Radio Davos

The World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting, bringing leaders and experts together from around the world, traditionally happens in January. But for the first time, thanks to COVID-19, the Davos meeting is being held in May. But as Forum President Borge Brende says in this preview podcast, the absence of snow is not the main reason this Davos will be like no other.

As the world began to emerge from the pandemic, we were expecting some turbulence, but Russia's invasion of Ukraine has upset all predictions. Global Chief Economist at HSBC Janet Henry gives her assessment of where we are and where we're headed.

The World Economic Forum has been tracking global progress on the 'energy transition' for a decade and has just released a special report, Fostering Effective Energy Transition 2022, looking at where things stand at this extraordinary moment in history. The transition is the move away from fossil fuels that cause the climate crisis, while ensuring people around the world can get access to reliable...

Radio Davos and its sister podcast Meet the Leader are podcasting from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland 22—26 May 2022. Here's a three-minute tour of the Forum's podcasts, including out other titles, Book Club and Agenda Dialogues.

Adam Tooze, history professor at Columbia University, looks forward to the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting to be held in Davos in May 2022. The podcaster and author sets out the big issues that will dominate Davos and the global agenda in the months that follow. Adam Tooze is interviewed by Jim Landale and Abhinav Chugh of the World Economic Forum's Strategic Intelligence platform - find out...

ESG is an acronym that's on everyone's lips in the business world. But just what do we mean by the  'environmental, social and governance' performance of a company, and how can we measure that in a meaningful way? Nadja Picard, Global Reporting Leader, PwC, Germany, talks us through what ESG is and how close we are to having clear ways of measuring it around the world.

Bacterial resistance to antibiotics kills between 1.25-5 million people every year. So why is antimicrobial resistance (AMR) not given the priority or funding that some other health problems receive? We hear from Christopher Murray, director of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation which has done the first global assessment of the impact of AMR, and UK AMR envoy Sally Davies, who says AM...

As opponents to Russia's invasion of Ukraine seek to isolate Moscow, we ask an expert: what are sanctions, do they work, and how will the sanctions and Russia's counter measures change the geopolitical landscape? Mikael Wigell, Research Director at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs and the author of, among many other publications,  Geo-economics and Power Politics in the 21st Century,...

It's boomtime for cyber criminals trying to make easy money by taking computer data hostage and demanding ransom. As online working durged during the pandemic, so did cybercrime - ransomware attacks rose 151% in 2021. The World Economic Forum's Global Cybersecurity Outlook found there were on average 270 cyberattacks per organization that year, with each successful cyber breach costing a company $...

The climate summit COP26 was seen as a qualified success. As COP27, due to be held in Egypt by the end of the year, draws closer, and in the light of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, COP26 President Alok Sharma spoke with the head of the World Economic Forum's Centre for Nature and Climate, Gim Huay Neo, to discuss the significance of public-private collaboration in delivering more radical climate...

Russia's invasion of Ukraine is having big, and potentially long-lasting impacts on the global supplies of food and energy. Saad Rahim, Chief Economist at Trafigura, talks about the oil and gas markets, and David Laborde Debucquet of the International Food Policy Research Institute assesses the impact on food supplies and prices, and what policymakers need to do. We also hear from David Beasley, h...

As war rages in Ukraine, leaders from global humanitarian agencies join a World Economic Forum Agenda Dialogue to say what they need from governments and business to tackle the crisis, and explain what the knock-on impacts will be around the world. Moderated by: Børge Brende, President, World Economic Forum, Adrian Monck, Managing Director, World Economic Forum Panelists: David Beasley, Executive...

How is Ukraine managing to keep electricity and heating supplies during the war? Government and industry chiefs address a World Economic Forum online event to explain the challenges and ask for help. As well as the supply of energy, they discussed the threat to Ukraine's many nuclear power plants and called for ever tougher sanctions on Russian energy exports.   Plus: UNICEF spokesperson James Eld...

The former US vice president has been pushing for climate action for decades. In this interview he says we are at a 'political tipping point' after which polluters will no longer hold sway, but admits that greenhouse gas emissions are still growing faster than any action to cut them back to zero.   This is an edited version of an interview first published on the World Economic Forum's Meet the Lea...

Oscar-winning filmmaker Adam McKay tells us how angst about climate change compelled him to make Don't Look Up, an epic comedy disaster movie about humanity's failure to tackle an existential threat. Featuring clips from the film with Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, Jonah Hill, Meryl Streep, Cate Blanchett and Tyler Perry.

As the world emerges from COVID, economies are revving back to life - but so is something that many parts of the world have not seen much of for decades - inflation.  So what is inflation and why has it suddenly reared up around the world? UBS Chief Economist Paul Donovan, author of The Truth About Inflation, speaks to Radio Davos.

Do we need a global treaty to tackle plastics pollution, similar to the one on climate change. Campaigners and a growing number of governments and businesses say we do. Ahead of a United Nations Environment Assembly which could launch talks on a plastics pact, the World Economic Forum heard from a range of experts on why we need a treaty and what it might contain. Speakers: Kristin Hughes , Direct...

COVID-19 paralysed healthcare services around the world and meant many routine procedures were cancelled or delayed. That has taken a heavy toll on cancer patients. How big is the problem, what needs to be done to solve it, and what lessons can we draw from the pandemic to help the fight against cancer? Guests: David Fredrickson - Executive Vice-President, Oncology Business Unit, AstraZeneca; Dr J...

While COVID prevented the annual Davos meeting in the Alps for a second year, leaders from governments, business, academia and civil society met online at the Davos Agenda to discuss the world's biggest issues. The episode has some of the highlights.

Speaking live from the International Space Station, Matthias Maurer gives a fascinating glimpse of what it's like to spend months in orbit - what kind of research he's carrying out - and how the experience has made him care more than ever about protecting our environment.

Dr Anthony Fauci and other experts tell us why Omicron might - but only might - mean we are in the end-game in the fight against COVID. Alongside him at the Davos Agenda session 'COVID-19 - What's Next?' are Professor Annelies Wilder-Smith, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine; Richard Hatchett, CEO of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness and Innovations (CEPI); and Stéphane Bancel, C...

Climate change is the number one risk we face as a species, according to the World Economic Forum's annual Global Risks Report. We look at what a 'disorderly transition' to net-zero might look like, and also examine the new risks posed by rapidly changing technology. Guests:  Peter Giger, Group Chief Risk Officer at Zurich Insurance Group; Carolina Klint, Risk Management Leader, Continental Europe...

Stuart Russell, Professor of Computer Science at University of California, Berkeley is one of the world's most respected experts on artificial intelligence. He explains what AI is, when we might expect machines to overtake humans in every activity, and why that means we need to rethink how we design and use algorithms, and ask the deepest questions about how we are as humans. Co-hosted by Kay Firt...

For the second year running, the pandemic was the biggest news story around the world, but 2021 was also the year of the vaccine rollout, the return of big sporting events including the Olympics, and an invasion of the US Capitol. CNN anchor Eleni Giokos joins us to look back on the year and listen in to some of the most memorable moments.

Was the Glasgow summit just the same old 'blah, blah, blah' or will it help us avoid climate catastrophe? Journalist Justin Worland covered COP26 for TIME and tells us his view on what was - and what was not - achieved.