TED Talks News and Politics

By TED

What's TED Talks News and Politics about?

Seeing the world beyond news headlines: politicians, journalists and researchers share their insights onstage at the TED conference, TEDx events and partner events around the world. You can also download these and many other videos free on TED.com, with an interactive English transcript and subtitles in up to 80 languages. TED is a nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading.

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TED Talks News and Politics episodes:

03.21.2023
What happens to gas stations when the world goes electric? | Emily Grubert
When the world goes fully electric, what happens to the cars, tools and livelihoods that rely on fossil fuels? Civil engineer and environmental sociologist Emily Grubert visualizes what a clean energy future will look like, outlining the considerations everyone needs...
03.07.2023
The clean energy hub of the future | Rebekah Shirley
Why aren't more people investing in Africa's green energy? Environmental researcher Rebekah Shirley outlines the continent's immense potential for renewable power and calls for collaborative international investment -- and partnership -- in Africa's climate future. "Let's cut past the talk...
12.15.2022
A creative approach to community climate action | Xavier Cortada
When he learned of the threat that rising sea levels posed to his coastal hometown of Miami, Florida, eco-artist Xavier Cortada founded a movement around beautifully designed elevation markers highlighting the risk of flood damage. The collaborative art project quickly...
11.28.2022
The fight for freedom in Iran and Ukraine | Christiane Amanpour
Neutrality isn't an option when it comes to the fight for personal and political freedom, says world-trotting journalist Christiane Amanpour. Offering context on some of the most significant stories impacting the world today, Amanpour details her experience covering the women-led...
11.23.2022
Whose land are you on? What to know about the Indigenous Land Back movement | Lindsey Schneider
Land thrives in Indigenous hands, and there are real, tangible ways you can help return what was stolen by colonizers from tribes across North America. Indigenous scholar Lindsey Schneider addresses the ill-gotten legacy of settler colonialism with an introduction to...
10.28.2022
How to transform your climate concern into action | Jane Fonda
Actor and activist Jane Fonda discusses her frontline work fighting for climate action, including recent efforts to support climate-minded candidates running for office in the US and to break the fossil fuel industry's stranglehold on the country's government. Hear why...
10.25.2022
What you can learn from people who disagree with you | Shreya Joshi
Youth leader Shreya Joshi diagnoses a key source of political polarization in the US and shows why having "uncomfortable conversations" with people you disagree with is crucial to bridging the divide. "When we are able to recognize what unites us,...
09.30.2022
How to revitalize a neighborhood -- without gentrification | Bree Jones
The housing market can be vexing: while some neighborhoods get ridiculously expensive and price out longtime residents, others have historic homes sitting vacant without demand. Equitable housing developer and TED Fellow Bree Jones shares how she found a way to...
09.02.2022
What capitalism gets right -- and governments get wrong | Katherine Mangu-Ward
Is capitalism a good thing? Journalist Katherine Mangu-Ward makes the case that "weirdos" left alone to innovate and explore far-out ideas in a free market system are our best hope for the future. She asks us to reconsider our qualms...
07.27.2022
The US can move past immigration prisons -- and towards justice | César Cuauhtémoc García Hernández
Imagine seeking safety abroad and instead being detained and forced to defend yourself in a high-stakes legal battle — alone. Law professor César Cuauhtémoc García Hernández explains how the asylum process in the US became warped into what we know...
06.17.2022
The actual cost of preventing climate breakdown | Yuval Noah Harari
Nobody really knows how much it would cost to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. Yet historian Yuval Noah Harari's analysis, based on the work of scientists and economists, indicates that humanity might avert catastrophe by investing the equivalent...
05.23.2022
How labor unions shape society | Margaret Levi
The weekend. Social Security. Health insurance. What do these things have in common? They all exist thanks to the advocacy of labor unions. Political economist Margaret Levi explains how these organizations forge equality and protect worker rights, calling for a 21st-century...
05.02.2022
An election redesign to restore trust in US democracy | Tiana Epps-Johnson
Election infrastructure in the United States is crumbling, says technologist Tiana Epps-Johnson, and, even worse, election officials are increasingly being attacked simply for doing their jobs. How can the country rebuild trust in its local and national elections? Epps-Johnson describes...
04.11.2022
Stand with Ukraine in the fight against evil | Garry Kasparov
Ukraine is on the front line of a war between freedom and tyranny, says chess grandmaster and human rights advocate Garry Kasparov. In this blistering call to action, he traces Vladimir Putin's rise to power and details his own path...
03.11.2022
War in Ukraine -- and what it means for the world order | Ian Bremmer
Russia's invasion of Ukraine has created previously unthinkable changes in geopolitics, seemingly overnight. In this vital conversation, political analyst Ian Bremmer takes a closer look at the global implications of the war, including NATO and the EU's renewed sense of...
03.08.2022
