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62. Václav Havel European Dialogues - Human rights and values in international affairs
- Author:
- Michael Ignatieff, Martin Palouš, Jiri Pehe, and Jacques Rupnik
- Publication Date:
- 11-2025
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- Vaclav Havel Library
- Abstract:
- In the aftermath of 1989, Vaclav Havel thought that human rights, democratic values and foreign policy could advance hand in hand. Today the dominant trend seems, on the contrary, to favour power politics at the expense of Havel’s legacy. The language of human rights, spoken in the past by dissidents, and still used today by lawyers and advocates for victims’ groups, is rarely shared by diplomats and the wider public. In an international arena marked by brutal conflict and war, human rights discourse seems increasingly inadequate. What is left of Havel’s legacy is the possibility to formulate a foreign policy that does not ignore the defence of human rights. The Vaclav Havel Library, in cooperation with the Faculty of Social Sciences of Charles University and supported by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, invited Michael Ignatieff, politician, academic and author, to address the issue of human rights in international affairs. He discussed this topic with Martin Palouš, Jiri Pehe and Jacques Rupnik, who chaired the event.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Human Rights, International Affairs, European Union, and Democracy
- Political Geography:
- Europe
63. Turkey, Far and Near
- Author:
- Zuzana Kutišová, Mesut Özcan, Veysel Ok, and Tereza Engelová
- Publication Date:
- 10-2025
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- Vaclav Havel Library
- Abstract:
- After a century of building a secular state and having recent hopes for EU membership, Turkey, our ally, embarked on a path of harsh repression against political opposition and civil society. Unless it was hit by an earthquake, or we were heading for its beaches, we took virtually zero interest in Turkey. Ready to convince us that this had been a mistake, and that it had been important to monitor the country and keep it as close to Europe as possible, especially in that turbulent world, were Zuzana Kutišová, a PhD student in the Department of Middle Eastern Studies at Charles University in Prague, and, remotely, Prof. Burak Bilgehan Özpek, a political scientist at TOBB University of Economics and Technology and a respected expert on Turkish politics and foreign policy, and Veysel Ok, a lawyer for many journalists in Turkey and Co-Director of the Media and Law Studies Association. It was moderated by Tereza Engelová, journalist and documentary filmmaker.
- Topic:
- Civil Society, European Union, Domestic Politics, and Regional Politics
- Political Geography:
- Europe, Turkey, and Middle East
64. The Fragility of Democracy | Interview with the Georgian first female president Salome Zourabichvili
- Author:
- Salomé Zourabichvili and Tomáš Sedláček
- Publication Date:
- 04-2025
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- Vaclav Havel Library
- Abstract:
- Salome Zourabichvili, a Georgian politician and the first female president of her country, is set to visit the Czech Republic at the invitation of the Václav Havel Library and of Pavel Fischer, Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Security of the Senate of the Czech Parliament. Following parliamentary elections in Georgia in October 2024, the pro-Western president said the result had been manipulated by Russia, pledging to remain in office until new elections were held. However, MPs from the ruling Georgian Dream party, which has a majority in parliament after October’s elections, installed Mikheil Kavelashvili as the country’s new president. The director of the Václav Havel Library, Tomáš Sedláček, conducted an interview with Salome Zourabichvili on recent developments in the country, the backsliding of democracy and Georgia’s geopolitical importance at the Václav Havel Library on Wednesday 9 April 2025.
- Topic:
- Politics, Elections, Democracy, Democratic Backsliding, and Foreign Influence
- Political Geography:
- Russia, Eurasia, Caucasus, and Georgia
65. What does Trump's new National Security Strategy mean for the Middle East?
- Author:
- David Hale and Alistair Taylor
- Publication Date:
- 12-2025
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- Middle East Institute (MEI)
- Abstract:
- In this episode, MEI Distinguished Diplomatic Fellow Ambassador David Hale joins host Alistair Taylor to unpack the Trump administration’s new National Security Strategy (NSS). Released on December 4, the document outlines the administration’s foreign policy vision, priorities, and approach to global challenges. Ambassador Hale analyzes the new NSS and how it compares to previous US strategy documents. The conversation focuses on what the NSS means for the future of US policy in the Middle East, and how it is likely to be received by regional actors. Recorded on December 9, 2025.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, National Security, Donald Trump, and Strategy
- Political Geography:
