The Final Service

EP4. Stigma May 01, 2025

A church in decline tries to reinvent itself, and its young members struggle with how to talk about Christianity.

The Final Service is written and produced by Mateo Schimpf with additional writing and reporting from Ray Suarez. It's edited by Jarrod Sport with production support from Elize Manoukian. It's made possible with generous support by the Henry Luce Foundation and is distributed by PRX.

EP3. Chicago Apr 24, 2025

Julian Deshazier is a rapper and a pastor. That sounds like it would be appealing to kids from his old neighborhood on the South Side. But getting them to show up to church on Sundays isn't easy.

The Final Service is written and produced by Mateo Schimpf with additional writing and reporting from Ray Suarez. It's edited by Jarrod Sport. It's made possible with generous support by the Henry Luce Foundation and is distributed by PRX.

EP2. Little Lithuania Apr 17, 2025

Christian Allyn is proud to be Lithuanian. So when he found out that the archbishop was going to close his Lithuanian church in Waterbury, Connecticut, he decided to step in. Can his appeal save St. Joseph’s Church?

The Final Service is written and produced by Mateo Schimpf with additional writing and reporting from Ray Suarez. It's edited by Jarrod Sport with production support from Elize Manoukian, Sienna Barnes and Joshua Dudley. It's made possible with generous support by the Henry Luce Foundation and is distributed by PRX.

EP1. The Mayordomos Apr 10, 2025

This is the first chapter in a four-part series about church closures in America.

Lorraine Pacheco is the caretaker for a tiny church in an even tinier town in the eastern plains of New Mexico. As she gets older and her congregation shrinks, she’s starting to wonder if it will survive after she’s gone.

The Final Service is written and produced by Mateo Schimpf with additional writing and reporting from Ray Suarez. It's edited by Jarrod Sport with production support from Elize Manoukian, Sienna Barnes and Joshua Dudley. It's made possible with generous support by the Henry Luce Foundation and is distributed by PRX.

Trailer Apr 03, 2025

Notice anything about churches in America? In a lot of place they're boarded up. Converted to some other use. Or just abandoned.

Reporters Mateo Schimpf and Ray Suarez go on a journey to find out why so many churches are closing, and whether pastors can do anything to save them.

Jonathan Rauch on the Limits of MAGA and Trump Jan 02, 2025

One theme was consistent throughout this election year: the assertion that democracy was under threat. Throughout the year, Jonathan Rauch weighed in on whether democracy is waning, and how the Republican party could build a future without Trumpism.

Jonathan Rauch joins Ray Suarez to discuss Trump's reelection, and how he feels today about the health of our republic.

This is our final episode of On Shifting Ground. Thank you for all your support over the years. We'll miss you.

Guest:

Jonathan Rauch, Senior Fellow, Governance Studies, Center for Effective Public Management

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Ambassador Michael McFaul: Ukrainians May Fight On, Even with a Trump/Putin Deal Dec 30, 2024

In less than three weeks, Donald Trump will be back in the White House, and we’re waiting to see what he will tackle on Day One. On the campaign trail, Trump promised he’d end the fighting in Ukraine on January 20th. The war is nearing its third anniversary, and there are few signs an end is in sight.

Russian president Vladimir Putin has recently signaled he’s ready to compromise, but can president-elect Trump deliver a deal after almost three years of war?

This week, Ray Suarez speaks with former US ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul on the precarious future of Ukraine.

Guest:

Michael McFaul, Director, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Why You’re Probably Not Going to Church this Christmas Dec 23, 2024

100,000, that’s the estimated number of Protestant churches that will close in the U.S… not by 2050, but five years from now. What some scholars are calling “The Great De-churching” is already well under way, and the exodus is accelerating.

This week, Ray Suarez speaks with Ryan Burge, professor of political science at Eastern Illinois University, about why non-religious people and atheists are on the rise, and whether religion can still play a role in American society.

Guest:

Ryan Burge, professor of political science at Eastern Illinois University

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Overuse of Antibiotics and the Threat of Antimicrobial Resistance Dec 19, 2024

When bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites change over time and no longer respond to medicines, it makes infections harder to treat. This increases the risk of disease spread, severe illness, and death.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) leads to deaths, high health treatment costs, and economic and livelihood losses.

Jennifer Cohn, Director, Global Access at Global Antibiotic R&D Partnership (GARDP), joins Ray Suarez to talk about the threat of AMR, and how to prevent it.

Guest:

Dr. Jennifer Cohn, Director, Global Access at Global Antibiotic R&D Partnership (GARDP)

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Denier-in-Chief: The Threat of Trump and RFK, Jr’s Health Policy Dec 16, 2024

Third party candidate, Robert Kennedy, Jr., played an out-sized role in the 2024 presidential election. Trump said Kennedy would have “a big role in health care” if he were re-elected. And on November 14th, Trump announced RFK, Jr. would be nominated to lead the Department of Health and Human Services.

More than 75 Nobel laureates have urged the US Senate to deny Kennedy, because they feel he would “put the public’s health in jeopardy.” If confirmed, how could Kennedy disrupt policy at HHS?

This week, Ray speaks with Stanford’s Keith Humphreys about what RFK’s nomination means.

Guest:

Keith Humphreys, Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Millions of Deportations? Just How Tough Trump Might Get on Immigration Dec 09, 2024

One issue where President-elect Trump hammered home the differences between his plans and those of Kamala Harris was immigration. For a decade, the public has been increasingly worried about the number of people turning up at the southern border, the number of people seeking asylum in the US, and perhaps more quietly, about the changing face of America.

Ray Suarez spoke with Ted Hesson, immigration reporter for Reuters, about how the Trump administration will handle immigration differently than Joe Biden. Then, he shares what he learned while reporting and writing We Are Home: Becoming American in the 21st Century, with veteran journalist Shereen Marisol Meraji.

Guests:

Ted Hesson, immigration reporter for Reuters

Shereen Marisol Meraji, assistant professor at UC Berkeley’s School of Journalism

Host:

Ray Suarez, host, On Shifting Ground

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Ian Bremmer on What to Expect from Trump 2.0 Dec 02, 2024

Donald Trump has successfully defied the political odds for almost a decade – largely because of his unpredictability on the campaign trail. But when it comes to his foreign policy, Trump is anything but unpredictable. If we take him at his word, some analysts believe Trump will inflame economic tensions with China, pull the US out of NATO, and hand Ukraine over to Vladimir Putin.

Ian Bremmer on what to expect from Trump 2.0. Then, Ray Suarez sits down with Luxembourg Peace Prize laureates, Ali Abu Awwad, founding leader of the Taghyeer (Change) Palestinian National Nonviolence movement, and Dr. Gershon Baskin, the Middle East director of the International Communities Organization, to learn why they maintain hope for a peaceful, two-state solution.

Guests:

Ian Bremmer, president and founder of the Eurasia Group

Ali Abu Awwad, Palestinian peace activist and founder of the Taghyeer (Change) Palestinian National Nonviolence Movement

Gershon Baskin, Israeli peace activist and the Middle East Director of the International Communities Organisation

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Yascha Mounk on How To Save Diverse Democracies Nov 25, 2024

Diversity has often been seen as the United States’ defining strength – but today, some Americans see it as a threat. And this isn’t new. Throughout history, differences of religion, ethnicity, and origin have driven states around the world to war, violence, and extreme division. However, German-American political scientist Yascha Mounk says this isn’t the only path.

On this week’s episode, we revisit our 2022 conversation with Mounk about his book, “The Great Experiment: Why Diverse Democracies Fall Apart And How They Can Endure."

Two years after our original recording, we wonder whether it's still possible for diverse diverse democracies to succeed in an increasingly polarized political landscape.

Guest:

Yascha Mounk, associate professor at Johns Hopkins University, contributing editor at The Atlantic and author of The Great Experiment: Why Diverse Democracies Fall Apart and How They Can Endure

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Mike Madrid: Latino Voters and the Working Class ‘Tectonic Shift’ Nov 18, 2024

In 2020, Latinos became the second largest ethnic voting group in the United States, and the fastest-growing segment of the swing states in the 2024 Presidential Election.

The results of Election Day are clear: Donald Trump gained with working class Americans, and particularly Latino men, delivering him a decisive victory.

Ray Suarez speaks with Mike Madrid, author of The Latino Century: How America’s Largest Minority Is Transforming Democracy, on why Democrats have been failing to connect with Latino voters for over a decade. Then, a post-election analysis from Commonwealth Club World Affairs’ “Week to Week” political roundtable.

Guests:

Mike Madrid, Co-Founder, The Lincoln Project; Author, The Latino Century: How America’s Largest Minority Is Transforming Democracy

Tim Anaya, Vice President of Marketing and Communications, Pacific Research Institute

Melissa Caen, Attorney; Political Journalist; Host, "Get Out the Bet"

Joe Garofoli, Senior Political Writer, San Francisco Chronicle; Host, "It's All Political on Fifth and Mission"

Hosts:

Ray Suarez

John Zipperer, Producer and Host, “Week to Week” Political Roundtable

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Steve Schmidt: Trump’s Victory is a Disaster for the Democratic Party Nov 11, 2024

According to Steve Schmidt, if you want to understand how the Democrats failed against Donald Trump in 2024, then you have to go back to Joe Biden not stepping aside earlier.

In a candid, raw conversation, Ray Suarez speaks with Steve Schmidt, co-founder of the Lincoln Project, and host of The Warning, about how Donald Trump built a new multicultural, working class coalition, and why identity politics and big egos cost the Democrats.

Guest:

Steve Schmidt, co-founder of the Lincoln Project, and host of The Warning

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

What the Hell Just Happened? Nov 08, 2024

Election Day is over, and the results are clear: former president Donald Trump resoundingly defeated vice president Kamala Harris. We don’t have all the data, but a majority of US counties swung towards the Republicans.

How did Trump gain new working class voters? And where does the Democratic Party go from here?

Dante Chinni, director of MSU J-School’sAmerican Communities Project, Rahul Bali, politics reporter at WABE, and Katie Meyer, government editor and reporter at Spotlight PA, breakdown the results.

Guests:

Dante Chinni, data and political journalist and director of the MSU J-School’s American Communities Project

Rahul Bali, politics reporter at WABE

Katie Meyer, government editor and reporter at Spotlight PA

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Last Look: Can We Trust the Polls? Nov 04, 2024

We’ve finally reached November 5th, Election Day in the US, and a majority of Americans remain deeply pessimistic about the state of the nation. Throughout the year, we’ve talked to voters about the issues they care about in 2024, and we share their stories in this election special.

We’ll revisit our conversations with Iowa voter Phil Hemingway, Latorya Beasley, therapist and in vitro fertilization (IVF) patient in Alabama, and Samaya Garza, J.D. Candidate at University of Detroit Mercy School of Law.

Then, Ray Suarez speaks with Justin Grimmer, political science professor and senior fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution, to break down whether we can trust the polls in the final days of the race.

Guests:

Dante Chinni, data and political journalist and director of the MSU J-School’s American Communities Project

Phil Hemingway, owner, manager and automotive technician at Phil’s Repair, LLC

Latorya Beasley, therapist and in vitro fertilization (IVF) patient in Alabama

Samaya Garza, J.D. Candidate at University of Detroit Mercy School of Law

Justin Grimmer, political science professor and senior fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution

Hosts:

Ray Suarez

Mateo Schimpf

Elize Manoukian, producer

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Kara Swisher’s on Whether We Can Trust Tech Billionaires Oct 31, 2024

Donald Trump’s anti-establishment message has galvanized tech leaders across the US, including in former Democratic Party stronghold, Silicon Valley. This American Life’s Zoe Chace speaks with our producer, Mateo Schimpf, about what happened when Michigan Republicans took his advice and actually tried to buck the system.

And tech billionaires have had their fingerprints all over the 2024 Presidential Election, but can we trust them? Journalist Kara Swisher joins Ray Suarez to discuss her newest book, “Burn Book,” and the psyche of Silicon Valley’s biggest players.

Guests:

Zoe Chace, Producer, This American Life

Kara Swisher, author of “Burn Book,” and host of the podcast “On with Kara Swisher”

Hosts:

Mateo Schimpf

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Musk is all in on Trump. What About the Rest of Silicon Valley? Oct 28, 2024

During the 2024 presidential race, Donald Trump's campaign has been fueled by some surprising supporters… leaders in big tech. According to recent reporting from The New York Times, tech billionaires like Elon Musk have built a “shadow campaign” to put Trump back in office.

