Carnegie Council Audio Podcast

Cities around the world are facing numerous climate-related challenges such as rising sea levels, flooding, and extreme heat. These challenges place significant strain on local economies and disproportionately impact the most vulnerable residents. The severity of the situation is further compounded by population growth within cities, with the UN projecting that nearly 70 percent of all people will reside in urban areas by 2050. In order to support safe and sustainable urban environments, city leaders must urgently prioritize decarbonization and climate resiliency policies. However, there are complex ethical questions and tradeoffs that lawmakers must confront when planning for and implementing such policies. This in-depth panel discussion and Q&A looks at how to address urban-specific climate challenges in an ethical manner. What are the latest climate policy innovations for cities? What are some ethical approaches that balance the needs of current residents while ensuring sustainable urban environments f

In this Ethical Article, Visiting Fellow Arta Moeini analyzes the ongoing "Great Transition" in international affairs. With the U.S.-led "rules-based" world order seemingly at its endpoint, how can Western nations adapt? To read this article, please go to carnegiecouncil.org. 

What does "foreign policy for the middle class" look like on the ground three years into President Biden's policy to integrate global and local concerns? Foreign Policy for America Foundation's Kristina Biyad joins Doorstep co-hosts Tatiana Serafin and Nikolas Gvosdev to discuss her new report "Intermestic Policy Initiative: Local Perspectives on U.S. Foreign Policy." Biyad spent two years traveling, visiting five cities across the U.S. to speak with a diverse array of community leaders about what issues keep them up at night and how their concerns resonate globally. Her key takeaway: Local participants are eager to partner in developing outcome-driven and locally informed foreign policy recommendations. How will this movement reshape the way foreign policy decisions get made in the future? For more, please go to carnegiecouncil.org. 

As world leaders gather in New Delhi for the G20 summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi takes India center stage. Jawaharlal Nehru University's Dr. Happymon Jacob joins Doorstep co-hosts Tatiana Serafin and Nikolas Gvosdev to assess what to expect from India's leadership on a vast array of global challenges from climate to green energy initiatives to the Ukraine-Russia war. With China's Xi Jinping and Russia's Vladimir Putin missing from the table, will India take the lead in representing the voices of the Global South? What opportunities are there for India and the U.S. to jointly shift the geopolitical order? How can India leverage its economic and military strength to take the global spotlight? For more, please go to carnegiecouncil.org. 

In this thought-provoking episode of the Artificial Intelligence & Equality podcast, Carl Miller tackles the pressing question: Can we code power responsibly? And moreover, how do we define "power" in this context? Diving headfirst into the complex intersection of artificial intelligence and power dynamics, Miller, author of The Death of the Gods, warns against ascribing human-like understanding to AI systems and applications. He posits that power enables us to discern how lives are being shaped, identify the architects of change, and realize what has diminished in influence and importance over time. Reflecting on historical cycles of innovation and upheaval, Miller expresses cautious optimism, anticipating that humanity will navigate the complexities and harness these potent tools with sensible control. Tune in for a rich discussion that promises to fuel a deeper reflection on the evolving landscapes of power and technology. For more, please go to carnegiecouncil.org. 

It is essential for young people in the Global South to become more involved in international climate discussions, including around solar radiation modification, says Ghanaian climate activist Nii Noi Omaboe. His decision to screen a documentary about SRM at Accra sustainability week prompted many questions, both about the risks and insufficient governance, but also about opportunities for research. Omaboe is experienced in youth governance, human rights, and global sustainable development processes. He has organized and worked for nonprofit and international organizations like Amnesty International, Red Cross, and 350 Ghana. In 2019, Omaboe co-founded Sustainability Week Accra, the first local Sustainability Week in Africa, and he currently provides strategic support to Green Africa Youth Organisation’s Ghana team as well as supporting establishment of Youth Climate Councils in the Global South. He is also a program analyst at Impact Hub Accra. For more, please go to C2G's website.

In this Ethical Article, Visiting Fellow Zhanna L. Malekos Smith discusses U.S.-UK space and cyber policy and the ethics and sustainability concerns around "counterspace" weapons. What’s at stake if there’s a war in space? To read the article, please go to carnegiecouncil.org. 

Nuclear weapons today remain a very real existential threat to the future of humanity. Recent developments such as Putin’s posturing regarding use in Ukraine, combined with the stalling of international efforts to reduce nuclear stockpiles, force us to reconsider the ethics of nuclear weapons at this critical moment for global security. On August 9 —78 years to the day after the U.S. dropped an atomic bomb on Nagasaki—Carnegie Council convened a virtual panel to reflect on and explore emerging ethical questions surrounding nuclear weapons, including the maintenance, potential use, and position as an instrument of deterrence and political power. The event builds upon a symposium collection on nuclear ethics published in the most recent issue of Ethics & International Affairs, the quarterly journal of Carnegie Council. For more, please go to carnegiecouncil.org. 

Consultation and engagement with civil society in the Global South is essential for inclusive governance of solar radiation modification (SRM), says Dr. Shuchi Talati, the founder of the Alliance for Just Deliberation on Solar Geoengineering in this  C2GTalk. This will not be easy, and requires building trust and knowledge over time, but as international attention to SRM increases, it will be increasingly important to empower vulnerable communities. Talati is an emerging climate technology governance expert co-chair of the Independent Advisory Committee to oversee SCoPEx, an effort to provide oversight for the potential outdoor solar geoengineering experiment proposed by Harvard University. She most recently served as a presidential appointee in the Biden-Harris administration as chief of staff of the Office of Fossil Energy & Carbon Management at the U.S. Department of Energy where she was focused on creating just and sustainable frameworks for carbon dioxide removal. For more, please go to C2G's websi

In the governance of AI a few small initiatives have had a large impact. One of these is the Center for AI and Digital Policy (CAIDP), led by Marc Rotenberg and Merve Hickok, our guests in this Artificial Intelligence & Equality podcast. Among CAIDP activities is the yearly publication of an Artificial Intelligence and Democratic Index, in which more 75 countries (as of 2022) are rated on an array of metrics from endorsement of the OECD/G20 AI Principles to the creation of independent agencies to implement AI policies. Furthermore, the CAIDP staff and collaborators have been involved in and helped shape most of the major AI policy initiatives to date. For more, please go to carnegiecouncil.org. 

