The Fletcher Forum Podcast

Shabnam Waheed (MALD '26) is joined by Christina Bain, visiting fellow at the Feinstein International Center within the Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University.

Veerdittya Podder (MIB '26) and Vaibhav Panwar (MIB '26) sit down with Sean West and Steve Heitkamp (MALD '08) the co-founders of The Unruly Corporation, an AI agent for political risk analysis to discuss current challenges in the political risk environment.

Shreyanshi Sikaria (MALD '27) spoke with Charles Hua about the much overlooked power of public utility comissions (PUCs) in utlity regulation and the clean energy transition. Hua is the executive director of PowerLines which aims to empower energy consumers to lower utility bills.

Veeradittya (MIB '26) spoke with Michael Klein, the William L. Clayton Professor of International Economic Affairs and founder of EconoFact. They discuss how well designed institutions shape the stability of the global economy.

Matt Livesay (MGA '26) sat down with Professor Michael Glennon to discuss his recent article titled, "Where Have All the (War) Powers Gone?" which is his latest in a series of publications analyzing the rapidly changing international and domestic legal environments.

On this "Fletcher Focus" episode, Shabnam Waheed (MALD '26) was joined by the student organizers of the 2025 Conference on Gender and International Affairs (Emily Ruhm PhD, Maeve Murphy MALD '26). Through a discussion of this year's conference, Emily and Maeve address misconceptions of how gender is viewed in international affairs, the wide range of applications for the lens, and why it is so salient today. The conference will take place on campus November 13 and 14th. Please see the links below for more details. Conference Website: https://sites.tufts.edu/genderconference/ Article Referenced: https://worldpeacefoundation.org/blog/interrogating-the-authoritarian-frame-boundaries-of-belonging/ -The views shared on the Fletcher Forum Podcast are not representative of the Fletcher School or the Fletcher Forum of World Affairs-

Matt Livesay (MGA '26) sat down with Professor Mikhail Troitskiy to discuss the current state of diplomatic negotiations in the Russia-Ukraine War, the challenges of negotiating with authoritarians, nuclear risks arising from this conflict, and events at the Russia-Eurasia Center at Fletcher.

The Decolonizing International Relations Conference is back at Fletcher October 16 and 17! DIR 2025 intends to highlight transformative practices that unsettle imperial legacies and challenge the rearticulation of colonial modes of control in policy, scholarship, and everyday life.

Katherine and Lorenzo sat down with Professor Juan Carlos Portilla Jaimes on September 12th to discuss Arms Smuggling, International Law, and the future of education in Colombia. Professor Juan Carlos is an internationally recognized speaker specializing in anti-money laundering and the global fight against transnational financial crime. He received an L.L.M. from Fletcher and currently teaches International Financial Law at Sabana University School of Law in Chia, Colombia. (Image courtesy of Professor Juan Carlos)​

The civil war in Sierra Leone ended more than two decades ago, but that's no reason for Theresa Betancourt and Moses Zombo to turn their eyes away. In this episode, we speak about their decades of work in Sierra Leone and their most recent book, Shadows into Light: A Generation of Former Child Soldiers Comes of Age, where they present findings from tracking more than 500 former child soldiers over the course of twenty years. Their insights are surprising but hopeful: despite immense suffering, this is not a lost generation. Theresa and Moses take us on a journey to Sierra Leone to explore the long road of recovery, resilience, and what it means to come of age after war.