WIRED’s Steven Levy joins Ray Suarez to talk about why big dollar donations are causing a big divide in the once deeply blue Silicon Valley.

Guest:

Steven Levy, Journalist and Editor, WIRED

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Will an “October Surprise” Decide the 2024 Election? Oct 21, 2024

We're entering the final days of the 2024 presidential election, but a lot can change in a few weeks. Historically, several presidential contests have been upended in October. Coined the "October Surprise," for decades candidates have been tested at the finish line... and many have faltered. So what could trip up Harris or Trump?

Ray Suarez hosts a panel featuring political strategist and pollster Rachel Bitecofer, Jonathan M. Metzl, author of Dying of Whiteness: How the Politics of Racial Resentment is Killing America's Heartland, and Tara Setmayer, co-founder and CEO of the Seneca Project.

Guests:

Rachel Bitecofer, author, political strategist and pollster

Jonathan M. Metzl, authorand director of the Department of Medicine, Health, and Society, at Vanderbilt University

Tara Setmayer, co-founder and CEO of the Seneca Project

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you value this programming, you can help support future ones just like it. Visit Commonwealth Club World Affairs to make a donation. Any amount helps, thank you!

Living in Two Worlds Oct 17, 2024

Refugees in California are generally protected from federal deportation under sanctuary and safe haven laws, unless they've been incarcerated. And in 2022, after serving 25 years for murder, San Quentin State Prison parolee Phoeun You was turned over to ICE, and deported to Cambodia.

In this episode, the story of Phoeun You: a man returned to a country he never knew.

This episode was produced in partnership with KQED's The California Report Magazine podcast.

Producer:

Mateo Schimpf

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Which Candidate Does Mexico Favor in November? Oct 14, 2024

Immigration is once again a political football in the lead up to the 2024 Presidential Election, and while Congress stalled to address comprehensive border control measures, hundreds of thousands of migrants became pawns in a political game.

The Washington Post's Eduardo Porter talks with Ray about how Mexico's former president used migrant flows to gain leverage in Washington D.C., and which US presidential candidate Mexico's new leadership prefers in the upcoming election.

Guest:

Eduardo Porter, columnist, The Washington Post

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

SPECIAL LIVE EVENT: Will an “October Surprise” Shake-Up the Race? Oct 10, 2024

We're entering the final days of the 2024 presidential election, but a lot can change in a few weeks. Historically, several presidential contests have been upended in October. Coined the "October Surprise," for decades candidates have been tested at the finish line... and many have faltered.

In 2016 and 2020, Donald Trump was trailing in the polls in October – as he is now with Kamala Harris – so could a last-second surprise ensure victory for Trump?

Join us at Commonwealth Club - World Affairs on Tuesday, October 15th at Noon, for a special conversation with political strategist and pollster Rachel Bitecofer, Jonathan M. Metzl,author of Dying of Whiteness: How the Politics of Racial Resentment is Killing America's Heartland, and Tara Setmayer, co-founder and CEO of the Seneca Project.

A Year After October 7th, Is the Middle East Headed for War? Oct 04, 2024

Monday, October 7, 2024 marks the first anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israeli territory. For a while, Israel's response to the violence supplanted the war in Ukraine in the headlines, but as the months dragged on, attention had largely turned away from Gaza. That all changed in late-September when Israeli airstrikes in neighboring Lebanon killed seven high-ranking commanders and officials from Hezbollah, including the militant group’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah.

Ray Suarez speaks with Trita Parsi, Executive Vice President of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, about how Nasrallah’s has already escalated violence in the region… and may drag in Iran and the United States. Then, Vox’s Zack Beauchamp on what the first anniversary of October 7th will mean to Israel, the United States, and the final months of Joe Biden’s presidency.

Guests:

Zack Beauchamp, Senior Correspondent at Vox

Trita Parsi, Executive Vice President of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Is America Exporting Political Violence? Oct 03, 2024

After the two recent assassination attempts on former president Donald Trump, it’s clear the United States has a problem with political violence. But in our history, several would-be assassins have attacked sitting presidents, so is there something different about these Trump shooters… and this era of political grievance?

Bruce Hoffman, Senior Fellow for Counterterrorism and Homeland Security at the Council on Foreign Relations, on whether we can break the string of political violence across the globe.

Guest:

Bruce Hoffman, Senior Fellow for Counterterrorism and Homeland Security, Council on Foreign Relations

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Tom Nichols: Attacking the President Attacks the Nation Sep 30, 2024

The recent assassination attempts on former president Donald Trump were surreal for many. It's been almost a half-century since a US president was shot, but attacks on a sitting president aren’t new – Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan survived assassination attempts. What’s different is that violence on elected officials used to be carried out by individuals with coherent political aims.

In a recent article for The Atlantic, Tom Nichols argues that Donald Trump hasn’t carried himself like Gerald Ford, and speaks with Ray Suarez about why Trump is trying to use these assassination attempts for his political advantage.

Guests:

Tom Nichols, staff writer at The Atlantic and professor emeritus of national-security affairs at the U.S. Naval War College

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Can We Trust the Presidential Polls? A 2024 Election Special Sep 23, 2024

Kamala Harris holds a national lead of three percentage points over Donald Trump. And as the polls following her recent debate performance continue to trickle in, that number is expected to grow. But can we trust the latest polls?

This week, in our latest special election series, we talk with an undecided voter who doesn’t trust what polls are saying. Then, a pair of political scientists break down how we can make polling better.

We’ll hear from Samaya Garza, J.D. Candidate at University of Detroit Mercy School of Law, Dr. Peter Francia, professor and director of the ECU Center for Survey Research, Justin Grimmer, political science professor and senior fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution, and Dr. Natalie Jackson, vice president at GQR.

Guests:

Samaya Garza, J.D. Candidate at University of Detroit Mercy School of Law

Dr. Peter Francia, professor and director of the ECU Center for Survey Research

Justin Grimmer, political science professor and senior fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution

Dr. Natalie Jackson, vice president at GQR

Host:

Ray Suarez

Mateo Schimpf, senior producer

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Anne Applebaum on Autocracy in America, and What’s at Stake in November Sep 19, 2024

Anne Applebaum argues that autocracy is spreading to democratic states, and the reason why is that illiberalism is good international business. She warns the seeds of autocracy have already been sown in the United States, so how can we protect ourselves during another contentious presidential election season?

Ray Suarez sits down with Anne Applebaum. Her latest book is Autocracy, Inc., and she has a new podcast, Autocracy in America. It’s co-hosted by British journalist Peter Pomerantsev. Do listen.

Guest:

Anne Applebaum, staff writer for The Atlantic and pulitzer-prize winning historian

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Can Ukraine Hang On Until November? Sep 16, 2024

In August, Ukrainian troops swept into Russia's Kursk region, and seized over 500 square miles of Russian territory. It’s the first time that Russia has been invaded since World War II.

In Moscow, President Putin has relied on aid from China, Iran, and North Korea, but some analysts believe that his most consequential support may come from a second Trump term. They argue the Russian leader is biding his time till the 2024 US Presidential election.

Meanwhile, President Zelensky is still waiting on answers from current US President Joe Biden on the use of long-range missiles on Russian targets. Can the Ukrainian military hold its ground until the November election, and what does President Zelensky need to secure a victory? The Guardian's Luke Harding joins Ray Suarez to share what he’s seeing on the battlefield.

Guest:

Luke Harding, foreign correspondent for The Guardian

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

If it's ‘America First’, Who is American Enough? Sep 09, 2024

Immigrants to America have always faced resistance, and have always—over time—assimilated and become vital parts of America. But in a political era of “America First'', what does it mean to be an immigrant in the 21st century? And who decides who is “American” enough?

Ray Suarez has criss-crossed the country to speak to new Americans from all corners of the globe, and to record their stories for his new book. He shares what he learned while reporting and writing We Are Home: Becoming American in the 21st Century, with veteran journalist Shereen Marisol Meraji.

Learn more about Shereen’s new podcast, How I Get It Done.

Guest:

Ray Suarez, host, On Shifting Ground

Host:

Shereen Marisol Meraji, assistant professor at UC Berkeley’s School of Journalism

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

In AI We Trust? A 2024 Election Special Sep 02, 2024

In May, Senate Majority Leader, Chuck Schumer, presented a sprawling “road map” for regulating artificial intelligence. But tech experts have called the plan “pathetic”, and many critics believe Washington is out of touch. And California’s legislature will soon vote on a plan that would put guardrails on the biggest AI players.

This week, we're airing our special election episode from June about why AI may be the big bad “X Factor” of the upcoming presidential election.

First, we’ll hear from Josh Lawson, Director of AI and Democracy at the Aspen Institute. Then, US Congressman Ted Lieu and Dr. Gary Marcus, Founder of Robust AI and Geometric AI, join Ray Suarez to talk about the future of AI, and whether it can be regulated in time.

Guests:

Josh Lawson, Director of AI and Democracy at the Aspen Institute

US Representative Ted Lieu (D-CA 36th District)

Dr. Gary Marcus, Founder of Robust AI and Geometric AI

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

The Healthy Amount of Hooch Aug 29, 2024

Earlier this century, reports indicated a little alcohol might even improve health. Moderation was the watchword. Those reports have been overtaken by a new generation of research which indicates the healthy amount of alcohol is no alcohol. But alcoholic beverages are deeply embedded in the brain. So if it’s so bad for us, why can’t we quit drinking?

Ray speaks with New York Times health reporter Roni Rabin about a new UK study that concludes that drinking is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality, regardless of underlying health and socioeconomic status.

Guest:

Roni Rabin, health reporter, The New York Times

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

New Habits in Our Old Age Aug 26, 2024

For the most part, the world has gone back to normal. We’re getting on planes… going to concerts… but many Americans haven’t changed their pandemic drinking habits. And this increased consumption trend is especially high for older Americans.

In 2020, alcohol accounted for more than 11,000 deaths among those 65 and up – that’s an 18 percent increase from the previous year – and many of those cases went untreated.

Ray speaks with Keith Humphreys, Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University, to get to the bottom of why Baby Boomers are drinking so much.

Guest:

Keith Humphreys, Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Stuart Stevens: The Lincoln Project is Taunting Trump… And So is Kamala Harris Aug 19, 2024

President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race on July 21, and in the few weeks since, Vice President Kamala Harris has garnered enough delegates to become the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party. Biden had trailed Trump in virtually every poll, but Harris has rallied the hopes of her party, as her momentum continues to upend the race.

This week, in our latest special election series, why party conventions matter, what to expect at the 2024 Democratic National Convention, and how The Lincoln Project and Kamala Harris are taunting Trump.

Stuart Stevens, former chief Republican strategist and author of Conspiracy to End America, joins Ray Suarez to discuss the state of the presidential race, and to make predictions for the final 75 days.

Guests:

Stuart Stevens, Senior Advisor, The Lincoln Project

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

How Cocaine Blew Through the Island of Peace Aug 15, 2024

Ecuadorian journalist Jorge Imbaquingo says that his country used to be, “an island of peace.” But now it’s caught in the middle of Latin America’s bloodiest drug war.

In our last episode, we heard about Ecuador’s historic vote to stop oil extraction in the Amazon. Today, we’ll hear about why its President, Daniel Noboa, nixed those plans to fund his war against the country’s drug cartels.

First, producer Mateo Schimpf and El Diario del Comercio reporter Jorge Imbaquingo share why Ecuador has become a target for Latin America’s drug cartels. Then writer Jon Lee Anderson talks with Ray Suarez about his recent New Yorker profile of Daniel Noboa, and why the young leader is standing up to the narcos.

Guests:

Jorge Imbaquingo, politics reporter, El Diario del Comercio

Jon Lee Anderson, staff writer, The New Yorker

Mateo Schimpf, producer, On Shifting Ground

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Can Ecuador Keep its Oil in the Ground? Aug 12, 2024

Last August, Ecuador passed a historic referendum that was more than a decade in the making. Oil accounts for roughly a third of the country’s exports, but Ecuadorians voted to stop extraction at a major production site deep in the Amazon. Since the vote, Ecuador’s “Keep It in the Ground” movement has hit some speed bumps.