- Middle East and United States of America
66. Saudi Arabia: Rise of a global diplomatic power?
- Author:
- Zeina AlShaib, Gregory Gause, and Norman Roule
- Publication Date:
- 03-2025
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- Middle East Institute (MEI)
- Abstract:
- Saudi Arabia is increasingly positioning itself at the center of various high-stakes diplomatic processes. In recent months, it has taken on key roles as backer, mediator, or host to ongoing negotiations, including on a Gaza settlement, Russian-US normalization and a cease-fire in Ukraine, support for Lebanon and Syria, as well as efforts to end the Sudanese civil war. How do such Saudi diplomatic interventions fit into the kingdom’s broader political-economic transformation efforts? This on-the-record briefing featured Middle East Institute (MEI) Associate Fellow Norman T. Roule, a 34-year veteran of the CIA whose current work focuses on issues concerning the Gulf states and Iran. The briefing also featured F. Gregory Gause III, Visiting Scholar at MEI and author of three books focused on the Persian Gulf. Our experts assessed Saudi Arabia’s diplomatic ambitions and potential limitations, how the kingdom is navigating the rapidly shifting global geopolitical landscape, and what a weakened Iran means for Riyadh’s role within the Middle Eastern regional balance of power.
- Topic:
- Diplomacy, Geopolitics, Negotiation, and Mediation
- Political Geography:
- Middle East and Saudi Arabia
67. Emile Bustani Middle East Seminar: Gaza: ‘Can Anyone Hear Us?’
- Author:
- Sara Roy
- Publication Date:
- 04-2024
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- MIT Center for International Studies
- Abstract:
- The Emile Bustani Middle East Seminar: “Gaza: ‘Can Anyone Hear Us?’" Dr. Sara Roy, Center for Middle Eastern Studies, Harvard University
- Topic:
- Human Rights and Armed Conflict
- Political Geography:
- Middle East, Israel, Palestine, and Gaza
68. Starr Forum: China: The Rise and Fall of the EAST
- Author:
- Yasheng Huang and Will Knight
- Publication Date:
- 04-2024
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- MIT Center for International Studies
- Abstract:
- Speaker: Yasheng Huang, Epoch Foundation Professor of Global Economics and Management, MIT Sloan School of Management, and faculty director of the MIT-China Program at the Center for International Studies. Discussant: Will Knight, senior writer, Wired magazine, covers artificial intelligence and other emerging technology. He was previously a senior editor at MIT Technology Review, where he wrote about fundamental advances in AI and China’s AI boom.
- Topic:
- Science and Technology, Geopolitics, and Autocracy
- Political Geography:
- China and Asia
69. Mapping exile: Bridging knowledge and advocating for scholars at risk
- Author:
- Pascale Laborier
- Publication Date:
- 03-2024
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- MIT Center for International Studies
- Abstract:
- About the speaker: Pascale Laborier is a professor of political science at Paris Nanterre whose research over the past decade has focused on the history of scholars in exile. Some of her recent scholarship has focused on refugee scholars from Uruguay and Chile during the dictatorships. She is one of the founders of PAUSE, a French organization with private and government funding that helps refugee scholars in France find university jobs and funds them for their first year of teaching. Together with an artist-photographer she has created an exposition on these themes that will be shown at MIT in April. The exposition has been shown in Germany, France, and Belgium and currently in Uruguay and Chile.
- Topic:
- Refugees, Advocacy, Exile, and Scholars
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
70. Dying Abroad: The Political Afterlives of Migration in Europe
- Author:
- Osman Balkan
- Publication Date:
- 02-2024
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- MIT Center for International Studies
- Abstract:
- On any given day, the remains of countless deceased migrants are shipped around the world to be buried in ancestral soils. Others are laid to rest in countries of settlement, sometimes in cemeteries established for religious and ethnic minorities, where available. For immigrants and their descendants, perennial questions about the meaning of home and homeland take on a particular gravitas in death. When the boundaries of a nation and its members are contested, burial decisions are political acts. Building on multi-sited fieldwork in Berlin and Istanbul – where the author worked as an undertaker – Dying Abroad offers a moving and powerful account of migrants' end-of-life dilemmas, vividly illustrating how they are connected to ongoing political struggles over the stakes of citizenship, belonging, and collective identity in contemporary Europe.