How to share public money fairly | Maja Bosnic
"We have the right to demand budgets to be equitable, to be fair," says economist Maja Bosnic. One way to get there is to make them gender-responsive. With examples from the nearly 80 countries around the world already factoring gender...
03.02.2022
The war in Ukraine could change everything | Yuval Noah Harari
Concerned about the war Ukraine? You're not alone. Historian Yuval Noah Harari provides important context on the Russian invasion, including Ukraine's long history of resistance, the specter of nuclear war and his view of why, even if Putin wins all...
02.23.2022
The counterintuitive psychology of insurance | Orit Tykocinski
The real reason you buy insurance may have as much to do with pleasing your psyche as it does protecting your wallet. Behavioral psychologist Orit Tykocinski explores the connection between insurance and the reality-distorting risks of "magical thinking" that may...
01.27.2022
A different understanding of American patriotism | Deval Patrick
American democracy cannot be great until it is good, says lawyer, Harvard professor and former governor of Massachusetts Deval Patrick. A self-identified patriot, Patrick stands behind the fundamental values and civic ideals that he believes make the US unique --...
12.20.2021
Use your voice, vote and wallet for climate action | Halla Tómasdóttir
Recently back from the COP26 UN climate conference in Scotland, former Icelandic presidential candidate Halla Tómasdóttir sums up the outcomes of the gathering, the progress she saw and the work that's left to be done this way: "The most difficult...
12.20.2021
Use your voice, vote and wallet for climate action | Halla Tómasdóttir
Recently back from the COP26 UN climate conference in Scotland, former Icelandic presidential candidate Halla Tómasdóttir sums up the outcomes of the gathering, the progress she saw and the work that's left to be done this way: "The most difficult...
11.23.2021
Dear world leaders, these are our climate demands | Xiye Bastida, Shiv Soin and Latif Nasser
Investing in green energy, holding large corporations accountable for their pollution, stopping pipeline and oil extraction initiatives -- these are non-negotiable actions to protect the planet, but they are still just the bare minimum, say climate activists Xiye Bastida and...
11.10.2021
A vision for sustainable energy in Africa | Chibeze Ezekiel
Africa needs new energy sources to fuel its development, but the continent should invest in renewable energy instead of cheap, polluting alternatives like coal, says climate inclusion activist Chibeze Ezekiel. He tells the story of how he worked with local...
10.25.2021
What to expect from COP26 | Countdown Summit
The closing session of the TED Countdown Summit in Edinburgh on Friday, October 15, 2021 started with a discussion about the upcoming United Nations climate conference, COP26, which will take place in Glasgow from October 31-November 12, 2021. The discussion...
10.25.2021
What to expect from COP26 | Countdown Summit
The closing session of the TED Countdown Summit in Edinburgh on Friday, October 15, 2021 started with a discussion about the upcoming United Nations climate conference, COP26, which will take place in Glasgow from October 31-November 12, 2021. The discussion...
09.29.2021
Why the passport needs an upgrade | Karoli Hindriks
It's time to give paper passports a digital upgrade, says entrepreneur Karoli Hindriks. Looking to Estonia's technology-driven government for inspiration, she envisions a world where immigration is no longer hindered by bureaucracy and needless repetition. Travel with her to a...
09.09.2021
The big myth of government deficits | Stephanie Kelton
Government deficits have gotten a bad rap, says economist Stephanie Kelton. In this groundbreaking talk, she makes the case to stop looking at government spending as a path towards frightening piles of debt, but rather as a financial contribution to...
09.09.2021
The big myth of government deficits | Stephanie Kelton
Government deficits have gotten a bad rap, says economist Stephanie Kelton. In this groundbreaking talk, she makes the case to stop looking at government spending as a path towards frightening piles of debt, but rather as a financial contribution to...
08.04.2021
Don't call people out -- call them in | Loretta J. Ross
We live in a call-out culture, says activist and scholar Loretta J. Ross. You're probably familiar with it: the public shaming and blaming, on social media and in real life, of people who may have done wrong and are being...
08.04.2021
Don't call people out -- call them in | Loretta J. Ross
We live in a call-out culture, says activist and scholar Loretta J. Ross. You're probably familiar with it: the public shaming and blaming, on social media and in real life, of people who may have done wrong and are being...
07.19.2021
Why COP26 is our best chance for a greener future | Alok Sharma
Something powerful is happening around the world. The issue of climate change has moved from the margins to the mainstream, says Alok Sharma, the President-Designate of COP26, the United Nations climate conference set to take place in November 2021 in...
07.19.2021
Why COP26 is our best chance for a greener future | Alok Sharma
Something powerful is happening around the world. The issue of climate change has moved from the margins to the mainstream, says Alok Sharma, the President-Designate of COP26, the United Nations climate conference set to take place in November 2021 in...
06.17.2021
How marijuana reform could repair, reclaim and restore communities | Khadijah Tribble
The war on drugs in the United States undid much of the progress of the Civil Rights Movement -- and today, it continues to derail millions within marginalized communities with arrests, convictions and incarcerations for marijuana possession. As more states...