In collaboration with our sister program, Climate One, why curbing climate emissions has economic consequences for rural Ecuadorians.

Guests:

Kevin Koenig, Climate, Energy, and Extractive Industry Director, Amazon Watch

Kimberley Brown, freelance journalist

Mateo Schimpf, producer, On Shifting Ground

Host:

Ray Suarez

Ariana Brocious, co-host, Climate One

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Biden's Foreign Policy Legacy Aug 08, 2024

Ray Suarez sits down with Dr. Timothy Naftali, senior research scholar at Columbia University’s SIPA, to examine Biden’s foreign policy legacy… and how country's around the world are preparing for a new US President in 2025.

Guest:

Dr. Timothy Naftali, senior research scholar at Columbia University’s SIPA

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Netanyahu's Gambling on Trump Aug 05, 2024

A few weeks ago, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke before the US Congress, and he showed no signal that his government is open to a ceasefire with Hamas. President Biden had hoped to broker an Israeli-Hamas peace deal before leaving office, but an attack from Hezbollah in the Golan Heights—and Israel's military response—could dash any remaining hope for a deal in Gaza.

Ray Suarez sits down with Mairav Zonszein, Senior Analyst at the International Crisis Group, to Israel’s military may be at odds with Netanyahu and why the Israeli Prime Minister is going all-in on a Trump Presidency.

Guest:

Mairav Zonszein, Senior Analyst at the International Crisis Group

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

The Elites vs… the Elites? Jul 31, 2024

Donald Trump’s anti-establishment message has galvanized tech leaders across the US, including in former Democratic Party stronghold, Silicon Valley.

In the second half of our election special, we’ll hear from This American Life’s Zoe Chace about what happened when Michigan Republicans took his advice and actually tried to buck the system. Then, WIRED’s Steven Levy joins Ray Suarez to talk about why big tech and “little tech” are throwing their weight behind Trump’s presidential bid.

You can hear Zoe's latest reporting from the Republican National Convention on This American Life.

Guests:

Zoe Chace, Producer, This American Life

Steven Levy, Journalist and Editor, WIRED

Mateo Schimpf, Producer, On Shifting Ground

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help.

Biden is Out, Harris is In: How DNC Donors Reset the Race Jul 29, 2024

Since Joe Biden dropped out of the race, Vice President Kamala Harris raised hundreds of millions in small dollar donations. Harris has received endorsements from virtually every major Democratic Party leader, and her path to nomination – and command of the dnc campaign war chest – appears inevitable.

But was it the big money DNC donors who really made this possible?

The New York Times’ Astead Herndon joins Ray Suarez to talk about how Democratic Party donors helped force President Biden out.

Guests:

Astead Herndon, National Politics Reporter, The New York Times

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

The IOC and the Authoritarian Elite Jul 25, 2024

The surprising success of Russian athletes at the 2014 Sochi Olympics gave Vladimir Putin the political capital to invade Crimea, and it was all built on an elaborate state-sponsored doping program. Russia received little more than a slap on the wrist by the International Olympic Committee, so President Putin was emboldened to attack Ukraine in 2022. This time the IOC had to act, and the majority of Russian athletes have been banned from the 2024 Paris Games.

John Hoberman, Olympic Historian and Professor of Germanic Studies, University of Texas at Austin, joins Ray Suarez to share why the IOC has a history of enabling authoritarian leaders, and why it has blood on its hands.

Guest:

John Hoberman, Olympic Historian and Professor of Germanic Studies, University of Texas, Austin

Host:

Ray Suarez, host, On Shifting Ground

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

The Olympics are Back, But Does Anyone Care? Jul 22, 2024

It's been a wild few weeks in US news... but remember the Olympics?

After COVID-19 threw a curveball in Tokyo, the Olympic Games are back. Since the Olympics as we know them started in 1896, they have only been canceled for drastic events like World Wars and a pandemic. The 2020 Tokyo games were postponed a year due to lockdown restrictions, and global viewership suffered. So will the 2024 Paris games rekindle our love for the Games?

The Athletic sports writer, Richard Deitsch, joins Ray Suarez to talk about whether the Olympics can rebound.

Guests:

Richard Deitsch, sports writer and host, Sports Media with Richard Deitsch

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to Commonwealth Club World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Why We're Losing Faith in Democracy Jul 15, 2024

A gunman just tried to assassinate former President Donald Trump weeks after he was convicted of election interference… Joe Biden’s campaign is in freefall… and all along voters have resented a choice between two troubled candidates.

Americans — from the largest urban centers to the smallest rural towns — are deeply pessimistic about the state of the nation. And on both sides of the political aisle, there seems to be a disconnect between what people want… and where they feel the country is headed.

This week, in an election special, we’ll hear from Iowa voter Phil Hemingway, and how he’s feeling about this contentious election year. Then, Dante Chinni, director of MSU J-School’sAmerican Communities Project, Anne Applebaum, staff writer for The Atlantic, and Ian Bremmer, president of GZERO Media, join Ray Suarez to unpack why Americans have lost faith in democracy… and what it will take to get it back.

Guests:

Phil Hemingway, owner, manager and automotive technician at Phil’s Repair, LLC

Dante Chinni, data and political journalist and director of the MSU J-School’sAmerican Communities Project

Anne Applebaum, staff writer for The Atlantic, Pulitzer-prize winning historian and author of “The Twilight of Democracy”

Ian Bremmer, a political scientist, author of “The Power of Crisis,” and professor at Columbia University’s School of International and Political Affairs

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Annie Jacobsen's Nuclear Doomsday Scenario Jul 08, 2024

For generations, a nuclear war has been assumed to be so horrible that no one has used these weapons since 1945. But what have we done in the last 80 years to pull ourselves back from the edge of nuclear destruction?

In her new book “Nuclear War: A Scenario”, pulitzer-prize finalist Annie Jacobsen explores a ticking-clock scenario. Based on dozens of exclusive interviews with military and civilian experts who have built the weapons, she pieced together what a response to nuclear war might look like. She’s in conversation with independent tech journalist, Quentin Hardy.

Guest:

Annie Jacobsen, Journalist; Author, Nuclear War: A Scenario

Guest Host:

Quentin Hardy, former Head of Editorial, Google Cloud

Come check out Ray's live conversation on US immigration next Tuesday, July 9th at 6 pm PT! Tickets for in-person and online program are here: https://bit.ly/RaySuarezLive

Putin Meets Kim pt. 2: The Pariahs Jul 03, 2024

Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un just signed a mutual defense deal that feels a lot more like 1964 than 2024.

In part two of our series, John Delury, associate professor of Chinese studies at Yonsei University, explains why Putin is taking his relationship with Kim to the next level, and whether the UN Security Council can do anything about it.

Guest:

John Delury, associate professor of Chinese studies at Yonsei University

Host:

Ray Suarez

Come check out Ray's live conversation on US immigration next Tuesday, July 9th at 6 pm PT! Tickets for in-person and online program are here: https://bit.ly/RaySuarezLive

Putin Meets Kim pt. 1: A Handshake Worth A Thousand Guns? Jul 01, 2024

On June 18th, Russian President Vladimir Putin made an unprecedented trip to Pyongyang. It was the first time he’d set foot inside North Korea in nearly 25 years and marks a new low point in his war against Ukraine.

This week, we’re running a two-part series about the recent courtship between President Putin and North Korean leader, Kim Jong Un. In the first episode, we’re joined by New York Times’ national security reporter Julian Barnes. He’ll walk us through last year’s alleged arms deal between Russia and North Korea and Putin's growing desperation for munitions.

On Wednesday we’ll dive deep on Putin and Kim’s most recent meeting and how it’s destabilizing a fragile international order.

Guest:

Julian Barnes, national security reporter for The New York Times

Host:

Ray Suarez

Come check out Ray's live conversation on US immigration next Tuesday, July 9th at 6 pm PT! Tickets for in-person and online program are here: https://bit.ly/RaySuarezLive

Is Extremism Going Mainstream in Europe? Jun 24, 2024

On June 9th, Europe's European Union members voted for their next parliament. The election tends to be a practical and mostly predictable affair, where parties across the continent build centrist coalitions, but major victories for the far-right in countries like France, Germany, and Italy are shaking things up.

In 2023, journalist Julia Ebner joinedRay Suarez to share how she went undercover in the world of online extremists. Ebner revealed how conspiracy theories like QAnon have taken hold in Germany.

In this week’s program, Ebner shares how political extremism has moved mainstream, and how the far-right is upending the elections in Europe.

Guest:

Julia Ebner, author of Going Mainstream: How extremists are taking over

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Abraham Leno on the Congolese Leading the Way to Economic Security Jun 20, 2024

The recent spate of violence in Sub-Saharan Africa is centuries in the making, and finding solutions isn’t easy. And when we talk about lifting the world out of poverty, Africa is at the center of any meaningful discussion.

Abraham Leno, Executive Director of the Eastern Congo Initiative, has worked on the African continent for decades, and he joins Ray Suarez to share how ECI is working to change narratives about people in Eastern Congo.

Guest:

Abraham Leno, Executive Director of the Eastern Congo Initiative

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Congo and the Coup Contagion Jun 17, 2024

The Democratic Republic of Congo sits just south of the so-called “coup belt” in Africa – an area stretching across the entire continent, from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea. With more than half a dozen attempts in the region since 2021, social scientists are beginning to call the coups a “contagion”.

As Congo faces the challenges of post-colonial governance, what can be done to protect the future of its democracy? Vox reporter, Ellen Ioanes, joins Ray Suarez to talk about the US, China, Russia’s role in fomenting violence in the DRC.

Guest:

Ellen Ioanes, World & Weekend Reporter, Vox

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Could AI Swing the November Election? Jun 10, 2024

In May, Senate Majority Leader, Chuck Schumer, presented a sprawling “road map” for regulating artificial intelligence. The report called for $32 billion in spending to put guardrails on the rapidly evolving technology. But tech experts have called the plan “pathetic”, and many critics believe Washington is out of touch.

This week, in our latest special election series, why AI may be the big bad “X Factor” of the upcoming presidential election.

We’ll hear from Josh Lawson, Director of AI and Democracy at the Aspen Institute. Then, US Congressman Ted Lieu and Dr. Gary Marcus, Founder of Robust AI and Geometric AI, join Ray Suarez to talk about the future of AI, and whether it can be regulated in time.

Guests:

Josh Lawson, Director of AI and Democracy at the Aspen Institute

US Representative Ted Lieu (D-CA 36th District)

Dr. Gary Marcus, Founder of Robust AI and Geometric AI

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

David Brooks on Solving Social Isolation and Fixing Democracy Jun 03, 2024

Hate crimes, gun violence, political polarization…. to New York Times’ columnist David Brooks, these are signs that America is undergoing a new epidemic: social isolation. He joins Ray Suarez to discuss his new book, “How To Know A Person: The Art of Seeing Others Deeply and Being Deeply Seen,” and to unpack how we can rebuild trust and empathy “for the opposition”... by getting to know our neighbors.

Guest:

David Brooks, Op-Ed Columnist at The New York Times and author of “How to Know a Person: The Art of Seeing Others Deeply and Being Deeply Seen”

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Secretary Robert Gates on Israel’s Retaliation, and What Biden Does Next May 31, 2024

Thousands have been killed in the ongoing violence between Israel and Hamas, and a ground invasion into Gaza appears imminent. Former US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates predicts how war could ripple through the Middle East.

Guest:

Robert Gates, former US Secretary of Defense

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

The Death of the “Butcher of Tehran”: What’s Next for Iran and Israel? May 27, 2024

On May 19th, Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi was killed in a helicopter accident, and his death brings an uncertain future to his country. This comes weeks after Iran traded missiles with Israel.

Ray Suarez speaks with Trita Parsi, Executive Vice President of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, about what Raisi’s death will mean to Iran… and the rest of the Middle East.

Guest:

Trita Parsi, Executive Vice President of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

2024 Election Special: Isn't There a Better Option? May 23, 2024

We all get a vote...but do we really get a choice?

In the second part of our special election episode, political scientist Lee Drutman joins Ray to talk about the future of ranked choice voting and third party politics in the US.

