On Shifting Ground

All around us, we see intractable challenges - problems which have defied solutions for years, even decades: Immigration reform, economic stagnation, inequality, political gridlock, corruption, civil war and terrorism. These are the issues elections are fought over, and it has become commonplace to conclude there are no solutions.

Jonathan Tepperman, Managing Editor of Foreign Affairs magazine, has traveled the world conducting more than 100 interviews, and he has reached a different conclusion: The solutions are out there. As he explains in his recent book, "The Fix: How Nations Survive and Thrive in a World in Decline," innovative approaches have been tried and tested, in democracies near and far, which may offer hope and hold insights for policy responses in the United States.

Is there cause for optimism? If tried and tested policy solutions are available around us, why do the solutions appear to spread so much more slowly than the problems themselves? How does a news culture which overlooks positive stories affect our determination and focus to pursue these solutions? Among a sea of cynics, is there a data-driven case for optimism today?

Speaker Jonathan Tepperman is Managing Editor of Foreign Affairs.

The discussion is moderated by Annie Maxwell, President of the Skoll Global Threats Fund.

For more information about this event please visit: http://www.worldaffairs.org/event-calendar/event/1643

Direct download: 10_13_16_Jonathan_Tepperman.mp3
Category:News & Politics -- posted at: 8:37am PDT

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