- Topic:
- Migration, Refugees, Identity, and Death
- Political Geography:
- Europe
71. MIT reflects on COP28
- Author:
- MIT Center for International Studies
- Publication Date:
- 01-2024
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- MIT Center for International Studies
- Abstract:
- This is the Zoom recording of the COP28 debrief and reflections event held on January 17th at the MIT Center for International Studies. Professional captioning will be added soon. Approximately 30 members of the MIT community were among the 100,000 attendees at COP28. While there were some major takeaways from the conference that have already been shared in the media and more that will continue to be published into the new year, much of the progress happened on a smaller scale in meetings and side events. Some attendees gathered to debrief and learn about some of the specific interests and goals that members of the MIT delegation had in attending the COP, and the value that they gained from participating.
- Topic:
- Climate Change, Environment, Conference, Sustainability, and Conference of the Parties (COP)
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
72. Conservatism and the Climate Crisis
- Author:
- Sam Hall, Pilita Clark, Rachel Coxcoon, and Robert Saunders
- Publication Date:
- 06-2024
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- Mile End Institute, Queen Mary University of London
- Abstract:
- The climate crisis poses new challenges to all parties and traditions, and will require the intellectual resources of both right and left to meet it effectively. In this event in May 2024, the Mile End Institute brought together Sam Hall (Director of the Conservative Environment Network), Pilita Clark (leading environmental journalist), Rachel Coxcoon (Director of ClimateGuide) and Dr Robert Saunders to explore what Conservatism can contribute to the climate debate. They explored the Conservative Party's record in government, the place of the environment in the Conservative tradition, and the challenges facing Conservative environmentalists at a time of growing political polarisation.
- Topic:
- Climate Change, Environment, Politics, Conservatism, Crisis Management, and Polarization
- Political Geography:
- United Kingdom and Europe
73. Remembering John Smith: His Legacy and Lessons
- Author:
- Robert Saunders, David Ward, Richard Johnson, and Dame Pauline Green
- Publication Date:
- 05-2024
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- Mile End Institute, Queen Mary University of London
- Abstract:
- The night before John Smith QC died in May 1994, he spoke at the Park Lane Hotel to raise money for the Labour Party's campaign for the next general election. To the 500 people in attendance, Smith remarked that 'the opportunity to serve our country—that is all we ask'. 30 years on from his death, Smith is often recalled as one of the 'best Prime Ministers we never had' and is still viewed with affection by many people regardless of their political views. However, in his own party, John Smith's legacy has often been more contentious. For supporters of the 'New Labour' project pursued by his successor, John Smith - as David Miliband told the Mile End Institute in May 2022 - failed to 'understand that in 1992 the electorate told us, in no uncertain terms, that they wanted a different offer from Labour'. On Thursday 9 May 2024, the Mile End Institute marked the 30th anniversary of John Smith's death by inviting a distinguished panel of historians and eyewitnesses to consider John Smith's legacy and lessons for the Labour Party today. Chaired by Dr Robert Saunders, it featured David Ward (John Smith's Head of Policy and Adviser from 1988 to 1994), Dr Richard Johnson (Senior Lecturer at QMUL), and Dame Pauline Green (former Chair of the Party of European Socialists).
