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151. The Fall of Syria's Assad Regime: A Syrian American Perspective (Episode 23)

Author:
Feras Mousilli and Sahar Aziz
Publication Date:
12-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Center for Security, Race and Rights (CSRR), Rutgers University School of Law
Abstract:
On December 8, 2024, the Syrian people overthrew Bashar Al Assad, bringing to an end a brutal fifty-four-year dictatorship. Although the Syrian people partook in the wave of revolutions during the Arab Spring, their efforts to bring about democracy in Syria were hijacked by a host of external actors in what deteriorated into a violent proxy war between Russia, Iran, Israel, Saudi Arabia, and the United States. As a result, over 300,000 Syrians were killed, and 13 million Syrians became refugees or internally displaced within the country, as explained in CSRR’s 2019 report “Toward Empowerment and Sustainability: Reforming America’s Syrian Refugee Policy (https://csrr.rutgers.edu/issues/towar...) .” Our guest, Feras Mousilli, is the founder and managing partner of the Lloyd & Mousilli law firm, a recipient of a Fulbright award from the U.S. State Department, and a leader in the Syrian diaspora in the United States. Mr. Mousilli provides the unique perspectives of Syrian Americans who have been waiting for the fall of the Assad regime for decades. He offers his insights into what led to the overthrow of Bashar al Assad and what to expect next in Syria.
Topic:
Diaspora, Refugees, Syrian War, and Bashar al-Assad
Political Geography:
Middle East and Syria

152. Hostile Homelands: The New Alliance Between India and Israel with Azad Essa

Author:
Azad Essa
Publication Date:
12-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Center for Security, Race and Rights (CSRR), Rutgers University School of Law
Abstract:
As the largest state purchaser of Israeli weapons, India has rebuked calls for it to impose an arms embargo in response to allegations of Israel’s genocidal campaign in Gaza. Journalist Azad Essa explores the myths of India's support for Palestine as well as Indian right wing groups’ desire to become a Hindu nationalist version of Israel.
Topic:
Genocide, Hindutva, Hindu Nationalism, 2023 Gaza War, and Arms Embargo
Political Geography:
South Asia, Middle East, India, and Israel

153. Gaza, Genocide and International Law with Francesca Albanese (12/4/2024)

Author:
Francesca Albanese
Publication Date:
12-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Center for Security, Race and Rights (CSRR), Rutgers University School of Law
Abstract:
Join the Rutgers Center for Security, Race and Rights for a presentation by Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestine Territories, for an international legal and policy analysis of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza since October 8, 2023. In what numerous international legal scholars conclude constitutes a genocide, the Israeli military has killed over 54,000 Palestinians, injured over 120,000 Palestinians, severely restricted entrance of food aid and medicine causing mass starvation, destroyed every university, destroyed or damaged over 70% of buildings, destroyed or damaged 85% of schools, displaced 90% of the civilian population, and destroyed or severely damaged every hospital in Gaza.
Topic:
Genocide, Humanitarian Crisis, Palestinians, and 2023 Gaza War
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, Palestine, and Gaza

154. The Illusory Peace in the Israeli Palestinian Conflict with Amb. Hesham Youssef (Episode 22)

Author:
Hesham Youssef
Publication Date:
12-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Center for Security, Race and Rights (CSRR), Rutgers University School of Law
Abstract:
The present state of the unfulfilled peace brokering process between Palestine and Israel stands to undermine any meaningful progression toward the two-state solution proffered by dominant actors in the West. Host Sahar Aziz (https://saharazizlaw.com/) , in discussion with the former Egyptian Ambassador Hesham Youssef, explores the argument that Western ambivalence to the issue of Palestinian sovereignty has significantly eroded the path toward a peace agreement.
Topic:
Diplomacy, Israeli–Palestinian Conflict, Peacebuilding, and Two-State Solution
Political Geography:
Middle East, Palestine, and Egypt

155. A Day in the Life of Abed Salama: Anatomy of a Jerusalem Tragedy with Nathan Thrall

Author:
Nathan Thrall
Publication Date:
11-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Center for Security, Race and Rights (CSRR), Rutgers University School of Law
Abstract:
Immersive and gripping, Nathan Thrall’s Pulitzer prize winning book A Day in the Life of Abed Salama is an indelibly human portrait of the struggle over Israel/Palestine that offers a new understanding of the tragic history and reality of one of the most contested places on earth.
Topic:
Human Rights, Palestinians, and Book Talk
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, Palestine, and West Bank

156. Blind Spot: America and the Palestinians with Khaled Elgindy (Episode 21)

Author:
Khaled Elgindy and Sahar Aziz
Publication Date:
11-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Center for Security, Race and Rights (CSRR), Rutgers University School of Law
Abstract:
The bilateral relationship between the U.S. and Israel has effectively blinded it to the most detrimental factors to the dissolution of the peace-brokering process, most notably the impact of Israeli occupation on Palestinian sovereignty and the legitimacy of international human rights law. Host Sahar Aziz (https://saharazizlaw.com/) will discuss these complex dynamics with author and political scientist Khaled Elgindy by decentering a unilateral perspective on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from a socio-historical lens.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Human Rights, Sovereignty, International Humanitarian Law (IHL), and 2023 Gaza War
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, Palestine, and United States of America

157. Eyewitness to the Palestinian Genocide in Gaza (Episode 19)

Author:
Heba Khalil and Wilhelmi (Willy) Massay
Publication Date:
10-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Center for Security, Race and Rights (CSRR), Rutgers University School of Law
Abstract:
Since October 8, 2023, the Israeli military has killed over 41,000 Palestinians (https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/...) , severely injured over 100,000 Palestinians in Gaza, and destroyed the medical infrastructure in what international legal scholars have described as a genocide (https://twailr.com/public-statement-s...) . Israel has also severely restricted the entrance of food and medical supplies from the Gaza Strip, resulting in the massive starvation of over 2 million Palestinian civilians. CSRR Faculty Affiliate Dr. Heba Khalil (https://csrr.rutgers.edu/about/facult...) guest hosts today’s episode with an interview with Wilhelmi (Willy) Massay, a Tanzanian American trauma nurse who went to Gaza on a medical mission in the spring of 2024. Mr. Massay provides a harrowing account of his eyewitness to the systematic destruction of Gaza’s medical system, a severe shortage of medical equipment, and the consequent preventable deaths of thousands of Palestinians.
Topic:
Genocide, Human Rights, Humanitarian Crisis, and 2023 Gaza War
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, Palestine, and Gaza

