A-id Think Tank's Podcast

For episode #10 of the A-id podcast, we were joined by Alice Krozer to discuss wealth inequality in Mexico.  

Alice Krozer is a postdoctoral researcher in Social Inequalities at the Colegio de México, and holds a PhD in Development Studies from the University of Cambridge.  

To start things off we talk about what wealth inequality is and more importantly, how it can be measured.  We then take a look at the case of Mexico where Alice tells us about her research on an often overlooked part of the subject, those at the top of the bracket.  After this, we go on to discuss the impact of COVID and the role of the Mexican government in combating wealth inequality. 

In episode #8 of the A-id podcast, Mollie Gerver, political philosopher and author of ‘The Ethics and Practice of Refugee Repatriation,” joined us to discuss her book based and her empirical fieldwork in countries including South Sudan, Uganda, and Thailand.

To start the episode off, Mollie explains to us when and what causes refugees to be detained, before moving on to discuss the EU and its immigration and asylum policy. Moving on, Mollie then tells us about refugee repatriation and some of the ethical conflicts that this raises. 

In episode #7 of the A-id podcast, we were joined by Raul Zepeda Gil to discuss the topic of organised crime in Mexico. 

Born in Mexico, Raul is currently a PhD Student in the Defence Studies Department at King's College London and is also a part of the Urban Violence Research Network and the Seminar of Violence and Peace of El Colegio de México. 

Raul gives us an overview of Mexico's War on Drugs, telling us how it all begun right through to today. We then go in to discuss the large scale recruitment of young people by cartels, exploring the macro-socioeconomic structures and micro-motivations behind this. Then to finish things up, Raul tells us why the Mexican government has continued to struggle with the problem, despite all of the different policy initiatives. 

In episode #6 of the A-id podcast, we were joined by Dr April Hovav to discuss the important topic of surrogacy looking specifically at the country of Mexico. 

Dr April Hovav is a Post-Doc at the Institute for Practical Ethics at the University of California, San Diego who has carried out extensive research work on surrogacy in Mexico and published for prestigious research outlets including Social Science & Medicine and Gender & Society. 

To start things off, Dr Hovav explains to us why surrogacy is such a complicated issue with diverging views that cover a number of social and moral questions. We then look at how the surrogacy industry works and how it highlights the vast wealth inequalities between countries. Finally, to wrap things up, Dr Hovav tells us about her findings from her research on the surrogacy industry in Mexico.

In episode #5 of the A-id podcast, we were joined by Tom Mills to discuss some of the major paradigm shifts in the mining industry. 

After a long career in the mining and energy sectors, he is now the Director and Head of Research at Two Oceans Strategy. Tom Mills is an inspiring leader working at the intersection between politics, society and economics in the natural resources and energy industries in emerging markets. 

With 85% of the world’s known natural resources being in non-OECD countries, we discuss the role of the mining industry for emerging and developing countries, looking specifically at how risks can be managed and opportunities can be maximised. We then move onto the debate around conscious consumerism, with Tom telling us how companies are beginning to charge a premium on sustainably produced goods and the wider implications this will have on the mining industry.

In episode #4 of the A-id podcast, we were joined by Louisa Acciari to discuss the recognition of domestic workers with and without COVID-19.

Working as a post-doctoral researcher at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and as a Programme Officer at the International Domestic Workers’ Federation, Louisa is a great profile to provide us with a unique angle on the situation in Brazil. 

To start things off Louisa tells us about the rise of COVID in Brazil and the impact this has had on domestic workers before and during the crisis. We discuss the legal and political debates around the recognition of domestic work as essential during the lockdown. Before moving on to look at how this is shaping the responses from institutions and activists.

For episode #3 of the A-id podcast, we were joined by Africa’s leading migration expert, Professor Aderanti Adepoju, to talk about migration policy in West Africa. 

Professor Adepoju has collaborated with the ILO, UN, UNFPA, and IOM and is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on Migration among others.

In the podcast, Professor Adepoju explains the current migratory situation within, from, and to the region. We discuss the role of ECOWAS and the EU, the growing international attention to West African migration policy-making and why this has spurred the emergence of new policy interests such as border control infrastructures, provision of reintegration support, and assisted voluntary returns.

For episode #2 of the A-id podcast, we were joined by Annalisa Prizzon to discuss the major shifts in the international development finance landscape and the related challenges and opportunities for low- and middle-income countries. 

Annalisa is a Senior Research Fellow at the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) in London. She has widely published on issues related to financing development, aid and external debt. 

To start things off we discuss how the development landscape has evolved over the past 20 years. Annalisa tells us about the transition away from aid and how donor countries are now focusing on infrastructure development projects. We then go on talk about debt carrying capacity with a specific mention to China and how it’s developing a new financing equilibrium. We conclude by discussing COVID-19 and the legacy that it will have on aid and financing. 

In this first episode, Daniel Callies joined us to discuss climate change, and more specifically, the alternatives to mitigation and adaptation.

Daniel is a postdoctoral scholar at the University of California San Diego Institute for Practical Ethics. His main areas of focus are on issues at the intersection of ethics, political philosophy, technology, and the environment. Last year, he published his first book titled Climate Engineering: A Normative Perspective.

We start off by discussing mitigation and adaptation as the two pillars of climate change, Daniel tells us about climate engineering and how alternative solutions such as carbon dioxide removal and solar radiation need to be a part of climate change policy. We then take a look at the international response and more specifically, the Paris Agreement. We discuss the shortfalls of the agreement, what can be done to get more commitment from countries, and the role that developed and developing countries have in bringing forward change. Finally, we conclude by talking about the legacy of the lockdown and whether this will pave the way for some major changes in how governments address climate change.