06.17.2021
How marijuana reform could repair, reclaim and restore communities | Khadijah Tribble
The war on drugs in the United States undid much of the progress of the Civil Rights Movement -- and today, it continues to derail millions within marginalized communities with arrests, convictions and incarcerations for marijuana possession. As more states...
06.02.2021
Who makes judges? | Jessica Kerr
What qualifies someone to become a judge? The answer is surprisingly vague and even taboo to discuss. Lawyer Jessica Kerr sifts through the murky, mysterious process that sits at the center of the Commonwealth judicial system in countries like Australia...
05.24.2021
An app that empowers people to solve their legal problems | Rohan Pavuluri
If you can't afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you, right? Not in US civil court. From high legal fees to confusing paperwork and expensive lawyers, it can be difficult to settle civil matters. Entrepreneur and TED Fellow...
04.06.2021
US politics isn't broken. It's fixed | Katherine M. Gehl
The "broken" US political system is actually working exactly as designed, says business leader and activist Katherine Gehl. Examining the system through a nonpartisan lens, she makes the case for voting innovations, already implemented in parts of the country, that...
04.06.2021
US politics isn't broken. It's fixed | Katherine M. Gehl
The "broken" US political system is actually working exactly as designed, says business leader and activist Katherine Gehl. Examining the system through a nonpartisan lens, she makes the case for voting innovations, already implemented in parts of the country, that...
03.25.2021
An election system that puts voters (not politicians) first | Amber McReynolds
From hours-long lines and limited polling locations to confusing and discriminatory registration policies, why is it so hard to vote in the US? Voting rights expert Amber McReynolds offers a proven alternative: a new process, already happening in parts of...
03.25.2021
An election system that puts voters (not politicians) first | Amber McReynolds
From hours-long lines and limited polling locations to confusing and discriminatory registration policies, why is it so hard to vote in the US? Voting rights expert Amber McReynolds offers a proven alternative: a new process, already happening in parts of...
03.17.2021
How to have constructive conversations | Julia Dhar
"We need to figure out how we go into conversations not looking for the victory, but the progress," says world debate champion Julia Dhar. In this practical talk, she shares three essential features of productive disagreements grounded in curiosity and...
03.02.2021
How compassion could save your strained relationships | Betty Hart
When personal relationships and ideological differences collide, the result can lead to strained relations -- or even years of silence and distance. Actor Betty Hart offers an alternative to cold shoulders and haughty hellos: compassion, and a chance for growth...
03.02.2021
How compassion could save your strained relationships | Betty Hart
When personal relationships and ideological differences collide, the result can lead to strained relations -- or even years of silence and distance. Actor Betty Hart offers an alternative to cold shoulders and haughty hellos: compassion, and a chance for growth...
01.20.2021
3 ways to upgrade democracy for the 21st century | Max Rashbrooke
Democracy needs an update -- one that respects and engages citizens by involving them in everyday political decisions, says writer and researcher Max Rashbrooke. He outlines three global success stories that could help move democratic systems forward and protect society...
11.13.2020
How the new generation of Latinx voters could change US elections | María Teresa Kumar
A historic number of Latinx voters participated in the 2020 US presidential election, including a record number of young people casting their ballots for the first time. Civic leader María Teresa Kumar takes a look at the issues closest to...
10.27.2020
Climate change is becoming a problem you can taste | Amanda Little
Our food systems have not been designed to adapt to major disruptions like climate change, says environmental journalist Amanda Little. In this eye-opening talk, she shows how the climate crisis could devastate our food supply -- and introduces us to...
10.27.2020
Climate change is becoming a problem you can taste | Amanda Little
Our food systems have not been designed to adapt to major disruptions like climate change, says environmental journalist Amanda Little. In this eye-opening talk, she shows how the climate crisis could devastate our food supply -- and introduces us to...
10.26.2020
What if a US presidential candidate refuses to concede after an election? | Van Jones
If the 2020 US presidential election is close, the race could drag on in the courts and halls of Congress long after ballots are cast, says lawyer and political commentator Van Jones. Explaining why the customary concession speech is one...
10.26.2020
What if a US presidential candidate refuses to concede after an election? | Van Jones
If the 2020 US presidential election is close, the race could drag on in the courts and halls of Congress long after ballots are cast, says lawyer and political commentator Van Jones. Explaining why the customary concession speech is one...
10.10.2020
Europe's plan to become the first carbon-neutral continent | Ursula von der Leyen
With the ambitious goal of becoming the first carbon-neutral continent by 2050, the European Union has committed to creating a greener world for future generations. In this bold talk, Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, details the...

