Zahra Hankir, a Lebanese British journalist and the editor of Our Women on the Ground, writes about the intersection of politics, culture, and society, particularly in the broader Middle East. Her work has appeared in publications including Condé Nast Traveler, The Observer Magazine, The Times Literary Supplement, BBC News, Al Jazeera English, Bloomberg Businessweek, the Los Angeles Times, and The Rumpus. She was awarded a Jack R. Howard Fellowship in International Journalism to attend the Columbia Journalism School and holds degrees in politics and ..read more

Rana Mitter is Professor of the History and Politics of Modern China at Oxford University, and will shortly become S.T. Lee Professor of U.S.-Asia Relations at the Harvard Kennedy School. He is a celebrated British historian, a published author, and a regular presenter for BBC Radio 3. In this episode, he shares his view on how China's relationship with and effect on the rest of the world is likely to change (or not change) and opens up about his personal career journey ..read more

We invite Luisa Leme, who has a decade's worth of experience heading multimedia projects in the Americas Society/Council of the, to share her experience with reporting on South America. Leme is interviewed by our South American Events Officer, Pippa Linden-Howes ..read more

Suzanne Kianpour is an Emmy-nominated BBC journalist. She has reported on the frontlines of conflict all around the world, with her recent work including coverage of the protests in Iran following the death in police custody of Mahsa Amini. Additionally, Kianpour is the creator and host of “Women Building Peace”, a BBC series that connects women trying to bring peace with lived experience in conflict zones with women who are globally influential. In collaboration with the Cherwell, we invite Suzanne about her experience as a frontline journalist, the Iranian protests, and the future of civil a ..read more

Regional economic/political unions are some of the most important organisations in our world today. We invite Fandi Achmad to discuss how unions like ASEAN, African Union, Mercosur, etc. can shape individual member states economically, politically, and socially. He is interviewed by marketing director Brandon Sambrano. Fandi Achmad is a DPhil candidate in International Development at Oriel College, University of Oxford. He has over ten years of work experience covering issues of international trade and digital trade policies, competition policy, and financial inclusion. He held various positi ..read more

Brian is a geopolitical strategist and advisor publishing extensively on Sino-American relations, statecraft in Asia, and the intersection of nascent technologies, political philosophy, and public policy. Currently pursuing a DPhil in Political Theory at Balliol College, Oxford, Brian graduated with a Distinction in the MPhil in Politics (Theory) at Wolfson College, and First Class Honours from Pembroke with a BA in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics, having attended Oxford on a full scholarship on a Kwok Scholarship. Brian has taught modules in politics to undergraduate students at Oxford an ..read more

In recent years there has been a rise of right-wing extremism and radicalisation which has had an effect on mainstream politics and attitudes in society. Are our governments doing enough to combat this? What does it mean for the development of our societies? In this episode we discuss the topic with Dr Daniel Koehler, the co-founder of the first peer-reviewed open-access journal on de-radicalization and the director of the German Institute on Radicalization Studies. The links to some of Dr Koehler's work are attached below.  The German Institute on Radicalization Studies http://girds.org ..read more

The Refugee Crisis has been an ongoing phenomenon these past few years especially, which continuously makes the news in various formats. But what are the implications of being a refugee, and how does Britain especially deal with this? In this episode, Sara Al Soodi interviews immigration and asylum barrister Colin Yeo on this topic, including a discussion on Britain's immigration system and much more. Colin Yeo is a barrister at Garden Court Chambers in London and has most recently published his book in 2020, "Welcome to Britain: Fixing Our Broken Immigration System", charting and examining im ..read more

Marnie speaks with Andrea Filippi who works for PeaceWomen Across the Globe. Started in 2005 this organisation is committed to the active participation of women in peace processes and to a peaceful and secure world for all. In this episode we discuss their projects in Palestine and Ukraine as well as looking at their campaigns in their home country Switzerland. We debate the tensions present in feminist thought in the area of development and methods of aiding women toward achieving their goals whilst remaining vigilant of interventionism. Andrea would like to recommend al-Shabaka, a fantastic ..read more

Is Democracy under threat? In this episode, Esther, our Europe Events Officer, speaks with Niheer Dasandi, a senior lecturer in Politics and Development at Birmingham University and author of ‘Is Democracy Failing?’ Throughout the interview, they talk about the challenges that contemporary democracy is facing as well as recent trends. There are discussions about populism, social media, the European Union, covid-19 and climate change. Key considerations include the efficacy of democracy and its future. Podcast by Esther Coomber. Music by Lorcan Cudlip Cook. Find out more about the Oxford Societ ..read more