Then, Ray sits down with Lincoln Project co-founder Steve Schmidt to talk about whether Robert Kennedy Jr. will play spoiler in the 2024 Presidential Election... and for which party.

2024 Election Special: The Place Beyond Two Parties May 20, 2024

Can two parties really represent America?

This week, in our latest special election series, we’ll hear from Michigan voter, Greg Stempfle, and former Ferndale city council member, Kat Bruner James, about how a suburb of Detroit is trying to reform elections... and make politics less bitter along the way.

Guests:

Greg Stempfle, Ferndale, Michigan voter

Kat Bruner James, former Ferndale, Michigan city council member

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Can Xi Jinping Stop a Trade War with Europe? May 13, 2024

While in China, Ray Suarez had a front-row seat to draconian lockdowns, the White Paper Protests, and Xi Jinping’s triumphant acceptance of a third term. But a year later, President Xi made his first visit to Europe since before the pandemic, to stave off a trade war with the EU. What happened to China’s economic dominance, and why is Xi turning to the West?

Sue-Lin Wong, a reporter from The Economist, joined Ray for a live-streamed discussion of Xi’s consolidation of power, and the future of the Chinese Communist Party. Then, Ray is joined by Christina Yu, staff writer at Foreign Policy, to break down what Xi’s recent European trip means for China’s economic future.

Guests:

Sue-Lin Wong, The Economist’s Southeast Asia correspondent, host of The Prince: Searching for Xi Jinping

Christina Yu, staff writer, Foreign Policy

Host:

Ray Suarez, host of On Shifting Ground

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Special Live Event: Ray Suarez on Being American in the 21st Century May 08, 2024

Next Monday (5/13) at noon PT, we're hosting a special live event where Ray will peel back the curtain on his latest book, We Are Home: Becoming American in the 21st Century.

He'll be joined in conversation by the amazing Ali Noorani, Director of the U.S. Democracy Program at The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.

You can get your tickets here. Ray will take questions from the audience at the end of the program!

We Are Home: Becoming American in the 21st Century

Immigrants to America have always faced resistance, and have always – over time – assimilated and become vital parts of America. This is a process as old as the nation itself, and it can't be stopped, no matter how many – or how few – new immigrants arrive every year.

But in a fraught political moment where “America First” is threatening their security, what does it mean to be an immigrant in the 21st century?

Ray Suarez has criss-crossed the country to speak to new Americans from all corners of the globe, and to record their stories.

On Borrowed Time: A Tech Reporter’s Precarious Race to Stay in the US May 06, 2024

Silicon Valley relies on a huge foreign born workforce, mostly from India and China, to provide specialized skills in fields like engineering, biotech, AI and computer science. But after layoff, these visa holders have 60 days to find a new job, or lose their residency in the United States.

In 2023, tech reporter Pranav Dixit dug into the mass layoffs in Silicon Valley, and why these drastic reductions were forcing some foreign-born workers to reevaluate the decision to live in the US. At the time he was working for Buzzfeed News. But when the news unit shut down, Dixit was put in the same precarious situation as the H-1B workers he covered in his reporting.

Ray Suarez catches up with Pranav Dixit to get an update on his complicated journey to find new work, and his race to stay in the United States.

Read more of Pranav Dixit’s reporting for Buzzfeed: Laid-Off Tech Workers On H-1B Visas Might Be Forced To Leave The Country

Guest:

Pranav Dixit, senior editor at Engadget

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Should We Be Afraid of Gene-Editing? Apr 29, 2024

In 2018, Chinese scientist He Jianku sent shockwaves through the world’s medical and scientific world when he claimed to have made two children immune to HIV using a powerful gene-editing technology called “CRISPR”. After a three-year prison sentence, Jianku is back in the lab, but should he be experimenting with human genes?

Ray Suarez talks with Dr. Alta Charo, the Warren P. Knowles Professor Emerita of Law and Bioethics at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, about the ethics of CRISPR, and the opportunities and risks of the technology.

Guest:

Dr. Alta Charo, the Warren P. Knowles Professor Emerita of Law and Bioethics at the University of Wisconsin at Madison

Host:

Ray Suarez, host of World Affairs

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Water Security, and Why Israelis and Gazans Must Work Together Apr 22, 2024

According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies, access to water in Gaza has dropped by 95 percent since October 7th, and as many as seven-in-ten Gazans are drinking salty and contaminated water to survive. Water is at the center of environmental challenges facing the whole Middle East, and it is perhaps the most pressing concern for desperate Gazans. So what are regional NGOs doing to provide clean water to millions of displaced people?

Climate One’s Greg Dalton speaks with Nada Majdalani, Palestinian Director of EcoPeace Middle East, about Ecopeace’s three-decade journey to water security in the Middle East. Then, Ray Suarez speaks with Dr. Tareq Abu Hamed, Executive Director of the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies, to understand how climate scientists are trying to rebuild in Gaza following the recent violence.

Guests:

Nada Majdalani, Palestinian Director of EcoPeace Middle East

Dr. Tareq Abu Hamed, Executive Director of the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies

Host:

Ray Suarez

Greg Dalton, founder and co-host, Climate One

The Silver Wave: Challenges and Opportunities of Global Aging Apr 18, 2024

By 2030, it’s estimated one out of every six people on planet earth will be over 60. Thanks to leaps in technology and public health, people are living longer and better than ever before.

We’re taking a look at what economists and demographers are calling “the Silver Wave.” Ray speaks with MIT’s Joseph F. Coughlin,and New York Times Tokyo Bureau Chief Motoko Rich, on the challenges – and opportunities – that global aging presents.

Guests:

Joseph F. Coughlin, PhD, Founder and Director of MIT’s AgeLab

Motoko Rich, Tokyo Bureau Chief for the New York Times

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Boozing Boomers Apr 15, 2024

For the most part, the world has gone back to normal. We’re getting on planes… going to concerts… but many Americans haven’t changed their pandemic drinking habits. And this increased consumption trend is especially high for older Americans.

In 2020, alcohol accounted for more than 11,000 deaths among those 65 and up – that’s an 18 percent increase from the previous year – and many of those cases went untreated.

Ray speaks with Keith Humphreys, Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University, to understand why.

Guest:

Keith Humphreys, Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Hong Kong, A History of Defiance and the Fight for Free Speech Apr 11, 2024

Ray Suarez talks with former NPR Beijing correspondent Louisa Lim about China’s brazen efforts to stamp out free speech in Hong Kong, the city she grew up in. Lim shares the experiences she chronicled in her book Indelible City, an emotional eyewitness account of the pro-democracy protests and a reflection on Hong Kong’s identity.

Guest:

Louisa Lim, journalist and author of “Indelible City: Dispossession and Defiance in Hong Kong”

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Jimmy Lai’s Fate and the Future of Democracy in Hong Kong Apr 08, 2024

Ray Suarez speaks with Sebastien Lai, the son of the imprisoned media mogul Jimmy Lai, and Jonathan Price, a member of Lai’s legal team. He’s on trial for his pro-democracy campaign, and they explore the fate of Hong Kong after China’s passage of the restrictive Article 23.

Guests:

Sebastien Lai, democracy advocate and son of jailed Hong Kong businessman and publisher

Jonathan Price, a member of Jimmy Lai’s legal team

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Dobbs’ Domino Effect: The Future of Choice in America – A 2024 Election Special Apr 01, 2024

Abortion advocates have long warned the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade would reverberate across all areas of reproductive health. Two years later, state personhood laws have challenged IVF and birth control… further threatening women’s bodily autonomy.

In our third special election episode, we explore how the issue of abortion rights is likely to shape the 2024 election. First, we hear from two women whose lives were changed by rapidly shifting legislation surrounding IVF and abortion access. Then, Ray Suarez sits down with Dr. Jamila Perritt, President and CEO of Physicians for Reproductive Health (PRH), and UC Davis Law Professor Mary Ziegler to discuss the upcoming cases before the Supreme Court, and who may be the next “Roe”.

Special thanks to All Roads Productions LLC for sharing the audio of Maleeha’s encounter with a crisis pregnancy center. You can watch the full scene from “Preconceived” at preconceivedfilm.com.

Guests:

Latorya Beasley, therapist and in vitro fertilization (IVF) patient in Alabama

Maleeha Aziz, Deputy Director at the Texas Equal Access Fund

Dr. Jamila Perritt, President and CEO of Physicians for Reproductive Health (PRH)

Mary Ziegler, Martin Luther King Professor of Law at the University of California, Davis

Host:

Ray Suarez

Guest Producer: Elize Manoukian

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

For Palestine, Biden’s Uncommitted Voters Won’t Be Trump Shamed Mar 28, 2024

Earlier this year, a grassroots movement emerged in the key battleground state of Michigan calling on Democratic voters to cast “uncommitted votes” in protest of president Joe Biden’s policy towards Israel’s war in Gaza. And in the months since, it’s gone national. But are Arab and Muslim American voters willing to gamble a second Trump presidency to hold Biden accountable for his Israel policy?

Nihad Awad, a CAIR Action board member, joins Ray Suarez to share why Arab and Muslim voters feel abandoned by the Democratic party, and why they won’t be bullied into accepting the “lesser of two evils.”

Guest:

Nihad Awad, Board Member of Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) Action

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Bear Hugs with Israel and Ballot Box Blues Mar 25, 2024

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's staunch opposition to a ceasefire in Gaza — and a future Palestinian state — is putting President Joe Biden in a vulnerable position at home. And as the 2024 election quickly approaches, it’s becoming clearer that US-Israel policy will be a lingering concern.

Ray Suarez sits down with Zack Beauchamp, a senior correspondent at Vox, to unpack how the political winds on Israel may be shifting.

Guest:

Zack Beauchamp, Senior Correspondent at Vox

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Why is America Always in Cuba’s Business? Mar 21, 2024

The US has once again ignored the United Nations’ annual resolution calling for an end to its decades-long embargo on Cuba, even as Cubans took to the streets to protest the island nation’s worst economic crisis in decades, with shortages of food and fuel. And when the US Embassy urged the Communist-led regime to “attend to the legitimate needs” of its people, the Cuban government criticized the comment as “open interference in Cuba’s domestic affairs.” For Cuba, Washington's long standing role in the current crisis makes their complaints a “hypocrisy.”

In this episode, we revisit Ray’s conversation with Pulitzer-Prize-winning author Ada Ferrer on just how intertwined the histories of the US and Cuba are, and why we’re so inseparable.

Guest:

Ada Ferrer, Julius Silver Professor of History and Latin American Studies at New York University and Pulitzer-Prize-winning author of Cuba: An American History

Host(s):

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

From Crisis to Normalization – and Back Again: A Conversation with the Cuban Ambassador Mar 18, 2024

Cuba is facing its worst economic crisis in decades, and shortages of food, fuel, medicine — and opportunity — have fueled a record-breaking surge of Cuban immigrants at America’s borders. But the US shows no signs of changing its policy towards the embargoed island, nor reversing former President Trump’s designation of the communist-led nation as a “state sponsor of terror.”

Ray Suarez sits down with Lianys Torres Rivera, Cuban Ambassador to the US, to unpack how migration and economic sanctions are linked.

Guest:

Ambassador Lianys Torres Rivera, Chargée D'Affairs, Embassy of Cuba in United States

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

How Europe Paid to Lock Up Migrants… and Threw Away The Key Mar 14, 2024

Mass death and disappearances have become normalized on Europe’s borders. Back in 2015, when more than a million refugees turned up on Europe’s doorstep to request asylum, the European Union cut deals with North African and Middle Eastern nations to hold back the flow of asylum-seekers. Since then, roughly 29,000 people have died or disappeared in the Mediterranean, reports the Missing Migrants Project.

And for the migrants who were were intercepted while attempting to cross the Mediterranean Sea and forcibly placed in detention centers in Libya, they face inhumane living conditions, beatings, sexual abuse, starvation… and death — consequences of Europe’s ongoing cooperation with nations like Libya on migration and border control.

In My Fourth Time, We Drowned, journalist Sally Hayden reports on the shadowy immigration system created by the European Union which captures and imprisons migrants from Africa to keep them from reaching European soil. In an interview with Senior KQED editor Rachael Myrow, Hayden explains how western institutions are complicit in this humanitarian crisis.