158. One State Reality: What is Palestine Israel? with Nathan J. Brown and Shibley Telhami

Author:
Shibley Telhami and Nathan J. Brown
Publication Date:
10-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Center for Security, Race and Rights (CSRR), Rutgers University School of Law
Abstract:
The One State Reality argues that a one state reality already predominates in the territories controlled by the state of Israel. The One State Reality forces a reconsideration of foundational concepts such as state, sovereignty, and nation, encourages different readings of history, and provides context for confronting uncomfortable questions such as whether Israel/Palestine is an "apartheid state."
Topic:
Apartheid, Sovereignty, State, and Palestinians
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, and Palestine

159. International Law and Palestine with George Bisharat (Episode 20)

Author:
George E. Bisharat and Sahar Aziz
Publication Date:
11-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Center for Security, Race and Rights (CSRR), Rutgers University School of Law
Abstract:
The indeterminate and contested nature of the terms of international law indicate a prevalent concern regarding the legitimacy of international law in the context of Israel’s war with Hamas and the ongoing military campaign in the Gaza Strip. Host Sahar Aziz (https://saharazizlaw.com/) explores this topic with Law Professor and expert on Middle Eastern studies Dr. George Bisharat to dissect the prevalent inconsistencies in enforcing and applying international human rights as persistent roadblocks to achieving justice for Palestinians.
Topic:
Human Rights, International Law, and 2023 Gaza War
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, Palestine, and Gaza

160. Antisemitism and Palestinian Genocide: A Conversation with Raz Segal

Author:
Raz Segal
Publication Date:
11-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Center for Security, Race and Rights (CSRR), Rutgers University School of Law
Abstract:
Dr. Raz Segal traces the emergence of antisemitism as a modern phenomenon tied to the nation-state and the late colonial world and its settler outposts. The struggle against antisemitism from the late 19th century, therefore, focused on protecting a group from exclusionary and violent states. The weaponization of this struggle as an Israeli state project since the 1990s shifted the focus away from a group, Jews, to protecting the state from criticism of its settler colonialism and violence against a people, Palestinians. This weaponization has intensified markedly since October 2023 in the context of Israel's genocidal assault on Gaza, and on university campuses across the US, supporters of Israel use it to silence, intimidate, harass, expel, and fire Palestinian, Arab, Muslim, and increasingly more also anti-Zionist Jewish faculty members and students. The weaponization of the struggle against antisemitism is, therefore, an expression of anti-Palestinian racism, which also puts Jews and others at risk.
Topic:
Genocide, Settler Colonialism, Universities, and Antisemitism
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, Palestine, Gaza, and United States of America

161. Southeast Asia's Multipolar Future

Author:
Thomas Parks
Publication Date:
11-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University
Abstract:
Thomas Parks discusses his new book "Southeast Asia’s Multipolar Future: Averting a New Cold War," in which he argues that Southeast Asia is emerging as an open, autonomous region where small and mid-level powers can maintain their sovereignty and shape the regional order. The book further contends that Southeast Asian countries also have a remarkable capacity to manage asymmetrical relations and balance external powers, and predicts that the region's future will look entirely different from its Cold War past. Speaker: Thomas Parks, Vice President, the Asia Foundation Moderator: Ann Marie Murphy, Adjunct Senior Research Scholar; Professor and Director, Center for Foreign Policy Studies, School of Diplomacy and International Relations, Seton Hall University Hosted by the Weatherhead East Asian Institute and co-sponsored by the Asia Foundation and NYSEAN.
Topic:
Sovereignty, Multipolarity, and Regional Politics
Political Geography:
Asia and Southeast Asia

162. Elections Aftermath, Session III: China, Taiwan, and the U.S.-Japan Alliance After the Elections

Author:
Andrew J. Nathan, Thomas Christensen, Satoru Mori, Ayumi Teraoka, and George Miller
Publication Date:
11-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University
Abstract:
In the third panel of the full-day conference co-sponsored by Columbia University and Keio University, authorities on East Asian and global politics delve into the challenges and opportunities arising from leadership transitions in both Tokyo and Washington and how the two allies can address security challenges surrounding the Taiwan Strait. (Please note: This is a partial video edited in accordance with speaker preferences.) Speakers: Andrew J. Nathan, Class of 1919 Professor of Political Science, Columbia University Thomas Christensen, James T. Shotwell Professor of International Relations, Columbia University Satoru Mori, Professor, Faculty of Law, Keio University Ayumi Teraoka, Postdoctoral Research Scholar and Lecturer, Columbia University George Miller, Associate Dean, Academic Affairs and Adjunct Professor, Columbia’s Journalism School (moderator)
Topic:
Security, Foreign Policy, Bilateral Relations, Elections, and Alliance
Political Geography:
Japan, China, Taiwan, and United States of America

163. North Korea Since the 1990s and U.S.-North Korea Relations: Problems and Prospects

Author:
Haksoon Paik and Arvid Lukauskas
Publication Date:
11-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University
Abstract:
Speaker: Haksoon Paik, President of the Academy of Kim Dae-jung Studies Moderator: Arvid Lukauskas, Executive Director, Picker Center for Executive Education and MPA in Economic Policy Management, School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University This talk examines the strategic significance of North Korea and the Korean Peninsula for the United States and the world. It then discusses North Korea's political and economic landscape since the early 1990s, focusing on current developments. The talk highlights North Korea's security and foreign policies, emphasizing: (1) its strategy of survival and development for the 21st century, and (2) U.S.-North Korea relations, with a particular focus on nuclear and ballistic missile issues. It also reviews what happened at the Hanoi summit and the deep disillusionment among key stakeholders engaged in Korean Peninsula affairs following the failed Hanoi summit. The discussion then shifts to North Korea's recent alignment with Russia post-Hanoi, examining the implications of its mutual defense treaty with Russia for the Korean Peninsula, the Russia-Ukraine War, and broader regional and global politics. The talk considers the possibility of a renewed Cold War dynamic due to the geopolitical alignments surrounding the Koreas (US-Japan-South Korea vs. China-Russia-North Korea) and the increased threat of nuclear war on the Korean Peninsula. Finally, it concludes by highlighting challenges and prospects for improvement. This event was hosted by the Weatherhead East Asian Institute.
Topic:
Security, Foreign Policy, Bilateral Relations, and Weapons
Political Geography:
Asia, North Korea, North America, and United States of America