- Topic:
- Politics, History, Labour Party, and John Smith
- Political Geography:
- United Kingdom and Europe
74. Bad Chaps, Jews and the Failure of British Decency: Antisemitism in Historical Perspective
- Author:
- Simon Schama
- Publication Date:
- 05-2024
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- Mile End Institute, Queen Mary University of London
- Abstract:
- Sir Simon Schama is one of the most distinguished historians of our time. As a writer, broadcaster, columnist and art-critic, his books and documentaries have covered an extraordinary range of subjects, stretching from the histories of art, slavery and public health to Romanticism, baseball and the American future. His award-winning books include Citizens: A Chronicle of the French Revolution (1989), Landscape and Memory (1995), Rough Crossings (2005) and Foreign Bodies: Pandemics, Vaccines and the Health of Nations (2023). He has written three volumes on the History of Britain and two volumes on The Story of the Jews, both of which have been made into BBC TV series. He is currently Professor of Art History and History at the University of Columbia, and was knighted in 2018 for ‘services to history’. On Friday 8 March 2024, Sir Simon drew on his long expertise in British and Jewish history to deliver the first in a new series of distinguished 'Hennessy Lectures', celebrating the life of the historian and cross-bench peer Lord Hennessy of Nympsfield. In this inaugural lecture at @QMULSir Simon explored ‘Bad Chaps, Jews and the Failure of British Decency: Antisemitism in Historical Perspective’.
- Topic:
- History, Jews, and Antisemitism
- Political Geography:
- United Kingdom and Europe
75. Yvette Cooper MP: Remembering John Smith
- Author:
- Yvette Cooper
- Publication Date:
- 05-2024
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- Mile End Institute, Queen Mary University of London
- Abstract:
- On Thursday 9 May 2024, the Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper MP came to @QMULto give a keynote lecture in memory of the late @labourparty, John Smith. 30 years on from Smith's untimely death, Cooper reflected on working for him before the 1992 election and his legacy on devolution to Scotland and Wales, the creation of the Minimum Wage, Freedom of Information, and the lessons of his leadership for the Labour Party today.
- Topic:
- History, Domestic Politics, Political Parties, and Labour Party
- Political Geography:
- United Kingdom and Europe
76. A History of British Elections with Iain Dale
- Author:
- Robert Saunders, Iain Dale, Philip Cowley, and Jennifer Davey
- Publication Date:
- 04-2024
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- Mile End Institute, Queen Mary University of London
- Abstract:
- On Wednesday 10 April 2024, the Mile End Institute celebrated the launch of Iain Dale's new book, British General Election Campaigns, 1830-2019. Featuring an essay on every general election since 1830, the book ranges across every aspect of electoral history: from landslides and hung parliaments to corruption, electoral violence and the birth of the modern campaign. With a cast ranging from William Gladstone and Sir Robert Peel to Margaret Thatcher and Boris Johnson, it explores how elections are won and lost, how they have changed over time, and what lessons can be drawn for the present.
- Topic:
- History, Elections, and Domestic Politics
- Political Geography:
- Britain, United Kingdom, and Europe
77. In Conversation with Sir David Lidington
- Author:
- David Lidington
- Publication Date:
- 04-2024
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- Mile End Institute, Queen Mary University of London
- Abstract:
- On Tuesday 26 March, the Mile End Institute welcomed the former Conservative MP and Cabinet minister, Sir David Lidington, to @QMUL. Sir David was elected as the Conservative MP for Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire from 1992 and retired from the House of Commons at the 2019 general election. In addition to being the longest-serving Minister for Europe, occupying the post throughout David Cameron's premiership, Sir David served as the Leader of the House of Commons, Secretary of State for Justice, and Minister for the Cabinet Office in Theresa May's administration. As Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster between January 2018 and July 2019, Sir David was widely recognised to be Theresa May's de facto Deputy Prime Minister. In a wide-ranging conversation with Dr Robert Saunders five years on from the collapse of Theresa May's Withdrawal Agreement, Sir David reflected on his early life in London, working as Douglas Hurd's special adviser at the Home Office and the Foreign Office during Margaret Thatcher and John Major's governments, and the start of his own parliamentary career after 1992. They also explored his work in government after 2010, the Brexit debate which dominated his last three years in Parliament, and the state of the Conservative Party today.