Featuring:

Rachael Myrow, senior editor of KQED's Silicon Valley News Desk

Sally Hayden, author of My Fourth Time, We Drowned and Africa correspondent for the Irish Times

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Ukraine Diaries: The Ones Who Stayed Mar 11, 2024

The 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine has forced millions to flee their homes. And for the Ukrainian civilians caught in the crossfire, war has become a way of life.

This week, we talked to Ukrainians about the ways that the war unexpectedly changed their lives. Kateryna Lazarevych, an archivist at the PinchukArtCentre in Kyiv, shares how she’s working to improve her country, as if everyday were her last day on earth. Filmmaker Iryna Tsilyk takes us through her decision to leave Kyiv where her husband is fighting as a soldier in Ukraine’s Territorial Defense Forces. And Alex Gerz, a Russian-Ukrainian student living in Germany, records his story from the road, where he provides humanitarian assistance and safe passage to those fleeing Ukraine with a ragtag army of volunteers.

Guests:

Kateryna Lazarevych, archivist at the PinchukArtCentre in Kyiv

Iryna Tsilyk, filmmaker and director of “The Earth is Blue as an Orange”

Alex Gerz, Russian-Ukrainian student based in Kassel, Germany

Host:

Ray Suarez

Producers:

Andrew Stelzer, KALW producer

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

How Kenya Took the Fight for Gender Equality… to Reality TV Mar 07, 2024

Shortly before the end of his term in 2022, former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta pledged to end gender-based violence in his country by 2026. With two years left before the deadline, is Kenya still on track to fulfill the promises made to Kenyan women? And how is Kenyan media keeping the fight alive?

This week, we’re sharing an episode from Foreign Policy’s “Hidden Economics of Remarkable Women”, about how reality TV is helping women’s rights activists press the Kenyan government to uphold its pledge.

Guests:

Audrey Mugeni, the co-founder of Counting Dead Women Kenya

Anne Ireri, the executive director of the Federation of Women Lawyers in Kenya

Hosts:

Reena Ninan, founder of Good Trouble Productions

Laura Rosbrow-Telem, senior producer at Foreign Policy

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Kara Swisher’s Tech Love Story: The Good, Bad, and Ugly of Silicon Valley Mar 04, 2024

To leaders in Silicon Valley, artificial intelligence is just the latest innovation in a never-ending “make our lives better.” But can we trust them with our data… and our lives… if they can’t be held accountable?

Journalist Kara Swisher joins Ray Suarez to discuss her newest book, “Burn Book,” and the psyche of Silicon Valley’s biggest players.

Plus: Hear Kara Swisher discuss “Burn Book,” the inside story of Silicon valley and the biggest boom in wealth creation in history live at the Commonwealth Club World Affairs on Thursday, March 7. Register here.

Guest:

Kara Swisher, author of “Burn Book,” and host of the podcast “On with Kara Swisher”

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Foreign Policy is on the Ballot… But Do We Care? A 2024 Election Special Feb 26, 2024

Most Americans are far more focused on “pocketbook issues” – like stretching an ever-inflating dollar – than what the country does overseas in their name. But this election cycle, calls for additional aid for overseas wars has put foreign policy on the ballot for voters.

In the second episode of our special election series, South Carolina voter Maryann Wright shares her thoughts on the role of American democracy at home… and its responsibility abroad. Then, Ray Suarez sits down with Wendy Sherman, former US Deputy Secretary of State, and Nicholas Kristof, columnist at The New York Times, to see why international affairs will matter come November.

Guests:

Wendy Sherman, former US Deputy Secretary of State

Nicholas Kristof, NY Times columnist

Maryann Wright, retired teacher and South Carolina voter

Phil Hemingway, former owner of Phil’s Repair, LLC and Iowa voter

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Will War Bring the End of Ukraine’s Democracy? Feb 22, 2024

Saturday marks the second anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. And while foreign support may be dwindling, Ukrainian determination to win the war is not. But what’s at stake when war no longer feels like an emergency… but a way of life?

Ray Suarez sits down with Masha Gessen, staff writer for The New Yorker, to unpack the toll of Russia’s aggression on Ukraine’s freedoms… and democracy.

Guest:

Masha Gessen, Russian-American award-winning author and staff writer for The New Yorker

Host(s):

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Ukraine’s David and Goliath Fight for the Security of Europe Feb 19, 2024

Vladimir Putin set the world on edge when Russia invaded Ukraine. Two years later, international support for Ukraine’s sovereignty is becoming more precarious, and war weariness amongst the resistance — and their allies— has begun to set in.

Global affairs analyst Michael Bociurkiw joins Ray Suarez to explain how a besieged Ukraine may be Europe’s last line of defense against Putin.

Guest:

Michael Bociurkiw, global affairs analyst and nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Remembering Alexei Navalny Feb 16, 2024

On February 16, 2024, the Russian prison service reported that Alexei Navalny had died, and offered no further explanation.

The cause of death hasn’t yet been reported, but since the news broke, world leaders have started speaking out against Vladimir Putin… and it brings a new round of scrutiny to the Russian dictator.

In May 2022, Ray sat down with documentarian Daniel Roher to chat 'Navalny,' his new film following the famed Russian opposition leader’s recovery from a Kremlin-sponsored assassination attempt and his ongoing search for justice. The film took home the Academy Award for best documentary last year.

To remember the life and political career of Alexei Navalny, we’re revisiting Ray’s conversation with Daniel Roher.

Guest:

Daniel Roher, documentary filmmaker and director of 'Navalny'

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Where Does Biden’s Middle East Strategy Go From Here? Feb 15, 2024

Nearly 30,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza as Israel continues its massive retaliation against Hamas. And as violence spreads to Yemen, Iraq, and Syria, America’s global standing is taking a hit.

Ray Suarez sits down with Trita Parsi, Iran expert and Executive Vice President of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, to unpack how Biden’s unwavering support of Israel could cost him in the Middle East… and at home.

Guest:

Trita Parsi, Executive Vice President of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Why Israel Wants to Get Rid of UNRWA Feb 12, 2024

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) was established to aid Palestinian refugees, but it has become yet another flashpoint in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. Israel has accused 12 out of the 13,000 UNRWA employees of taking part in Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israeli settlements. And as major donors like the United States, Germany and Britain have paused their funding, the aid agency may have to cease its life-saving operations for millions of Palestinians in Gaza by the end of February 2024.

Kenneth Roth, former executive director of Human Rights Watch, joins Ray Suarez to address Israel’s allegations against UNRWA, and offers a critique of the Biden administration's unequivocal support of Israel, despite evidence that Israel is using starvation as a weapon of war against Palestinians in Gaza.

Guest:

Kenneth Roth, Former Executive Director of Human Rights Watch and author of “Righting Wrongs”

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Stranded: Immigration Policy and the Price of Entry Feb 08, 2024

Immigration has emerged as a major voter concern in the 2024 elections, and the challenge of securing America’s Southern border is once again a political flashpoint. But while the US debates immigration reform, tens of thousands of migrants have become pawns in a game that endangers their lives…

Ray Suarez sits down with immigration attorney Mahsa Khanbabai to dive into what the broken visa process for Afghan refugees can teach us about immigration reform.

Guest:

Mahsa Khanbabai, immigration attorney at Khanbabi Immigration Law

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Between Two Worlds Feb 05, 2024

Immigrants in California are generally protected from federal deportation under sanctuary and safe haven laws, unless they've been incarcerated. And in 2022, after serving 25 years for murder, San Quentin State Prison parolee Phoeun You was turned over to ICE, and deported without warning.

In this episode, Phoeun You tells “On Shifting Ground” senior producer Mateo Schimpf about coming to terms with surviving the Cambodian genocide, how he got caught up in the prison-to-deportation pipeline, and the hard choice he made to find freedom.

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

What’s Wrong, America? A 2024 Election Special Jan 29, 2024

Americans — from the largest urban centers to the smallest rural towns — are deeply pessimistic about the state of the nation. And on both sides of the political aisle, there seems to be a disconnect between what people want… and where they feel the country is headed.

This week, we’re kicking off our special election series, and throughout the year we’ll deep-dive into the issues driving the 2024 Presidential Election.

In this first episode, we’ll hear from Iowa voter Phil Hemingway about how he’s feeling about this contentious election year. Then, Ray Suarez sits down with Dante Chinni, director of MSU J-School’s American Communities Project, to explore how to unite a divided country.

Guests:

Phil Hemingway, owner, manager and automotive technician at Phil’s Repair, LLC

Dante Chinni, data and political journalist and director of the MSU J-School’s American Communities Project

Anne Applebaum, staff writer for The Atlantic, Pulitzer-prize winning historian and author of “The Twilight of Democracy”

Ian Bremmer, a political scientist, author of “The Power of Crisis,” and professor at Columbia University’s School of International and Political Affairs

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Scott Galloway: Dislike by Design, How Big Tech Drives ‘American Enragement’ Jan 25, 2024

Elon Musk’s leadership at “X” (formerly Twitter) has been messy, and his disregard for user safeguards is part of a troubling trend in Silicon Valley. Revisiting the conversation from 2023, Ray Suarez sits down with NYU professor Dr. Scott Galloway to explore how Silicon Valley’s profit-chasing – and unchecked influence – is destroying American society… and our kids.

Guest:

Scott Galloway, Professor of Marketing at NYU Stern School of Business

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

For America’s Democracy… and Your Well-Being, Check the Facts Jan 22, 2024

The 2024 US election season is officially underway, and experts are already bracing for the array of threats to free and fair elections that were made all too real the last time Americans elected a president. And this time, many are concerned that it’ll be even harder to combat fake election claims online and political violence.

Alexa Koenig and Andrea Lampros, co-founders of UC Berkeley’s Human Rights Center Investigations Lab, join Ray Suarez to break down how our digital lives are destroying our mental health… and our democracy.

Plus: check out our past conversation with Alexa Koenig on How Technology Fights – and Fuels – Misinformation to learn more about what UC Berkeley’s Human Rights Investigations Lab does.

Guests:

Alexa Koenig and Andrea Lampros, co-founders of UC Berkeley’s Human Rights Center Investigations Lab and co-authors of “Graphic: Trauma and Meaning in our Online Lives”

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Dodging Bullets For Bylines: Sean Carberry on War Reporting Jan 18, 2024

From accidental collateral damage deaths to targeted murders by the people in charge who don’t want them telling the truth, an unprecedented number of journalists are being killed while reporting. So what motivates reporters to keep filing stories despite the ever present threat of danger?

Sean Carberry, author of the memoir “Passport Stamps: Searching The World For A War To Call Home,” joins Ray Suarez to unpack the human costs of reporting from war zones.

Guest:

Sean Carberry, Managing Editor of National Defense Magazine and author of the memoir “Passport Stamps: Searching the World For a War to Call Home”

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

WSJ Moscow Bureau Chief on the Fate of Evan Gershkovich Jan 15, 2024

Reporting in war zones is an inherently dangerous job. Last year, 95 international media workers were killed while reporting, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. And as the wars in Ukraine and Gaza drag on, 2024 may be just as deadly. So how can we protect the journalists putting their lives on the line?

We revisit our conversation with CPJ’s Gulnoza Said on why the safety of journalists matters to the health of a free press. Then, Ann Simmons, Moscow Bureau Chief at The Wall Street Journal, joins Ray Suarez to give an update on the detention of American reporter Evan Gershkovich, who is accused of espionage by Russia.

Guests:

Gulnoza Said, Europe and Central Asia Program Coordinator for The Committee to Protect Journalists

Ann Simmons, Moscow Bureau Chief at The Wall Street Journal

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

David Brooks on ‘How to Know A Person’… And Why It Matters to Democracy Jan 08, 2024

Hate crimes, gun violence, political polarization…. to New York Times’ columnist David Brooks, these are signs that America is undergoing a new epidemic: social isolation. He joins Ray Suarez to discuss his new book, “How To Know A Person: The Art of Seeing Others Deeply and Being Deeply Seen,” and to unpack how we can rebuild trust and empathy “for the opposition”... by getting to know our neighbors.

Guest:

David Brooks, Op-Ed Columnist at The New York Times and author of “How to Know a Person: The Art of Seeing Others Deeply and Being Deeply Seen”

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Bye Bye Boomers, Hello Perennials Jan 01, 2024

While many Baby Boomers have already left the workforce behind, almost half are considering coming out of retirement in search of a new purpose in life. Leading sociologist and business economist Mauro Guillén joins Ray Suarez to explain why the days of “OK Boomer” are coming to an end… and why the future of work will be “post-generational.”