164. Artificial Intelligence for Tibetan Knowledge Systems / Geshe Lobsang Monlam

Author:
Geshe Lobsang Monlam
Publication Date:
07-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University
Abstract:
Monlam Information Technology has been at the forefront of advances in Tibetan language information technology for over two decades. At its forefront is Geshe Lobsang Monlam, PhD, a monk and scholar who has dedicated his life to integrating Tibetan knowledge into the digital world. Join us for a special presentation by Geshe Monlam on Monlam AI, his latest initiative to use artificial intelligence to provide accessible Tibetan knowledge systems for learning and spiritual growth, as well as The Monlam Grand Tibetan Dictionary project and app, and the forthcoming Tibetan Digital Library Project. Speaker bio: Venerable Geshe Lobsang Monlam, PhD, is a monk and scholar who has dedicated his life to integrating Tibetan knowledge into the digital world. He achieved his geshe degree at Sera Mey Thoesam Norling Monastic Institute, India, in 2013. A passion for computers and gadgetry led him to create Tibetan computer font and software applications, and to establish Monlam IT. His fonts, software, and apps are used by millions – and they are all distributed for free. Geshe Monlam's commitment to integrating Tibetan knowledge into the digital world is acknowledged by prominent religious leaders and by academic and science institutions worldwide. Geshe la earned a PhD in Library Science in 2023. Co-sponsored by C.V. Starr East Asian Library and the Modern Tibetan Studies Program at Columbia University.
Topic:
Language, Innovation, Artificial Intelligence, and Knowledge Systems
Political Geography:
Asia and Tibet

165. Diplomatic Ties and Community Engagement: A Dialogue with U.S. Ambassadors

Author:
Edgard Kagan, Marc E. Knapper, Heather Roach Variava, Lien-Hang T. Nguyen, and Ann Marie Murphy
Publication Date:
07-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University
Abstract:
Speakers: The Honorable Edgard Kagan, U.S. Ambassador to Malaysia The Honorable Marc E. Knapper, U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam The Honorable Heather Roach Variava, U.S. Ambassador to Laos Moderators: Lien-Hang T. Nguyen, Dorothy Borg Chair in the History of the United States and East Asia, Director of the Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University Ann Marie Murphy, Adjunct Senior Research Scholar; Professor and Director, Center for Foreign Policy Studies, School of Diplomacy and International Relations, Seton Hall University Background: In the vibrant landscape of international education and cultural exchange, the connections between the United States and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are more significant than ever. Notably, almost 50,000 students from ASEAN member states enrich U.S. campuses with their perspectives, contributing to a rich tapestry of international dialogue. Furthermore, travel and tourism statistics from 2022 highlight the deepening of people-to-people ties, with nearly 578,000 visitors from ASEAN countries to the U.S. and almost 1.8 million Americans exploring the diverse cultures of ASEAN. Additionally, the vibrant Asian American community, with more than one-third of the estimated 24 million identifying with ASEAN ethnicities, underscores these regions' profound connections. Speakers' Bios: Edgard D. Kagan, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, was most recently the Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for East Asia and Oceania at the National Security Council. Ambassador Kagan has previously served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. embassies in New Delhi, India and in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Deputy Assistant Secretary in the State Department’s Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, Consul General at the U.S. Consulate General in Mumbai, India, and Deputy Director of the Washington Office of the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. A recipient of the Presidential Meritorious Award and numerous other State Department performance awards, Ambassador Kagan speaks French, Mandarin Chinese, Hungarian, and some Spanish. He is a cum laude graduate of Yale University. Marc E. Knapper is a member of the Senior Foreign Service of the U.S. Department of State and the Ambassador to Vietnam. He most recently served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Korea and Japan from August 2018 to July 2021. Prior to assuming this position, Marc was Chargé d’Affaires ad interim in Seoul from 2017 to 2018 and Deputy Chief of Mission from 2015 to 2016. Earlier assignments include Director for India Affairs, Director for Japan Affairs, and Seoul, Baghdad, Tokyo, and Hanoi. Marc is a recipient of the Secretary of State’s Distinguished Service Award, the nation’s highest diplomatic honor. Marc has also received a Presidential Meritorious Service Award and the Department of State’s Linguist of the Year Award. He is a summa cum laude graduate of Princeton University, and also studied at the University of Tokyo, Middlebury College’s intensive Japanese program, the Army War College, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Seminar XXI program. Marc speaks Korean, Japanese, and Vietnamese. Heather Variava was sworn in as the U.S. Ambassador to the Lao People’s Democratic Republic on January 19, 2024. She is a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister Counselor. Previously, she served as Deputy Chief of Mission and Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Manila, Philippines. She also served as Deputy Chief of Mission and Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. Mission to Indonesia, and as U.S. Consul General in Surabaya, Indonesia. In Washington, Ambassador Variava was Director of the Office of Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Maldives, and Bhutan in the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs at the U.S. Department of State. A member of the U.S. Foreign Service since 1996, Ambassador Variava has also served overseas in India, Mauritius, Vietnam, and Bangladesh. Prior to joining the Foreign Service, Ambassador Variava worked as a newspaper reporter in Waterville, Maine. Raised in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Ambassador Variava received an undergraduate degree in International Relations from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. She holds master’s degrees from the University of Missouri and from the University of Sussex in the United Kingdom. In 2012, Ambassador Variava received a master’s degree in National Security Strategy from the National War College in Washington, D.C., and in 2014 she completed a fellowship in executive leadership with the International Women’s Forum (IWF). She is the recipient of numerous Meritorious and Superior Honor Awards, as well as a Presidential Rank Award. She speaks Indonesian and has studied Vietnamese, French, and German. This event is hosted by the Weatherhead East Asian Institute and co-sponsored by the New York Southeast Asian Network (NYSEAN).
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, ASEAN, and Community Engagement
Political Geography:
Asia and United States of America

166. Is Guanxi Changing? Referral Hiring and Social Networks in China

Author:
Elena Obukhova and Yao Lu
Publication Date:
05-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University
Abstract:
Speaker: Elena Obukhova, Associate Professor of Strategy and Organization, McGill University Moderator: Yao Lu, Professor of Sociology, Columbia University What is the role of Guanxi in China today? To answer this question, Professor Elena Obukhova examines the relationship between social networks and referral hiring. In the first study, she compares China and the US. In the second study, she explores differences between China’s provinces. This event is part of the 2023-2024 lecture series on “Labor Market Transformations in China" and is hosted by the Weatherhead East Asian Institute and cosponsored by Columbia's China Center for Social Policy.
Topic:
Labor Market, Social Networks, and Hiring
Political Geography:
China and Asia