What's TED Talks News and Politics about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

TED Talks News and Politics episodes:

What happens to gas stations when the world goes electric? | Emily Grubert

The clean energy hub of the future | Rebekah Shirley

A creative approach to community climate action | Xavier Cortada

The fight for freedom in Iran and Ukraine | Christiane Amanpour

Whose land are you on? What to know about the Indigenous Land Back movement | Lindsey Schneider

How to transform your climate concern into action | Jane Fonda

What you can learn from people who disagree with you | Shreya Joshi

How to revitalize a neighborhood -- without gentrification | Bree Jones

What capitalism gets right -- and governments get wrong | Katherine Mangu-Ward

The US can move past immigration prisons -- and towards justice | César Cuauhtémoc García Hernández

The actual cost of preventing climate breakdown | Yuval Noah Harari

How labor unions shape society | Margaret Levi

An election redesign to restore trust in US democracy | Tiana Epps-Johnson

Stand with Ukraine in the fight against evil | Garry Kasparov

War in Ukraine -- and what it means for the world order | Ian Bremmer

How to share public money fairly | Maja Bosnic

The war in Ukraine could change everything | Yuval Noah Harari

The counterintuitive psychology of insurance | Orit Tykocinski

A different understanding of American patriotism | Deval Patrick

Use your voice, vote and wallet for climate action | Halla Tómasdóttir

Use your voice, vote and wallet for climate action | Halla Tómasdóttir

Dear world leaders, these are our climate demands | Xiye Bastida, Shiv Soin and Latif Nasser

A vision for sustainable energy in Africa | Chibeze Ezekiel

What to expect from COP26 | Countdown Summit

What to expect from COP26 | Countdown Summit

Why the passport needs an upgrade | Karoli Hindriks

The big myth of government deficits | Stephanie Kelton

The big myth of government deficits | Stephanie Kelton

Don't call people out -- call them in | Loretta J. Ross

Don't call people out -- call them in | Loretta J. Ross

Why COP26 is our best chance for a greener future | Alok Sharma

Why COP26 is our best chance for a greener future | Alok Sharma

How marijuana reform could repair, reclaim and restore communities | Khadijah Tribble

How marijuana reform could repair, reclaim and restore communities | Khadijah Tribble

Who makes judges? | Jessica Kerr

An app that empowers people to solve their legal problems | Rohan Pavuluri

US politics isn't broken. It's fixed | Katherine M. Gehl

US politics isn't broken. It's fixed | Katherine M. Gehl

An election system that puts voters (not politicians) first | Amber McReynolds

An election system that puts voters (not politicians) first | Amber McReynolds

How to have constructive conversations | Julia Dhar

How compassion could save your strained relationships | Betty Hart

How compassion could save your strained relationships | Betty Hart

3 ways to upgrade democracy for the 21st century | Max Rashbrooke

How the new generation of Latinx voters could change US elections | María Teresa Kumar

Climate change is becoming a problem you can taste | Amanda Little

Climate change is becoming a problem you can taste | Amanda Little

What if a US presidential candidate refuses to concede after an election? | Van Jones

What if a US presidential candidate refuses to concede after an election? | Van Jones

Europe's plan to become the first carbon-neutral continent | Ursula von der Leyen