Guest:

Mauro F. Guillén, Vice Dean at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and author of “The Perennials: The Megatrends Creating a Post Generational Society”

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

From Bethlehem to Kyiv: A Prayer for Peace at Christmas Dec 22, 2023

Christmas is here, but for many Christians around the world, war has cast a shadow over this year’s festivities. To break with Russian orthodoxy and influence, Ukraine will officially observe Christmas on December 25, even as the terror of airstrikes taints the air. And in Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus, Palestinian Christians have canceled all celebrations in solidarity with their countrymen under attack in Gaza.

Rev. Dr. Munther Isaac, Senior Pastor at The Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church in Bethlehem, and Bohdan Nahaylo, Chief Editor of Kyiv Post, join Ray Suarez to share what Christmas in wartime looks like, from Palestine to Ukraine.

Guests:

Rev. Dr. Munther Isaac, Senior Pastor at The Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church in Bethlehem, Palestine and Academic Dean at the Bethlehem Bible College

Bohdan Nahaylo, Chief Editor at Kyiv Post

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

2023 Wrapped: A Year of Survival, Sovereignty, and Supremacy Dec 18, 2023

From Putin’s costly war in Ukraine, to simmering tensions between the US and China, and renewed violence in the Middle East, this week, we’re looking back at the international news stories that defined 2023. Professor Jessica Chen Weiss, senior fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute; Karim Elgendy, founder of the Carboun Initiative for Middle Eastern Sustainable Cities; and Luke Harding, foreign correspondent at The Guardian, join Ray Suarez to dissect this year’s most significant geopolitical shifts… and the foreign policy issues that will define 2024.

To dive deeper, check out these episodes:

Guests:

Jessica Chen Weiss, Michael J. Zak Professor for China and Asia-Pacific Studies at Cornell University and senior fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute

Karim Elgendy, Urban sustainability and climate consultant, and founder of the Carboun Initiative for Middle Eastern Sustainable Cities

Luke Harding, foreign correspondent for The Guardian and author of Invasion

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

The Day After Tomorrow in Palestine-Israel: A Tale of Two Peace Activists Dec 11, 2023

As the war on Gaza continues with no end in sight, two peace activists – one Palestinian and one Israeli – are already charting a non-violent path forward. Ray Suarez sits down with Luxembourg Peace Prize laureates, Ali Abu Awwad, founding leader of the Taghyeer (Change) Palestinian National Nonviolence movement, and Dr. Gershon Baskin, the Middle East director of the International Communities Organization, to learn why they maintain hope for a peaceful, two-state solution.

Ali Abu Awwad was just awarded the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace. Learn more.

Guests:

Ali Abu Awwad, Palestinian peace activist and founder of the Taghyeer (Change) Palestinian National Nonviolence Movement

Gershon Baskin, Israeli peace activist and the Middle East Director of the International Communities Organisation

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

In the People, Planet, Profit Equation, Who Leads the Energy Transition? Dec 07, 2023

The APEC Multistakeholder Forum (AMF), organized by the Commonwealth Club World Affairs, was the first of its kind to feature Indigenous perspectives on what a ‘just transition’ away from fossil fuels should look like. Maui Solomon, Chairman of Moriori Imi Settlement Trust, and Raylene Whitford, Director of the Canadian Sustainability Standards Board, join Ray Suarez to explain how Indigenous representation and inclusion means putting people and the planet above profit.

Guests:

Maui Solomon, Indigenous rights activist and Chairman of Moriori Imi Settlement Trust

Raylene Whitford, Director of the Canadian Sustainability Standards Board

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Decolonizing Energy: Indigenous Led Climate Action Dec 04, 2023

What does a ‘just’ transition away from fossil fuels actually mean for Indigenous communities? At the APEC Multistakeholder Forum (AMF), organized by the Commonwealth Club World Affairs, Ray Suarez sat down with Chéri A. Smith, a renewable energy expert and Mi’kmaq descendant. They discussed how the Alliance for Tribal Clean Energy is working to combat energy poverty, bring solar to Indigenous communities and secure Native people a seat at the clean energy development table.

Guest:

Chéri A. Smith, founder, president and CEO of the Alliance for Tribal Clean Energy

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

US State Department’s Mallory Stewart on Controlling Nuclear Escalation Nov 27, 2023

It’s been 78 years since a nuclear weapon was last used in war. Since then, the number of countries with a nuclear arsenal has increased from one… to nine. For the US government, two of the greatest nuclear threats are China and Russia – two superpowers that are escalating their nuclear capacity. US State Department nuclear expert, Mallory Stewart, shares how serious these threats are to the US.

Guest:

Mallory Stewart, Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Arms Control, Deterrence, and Stability.

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

I'll See Your Deterrence, And Raise You... Nuclear Annihilation Nov 23, 2023

Former president Dwight Eisenhower described nuclear war as “unwinnable, unsurvivable and unthinkable.” But what changes when the use of a nuclear weapon now seems thinkable, and maybe… inevitable?

Ray Suarez sits down with Shannon E. French, Director of the Inamori International Center for Ethics and Excellence, and Matt Korda, Senior Research Fellow for the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists, to unpack why talk of nuclear annihilation is now being so casually thrown around by world leaders.

Guests:

Shannon E. French, Director of the Inamori International Center for Ethics and Excellence and a tenured professor in the philosophy department at Case Western Reserve in Cleveland

Matt Korda, Senior Research Fellow for the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists and Associate Researcher with the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute’s Weapons of Mass Destruction program

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Kofi Annan’s Masterclass on Peace and Power Sharing Nov 20, 2023

Former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who died in 2018, was one of the most famous diplomats of his time. In today’s episode, we're sharing an Foreign Policy Magazine's TheNegotiators about Annan’s mediation of a Kenyan political crisis in 2008—which stands out as one of his most impressive acts of diplomacy.

What we can learn about the nuances of negotiating?

Guest:

Meredith Preston McGhie, Secretary General for the Global Centre for Pluralism

Hosts:

Ray Suarez

Jenn Williams

Producer:

Laura Rosbrow-Telem

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Biden and Xi Walk into a Room… Will They Continue to Play Nice? Nov 18, 2023

During APEC, President Xi Jinping reminded world leaders that China is “open for business.” So what does the next era of US-China relations look like? Ivan Kanapathy, Senior Associate at the Center for Strategic & International Studies, joins Ray Suarez to unpack the stakes of the Biden-Xi sideline talks, and just how far the two leaders will go to reestablish ties.

Guest:

Ivan Kanapathy, Senior Associate, Freeman Chair in China Studies at the Center for Strategic & International Studies

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

The Covert War on LGBT+ Rights Nov 15, 2023

While the past year has seen major gains for LGBT+ rights, politicians around the world are increasingly using the community as scapegoats. Julie Dorf, Co-Chair of the Council for Global Equality, joins Ray Suarez to explain how a transnational network of American Christians is targeting LGBT+ rights at home… and abroad.

Guest:

Julie Dorf, Co-Chair of the Council for Global Equality

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

How American Radicalism Inspired the Most Homophobic Law on Earth Nov 13, 2023

This year, Uganda enacted one of the harshest anti-LGBT+ laws in the world, making homosexuality punishable by death. Ugandan Human Rights activist Dr. Frank Mugisha joins Ray Suarez to share how American Christian evangelicals radicalized the East African country, and how the fight for human rights has turned deadly.

Guest:

Dr. Frank Mugisha, Ugandan LGBT advocate and Executive Director of Sexual Minorities Uganda

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Beyond Oil and Uncle Sam: MBS's Decade of Bold Reforms Nov 09, 2023

Can economic power-brokering overcome decades of repression and human rights abuses? Karen Elliott House has covered Saudi Arabia for over four decades, and the Pulitzer-Prize reporter joins Ray Suarez to share her take on Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman’s vision for his country’s future.

Guest:

Karen Elliott House, Senior Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Are Saudi-Israel Talks Dead in the Water? Nov 06, 2023

Saudi Arabia has embarked on a bold vision of innovation, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s stated aims for a long war on Gaza could interrupt Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman’s plans. NPR International Correspondent Aya Batrawy joins Ray Suarez to unpack how Saudi Arabia’s leader may react.

Guest:

Aya Batrawy, NPR International Correspondent and head of NPR’s Gulf Bureau

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Poverty? Climate Disaster? Are World Bank Bonds the Solution? Nov 02, 2023

By 2030, around 600 million people will be struggling with extreme poverty. And the effects of climate change will only exacerbate the problem. Jorge Familiar joins Ray Suarez to share how the World Bank has revised its mission to tackle the twin problems of climate change and inequality.

Guest:

Jorge Familiar, VP and Treasurer of the World Bank

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Is US Wealth Inequality Undermining Democracy? Oct 30, 2023

What do you need to know about wealth to understand structural inequality in America? Becoming wealthy is getting harder with each generation, and the biggest predictor of whether you’ll achieve it isn’t your class… but your race. Ray Suarez sits down with economist Darrick Hamilton to discuss closing the racial wealth gap in the US.

Guest:

Darrick Hamilton, American economist and Henry Cohen Professor of Economics and Urban Policy and Professor at The New School for Social Research

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Secretary Robert Gates on Israel’s Retaliation, and What Biden Does Next Oct 23, 2023

Thousands have been killed in the ongoing violence between Israel and Hamas, and a ground invasion into Gaza appears imminent. Former US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates predicts how war could ripple through the Middle East.

Guest:

Robert Gates, former US Secretary of Defense

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

How the Palestinian Question Could Unravel Netanyahu’s “New Middle East” Oct 20, 2023

On October 7, Hamas, an Iran-backed Islamist terrorist group, broke through the high-tech security barrier which divides Israel from the Gaza Strip, and launched a coordinated surprise attack on neighboring Israeli military targets and communities. Over 1,200 were killed, and 200 Israelis are still being held hostage. In retaliation, Israel has bombed the Gaza Strip — killing almost 4,000 Palestinians— and cut off water, electricity, medical and humanitarian aid in the occupied territory.

As the conflict spills over to the occupied West Bank and to neighboring Lebanon and Syria, and Israel’s far-right government prepares troops for a ground invasion into Gaza, how is the Arab world responding? Ray Suarez speaks with Trita Parsi, Executive Vice President of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, about how the attacks may undo years of relationship-building in the Middle East.

Guest:

Trita Parsi, Executive Vice President of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Bye Bye Boomers, Hello Perennials Oct 16, 2023

While many Baby Boomers have already left the workforce behind, almost half are considering coming out of retirement in search of a new purpose in life. Leading sociologist and business economist Mauro Guillén joins Ray Suarez to explain why the days of “OK Boomer” are coming to an end… and why the future of work will be “post-generational.”

Guest:

Mauro F. Guillén, Vice Dean at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and author of “The Perennials: The Megatrends Creating a Post Generational Society”

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Putin’s Victory in the South Caucasus Oct 12, 2023

How does Russia benefit from conflict in the Caucasus? And what role can the media play in building bridges of understanding? In this episode, we revisit our conversations with Russian-American journalist Simon Ostrovsky and independent Azeri journalist Arzu Geybulla on the roots of the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict post-Soviet collapse, and the potential for future reconciliation.

Guests:

Simon Ostrovsky, PBS NewsHour Special Correspondent

Arzu Geybulla, Independent Azeri journalist and Founder of Azerbaijan Internet Watch

Hosts:

Ray Suarez

Teresa Cotsirilos

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Whose Sovereignty Is It Anyway? Armenia's ICC Bid For Justice with Sheila Paylan Oct 09, 2023

In late September, Azerbaijan wiped out the self-proclaimed, ethnically Armenian Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh. The attacks prompted Armenia to finally join the International Criminal Court—despite warnings from Russia.

Ray Suarez speaks with human rights lawyer Sheila Paylan about what Armenia’s decision means for the country’s strained relations with Russia, and why Armenians are accusing Azerbaijan of war crimes and ethnic cleansing.