167. Toward A Comparative History of Sexual Violence and War - A Book Talk with Feminist Chizuko Ueno

Author:
Chizuko Ueno and Carol Gluck
Publication Date:
05-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University
Abstract:
Speaker: Chizuko Ueno, Professor Emerita University of Tokyo, Chief Director of the Non Profit Organization, Women’s Action Network Moderator: Carol Gluck, George Sansom Professor Emerita of History, Columbia University Sexual violence in war is a perennial and a global phenomenon. The “comfort women” system of sexual slavery in Asia and sexual assaults by Allied soldiers in Europe during World War II, the rape camps in Bosnia in the 1990s war in the former Yugoslavia -- the list is long and continues to this day. Based on her book, A Comparative History of War and Sexual Violence, Ueno explores a range of issues, including the discourse of victimhood and the question of agency, rape as a weapon of war, and also love and “horizontal collaboration” between enemies. A provocative argument from Japan’s leading feminist and influential social activist. Speaker Bio: Chizuko Ueno is an emeritas professor at the University of Tokyo. Chief Director of the Non Profit Organization, Women’s Action Network ( http://wan.or.jp/) . A leading feminist theorist and an influential social critic, a prolific author of books and articles and a high-profile intellectual in Japan. In 1994, one of her many acclaimed books, Kindai Kazoku no Seiritsu to Shuen (The Rise and Fall of the Modern Family), won the coveted Suntory Academic Award. English publications are available as follows; The Modern Family in Japan: Its Rise and Fall (2009), Nationalism and Gender (2004). Asahi Shinbun Award winner in 2012 for her contribution to feminism and women’s studies, in addition to studies of care. Received Hän Honor from the Finnish government in 2019 for the contribution to promote gender equality. Selected as a member of American Academy of Art and Sciences in 2020. Event sponsored by the Weatherhead East Asian Institute and co-sponsored by the Japan Research Program.
Topic:
War, History, Sexual Violence, Comfort Women, and Book Talk
Political Geography:
Japan, Europe, Asia, and Balkans

168. Israeli, Palestinian, and American relations: Now and in the future (Session 3)

Author:
Peter Krause
Publication Date:
11-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
The struggle over normalization and the future of American-Arab-Israeli relations in the MENA region
Topic:
International Relations, Normalization, Israeli–Palestinian Conflict, and 2023 Gaza War
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, Palestine, and United States of America

169. Israeli, Palestinian, and American relations: Now and in the future (Session 2)

Author:
Peter Krause
Publication Date:
10-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
Words Matter: Understanding how Palestinians and Israelis Define, Use, and React to “Charged” Words from Terrorism to Settler, Intifada to Peace
Topic:
Terrorism, Peace, Israeli–Palestinian Conflict, Israeli Settlers, Terminology, and Intifada
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, Palestine, and United States of America

170. Lessons from battlefield Ukraine: With Ukraine’s former defense minister Oleksii Reznikov

Author:
Oleksii Reznikov, Mariana Budjeryn, Carol Saivetz, and Elizabeth Wood
Publication Date:
10-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
Lessons from battlefield Ukraine: A conversation with Ukraine’s former defense minister Oleksii Reznikov: Thursday, October 17th, 2024. Speaker: Oleksii Reznikov, Ukraine’s former defense minister, led Ukraine’s defense establishment in the lead up to Russia’s full-scale invasion and during the first year and a half of the war. Mr. Reznikov will discuss the successes and challenges of Ukraine’s defense effort, the role of technology and uncrewed systems, and the evolution of the battlefield in the Russo-Ukrainian war. Discussant: Mariana Budjeryn, PhD, is a senior research associate with the Project on Managing the Atom (MTA) at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center. She is the author of "Inheriting the Bomb: The Collapse of the USSR and the Nuclear Disarmament of Ukraine." Co-Chairs: Carol Saivetz is a senior advisor in the MIT Security Studies Program. She is the author and contributing co-editor of books and articles on Soviet and now Russian foreign policy issues. Elizabeth Wood is the Ford International Professor of History at MIT. She is the author most recently of "Roots of Russia's War in Ukraine," as well as articles on Vladimir Putin, right-wing populism in Russia and Turkey, and more.
Topic:
Security, Defense Policy, Armed Conflict, and Russia-Ukraine War
Political Geography:
Russia and Ukraine

171. Starr Forum: The 2024 US presidential election: The world is watching

Author:
Katrina Burgess, John Githongo, Prerna Singh, Daniel Ziblatt, and Evan Lieberman
Publication Date:
10-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
Starr Forum: The 2024 US presidential election: The world is watching: Wednesday, October 2nd, 2024. Experts weigh-in on how citizens and leaders from other world regions are viewing the November 5th US election. What do they believe is at stake for their countries and regions? Is America still seen as a model for democracy? How do they view the candidates? SPEAKERS: Katrina Burgess on Latin America. Katrina Burgess is professor of political economy and director of the Henry J Leir Institute of Migration and Human Security at the Fletcher School at Tufts University. Her research areas include Latin America, political economy of development, comparative politics, and migration and diasporas. She is the writer and producer of Waylaid in Tijuana, a documentary film that explores US immigration policies. "Courting Migrants: How States Make Diasporas and Diasporas Make State," is one of her award-winning books. John Githongo on Africa. John Githongo hails from Kenya, where he was a journalist and became a leading light in the international Transparency movement. He has held a variety of government, non-government and academic appointments, and was recognized by Foreign Policy magazine as one of the world’s 100 top global thinkers. Among his many posts, he serves as a senior advisor to the Office of the President of South Sudan on governance. He currently resides at the MIT Center for International Studies as its prestigious Robert E Wilhelm fellow. Prerna Singh on Asia. Prerna Singh is the Mahatma Gandhi Associate Professor of Political Science and International Studies at Brown University. Her research interests include the comparative political economy of development; identity politics; and the politics of South Asia and East Asia. Her book, "How Solidarity Works for Welfare: Subnationalism and Social Development in India," analyzes the causes of variations in social welfare institutions and development by focusing on the dramatic divergences in social policies and outcomes across Indian provinces. Daniel Ziblatt on Europe. Daniel Ziblatt is the director of Harvard University's Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies where he is also Eaton Professor of Government at Harvard University. His research focuses on Europe and the comparative study of democracy. His recent book, "Tyranny of the Minority: Why American Democracy Reached the Breaking Point," co-authored with Steve Levitsky, provides an analysis of American democracy in comparative perspective. Moderator: Evan Lieberman is the Total Professor of Political Science and Contemporary Africa and the director of the MIT Center for International Studies. He conducts research on the political-economy of development, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. He studies the democratic politics of governing ethnically and racially diverse societies, including the challenges of public health, climate adaptation, and ensuring respect for human dignity. Lieberman is the author, most recently, of "Until We Have Won Our Liberty: South Africa after Apartheid."
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Democracy, Domestic Politics, Donald Trump, Presidential Elections, and Kamala Harris
Political Geography:
Global Focus and United States of America