Skies turned saffron-colored and smoke blanketed parts of the Midwest and Northeast this summer as Americans experienced the impact of fires raging in Canada. The 2023 Canadian fire season has been record-breaking with nearly 3,500 new fires—significantly above the ten-year average—with about 600 active fires and over half "out of control. In this virtual event, John Vaillant, author of Fire Weather: A True Story From A Hotter World, joins Doorstep co-host Tatiana Serafin to discuss how we have created a climate where fires thrive: a new "century of fire." For more, please go to carnegiecouncil.org. 

Small islands face devastating impacts from climate change, not just from rising seas, but from threats to their economic underpinnings such as fishing and tourism. In this C2GTalk, Ronny Jumeau explores the challenges of adaptation, and outlines the expertise climate nations can bring to tackling the climate crisis, especially through nature-based solutions in the ocean. He says islands must be at the table when considering new climate-altering approaches, but is wary of efforts that might divert resources and end up as a distraction. Ronald (Ronny) Jumeau is a former cabinet minister and ambassador of the Republic of Seychelles. He is now an independent consultant specializing in advisory services in the climate change, conservation, and sustainable development (including the ocean and blue economy) nexus from an island and ocean state perspective. For more, please go to C2G's website.

Carnegie Council, in collaboration with IEEE, proposes a five-part AI governance framework to enable the constructive use of AI. To read the framework, please go to carnegiecouncil.org.

The NATO summit in Lithuania, Ukraine's summer counter-offensive, and the recent instability between Russia and the Wagner Group have kept Ukraine in the headlines. But what is happening behind closed doors and on the ground that may be influencing the direction of the Ukrainian-Russian war? Mark Temnycky, journalist and nonresident fellow with the Atlantic Council's Eurasia Center, joins Doorstep co-hosts Tatiana Serafin and Nikolas Gvosdev to unpack the latest news and conflicting reports. How strong is Western and global support for the continuing war effort and eventual reconstruction program? What options does President Zelenskyy have? What are ethical trade-offs being made? For more, read Gvosdev's recent article on ethical tensions in Ukraine or go carnegiecouncil.org.   

In this Ethics Article, Senior Fellow Nikolas Gvosdev analyzes new ethical tensions around ongoing U.S. support of Ukraine. To read this articl, please go to: https://www.carnegiecouncil.org/media/article/ethical-tensions-of-track-two-dialogues-and-cluster-munitions

With the proposed merger of the United States' PGA Tour with Saudi Arabia's LIV Golf, and the world's wealthiest athletes according to Forbes funded via Middle East entities, questions about the role of "sportswashing" are on the rise. Sarath Ganji, founding director of the Autocracy and Global Sports Initiative, joins Doorstep co-hosts Tatiana Serafin and Nikolas Gvosdev, to explain what sportswashing entails and why autocratic regimes are betting on the practice to lift their global brands. How does money flow to change sporting industries? What role do sports influencers play? How can ethical questions raised by sportswashing stay at the forefront?

In this Ethics Article, Senior Fellow Nikolas Gvosdev discusses four different approaches for policymakers to consider when grappling with the ethical questions of whether and how to engage with authoritarian or increasingly illiberal states and actors. To read this article, please go to carnegiecoucil.org. 

McKinsey & Company is one of the most prestigious consulting companies in the world, but what does it actually do? In When McKinsey Comes to Town, New York Times investigative journalists Walt Bogdanich and Michael Forsythe have written a portrait of the company sharply at odds with its public image, revealing corrupt and dangerous practices from China to South Africa to Wall Street. In this virtual book talk, Bogdanich and Forsythe joins Doorstep co-hosts Tatiana Serafin and Nikolas Gvosdev for a discussion on one of the world’s most influential consulting firms and the drastic impact of its work on employees and citizens around the world. For more, please go to carnegiecouncil.org. 

In this episode host Hilary Sutcliffe explores . . . accidents from another angle. There is one thing we thought we knew about accidents, that they are accidental, no-one's fault, simply the result of human error. But author and journalist Jessie Singer’s in her compelling book There Are No Accidents shows that whilst one person dies by accident in the United States alone every three minutes these deaths are in fact far from accidental. The majority are not random acts of God but are the predictable and preventable if only money and power were not prioritized at the expense of ordinary people. For more, please go to carnegiecouncil.org. 

This interview was recorded on December 16, 2022. Solar radiation modification may one day be needed to reduce climate risks, but great uncertainties remain, and more research and inclusive governance is needed to assess it, says Maarten Van Aalst, during a  C2GTalk. That requires discussions at all levels with people from a range of political and ethical backgrounds, in ways which respect different perspectives. Van Aalst is director general and chief science officer at the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI), having assumed that role on February 1, 2023. Before that, and at the time of this recording, he was director of the International Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre, the reference center on climate risk management for the international Red Cross Red Crescent movement. Van Aalst is also coordinating lead author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC WGII) and member of the European Advisory Board on Climate Change under the European Climate Law. For more, including tra