Guest:

Sheila Paylan, International Lawyer and Human Rights & Gender Expert

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Troubled Times: Brexit’s Toll on Northern Ireland Oct 05, 2023

The United Kingdom recently passed a law which grants immunity for the violence of The Troubles – adding another wrinkle to the ongoing Brexit saga. Jude Webber, Ireland correspondent for The Financial Times, joins Ray Suarez to unpack how the precarious peace held together by the Good Friday agreement is at risk of unraveling.

Guest:

Jude Webber, Ireland correspondent for The Financial Times

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Inside the Good Friday Agreement, with Tony Blair’s Chief Negotiator Oct 02, 2023

April marked the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday agreement, bringing to an end decades of violence known as “The Troubles.” But the chaotic implementation of Brexit and a new Northern Ireland Troubles “reconciliation” law from the UK are threatening that historic peace deal.

From our friends at Foreign Policy’s “The Negotiators,” Jonathan Powell, a chief negotiator of the Good Friday agreement, shares what actually happened in the room. Find the show’s new season wherever you get your podcasts.

Guest:

Jonathan Powell, chief negotiator for the Good Friday Talks under UK Prime Minister Tony Blair

Foreign Policy Production Team:

Host: Jenn Williams | Executive producers: Amjad Atallah, Jigar Mehta, and Japhet Weeks | Lead producer: Laura Rosbrow-Telem | Managing Editor: Dan Ephron | Additional support from: Rob Sachs, Rosie Julin, and Maria Ximena Aragon

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

The Kremlin's Kim-ouflage Sep 28, 2023

If military cooperation with North Korea is a violation of UN Security Council resolutions, why would Russia do it so publicly? And what’s in it for the Hermit Kingdom? Andrei Lankov, Director at NK News, joins Ray Suarez to explain why Kim Jong Un is solidifying relations with Russia… and not China.

Guest:

Andrei Lankov, Director at NK News and Professor at Kookmin University

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Two Dictators Walk Into a Bar: What We Learned From the Putin-Kim Summit Sep 25, 2023

Russia is firing off more artillery shells than they can produce at home, forcing the Kremlin to shop around for a new supplier. Ray Suarez speaks with New York Times’ national security reporter Julian Barnes about Russia’s alleged arms deal with North Korea, and what it means for the war in Ukraine.

Guest:

Julian Barnes, national security reporter for The New York Times

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Why Detroit’s Auto Workers Are On Strike Sep 21, 2023

As many as 150,000 US auto workers have walked out in a historic strike against the Big Three Automakers. In this special rerun episode, Mark Phelan, auto writer and columnist for the Detroit Free Press, joins Ray Suarez to break down why electric vehicles and wages are a red line for autoworkers.

Guests:

Shawn Fain, President of the United Auto Workers

Mark Phelan, auto writer and columnist for the Detroit Free Press

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Regulating Big Tech: Is TikTok Still on the Clock? Sep 18, 2023

In 2023, the rapid pace of innovation in Silicon Valley is making it increasingly challenging for our global partners to keep up. Ray Suarez speaks with Gerard de Graaf, Senior Envoy for Digital to the US, about strengthening US-EU cooperation on digital affairs. Then, Caitlin Chin, Strategic Technologies Program Fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, returns with an update on the latest digital drama between Washington and Beijing… and where a possible TikTok ban goes from here.

Guests:

Gerard de Graaf, Senior Envoy for Digital to the U.S. and head of the EU office in San Francisco

Caitlin Chin, Strategic Technologies Program Fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Molière Out, Mercenaries In: Powers and Politics in Françafrique Sep 14, 2023

Is West Africa going to war over Niger? And is the Niger coup part of a wider decline in French colonial influence – and growing Russian and Chinese interest – in the region? Ray Suarez sits down with security analyst Fola Aina and journalist Nabila Ramdani to discuss the coup in Niger – and across former French colonies in the Sahel region. They explain why the Niger coup could help the Wagner Group expand influence.

Guests:

Fola Aina, international security analyst at the Royal United Services Institute of Security and Defense Studies in London

Nabila Ramdani, French journalist and author of “Fixing France, How to Repair a Broken Republic”

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Blood and Butter: Why Russia’s Economy is Falling Faster Than Prigozhin’s Plane Sep 11, 2023

What will happen to Wagner without Prigozhin? And can Russia continue to isolate itself from the economic chaos its war has created? Ray Suarez speaks with Catherine Belton, The Washington Post’s Russia reporter, about the mercenary organization’s future and the price Russians — ordinary and oligarch — are paying for Putin’s power plays.

Guest:

Catherine Belton, international investigative reporter for The Washington Post and author of “Putin's People”

Host:

Ray Suarez

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Putin’s Prigozhin Trap, with Anne Applebaum Sep 02, 2023

On August 23rd, Yevgeny Prigozhin was killed in a mysterious plane crash just 60 days after his mercenary group Wagner led a failed coup attempt that Russian president Vladimir Putin called “treasonous.”

Atlantic staff writer Anne Applebaum argues that Putin needed a spectacular act of violence after Prigozhin’s challenge to his power. She and Ray discuss what this means for a fragile Russia.

Read Applebaum’s latest column for The Atlantic, Prigozhin’s Death Heralds Even More Spectacular Violence - The Atlantic.

Guest:

Anne Applebaum, Pulitzer-Prize winning historian, author of Twilight of Democracy: The Seductive Lure of Authoritarianism and staff writer at The Atlantic.

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

China’s Dream of Global Dominance Aug 28, 2023

The aftermath of the Chinese surveillance balloon saga reveals a growing diplomatic divide between the US and China. Where does this mistrust come from?

In “Wealth and Power,” authors Orville Schell and John Delury argue that foreign humiliation over the past century and a half is the story that holds China together. They join host Ray Suarez to discuss China’s quest for global dominance.

Guests:

John Delury, US Professor of Chinese Studies at Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea

Orville Schell, director of the Center on US-China relations at the Asia Society

Host:

Ray Suarez, host of World Affairs

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

QAnon’s German Blitz Aug 24, 2023

Groups like the Reichsbürger and Sovereign Citizens are not new, but the ways in which they radicalize each other on the Internet are. Ray Suarez and journalist Julia Ebner explore how once-fringe movements like QAnon are popping up in European political circles.

Guest:

Julia Ebner, Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue and author of “Going Dark: The Secret Lives of Extremists”

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Trump-ing Tradition: American Democracy at the Crossroads Aug 21, 2023

When former President Trump incited his followers to storm the US Capitol, he punctured a 220-year-old tradition in the US. And from the looks of things, the country is headed for another contentious election in 2024. Ray Suarez and New York Times columnist Tom Edsall explore whether we’ve passed a point of no return in American politics.

Guest:

Thomas B. Edsall, political columnist at The New York Times and author of “The Point of No Return: American Democracy at the Crossroads”

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Asia’s EV Surge: Coming To An Outlet Near You Aug 17, 2023

Asian carmakers have pulled ahead in the race for EV innovation, leaving the US in their rearview mirrors. International auto journalist Hans Greimel joins Ray Suarez to break down how Asian countries are tackling the transition, and what the future of electric vehicles looks like.

Guest:

Hans Greimel, Asia editor for Automotive News

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Why Detroit’s Auto Workers Are Pumping the Breaks on EVs Aug 14, 2023

President Biden’s bold energy future features significant investment in electric vehicles, but the United Auto Workers are pumping the breaks. Mark Phelan, auto writer and columnist for the Detroit Free Press, joins Ray Suarez to break down why the threat of EVs is a red line for autoworkers.

Guest:

Mark Phelan, auto writer and columnist for the Detroit Free Press

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Scott Galloway: Dislike by Design, How Big Tech Drives ‘American Enragement’ Aug 10, 2023

Elon Musk’s leadership at “X” (formerly Twitter) has been messy, and his disregard for user safeguards is part of a troubling trend in Silicon Valley. Ray Suarez sits down with NYU professor Dr. Scott Galloway to explore how Silicon Valley’s profit-chasing – and unchecked influence – is destroying American society… and our kids.

Guest:

Scott Galloway, Professor of Marketing at NYU Stern School of Business

Host:

Ray Suarez

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Blue-Check Blues and Trauma X-Posure: Coping with Viral Violence Aug 07, 2023

With a few keystrokes, users across the world can find virtually anything online. But at what cost? UC Berkeley researchers Alexa Koenig and Andrea Lampros join Ray Suarez to break down how everyday exposure to trauma is affecting social media users worldwide, and to discuss their upcoming book, “Graphic: Trauma and Meaning in our Online Lives.”

Plus: check out our past conversation with Alexa Koenig on How Technology Fights – and Fuels – Misinformation to learn more about what UC Berkeley’s Human Rights Investigations Lab does.

Guests:

Alexa Koenig and Andrea Lampros, co-founders of UC Berkeley’s Human Rights Center Investigations Lab and co-authors of “Graphic: Trauma and Meaning in our Online Lives”

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

General Petraeus’ Guide to Diplomacy… and Deterrence with China Aug 03, 2023

In June, retired General David Petraeus joined the Marines’ Memorial Association “Leading From the Front” speaker series, where he offered insights on how small nations can contend with formidable superpowers, and how President Volodymyr Zelenskyy scored the role of a lifetime.

Guest:

General David Petraeus, Former CIA Director and Chairman of the KKR Global Institute

Host:

Mike Cerre, PBSNewsHour Special Correspondent

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Is The Middle East Swiping Left on America? Jul 31, 2023

After 20 years of “forever wars,” the American contest for influence and control in the Middle East hasn’t stopped. But now the US has company, and the countries in the region have options. Mara Rudman, Executive Vice President for Policy at the Center for American Progress, joins Ray Suarez to dissect the delicate state of play in the Middle East.

Guest:

Mara Rudman, Executive Vice President for Policy at the Center for American Progress

Host:

Ray Suarez

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Tricks of the Trade: Kiwi Exports and Malaysia’s Balancing Act Jul 27, 2023

At the 2023 APEC Forum in Detroit, Malaysian Deputy Minister Liew Chin Tong tells Ray Suarez how spaces like APEC are key to balancing relationships with competing superpowers. Then, Deputy Secretary Vangelis Vitalis shares how the demand for traditional Kiwi exports has kept Aotearoa’s economy afloat.

Guest:

Liew Chin Tong, Deputy Minister of Malaysian Investment, Trade and Industry

Vangelis Vitalis, Deputy Secretary, New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Ambassador Katherine Tai: Buy Local, Trade Global? (Even With China…) Jul 24, 2023

US Trade Representative Katherine Tai played host to the APEC Forum in Detroit, where she balanced American interests, international trade agreements and ongoing rivalries with China. Ambassador Tai joined Ray Suarez to speak about how that meeting went, and what it really means to put workers at the center of US trade policy.

Guest:

Ambassador Katherine Tai, US Trade Representative

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Fact-Checking a Crisis: Scientists vs. Science Deniers Jul 20, 2023

Researcher Christopher Reddy has watched in despair as public confidence in science has plummeted. He joins Ray Suarez to discuss his new book, “Science Communication in a Crisis,” and why scientists may be part of the problem in science denialism.

Guest:

Christopher Reddy, Senior Scientist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and author of “Science Communication in a Crisis”

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

How to Talk To Your Child About the End of the World Jul 17, 2023

In his new book, “A Traveler’s Guide to the End of the World,” nature writer David Gessner grapples with communicating about climate change with the next generation. David and his daughter, Hadley, join Ray Suarez to have that conversation, and to spur all of us “hypocrites” who drive cars and fly in planes to fight the climate fight.

Guest:

David Gessner, nature writer and author of “A Traveler’s Guide to the End of the World”

Hadley Gessner, David’s daughter

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Falling (Communist) Blocs and the Rise of Tetris Jul 13, 2023

Screenwriter Noah Pink tells Ray Suarez how he discovered the true story behind “Tetris,” from the Cold War race to secure the rights to the classic video game to its escape from the former Soviet Union.

Guest:

Noah Pink, “Tetris” screenwriter

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

A Twitter Coup? Pics or Yevgeny Prigozhin’s Mutiny Didn’t Happen Jul 10, 2023

Putin may have won the “battle” against Wagner’s Yevgeny Prigozhin, but he’s losing the meme war. Ray speaks with Jen Kirby, Vox’s foreign and national security reporter, about fact verification and conflict reporting amidst state propaganda and viral Twitter memes.