172. Israeli, Palestinian, and American relations: Now and in the future

Author:
Peter Krause
Publication Date:
10-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
The 2024 U.S. election and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: How the outcome here impacts the situation there
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Donald Trump, Presidential Elections, Israeli–Palestinian Conflict, 2023 Gaza War, and Kamala Harris
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, Palestine, and United States of America

173. Starr Forum: The Israel-Gaza crisis and US policy

Author:
Dennis Ross and Melani Cammett
Publication Date:
09-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
Starr Forum: The Israel-Gaza crisis and US policy: Tuesday, September 24th, 2024. Introduction: Evan Lieberman, Director, Center for International Studies and Total Professor of Political Science and Contemporary Africa Moderator: Philip Khoury, MIT Vice Provost and Ford International Professor of History Closing remarks: Karl Reid, Vice President for Equity and Inclusion, Institute Community & Equity Office Speakers: Dennis Ross is the counselor and William Davidson Distinguished Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. He also teaches at Georgetown University’s Center for Jewish Civilization. For more than twelve years, Ambassador Ross played a leading role in shaping US involvement in the Middle East peace process as the US point man on the peace process in both the George H W Bush and Bill Clinton administrations. He also served as special assistant to President Obama and as National Security Council senior director for the Central Region, and as special advisor on Iran to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. Melani Cammett is the Clarence Dillon Professor of International Affairs and director of the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs at Harvard University. She also holds a secondary faculty appointment in the Harvard Chan School of Public Health. Cammett's award-winning books include "Compassionate Communalism: Welfare and Sectarianism in Lebanon" and "A Political Economy of the Middle East." Her current research projects explore "toleration" and reconciliation after ethnoreligious violence, development and identity politics. She has published numerous articles in academic and policy journals, consults for development policy organizations, and serves as a commissioner on the Lancet Commission on Syria.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Humanitarian Crisis, Armed Conflict, and 2023 Gaza War
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, Gaza, and United States of America

174. South African Elections 2024: The Results and Implications for the Region and Beyond

Author:
Pranish Desai, Daniel de Kadt, Rorisang Lekalake, Lwanda Maqwelane, and Evan Lieberman
Publication Date:
06-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
SPEAKERS Pranish Desai is a senior data analyst at Good Governance Africa, a research and advocacy organization headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa. His work at GGA focuses on the issues of subnational governance in Southern Africa, political accountability, coalition politics in South Africa and encouraging data-driven policymaking within the region. Pranish is an incoming doctoral student at MIT. Daniel de Kadt works as an assistant professor at the London School of Economics, where he is an affiliate of the Data Science Institute and a senior visiting fellow in government. Prior to this he worked at the University of California, Merced, after completing his PhD at MIT. He has written extensively on the electoral politics of South Africa. Rorisang Lekalake is a senior analyst/methodologist for Afrobarometer, charged with contributing to the organization’s analytical outputs, strengthening existing methodologies, and contributing to building the capacity of network staff and partners in quantitative research methods and analysis. She is a 2023 PhD recipient from MIT. Lwanda Maqwelane, a PhD candidate at Rhodes University, is an early career research activist with a focus on policy development, just energy transitions and climate change education. She currently serves as a researcher at the Center for Researching Education and Labour at the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa. MODERATOR Evan Lieberman is the Total Professor of Political Science and Contemporary Africa and the director of the MIT Center for International Studies. He also directs the Global Diversity Lab (GDL) and MIT’s global experiential learning program, MISTI. His most recent book is Until We Have Won Our Liberty: South Africa after Apartheid (Princeton University Press, 2022).
Topic:
Elections, Domestic Politics, and Regional Politics
Political Geography:
Africa and South Africa

175. Disinformation and Smearing in British Politics

Author:
Robert Saunders, Gill Bennett, Ciaran Martin, and Jean Seaton
Publication Date:
11-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Mile End Institute, Queen Mary University of London
Abstract:
One hundred years ago this month, as voters prepared to go to the polls for the third time in two years, British politics was rocked by what would become the most famous ‘dirty trick’ in its long history: the ‘Zinoviev Letter’. The Letter, encouraging the British proletariat to revolutionary fervour, was apparently sent by Grigori Zinoviev, head of the Bolshevik propaganda organization, to the British Communist Party in September 1924. Its publication by the Daily Mail just before the General Election humiliated the first ever Labour government, headed by Ramsay MacDonald, when its political opponents used it to create a 'Red Scare' in the media. With growing concerns about the impact of AI-driven disinformation on elections around the world, the ‪@mileendinstitute4300‬ and the Centre for Eurasian, Russian and East European Studies marked the Letter's centenary by exploring how disinformation, ‘Fake News’ and smearing have affected, and continue to shape, British politics today. Dr‪. Robert Saunders was joined by Dr Gill Bennett (Chief Historian of the UK Foreign Office‬, 1995-2005), Professor Ciaran Martin (CEO of the National Cyber Security Centre, 2016-2020) and Professor Jean Seaton (Official Historian of the BBC).
Topic:
Politics, History, Elections, and Disinformation
Political Geography:
Britain and Europe

176. Sathnam Sanghera: How British Imperialism Has Shaped the Globe

Author:
Sathnam Sanghera
Publication Date:
10-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Mile End Institute, Queen Mary University of London
Abstract:
Sathnam Sanghera is an award-winning writer, broadcaster, novelist and Times columnist, who published a bestselling memoir in 2008 called The Boy with the Topknot. More recently, he has published two best-selling volumes on the legacies of the British Empire - Empireland: How Imperialism Has Shaped Modern Britain, and Empireworld: How British Imperialism Has Shaped the Globe. On Wednesday 9 October, the Mile End Institute welcomed Sathnam to ‪Queen Mary University of London‬ for the second in our series of distinguished lectures in honour of our patron, the historian and crossbench peer, Peter Hennessy. Sathnam was in conversation with Professor Jerry Brotton from the School of the Arts Queen Mary University of London about his latest book, Empireworld, the legacies of the British Empire, the teaching of imperial history, the role of pride and shame in our thinking about the past, and the role of empire in contemporary culture.
Topic:
Imperialism, History, and British Empire
Political Geography:
Britain and Europe

177. Decolonizing Russian History: Necessary Corrective or a Bridge Too Far? (11/14/2024)

Author:
Nathaniel Knight
Publication Date:
11-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
The Harriman Institute
Abstract:
In the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, scholars of the Russian Empire entered a phase of a critical self-examination. Widely accepted narratives of Russia’s historical development, some have argued, only serve to valorize imperial domination and exclude the voices of peoples bearing the burden of Russian oppression. What is needed, it is suggested, is to shift the narrative away from the Imperial center to shed more light on the autonomous development of subject peoples. Yet such calls for decolonization have been met with skepticism and resistance in some quarters. Historians, in particular, often see the decolonization paradigm as an essentialist model that recycles nationalist tropes and neglects the advances of recent scholarship. In his talk, Professor Knight will weigh these contrasting viewpoints focusing on underlying historical narratives and how they have evolved since the end of the Cold War.
Topic:
History, Decolonization, Post-Cold War, and Russia-Ukraine War
Political Geography:
Russia and Eurasia

