30-49 years old). David Halabisky, Policy Analyst at the OECD Centre for Entrepreneurship and SMEs, Regions...

In this episode of Truth Hurts, Monika Queisser speaks with Bert Groen, a former police officer turned activist in the fight against gender-based violence in the Netherlands. He shares his experiences in dealing with violence against women, explains how the police force and the justice system more broadly can better help survivors of domestic violence, why it is so important to integrate all servi...

The OECD, in partnership with IBM, recently conducted a social media poll, asking young people about how well prepared they feel to join the world of work, how confident they are about their future paths and what concerns them about education and jobs in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this episode, the OECD’s Anthony Mann and IBM’s Lydia Logan discuss insights from the poll and why career g...

The COVID-19 pandemic forced school closures in nearly all countries in 2020, with as much as 55 in-person learning days lost for young children and as many as 100 days lost for high school students. The impact of this disproportionately affected those from disadvantaged backgrounds, who were more likely to lack the resources for effective remote learning. The need to strengthen educational opport...

Depuis le début de la pandémie, les fermetures d’écoles ont été nombreuses à travers le monde : la scolarisation de plus d’un milliard d’élèves s’en est trouvée suspendue. Après 18 mois de pandémie, force est de constater que les élèves les plus défavorisés ont été les plus pénalisés. Où en sommes-nous ? Peut-on faire émerger quelque chose de positif de cette crise sans précédent ? Le COVID peut-i...

Début juillet 2021, plus de 130 pays et juridictions sont parvenus à un accord sur une refonte radicale du système fiscal international. Cet accord vise à faire en sorte que les entreprises multinationales paient une juste part de l’impôt partout où elles exercent des activités. Il actualise des composantes fondamentales d’un système fiscal international presque centenaire qui n’est plus adapté à...

If a self-driving car gets into an accident, who’s to blame — the person in the car, or the technology powering the vehicle? What about the manufacturer? If an automated job-search tool discriminates based on race or gender, who’s at fault — the software, or the company? We look at the complex ethical challenges central to AI, the fundamental philosophical questions — about human’s relationship wi...

Effective communication is key when it comes to helping migrants get to know their host country, integrate in their local communities and have access to essential public services. What are best practices in communication with migrants? How can communicators successfully establish interactive spaces online to respond to migrants’ information needs? And how can governments make sure to reach particu...

Over 130 countries and jurisdictions, representing more than 90% of global GDP, joined a new agreement in July 2021 to reform the international taxation rules and ensure that multinational enterprises pay a fair share of tax wherever they operate. This global tax deal – the outcome of negotiations co-ordinated by the OECD for much of the last decade – updates key elements of the century-old intern...