Guest:

Jen Kirby, senior foreign and national security reporter at Vox

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Yemen’s Long Road to Peace: What a Saudi-Iran Deal Means Jul 06, 2023

Peace is a process, not an outcome. And in the case of Yemen, Saudi Arabia’s meddling in the country’s civil war has prevented peace for almost a decade. Ray Suarez speaks with Arwa Mokdad, Peace Advocate with the Yemen Relief and Reconstruction Foundation, about what a deal between Saudi Arabia and Iran could mean for the future of Yemen.

Guest:

Arwa Mokdad, Peace Advocate with the Yemen Relief and Reconstruction Foundation

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Money Talks, Kingdom Walks: Global Finance and Saudi Politics Jul 03, 2023

Can a single gathering of world leaders really pull billions of people out of poverty? Eric Pelofsky, Deputy Chief of Staff and Vice President of the Rockefeller Foundation, joined Ray Suarez days before the Summit for a New Global Financing Pact in Paris to share how international financial institutions can make up for past mistakes.

Guest:

Eric Pelofsky, Deputy Chief of Staff and Vice President of the Rockefeller Foundation

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

PlateGate: The Conspiracies About What We Eat Jun 29, 2023

Conspiracy communities that once promoted QAnon and anti-vaccine theories have now sunk their teeth into an even tastier morsel: our food supply chain. Laicie Heeley, Executive Producer and Host of “Things That Go Boom,” joins Ray Suarez to break down how cracks in our food system have paved the way for international conspiracy theories about the ongoing food crisis.

Guest:

Laicie Heeley, Executive Producer and Host of “Things That Go Boom”

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

French Identity and the Battle for the Baguette Jun 26, 2023

Concerns about a 'global elite' exerting control over demographic shifts and our food choices have hit the mainstream, and they are feeding anxieties. Ray Suarez speaks with French legal scholar Rim-Sarah Alouane about the "great replacement theory", and what it takes to be considered “French first.”

Guest:

Ridha Khadher, baker and owner of Au Paradis du gourmand

Rim-Sarah Alouane, French legal scholar

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Is Kosovo on the Verge of Renewed Conflict? Jun 22, 2023

The 1998-1999 war in Kosovo may have ended the fighting between Serbs and Albanian Kosovars, but it didn’t end the conflict. Anatol Lieven, journalist and Eurasian Program Director at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, joins Ray Suarez to explain why ethnic tensions are once again flaring up in the Balkans.

Guest:

Anatol Lieven, journalist and Eurasian Program Director at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

How Erdoğan Plans to “Make Turkey Great Again” Jun 19, 2023

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Turkey’s all-powerful leader of 20 years, was recently re-elected, raising serious questions about the state of Turkey’s democracy. Is Erdoğan trying to rebuild the Ottoman Empire? And is his republic Russia’s Trojan Horse in NATO? Ray Suarez speaks with Merve Tahiroğlu, Turkey Program Director at the Project on Middle East Democracy about Erdoğan’s imperial ambitions.

Guest:

Merve Tahiroğlu, Turkey Program Director at the Project on Middle East Democracy

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Georgia’s Dilemma: Wait on the West, or Succumb to Putin? Jun 15, 2023

For decades, Georgia has tried to extricate itself from Russia's shadow. But with the recent influx of Ukrainian refugees and anti-war Russians and the rise of Georgia’s Dream Party, the former Soviet state is once again walking a political tightrope between Russia and a tenuous future with NATO. In this episode, reporter Levi Bridges takes us on the ground to hear about the dangers of standing up to Russia.

Reporter:

Levi Bridges, journalist

Featured guests:

Daniil Chubar, co-founder of Emigration for Action

Monika Jaranowska, Director of Kids Club "Happy Me" Tbilisi

Giga Bokeria, leader of the European Georgia party

Sonja Schiffers, Director of the Heinrich Böll Foundation’s Tbilisi Office

Giorgi Khelashvili, Georgian Dream MP and Deputy Chair of the Foreign Relations Committee of the Parliament of Georgia

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Marie Yovanovitch: The Ambassador Who Testified Against Trump Jun 12, 2023

“How is it that foreign corrupt interests could manipulate our government?” asked retired Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch, in her testimony during the first impeachment trial against former President Donald Trump in 2019.

In her absorbing memoir, “Lessons from the Edge,” Yovanovich reflected on the disinformation campaign that eventually led to the end of her post as Ambassador to Ukraine. Ray Suarez spoke with Yovanovitch about a lifetime of public service, and why she remains optimistic about Ukraine’s fight for freedom.

Guest:

Marie Yovanovitch, Former US Ambassador to Ukraine and author of the memoir “Lessons From The Edge”

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

CityNerd Debunks the “15-Minute City” Conspiracy Jun 08, 2023

The innovative concept of a “15-Minute City” holds the potential to address many urbanization challenges. But it hasn’t been without its critics. Ray Suarez and ‘CityNerd’ creator Ray Delahanty, delve into the eccentric conspiracy theories surrounding it, and its feasibility for the future of urban planning in American cities.

Guest:

Ray Delahanty, Host and creator of CityNerd

Host:

Ray Suarez

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Secretary Pete Buttigieg: Leading the EV Charge at APEC Jun 05, 2023

Derailed trains, collapsed bridges and an unreliable power grid point to America’s growing infrastructure problem. And though President Biden campaigned on “building back better,” these issues have taken a back seat to political gridlock—at home and abroad.

US Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg joins Ray Suarez to break down how the Biden administration plans to get America’s infrastructure back on track — one EV at a time. They spoke following the APEC Transportation Ministerial Meeting in Detroit, Michigan.

Guest:

Pete Buttigieg, US Secretary of Transportation

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

When Your Country Doesn’t Trust You Jun 01, 2023

The hard truth is that whenever tensions escalate between the US and Asian nations overseas, Asian Americans bear the brunt of that anger at home. In this episode, we revisit the story of Wen Ho Lee, a Taiwanese-American scientist who was falsely accused of spying for the Chinese government, with Helen Zia and George Koo.

Guests:

Helen Zia, journalist, activist and author of Last Boat out of Shanghai and My Country vs. Me

George Koo, retired business consultant and writer

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Two Asian-Americans On How an Election Changed Their Lives May 29, 2023

For decades, Asian-Americans have been the least likely racial minority to hold political office, accounting for less than 1% of elected leaders. But a new generation of Asian American leaders is changing the tide. In this episode, World Affairs President & CEO Philip Yun tells the story of the election that altered the course of his life. Then, California Assemblymember Alex Lee tells Ray Suarez about the political responsibility he has to all Americans.

Guests:

Philip Yun, President and CEO of World Affairs

Assemblymember Alex Lee, California State Assembly, District 24

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Why We Need a New Immigration Narrative May 25, 2023

Aarthi Shahani, author of the memoir Here We Are: American Dreams, American Nightmares, joins Ray Suarez to discuss her family’s painful path to citizenship, and why it’s time to change the immigration narrative in America.

Guest:

Aarthi Shahani, author of the memoir Here We Are: American Dreams, American Nightmares and host of “Art of Power”

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Reformer to Enforcer? Biden’s Immigration Policy May 22, 2023

Everybody knows the immigration system is broken. So what are policy makers doing to fix it? And with the end of Title 42 – a pandemic-era order to deny asylum at the US-Mexico border – Biden’s immigration policy will face new challenges.

Ray Suarez speaks with Sabrina Rodriguez, national political reporter at The Washington Post, about what the end of Title 42 means for the 2024 presidential campaign.

Guest:

Sabrina Rodriguez, national politics reporter for The Washington Post

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

The Masculinity Crisis, What’s a Man to Do? May 18, 2023

In an era where changing social norms and labor-market shifts are pushing men to the sidelines, can a crisis of masculinity explain why men are falling behind? Idrees Kahloon, author of “What’s The Matter With Men?,” joins Ray Suarez to explain why improving the welfare of struggling men may help bring greater gender equality.

Guest:

Idrees Kahloon, DC bureau chief for The Economist and author of “What’s The Matter With Men?”

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Is It a Man’s World? May 15, 2023

Despite being found liable for sexual abuse, many commentators wonder if the E. Jean Carroll verdict will burden — or boost— Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign. The rise of strongman rhetoric and polarizing gender politics is fueling a cultural war in the US, and masculinity is at the center of the debate.

Angela Saini, author of The Patriarchs: How Men Came To Rule, joins Ray Suarez to break down what the “patriarchy” is, and how it operates.

Guest:

Angela Saini, author of The Patriarchs: How Men Came To Rule

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Nigeria’s Fight to Protect Democracy from Fake News May 11, 2023

Distrust in official election results isn’t a new trend in Nigerian politics, but the explosion of mis- and disinformation across social media platforms ahead of the country’s 2023 presidential elections made it even harder for Nigerian voters to sort fact from fiction. BBC Nigeria senior disinformation journalist, Fauziyya Tukur, joins Ray Suarez to share how digital disinformation is threatening the future of social trust and democracy in her country.

Guest:

Fauziyya Tukur, senior journalist, Disinformation at BBC News Nigeria

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Tom Nichols on the Dangerous Politics of Narcissism May 08, 2023

Despite being the first president—former or sitting—to be indicted for a crime, Donald Trump remains the front-running candidate for the GOP nomination. If the Jan. 6 attack on the US Capitol and allegations of assault and defamation aren’t enough to deter diehard MAGA fans, what does the future of American politics look like?

Tom Nichols, staff writer at The Atlantic, joins Ray Suarez to break down what Trump’s historic indictment—and the fight for the truth in the US—means for the coming 2024 elections.

Guest:

Tom Nichols, staff writer at The Atlantic and professor emeritus of national-security affairs at the U.S. Naval War College

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

What’s Newsworthy? A Behind the Scenes Look at "Global Dispatches" May 04, 2023

Media is being challenged as audience consumption trends continue to change, and journalists are facing violence and imprisonment in the field. What do these threats mean for the future of journalism? Ray Suarez sits down with Mark Goldberg, host of “Global Dispatches,” to explore how international journalism can remain vital.

Guest:

Mark Leon Goldberg, editor of UN Dispatch and host of "Global Dispatches"

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

The Free Press, Held Hostage May 01, 2023

Recently, media organizations have laid off thousands of journalists, and in March, Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was detained by Russia’s federal security services under suspicion of espionage. It’s clear that international journalism is under threat.

Gulnoza Said, the Europe and Central Asia program coordinator for the Committee to Protect Journalists, joins Ray Suarez to discuss why the safety of journalists matters to the health of a free press.

Guest:

Gulnoza Said, CPJ Europe and Central Asia Program Coordinator

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Why is America So Afraid of China? Apr 27, 2023

The Chinese balloon’s voyage over American skies has escalated concerns about foreign land ownership in the US. Lawmakers in roughly 11 states — from Arizona, to Montana, to Texas — are up in arms about Chinese ownership of American farmland. Nancy Qian, James J. O'Connor Professor of Managerial Economics & Decision Sciences at Kellogg MEDS, Northwestern University, joins Ray Suarez to share how a proposed ban of foreign land ownership could backfire.

Guest:

Nancy Qian, James J. O'Connor Professor of Managerial Economics & Decision Sciences at Kellogg MEDS, Northwestern University

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Why China and the US are Saber-Rattling Over Taiwan Apr 24, 2023

The Chinese Communist Party has made reunification with Taiwan one of its main political goals, and it has threatened to take the island by military force. Meanwhile, President Biden has reiterated unequivocal support for Taiwan’s security. Dr. Joel Wuthnow, senior research fellow at the National Defense University's Center for the Study of Chinese Military Affairs, tells Ray Suarez why this puts the US in a political bind.

Guest:

Dr. Joel Wuthnow, senior research fellow at the National Defense University's Center for the Study of Chinese Military Affairs

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Saudi Arabia’s Thirst for Arizona’s Water Apr 20, 2023

As Arizona grapples with looming cuts to its allocation of Colorado River water, the arid state is taking a hard look at how its groundwater is used and who has access to it. Dr. Natailie Koch, author of “Arid Empire: The Entangled Fates of Arizona and Arabia,” joins Ray Suarez to explain how Saudi Arabia ended up at the center of a water crisis in the American Southwest.

Guest:

Natalie Koch, Professor for Human Geography at Heidelberg’s Geography Institute and author of “Arid Empire: The Entangled Fates of Arizona and Arabia”

Host:

Ray Suarez

If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

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