178. Scholarly ZEIT GUEST | P. Khazanov & R. Utkin: The Russias that Were Lost & the Futures of the Field

Author:
Mark Lipovetsky, Tatiana Efremova, Pavel Khazanov, and Roman Utkin
Publication Date:
06-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
The Harriman Institute
Abstract:
Scholarly ZEIT GUEST is a video podcast about new ideas and trends in Slavic Studies, co-hosted by Prof.Mark Lipovetsky and Dr.Tatiana Efremova at the Harriman Institute, Columbia University. The eighth episode features a conversation with Pavel Khazanov, Associate Professor of Russian at Rutgers University, and Roman Utkin, Associate of Russian, East European, and Eurasian studies at Wesleyan University. We talk about decentering metropolitan discourse and amplifying the margins, discuss the incoherences within diaspora culture and the post-Soviet ideological consensus, and explore ways of interrogating the canon through our teaching practice.
Topic:
Diaspora, Ideology, Post-Soviet Space, Teaching, Slavic Studies, and Academia
Political Geography:
Russia and Eurasia

179. Scholarly ZEIT GUEST | Marijeta Bozovic: Generational Traumas and Avant-Garde Post-

Author:
Mark Lipovetsky, Tatiana Efremova, and Marijeta Bozovic
Publication Date:
04-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
The Harriman Institute
Abstract:
Scholarly ZEIT GUEST is a video podcast about new ideas and trends in Slavic Studies, co-hosted by Prof.Mark Lipovetsky and Dr.Tatiana Efremova at the Harriman Institute, Columbia University. The seventh episode features a conversation with Marijeta Bozovic, Professor of Slavic Languages & Literatures at Yale University. We explore insights drawn from collaborative projects in regional studies, talk about the link between poetics and politics, and discuss new leftist perspectives in REEES.
Topic:
Decolonization, Academia, Leftist Politics, Teaching, and Slavic Studies
Political Geography:
Russia

180. How the Cold War Solved the Problem of Soviet Displaced Persons After World War II (10/24/24)

Author:
Sheila Fitzpatrick and Elise Giuliano
Publication Date:
10-2024
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
The Harriman Institute
Abstract:
This talk will draw on the analysis of postwar great power politics and diplomacy with regard to “displaced persons” from the Soviet Union offered in her new book, Lost Souls: Soviet Displaced Persons and the Birth of the Cold War, to be published by Princeton University Press in November.
Topic:
Cold War, Diplomacy, Power Politics, Displacement, World War II, and Soviet Union
Political Geography:
Europe and Soviet Union

181. A Year of War: A Reporter's View of Russia's Invasion of Ukraine (3/23/23)

Author:
Joshua Yaffa and Keith Gessen
Publication Date:
04-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
The Harriman Institute
Abstract:
Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine last year, Joshua Yaffa, who spent a decade living and reporting in Russia, has traveled across Ukraine—where he also has deep experience as a journalist—witnessing the war up close and publishing regularly in The New Yorker. He will share his impressions from his numerous reporting trips, which began in the early, fraught days in Kyiv, when the capital was the primary target of the Russian military; to Kharkiv, a historically Russian-speaking city that has faced relentless rocket and artillery fire; from the decimated towns of the Donbas to Zaporizhzhia, a regional capital in the south that became a waystation for Ukrainians fleeing the horrors of Mariupol and elsewhere. Yaffa will describe how the conflict looks and feels on the ground, whether for civilians trapped under bombardment or newly enlisted soldiers. He will also discuss a number of key questions at the start of the war's second year. What has been the role and effect of Western military aid? What sort of end to the fighting is possible? And how will both Russia and Ukraine be forever changed as a result?
Topic:
Conflict, Journalism, and Russia-Ukraine War
Political Geography:
Russia, Ukraine, and Eastern Europe

182. Jewish Female Mental Health Professionals between Poland, the Nazis, and America (3/29/23)

Author:
Klara Naszkowska and Christopher Caes
Publication Date:
04-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
The Harriman Institute
Abstract:
The forced migration of the Jewish people from Europe to the United States in 1933-1941 is one of the most significant phenomena in twentieth–century intellectual history. However, close to nothing has been written on over eighty Jewish women mental-health professionals (mostly psychoanalysts) who fled Nazi persecution to the US, where they became “essential workers” in mental-health care when America joined World War II. Their professional contributions notwithstanding, they are now neglected, understudied, and at risk of being forgotten. The presentation introduces the diaspora of Polish Jewish mental-health professionals: psychoanalysts, social workers, child welfare workers, social psychologists, and body psychotherapists. It will discuss their personal and professional biographies, including family and religious backgrounds, education and career patterns, experiences of exile and (non)belonging, their relationships with the past, and the construction of national, spiritual and cultural identities, with a special attention to Jewish identity. The presentation is based on an ongoing research project located at the intersection of Jewish gender and women’s studies, personal and oral history, and immigration. The primary source of information on the women under investigation is archival personal accounts: unpublished memoirs, correspondence, interviews, diaries, remnants, memories, and post–memories, along with original interviews with family members, friends, and colleagues.
Topic:
History, Holocaust, Forced Migration, Jewish community, and Nazi Germany
Political Geography:
Eastern Europe, Poland, North America, and United States of America

183. A Conversation with Azovstal Defender Illia Samoilenko (2/24/23)

Author:
Illia Samoilenko and Elise Giuliano
Publication Date:
07-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
The Harriman Institute
Abstract:
28 year-old Ukrainian Lieutenant Illia Samoilenko was the deputy commander of the National Guards of Azov. Days before the Azovstal surrender in May, Lieutenant Samoilenko held a news conference broadcast live from a bunker beneath the steelworks. At this press conference, he described for two hours the desperate conditions that wounded soldiers faced. He also said that he and all the others saw themselves as “dead men.” Samoilenko was held in solitary confinement as a prisoner of war by the Russian Federation for 120 days before he was released in a prisoner swap last month.
Topic:
Armed Forces, Conflict, Russia-Ukraine War, and Azovstal
Political Geography:
Ukraine, Eastern Europe, and Mariupol

