On Shifting Ground

Whether it be the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), the historic nuclear deal with Iran, or the upcoming climate negotiations in Paris, the European Union and the United States are increasingly called upon to demonstrate global leadership. As EU Ambassador to the United States, David O’Sullivan plays a key role in transatlantic relations, working with all 28 EU member states in Washington, DC to coordinate and present the EU position in the United States.

Ambassador O’Sullivan will discuss policy priorities and major challenges facing the EU and the United States in 2015, including ensuring a sustainable economic recovery, dealing with emerging threats, and working to promote democracy, human rights and good governance around the world.

Jane Wales, President and CEO of the World Affairs Council, moderates the discussion.

This is a program of the World Affairs Councils of America in partnership with the Delegation of the European Union to the United States.

For more information about this event please visit: http://www.worldaffairs.org/events/event/1521

Direct download: 10_13_15_David_O_Sullivan.mp3
Category:News & Politics -- posted at: 2:01pm PDT

Energy efficiency is one of the easiest and most cost effective ways to curb carbon emissions, not to mention beneficial for businesses and consumers alike in terms of cost reduction. But behaviors are hard to change. Leveraging the internet and connected smart devices may be the key to incorporating energy efficient technologies and practices into everyday life, and significantly curbing carbon emissions. In developing countries, where the biggest opportunities to elevate energy productivity exist, energy efficient technologies are poised to make huge inroads. What does the future hold for the internet of things and its impact on energy usage and ultimately reducing carbon emissions?

Speaker Dora Hsu, Chief Platform Officer, SmartThings, is in discussion with Michael Soucie, Head of Consumer Product Partnerships, Nest Labs.

Adam Satariano, Technology Reporter, Bloomberg News, moderates the discussion.

For more information about this event please visit: http://www.worldaffairs.org/media-library/event/1541

Direct download: 10_16_15_WA15_Impacting_Climate_Change.mp3
Category:News & Politics -- posted at: 1:56pm PDT

Upward mobility and the resulting growth of the middle class have long been the promise of the American dream, inspiring many to come to our shores. But technology-driven globalization, while creating great wealth and lifting many from poverty, has also left many behind. High growth economies like China, India and Nigeria are experiencing disparities that have implications for stability. And, in the US, inequality in income is the highest it has been since 1928. How can technology innovation be matched by social innovation? What will be the future of work in high and low growth economies? And how can the current and future workforce prepare for the jobs that await? These are the questions that are on the minds of some of our country’s leading technologists, including LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman. The World Affairs Council has invited Hoffman and fellow innovators to explore these questions and report out to those gathering here at WorldAffairs 2015.

Speakers

Reid Hoffman, Founder of LinkedIn and Greylock Partners
James Manyika, McKinsey Global Institute
Byron Auguste, Co-founder, Opportunity@Work
Zoe Baird, President, Markle Foundation
Moderator: Jane Wales, CEO, World Affairs Council and Global Philanthropy Forum; Vice President, The Aspen Institute

For more information about this event please visit: http://www.worldaffairs.org/media-library/event/1540

 

Direct download: 10_16_15_WA15_On_My_Mind_Inequality.mp3
Category:News & Politics -- posted at: 1:52pm PDT

Experts say the next epidemic will not be a question of 'if' it will happen, but rather 'when.' With that in mind and looking at the recent catastrophic Ebola outbreak in West Africa, what are the lessons learned from this tragedy and what needs to be done to ensure it does not happen again? Governments in the affected countries played key roles in both stopping the spread of Ebola and failing to respond properly. How can troubled governments best react to epidemics? What role do the business and philanthropic communities have in the prevention of – or reaction to – an outbreak?

Julie Gerberding, Executive Vice President, Population Health, Merck & Co., Inc., is in discussion with Joia Mukherjee, Chief Medical Officer, Partners in Health.

The conversation is moderated by Eva Harris, Faculty Director, Center for Global Public Health; Professor of Infectious Disease, University of California, Berkeley.

For more information about this event please visit: http://www.worldaffairs.org/media-library/event/1538

Direct download: 10_16_15_WA15_Combat_Future_Epidemics.mp3
Category:News & Politics -- posted at: 1:45pm PDT

The world is growing smaller in more ways than one – while the global population increases, covering more and more of the planet, the amount of livable, arable land diminishes in the face of a changing climate. How can we meet the needs of nine billion people while protecting the natural resources necessary for growth and prosperity? We will focus on this delicate balance and discuss ways to ensure a sustainable future, starting with our own backyard, in California.

Speaker Jonathan Foley is Executive Director and William R. and Gretchen B. Kimball Chair of the California Academy of Sciences.

Scott Shafer, Host and Reporter, The California Report; Senior Correspondent, KQED NEWSROOM, KQED, moderates the discussion.

For more information about this event please visit: http://www.worldaffairs.org/media-library/event/1537

Direct download: 10_16_15_WA15_Jonathan_Foley.mp3
Category:News & Politics -- posted at: 1:40pm PDT

This week’s episode focuses on US foreign policy and national security.

The United States is currently facing many foreign policy and national security challenges: ISIS continues to threaten security and regional stability, the Syrian civil war looks no closer to resolution and is now creating a refugee crisis that extends well into the European Union; and the United States’ nascent nuclear deal with Iran still faces many hurdles. Amidst all of this, the candidates are gearing up for the US presidential election next year.

World Affairs' CEO Jane Wales sat down with former US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates to get his take on this complex situation. After speaking with Secretary Gates, she continued the discussion of US foreign policy and national security with Michele Flournoy, co-founder and CEO of the Center for a New American Security.

Direct download: 10_12_15_Robert_Gates-Michele_Flournoy.mp3
Category:News & Politics -- posted at: 2:36pm PDT

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