Carnegie Council Podcasts

Finding harmony between man and nature is essential as we tackle the climate crisis, said Professor Pan Jiahua in an interview with C2GTalk. In this episode, he explores the concept of ecological civilization, and how carbon dioxide removal and solar radiation modification approaches aimed at altering the climate might be considered in this framework. Pan Jiahua is professor of economics and director at the Institute of Ecocivilization Studies at Beijing University of Technology. He was elected in 2018 as member of the academic board of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. In 2020, he was appointed by the UN secretary-general as one of the 15 members of the Independent Group of Scientists for drafting the Global Sustainable Development Report 2023. Professor Pan is also editor-in-chief of the Chinese Journal of Urban & Environmental Studies, and a member of the China National Expert Panel on Climate Change and the National Foreign Policy Advisory Group, and advisor to the Ministry of Ecology and Environment. He has edited and authored over 300 papers, articles and books in English and Chinese, and was lead author of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Working Group III 3rd, 4th, and 5th Assessment Reports on Mitigation. This interview was recorded on February 25, 2021, and is available with interpretation into 中文, Español, and Français. For more, including an edited transcript, please go to C2G's website.

By 2030, Africa is projected to be home to 60 percent of the world's working-age population. Columbia Journalism School's Professor Howard W. French, author of the recently published Born in Blackness, joins Doorstep co-hosts Nick Gvosdev and Tatiana Serafin to explain how this will impact global economies, climate change politics, and U.S.-China relations. French also calls for a reckoning with history that recognizes the importance of Africa in the global conversation. For more on U.S. foreign policy in Africa, check out last year's Doorstep talk with Charles A. Ray,  chair of the Africa Program at Foreign Policy Research Institute and former U.S. ambassador to Zimbabwe and Cambodia. For more, please go to carnegiecouncil.org. 

Many countries in the ECE region are embracing carbon neutrality recognized as the first milestone towards sustainable energy, with leaders like Canada, Denmark, France, and the United Kingdom, says Olga Algayerova during a C2GTalk interview. She calls for countries to recommit to the future: "We are really running out of time and urgent action is needed." She highlights that UNECE provides a platform for technology-neutral dialogue and are keen to work with C2G to help countries get better informed about new emerging technologies that could play an important role in fighting climate change in the future. Olga Algayerova is the executive secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). Algayerova took office on June 1, 2017. She previously served as permanent representative of Slovakia to the International Organizations in Vienna, Austria (since 2012). She was previously president of the Millennium Development Goals of Slovakia (2010-2012); secretary of state, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2006-2010) and export director at Zentiva International (2004-2006). The 56 countries of the UNECE region span from North America to Europe, the Balkans, the Caucasus and Central Asia. For more, including an edited transcript, please go to C2G's website.

In this episode of the Artificial Intelligence & Equality Initiative podcast, Senior Fellow Anja Kaspersen sits down with Gary Marcus, a cognitive scientist, author, and entrepreneur, to discuss the need for an open and healthy scientific discourse on AI. What we can learn from particle physics and CERN to create an international AI mission to make sure this technology becomes a responsible and ethical public good? For more, please go to carnegiecouncil.org.

Governance is the key element in any climate-altering approaches being proposed, particularly from the point of view of climate vulnerable nations, says Professor Saleemul Huq in an interview with C2GTalk. His greatest concern is that decisions that have repercussions for the most vulnerable will be taken without them having a chance to take part in the discussion, so it is extremely important that climate vulnerable nations have a say when decisions are taken regarding climate-altering approaches, including carbon dioxide removal and solar radiation modification. Professor Saleemul Huq is the director of the International Centre for Climate Change and Development (ICCCAD) and chair of the Climate Vulnerable Forum Expert Advisory Group. Huq is an expert on the links between climate change and sustainable development, particularly from the perspective of developing countries. He leads the annual Gobeshona Global Conference, which brings together scholars, policymakers, researchers, and practitioners from around the world to discuss climate change. Huq was the lead author of the chapter on adaptation and sustainable development in the Third Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), and was the lead author of the chapter on adaptation and mitigation in the Fourth Assessment Report. His current focus is on supporting the engagement of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). This interview was recorded on March 1, 2021, and is also available with interpretation into 中文, Español, and Français. For more, including an edited transcript, please go to C2G's website.

It's election season in the U.S. and around the world. Wilson Center's Francisco de Santibañes joins Doorstep co-hosts Nick Gvosdev and Tatiana Serafin to discuss the rise in popular conservatism across Latin America and how new evangelical-church-supported, anti-establishment leaders are changing the conversation and winning elections in Chile, Argentina, and Brazil. De Santibañes connects the dots of right-wing movements around the globe sparked by Donald Trump's election to the U.S. presidency in 2016. For more, please go to carnegiecouncil.org. 

Governance is a key element in ensuring that nature-based approaches to addressing the climate crisis support ecological functions, are sustainable, and produce co-benefits, says Manuel Pulgar-Vidal during a C2GTalk interview. Ultimately, he stressed, any intervention—whether nature- or technology-based—can only be considered if it is based on a strong commitment to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Manuel Pulgar-Vidal is the leader of the climate and energy practice of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) International. He was formerly the minister of state for environment in Peru and president of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) 20th Conference of the Parties (COP20). A lawyer with over 27 years of experience in the field of environmental law and policy, he founded the Peruvian Society for Environmental Law, one of the most recognized organizations of environmental law in the region. In his role as minister of state for environment in Peru, he was responsible for proposing and defining Peru's environmental policies, including those covering biodiversity and climate change. He was also in charge of implementing the country's environmental legislation and its enforcement policies. This interview was recorded on November 17, 2020, and is also available with interpretation into 中文, Español, and Français. For more, including an edited transcript, please go to C2G's website. 

Whether it's rigging elections in Hong Kong, arresting activists in Venezuela, restricting voting access in the U.S., silencing the opposition in Belarus, or censorship in Burma, there can be no doubt that democracy is under assault. For Global Ethics Day, Carnegie Council hosted a panel featuring activists fighting on the frontlines to uphold and strengthen democracy. What can individual citizens do to support democracy? What's the role of international organizations? For more, go to carnegiecouncil.org.

As the U.S. chief negotiator of the New START treaty, Rose Gottemoeller's new book is an invaluable insider's account of the negotiations between the U.S. and Russian delegations in Geneva in 2009 and 2010 and the crucial discussions between President Barack Obama and President Dmitry Medvedev. In this fascinating talk with Senior Fellows Tatiana Serafin and Nikolas Gvosdev, Gottemoeller reflects on her career, the importance of arms control, and what it was like being the first female deputy secretary general of NATO. For more, please go to carnegiecouncil.org. 

Addressing the global challenge of governing climate-altering approaches through multilateralism is not just possible but necessary, says Ambassador Franz Perrez during a C2GTalk interview. In the end, he says, it is in everyone's best interest to build a common understanding of the potential risks, opportunities, and challenges linked to climate-altering approaches.  Ambassador Franz Perrez is the head of the International Affairs Division at the Swiss Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN). In this capacity, he is also the Swiss ambassador for the environment and represents Switzerland at all important international negotiations in the area of the environment. This interview was recorded on November 13, 2020, and is also available with interpretation into 中文, Español, and Français. For more, including an edited transcript, please go to C2G's website.