184. Propaganda Addiction: How Russians Learned to Trust the Kremlin's Falsehoods

Author:
Anton Shirikov
Publication Date:
09-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
The Harriman Institute
Abstract:
When Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the world was shocked to learn how often Russians fell for the Kremlin’s pro-war propaganda pushed through loyal state media. Some citizens even trusted television reports more than they believed their own family members in Ukraine. In his talk, Dr. Shirikov will explain how authoritarian media can gain and cultivate such public trust, presenting evidence from surveys and experiments he conducted in Russia in recent years. He will discuss whether Russians are–as scholars often think–sophisticated and discerning news consumers, why they find propaganda messages credible, and why so few of them seek alternative information sources. This research offers insights into how Vladimir Putin’s regime manages public opinion and maintains acceptance of the war.
Topic:
Public Opinion, Authoritarianism, Media, Propaganda, and Russia-Ukraine War
Political Geography:
Russia, Ukraine, and Eastern Europe

185. Book Talk with Jessamyn Abel, Author of "Dream Super-Express"

Author:
Jessamyn Abel, Takuya Tsunoda, and Ariana King
Publication Date:
10-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University
Abstract:
A symbol of the "new Japan" displayed at World's Fairs, depicted in travel posters, and celebrated as the product of a national spirit of innovation, the Tōkaidō Shinkansen—the first bullet train, dubbed the "dream super-express"—represents the bold aspirations of a nation rebranding itself after military defeat, but also the deep problems caused by the unbridled postwar drive for economic growth. At the dawn of the space age, how could a train become such an important symbol? In Dream Super-Express (Stanford University Press, 2022), Jessamyn Abel contends that understanding the various, often contradictory, images of the bullet train reveals how infrastructure operates beyond its intended use as a means of transportation to perform cultural and sociological functions.
Topic:
History, Infrastructure, Sociology, Culture, Economic Growth, and Book Talk
Political Geography:
Japan and Asia

186. Rise From the Fall, Unmasking the Vietnamese-American Identity: A Conversation with Author Lan Cao

Author:
Lan Cao and Naja Pham Lockwood
Publication Date:
10-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University
Abstract:
This Asia in Action Speaker Series event revolves around the life and literary journey of Lan Cao, a Vietnamese American writer. It begins with her early life in Vietnam and her migration to America in 1975, as depicted in her novel Monkey Bridge, emphasizing themes of exile, loss, and hope. It then delves into the significance of authentic Vietnamese storytelling through her work The Lotus and the Storm, offering a unique perspective on the Vietnam War. The discussion also touches on Vietnam's economic transition with Doi Moi policies and its reflection in Three Seasons, while exploring its impact on Lan Cao's identity as a Vietnamese American and refugee. Finally, her latest book, Family of Six Tones: Refugee Mother and American Daughter, is introduced, along with her ongoing literary journey and future projects.
Topic:
Immigration, Culture, Vietnam War, Identity, and Storytelling
Political Geography:
Vietnam, North America, Southeast Asia, and United States of America

187. Book Talk: The Dragon Roars Back: Transformational Leaders and Dynamics of Chinese Foreign Policy

Author:
Suisheng Zhao
Publication Date:
09-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University
Abstract:
Professor Zhao will draw on his new book, The Dragon Roars Back: Transformational Leaders and Dynamics of Chinese Foreign Policy to trace the dramatic shifts in China’s foreign policy since its founding in 1949 and the key roles played by Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping, and Xi Jinping. Each of these transformational leaders reshaped foreign policy to better fit their aims for China. His presentation will focus on Xi Jinping’s power concentration and its implications for Chinese foreign policy.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, History, Xi Jinping, Mao Zedong, and Book Talk
Political Geography:
China and Asia

188. Starr Forum: A permanent partnership? How Xi and Putin are shaping a turbulent world

Author:
Natasha Kuhrt
Publication Date:
11-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
SPEAKERS: Natasha Kurt is a senior lecturer of international peace and security in the Department of War Studies at King's College London. Her research interests include Russian and Eurasian security/foreign policy especially in Asia. Elizabeth Wishnick is a professor of political science and law at Montclair State University. Her research interests include international relations in Asia and Chinese foreign policy. CHAIR: Carol Saivetz is a senior fellow in the MIT Security Studies Program. She is the author and contributing co-editor of books and articles on Soviet and now Russian foreign policy issues.
Topic:
Partnerships, Geopolitics, Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, Multipolarity, and Russia-Ukraine War
Political Geography:
Russia and China

189. Starr Forum: The Israel-Hamas conflict: Expert perspectives on the ongoing crisis

Author:
Marsin Alshamary, David Kirkpatrick, Peter Krause, Steven Simon, and Evan Lieberman
Publication Date:
11-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
Speakers: Marsin Alshamary on the regional impact. Alshamary, MIT PhD '20, is an assistant professor at Boston College, and an expert on religion, civil society and social movements in the Shi’a Middle East. David Kirkpatrick on Hamas’s strategy. Kirkpatrick is a staff writer for The New Yorker and has worked for more than two decades as a reporter for the New York Times. Peter Krause on the historical context and Israeli strategy. Krause, MIT PhD '11, is an associate professor of political science at Boston College, and an expert on international security, Middle East politics, terrorism and political violence, nationalism, and rebels and revolution. Steven Simon on US policy. Simon, a former Robert E Wilhelm Fellow at CIS, served as the National Security Council (NSC) senior director for the Middle East and North Africa during the Obama Administration and as the NSC senior director for counterterrorism in the Clinton White House. Moderator: Evan Lieberman is the Total Professor of Political Science and Contemporary Africa at MIT and the director of the Center for International Studies (CIS).
Topic:
Security, Human Rights, Hamas, and Armed Conflict
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, Palestine, and Gaza

190. Cuban Privilege: The Making of Immigrant Inequality in America

Author:
Susan Eckstein
Publication Date:
10-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
About the speaker: Susan Eckstein is a Professor in the Pardee School of Global Studies and in the Sociology Department at Boston University. She has written numerous books and articles on Mexican urban poor, political-economic developments in Cuba, Cuban immigrants, immigration policy, impacts of Latin American revolutions, and edited books on Latin American social movements and social rights, and on immigrant impacts in their homelands.
Topic:
Poverty, Inequality, and Immigrants
Political Geography:
Cuba, North America, and United States of America

191. Starr Forum: Power and Progress: Our Thousand-Year Struggle Over Technology and Prosperity

Author:
Daron Acemoglu and Fotini Christia
Publication Date:
10-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
A thousand years of history and contemporary evidence make one thing clear: progress depends on the choices we make about technology. New ways of organizing production and communication can either serve the narrow interests of an elite or become the foundation for widespread prosperity. Today, digital technologies and artificial intelligence threaten jobs and democracy through excessive automation, massive data collection, and intrusive surveillance. Will the next decades bring shared prosperity or a further move in the direction of two-tiered societies? Join us for this important discussion with Daron Acemoglu, the co-author of Power and Progress.
Topic:
Science and Technology, Communications, Inequality, Elites, Prosperity, and Production
Political Geography:
Global Focus