- Topic:
- Elections, Domestic Politics, and Conservative Party
- Political Geography:
- Britain, United Kingdom, and Europe
78. The Inaugural Hennessy Lecture: Sir Simon Schama
- Author:
- Simon Schama and Emma Griffin
- Publication Date:
- 03-2024
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- Mile End Institute, Queen Mary University of London
- Abstract:
- Sir Simon Schama is one of the most distinguished historians of our time. As a writer, broadcaster, columnist and art-critic, his books and documentaries have covered an extraordinary range of subjects, stretching from the histories of art, slavery and public health to Romanticism, baseball and the American future. His award-winning books include Citizens: A Chronicle of the French Revolution (1989), Landscape and Memory (1995), Rough Crossings (2005) and Foreign Bodies: Pandemics, Vaccines and the Health of Nations (2023). He has written three volumes on the History of Britain and two volumes on The Story of the Jews, both of which have been made into BBC TV series. He is currently Professor of Art History and History at the University of Columbia, and was knighted in 2018 for ‘services to history’. On Friday 8 March 2024, Sir Simon drew on his long expertise in British and Jewish history to deliver the first in a new series of distinguished 'Hennessy Lectures', celebrating the life of the historian and cross-bench peer Lord Hennessy of Nympsfield. In this inaugural lecture at @QMUL, hosted by Professor Emma Griffin (Head of @qmulschoolofhistory4447 and President of the Royal Historical Society), Sir Simon explored ‘Bad Chaps, Jews and the Failure of British Decency: Antisemitism in Historical Perspective’.
- Topic:
- History, Jews, and Peter Hennessy
- Political Geography:
- United Kingdom and Europe
79. Reforming the Centre of Government
- Author:
- Caroline Slocock and Ray Shostak
- Publication Date:
- 03-2024
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- Mile End Institute, Queen Mary University of London
- Abstract:
- Ahead of a potential change of government in the United Kingdom during this year, this webinar examines the reform of the centre of government across the world. Chaired by Professor Patrick Diamond, this webinar saw Professor Ray Shostak, Martin Alessandro, and Caroline Slocock explore the lessons that could be learned by British policy practitioners. In every government, the centre of government performs a set of crucial functions: the institutions and units working at the centre provide managerial direction and coherence to the complex governing machinery, not least in accelerating the delivery of priority objectives. In the UK, the operation in Number 10 Downing Street has become the focus of much attention in recent years with its leadership and oversight role increasingly questioned. Over the last decade, crises, and shocks - including global pandemics, climate hazards, economic crises, technological developments, and global conflicts - have enhanced the value of anticipatory governance and foresight, cross-ministerial planning and policy design, alongside real-time performance monitoring and intervention all provided through the centre of government.
- Topic:
- Government, Reform, Crisis Management, and Institutions
- Political Geography:
- United Kingdom and Europe
80. Who Governs? 50 years since the February 1974 election
- Author:
- Robert Saunders
- Publication Date:
- 03-2024
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- Mile End Institute, Queen Mary University of London
- Abstract:
- 50 years ago this month, Prime Minister Edward Heath called a general election. With severe economic problems including the quadrupling of oil prices, a particularly fierce miners’ strike and the introduction of a three-day week, Heath addressed the nation, telling the electorate that they had to choose between ‘a strong Government which has clear authority for the future to take decisions which will be needed’ and one that ‘abandons the struggle against rising prices under pressure from one particularly powerful group of workers’. The result was a monumental moment in British political history – the first hung parliament since 1929 – and, arguably, as Alan Bancroft suggests, consigned the ‘post-war settlement’ to the ‘intensive care unit, ultimately leading to its demise in 1979’. To mark this significant anniversary, the Edward Heath Academic Forum – a new academic network to encourage study of the politics of the 1970s, and Heath’s contribution to British, European, and global politics – held its first public event at Queen Mary University of London. Dr Robert Saunders as well as Lord Butler (Private Secretary to the Prime Minister, 1972-74) and Lord McNally (Political Advisor to James Callaghan, 1974-76, and Head of Political Office at 10 Downing Street, 1976-79) revisit the campaign, the Conservatives’ struggle to sustain the focus on ‘Who Governs?’, Heath’s efforts to form a coalition with the Liberals, and the eventual formation of a minority Labour government.
- Topic:
- Economics, Elections, Domestic Politics, Prime Minister, and Edward Heath
- Political Geography:
- United Kingdom and North America