ROCKING OUR PRIORS

Is inequality inevitable? Why has inequality fallen in Latin America? Is this due to democratisation? How should we study inequality?

Given globalisation and precarity, are unions dead? What can they achieve? What enables unions to be more effective? How can they be better supported? Dr. Sian Lazar discusses her fascinating book on unions in Latin America, the Middle East and Europe: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Where-Are-Unions-Workers-Movements-ebook/dp/B06XF4LZ65/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1489824067&sr=8-1&keywords=Where+Are+The+Unions%3F+Workers+and+Social+Movements+in+Latin+America%2C+the+Middle+East+and+Europe

What are 'affects' and emotional 'atmospheres'? Why are Geographers so enraptured by them? How do they help us understand neoliberalism? Might affects and emotions be mobilised to erode neoliberalism? This interview relates to Professor Anderson's paper in Progress in Human Geography. You can read it here: http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0309132515613167 Read more about him here: https://www.dur.ac.uk/geography/staff/geogstaffhidden/?id=985 And follow him on Twitter: @BenAndersonGeog [illustrative painting by Paolo Troilo https://www.troilo54.com/]

Are there parallels between support for Trump and desire for a superhero? Professor Jason Dittmer thinks so... I'm sceptical, however. Floating above the River Cam, sharing a bakewell tart, atop a wooden punt, we discuss masculinity, geopolitics, and faith in individual agency. He's the coolest professor I know, so I do hope you enjoy listening as much as we did recording. Buy his book here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Captain-America-Nationalist-Superhero-Geopolitics-ebook/dp/B00AATCSD8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1487708791&sr=8-1&keywords=jason+dittmer+captain+america Follow Professor Dittmer on Twitter @realjdittmer

Four Questions for Dr Adam Branch (expert in African politics and the International Criminal Court, ICC): 1. Does the ICC do any good? 2. Why has the AU announced its intention to withdraw from the ICC? 3. What's the alternative? 4. Would African leaders submit to a regional instrument? [Illustrative cartoon by Gado, http://gadocartoons.com/ @iGaddo] You can read Adam's article here: https://academic.oup.com/ijtj/article/doi/10.1093/ijtj/ijw027/2919404/Dominic-Ongwen-on-Trial-The-ICC-s-African-Dilemmas Check out his fantastic book, co-authored with Zachary Mamphilly: "Africa Uprising" https://www.amazon.co.uk/Africa-Uprising-Popular-Political-Arguments-ebook/dp/B00UAXRVS6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1488207770&sr=8-1&keywords=africa+uprising+adam+branch

Four Questions for Dr. Sara Dorman: Mugabe's ZANU-PF lost the 2008 election. So why does he still retain power? Why have opposition politics and civil society been unable to push back? What - if anything - can outsiders do to support 'good governance'? What does Zimbabwe's experience of power-sharing tell us about supporting 'good governance' more broadly?

What's driving the housing crisis for South African middle income households? Why aren't these middling households mobilising for housing reform? Yet we do see collective action in the case of 'fees must fall', for higher education. What explains this discrepancy? Charlotte, why do you think 'middle class' isn't appropriate to the South African context? Paper here: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S001671851530083X Photo credits: Jonny Miller, http://www.citylab.com/housing/2016/06/apartheids-urban-legacy-in-striking-aerial-photographs-south-africa-cities-architecture-racism/487808/

Why did the homicide rate fall in Sao Paulo? How and why has organised crime reduced homicides? Why has this happened in Brazil, but not the USA? And more... http://www.ucpress.edu/book.php?isbn=9780520285712