192. Starr Forum: Rebuilding Ukraine While Under Fire

Author:
Oleg Ustenko and Simon Johnson
Publication Date:
09-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
A discussion with experts--including Oleg Ustenko, the economic advisor to President Zelensky--on rebuilding Ukraine in the midst of the ongoing war. Joining Ustenko is Simon Johnson, professor at MIT Sloan and former chief economist at the International Monetary Fund.
Topic:
Economics, Reconstruction, Armed Conflict, and Russia-Ukraine War
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, and Ukraine

193. MIT X TAU Series: Africa's Future Leaders

Author:
Oby Ezekwesili and Claude Grunitzky
Publication Date:
03-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
The final webinar in the third annual webinar series focused on various aspects of sustainable development in Africa. Featuring: Oby Ezekwesili is the former Minister of Education in Nigeria and a co-founder of the #BringBackOurGirls movement. She is an economic policy expert, an advocate for transparency, accountability, good governance and human capital development, a humanitarian and an activist.
Topic:
Development, Governance, Leadership, Sustainable Development Goals, and Human Capital
Political Geography:
Africa

194. MIT X TAU Series: Africa's New Data

Author:
Kenfield Griffith and Claude Grunitzky
Publication Date:
05-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
The sixth webinar in the third annual webinar series focused on various aspects of sustainable development in Africa. Featuring: Kenfield Griffith is the CEO and co-founder at Tappi.
Topic:
Development, Investment, Sustainability, and Data
Political Geography:
Africa

195. MIT X TAU Series: Africa's Forgotten Heroes

Author:
Kudzanai Chiurai and Claude Grunitzky
Publication Date:
05-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
The fifth webinar in the third annual webinar series focused on various aspects of sustainable development in Africa. Featuring: Kudzanai Chiurai is a Zimbabwean artist and activist. His repertoire of art combines the use of mixed media which involves the use of paintings, drawings, videos and photographs to address and tackle social, political and cultural issues in Zimbabwe.
Topic:
Development, Culture, Sustainability, and Activism
Political Geography:
Africa

196. MIT X TAU Series: Africa’s New Activists

Author:
Busisiwe Seabe and Claude Grunitzky
Publication Date:
05-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
The fourth webinar in the third annual webinar series focused on various aspects of sustainable development in Africa. Featuring: Busisiwe Seabe is a social justice activist in South Africa and a co-founder of the #FeesMustFall movement.
Topic:
Development, Social Justice, and Activism
Political Geography:
Africa and South Africa

197. Starr Forum: Grand Delusion: The Rise and Fall of American Ambition in the Middle East

Author:
Steven Simon and Andrew Bacevich
Publication Date:
05-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
Speaker: Steve Simon is the Robert E Wilhelm Fellow at the MIT Center for International Studies (CIS). He is a non-resident senior research analyst with the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft—a think tank based in Washington, DC. He served as the National Security Council (NSC) senior director for the Middle East and North Africa during the Obama Administration and as the NSC senior director for counterterrorism in the Clinton White House. These assignments followed a fifteen-year career at the US Department of State and academic teaching posts. His newly published book is “Grand Delusion: The Rise and Fall of American Ambition in the Middle East” (Penguin Random House, April 2023). The book will be available for purchase at the event.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Syrian War, and State Department
Political Geography:
Middle East, Syria, and United States of America

198. MIT X TAU Series: Africa's New Development Models

Author:
Nicolas Kazadi and Claude Grunitzky
Publication Date:
04-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
The third webinar in the third annual webinar series focused on various aspects of sustainable development in Africa. Featuring: Nicolas Kazadi is is a Congolese politician and career diplomat who has been Ambassador-at-large for the Democratic Republic of the Congo since 7 March 2019 and Minister of Finance since 12 April 2021.
Topic:
Development, Politics, Sustainability, and Models
Political Geography:
Africa and Congo

199. Emile Bustani Seminar: "The Egyptian army in the 1967 Six-Day War: Lessons for the present"

Author:
Khaled Fahmy
Publication Date:
04-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
Few events in modern Middle Eastern history were as central as the Six-Day War of 1967. Surpassed in its significance probably only by the Nakba of 1948, the Naksa, or “setback,” as the 1967 war was euphemistically called, saw Israel inflicting a decisive defeat on three of its Arab neighbors combined. Of all the belligerent countries, Egypt was the most deeply affected. Its army was obliterated; its territory occupied; its leader, Gamal Abdel Nasser, once the undisputed leader of Egypt and the Arab World, was a broken man; and Nasserism was dealt a death blow. This talk looks closely into the performance of the Egyptian army in Sinai over the 36 hours of combat. It argues that while the defeat was inevitable, given Israel’s military, diplomatic and economic superiority, the scale, speed and depth of the Egyptian army’s defeat requires a close look at civil-military relations. Specifically, it looks at how the Egyptian army, starting from 1961, had deviated from its military mandate and encroached on all aspects of the economy, creating what was termed “a state within a state”. The paper also tracks the fatal steps undertaken by Abdel-Hakim Amir, the Army’s Commander-in-Chief, to snatch control of the army from Nasser, so much so that by the outbreak of the war in June 1967 Nasser was ignorant of his army’s true capabilities. The talk concludes by drawing comparisons with the present-day army under President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi and asks to what degree the current army’s preoccupation running its economic empire has affected its fighting capabilitie
Topic:
History, Armed Conflict, Military, and Six-Day War
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, Palestine, North Africa, and Egypt

200. Starr Forum: Chornobyl to Zaporizhzhia: The Atom and its Impact on Ukraine’s Politics and Security

Author:
Kate Brown and Mariana Budjeryn
Publication Date:
04-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
MIT Center for International Studies
Abstract:
Speakers: Kate Brown is the Thomas M Siebel Distinguished Professor in History of Science at MIT. She is on leave from MIT AY2022-23 and at the Netherland Institute for Advanced Studies. Brown’s research interests illuminate the point where history, science, technology and bio-politics converge to create large-scale disasters and modernist wastelands. She has written four books about topics ranging from population politics, linguistic mapping, the production of nuclear weapons and concomitant utopian communities, the health and environmental consequences of nuclear fallout from the Chernobyl disaster to narrative innovations of history writing in the 21st century.
Topic:
Security, Nuclear Weapons, Politics, Nuclear Power, and Chernobyl Disaster
Political Geography:
Ukraine and Eastern Europe