In The News

New Statesman: Revenge of the Nation State

John Bew November 15, 2018
The death of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi reveals that the international community has little control over rogue states that resist criticism by any means necessary. Khashoggi had criticized Saudi Arabia’s horrific and wasteful war in Yemen, and his murder “conforms to a general pattern of degeneration in 21st century international relations, in which respect for human rights is eroding,...

International Policy Digest: Chaos and Globalization

Daniel Alonso November 14, 2018
Globalization does not proceed in an orderly way. Instead, the pattern for globalization with trade and wars is often two steps forward, one step back. Daniel Alonso, writing for International Policy Digest, compares globalization of the late 19th century with modern forms in place since 1980. Trade and commerce developed during the 19th century, enriching many before coming to an abrupt halt...

New York Times: Nationalism Reshapes Europe

Peter Baker and Alissa J. Rubin November 13, 2018
World leaders gathered to commemorate World War I’s end a century ago, and “a ceremony meant to celebrate the ties that bind the world today in effect showcased the divisions that are pulling it apart,” explain Peter Baker and Alissa Rubin for the New York Times. The global order and US alliances are under strain, even as the world’s most pressing problems require global cooperation. “Patriotism...

El País: Image Manipulation Technologies

Moisés Naím November 13, 2018
New digital technologies known as “deepfake” can manipulate images and faces in realistic ways that trickl viewers. Governments and companies have long adjusted photographs and videos for propaganda or advertising purposes. However, Moisés Naím explains that deepfake is more dangerous, with improved technology that is readily accessible: “Everything about these videos is hyper realistic, and the...

DW: The UN Migration Pact

November 2, 2018
Displaced peoples and global migration are at historic highs with climate change, conflicts, natural disasters and an oversupply of jobs in some countries and undersupply in others. “The United Nations' Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration marks the first time the world body has ever agreed on a list of global measures to tackle the risks and challenges involved in...

Lawfare: Fear, Loathing in the Global Middle Class

Raj M. Desai October 31, 2018
The global economy has reduced poverty and increased the ranks of the middle class. For the first time in recorded history, people who earn enough for a comfortable life outnumber the poor. “But without a functioning system of social protection on which middle class individuals can rely, the growth in their numbers also carries significant risks of democratic retreat, conflict, and instability,”...

Financial Times: Global Recycling Crisis

Leslie Hook and John Reed October 26, 2018
Increases in online shopping combined with China’s ban on many plastic and other waste imports as of this year disrupted the global recycling industry, increasing costs and leaving piles of trash in communities and ports. The $200 billion industry processes more than 270 million tons of waste each year into new products – clothing, construction materials and more as described in a 2016 YaleGlobal...