The Fletcher Forum Podcast

In our latest podcast, the Fletcher Forum dives into the multifaceted world of DeepSeek the AI firm challenging Open AI. We're joined by Pf. Thomas Cao, an Assistant Professor of Technology Policy at Fletcher, to discuss its implications not just for technology, but also for geopolitics, privacy, and the ethical challenges surrounding AI. Join us as we unpack how this innovative technology is reshaping the US tech landscape and what it means for the future of data security and global relations. With expert insights and thought-provoking discussions, this episode is a must-listen for anyone interested in the intersection of tech and society. 

Chinese studies are a mainstay in all realms of international relations, especially in the United States. Today's guest, Dr. Daniel Green, offers his thoughts of how future US administrations could approach China as a strategic competitor in AI, security, and great power politics. He surveys these thoughts, and his contributions to a new book: Confronting China: U.S. Defense Policy in an Era of Great Power Competition.  Dr. Daniel Green is a national security and foreign affairs expert who has served for 20 years inkey positions that shape U.S. defense and foreign policy, including as a Commander in the U.S.Navy Reserves, a Political Advisor with the U.S. Department of State, and Deputy AssistantSecretary of Defense for Strategy and Force Development. He is also an accomplished author, withfive books and numerous publications on defense, security, and counterinsurgency topics. Hisscholarly work includes more than 60 award-winning papers and articles in various military andpolicy journals. He holds a Ph.D. and MPhil in Political Science from George Washington Universityand a Masters in International Affairs from Florida State University. Link to Confronting China: https://www.amazon.com/Confronting-China-Competition-Security-International/dp/1440879664 

In this episode, Natasha Zarine, co-founder of EcoSattva and a TEDx Boston speaker at MIT this year, shares how her groundbreaking work brought the Kham River back to life in India. Explore her innovative approach to blue-green infrastructure, community-driven solutions, and building climate resilience.    Tune in for an extraordinary story of transformation, determination, and impact.

Annie Levy and Rebecca Kelly are two of the Co-Chairs for Fletcher's 2024 Conference on Gender in International Affairs. CGIA 2024 exists to create a collaborative environment in which international systems, norms, and power structures can be challenged and reimagined through a gender and intersectional lens. CGIA recognizes that intersectional solutions that amplify a diverse range of voices are needed to effectively address global challenges in uncertain times. It's Fletcher's longest running student-led conference and it's on its 10th anniversary! The Conference will be held in person and via zoom on November 21 & 22, register below!    Conference Registration: https://sites.tufts.edu/genderconference/register-2/

Pf. Joel Trachtman joins the Fletcher Forum Podcast to discuss his work on the Remaking Trade Project. The project aims to reimagine international trade policy for the 21st century and outline how it can contribute to a sustainable future. Pf. Trachtman is the Henry J. Baker Professor of Commercial Law at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, and recently returned from a stint at the College of Europe. He has published numerous works including "Advanced Introduction to International Trade Law" (Elgar 2020), "Collected Essays: Trade Law, Domestic Regulation, and Development" (World Scientific 2015), "The Future of International Law: Global Government" (Cambridge 2013), and "The Tools of Argument" (Createspace 2013)." Find out more here: https://remakingtradeproject.org/ 

Dr. Vivek Mishra joins the Fletcher Forum Podcast to discuss the upcoming US Presidential Election. Dr. Mishra is the Deputy Director of the Observer Research Foundation's Strategic Studies Programme, where he writes on US elections and US-India relations. We discuss the election's key inflection points, as well as his perspective of Indian observers' impressions of the election.   

In this episode, we’re in conversation with Ellie Johnson and Abdullah Alharoun, Chairperson and Content Chair of this year’s Decolonising International Relations Conference, scheduled to take place on the 24th and 25th of October. We discuss the nature and importance of the decolonizing exercise, the role of the conference in bridging the gaps in contemporary narratives on IR and Fletcher’s own contributions to the Decolonizing exercise.

This week we're featuring a conversation with Maggie Adomako and Richard Geegbae, two of the three members of the 2024 Fletcher D-Prize winning Ongeza Zao Na Pato (OZP) team. OZP is bringing farmers beans and cow peas in Kenya to support a business-smart and environmentally sustainable transition. We even discuss Richard's new idea for how Fletcher students can help their classmates gain valuable experience in development work. 

Our inaugural 2024-2025 episode features members of Fletcher's Russia and Eurasia Program discussing the upcoming conference on Russian sanctions and the broader economic impacts of economic warfare resulting from the war in Ukraine. Arik Burakovsky, Assistant Director of the Russia Eurasia Program, Pavel Luzin, a fellow at the program, and Akshat Dhankher, a graduate assistant and second year MALD student at Fletcher join us to discuss how they had the idea for a conference entirely focused on sanctions against Russia. 

With South Africa’s historic elections concluding on May 29th 2024, the ANC is facing its first coalition since its inception in 1994. Michael Walsh, visiting scholar at UC Berkeley and Senior Fellow at FPRI joins us to discuss his latest article, covering the South African elections and providing a systematic framework to understand political landscapes through evaluating internal party conflict adjacent to their platforms.