Lowy Institute

The Lowy Institute Re-Cast series republishes the best podcasts from our archives. In case you missed them the first time around or if you want revisit these engaging conversations, the Re-Cast series has you covered. Can we measure national success beyond economic growth? In August 2024, Professor Robert Costanza spoke with the Lowy Institute’s Alexandre Dayant about why countries need to move away from gross domestic product as the measure of economic prosperity and factor in other complementary gauges of success. In a time of high inflation, increased cost of living, and growing environmental degradation, Professor Constanza argues that moving “beyond growth” is essential to achieving sustainable prosperity.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Anthony Albanese has been returned as Australia’s prime minister in a landslide. In this episode, Program Directors Mihai Sora and Susannah Patton speak with host Lydia Khalil about what that means for the region. They discuss how Albanese’s re-election is being received in the Pacific and Southeast Asia and examine the continuities, opportunities and challenges for Australia’s foreign policy over the government’s second term.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, host Lydia Khalil speaks with former US Ambassador and Director-General of ASIO Dennis Richardson and Interpreter Managing Editor Daniel Flitton, about the Five Eyes — the powerful and strategically important intelligence sharing alliance. Its member countries, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, have sustained and protected one of the world's most unified multilateral arrangements for more than 75 years. But even the Five Eyes may not avoid the wrecking ball that is the second Trump administration.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The United States has seen profound shifts in policy since the re-election of President Donald Trump. It’s clear that the themes of Trump 1.0 — his narrow definition of the US national interest, his scepticism of alliances, and his hostility to free trade — are also animating Trump 2.0. In a special event in the week that we mark the first 100 days of President Trump’s second term, hear insights from Susan Glasser, the Washington correspondent for The New Yorker and Lowy Institute Board member. The conversation is hosted by Dr Michael Fullilove AM, the Executive Director of the Lowy Institute. Susan and Michael analyse the first 100 days of Trump 2.0 and the implications for Australia and the world. Susan Glasser joins the conversation online from Washington and Michael Fullilove hosts an in-person audience at 31 Bligh Street. The discussion is followed by an audience Q&A.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With US President Donald Trump unleashing a blitz of policy changes in his first few months in office and an Australian federal election just ahead, the Lowy Institute has released selected results from the 2025 Lowy Institute Poll. The findings provide a snapshot of how Trump is changing Australian attitudes towards the United States, and on Australians’ confidence in their political leaders’ foreign policy abilities. Ryan Neelam, Director of Public Opinion and Foreign Policy, talks with host Lydia Khalil to put these early poll results into context.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Lowy Institute was honoured to host His Excellency Surangel Whipps Jnr, President of the Republic of Palau, to deliver the 2025 FDC Pacific Leaders’ Address. Since taking office in 2021, President Whipps has been a champion of Pacific leadership on regional security, climate, marine conservation and trade and economic issues. He shares Palau’s perspective on the evolving strategic landscape in the Pacific, highlighting the impacts of recent geopolitical shifts and competition for regional influence, noting in particular Palau’s recognition of Taiwanese independence and its recently renewed Compact of Free Association with the United States. He also discusses emerging development partnership realities in the wake of the re-election of US President Donald Trump, the revisiting of US foreign aid relationships, and the new landscape for pursuing Pacific sustainable development objectives, including accelerating the energy transition towards a fossil-fuel-free Pacific, addressing proposals for Pacific deep seabed mining, and advancing climate adaptation and marine conservation efforts. With Australia bidding to co-host COP31 in 2026 with Pacific Island countries, President Whipps reflects on the critical importance of a real and robust partnership between Australia and its Pacific neighbours in confronting climate change and achieving ambitious and responsible global outcomes amid growing geopolitical headwinds.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Two weeks ago, Myanmar was struck by a 7.7 magnitude earthquake that devastated much of the central heartland of the country. Already ravaged by civil war, the destruction and humanitarian crisis caused by the earthquake have brought the country to the brink. The Lowy Institute’s Hervé Lemahieu talks with Vicky Bowman CMG, the Director of the Myanmar Centre for Responsible Business — and previously UK Ambassador to Myanmar and a political prisoner under its junta — to discuss the earthquake’s humanitarian and economic impact, prospects for a political settlement to the civil war, and how the International community can best engage the country from here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Amid a US retreat from the Pacific under President Donald Trump, and intense competition for regional influence between Australia and China, the Pacific faces mounting pressures from climate change, transnational crime, internal instability, and at times even political upheaval. Listen to an insightful panel discussion with the ABC’s in-country Pacific journalists working on the frontlines of the rapidly changing political and security landscape in our near region. Hosted by: Mihai Sora, Director, Pacific Islands Program, Lowy InstituteSpecial guest speakers: • Chrisnrita Aumanu-Leong, Solomon Islands correspondent • Belinda Kora, Papua New Guinea correspondent • Marian Kupu, Tonga correspondent • Lice Movono, Fiji correspondentThis special event coincides with the second anniversary of the founding of the Pacific Local Journalism Network (PLJN), a flagship program supported by ABC International Services under the ABC’s Indo-Pacific Broadcasting Strategy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lieutenant General Simon Stuart, Chief of Army, discusses key initiatives to strengthen the Army's profession, drawing from his 35 years of military expertise. He tackles recruitment and retention challenges, proposing national service as a bridge between citizens and the military. The conversation also addresses contemporary geopolitical issues, emphasizing Australia's need for strategic defense independence. Insights from the ongoing conflict in Ukraine are shared, showcasing the importance of adapting military tactics in the face of modern warfare.

Hear from former senior NATO figure and arms control negotiator Rose Gottemoeller on the prospects for peace in Europe’s bloodiest conflict since the Second World War. Donald Trump arrived as US president promising a swift end to the war in Ukraine. But can the war end in a way that will be fair to Ukrainians, and which closes off opportunities for further Russian aggression? Rose Gottemoeller will address these complex questions and analyse the unfolding peace process. Rose Gottemoeller is the Lowy Institute’s 2025 Distinguished Fellow for International Security. She is currently the William J Perry Lecturer at Stanford University's Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies. Prior to this, she served as Deputy Secretary General of NATO from 2016 to 2019 and was Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security at the US State Department. In 2009 and 2010, she was chief US negotiator of the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) with the Russian Federation, due to expire in 2026.‍See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.