Dyason House Podcast

Following President Donald Trump’s so-called Middle East 'Peace to Prosperity' Plan, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu recently highlighted Israel’s intention to annex parts of the West Bank. In this episode, Dr Michelle Lesh at the University of Melbourne discusses the significance of this move and her experience working in the area.

Diplomacy is the most important institution of our society of states. Diplomacy’s main aim is to enable states to secure their foreign policy objectives without resorting to force. Its primary tools are international dialogue and negotiation. Its success for any country is influenced by both the country’s hard and soft power with diplomats playing an important role in the projection of soft power. Based on a career spent promoting Australia’s interests overseas, John Richardson, former Ambassador to Brazil, discusses with James Carey what it means to conduct diplomacy, what a diplomatic negotiation looks like, and his experience of bridging cultural gaps.

Emmy-nominated Australian Journalist, Karishma Vyas, discusses her career as an international reporter. In doing so, this episode unravels the phenomenon of fake news and political polarisation while debating the importance of press freedom and equal representation in the media.

After an introduction to the series, this special edition of the Dyason House podcast begins with Gillian Triggs. Leaving behind a very successful career as an international lawyer and academic, the former President of the Human Rights Commission has recently become Assistant Secretary-General of the UNHR. With Gillian’s exclusive insight into the UN Refugee agency, this episode sheds light on the interplay between current refugee crises and the COVID-19 global pandemic.

In this episode we spoke with long-term watcher of Kurds, Monash University's Will Gourlay, about the Kurdish struggle for political equality in Turkey. As President Erdogan moves to consolidate his support, he appears increasingly likely to forsake the Kurdish cause for Turkish nationalist support.

Since coming to power in 2002, President Erdogan has slowly dismantled Turkey's democracy, suppressing press freedoms and concentrating constitutional authority in his hands. The Turkish people are split with ‘Black Turks’ lionising his conservative credentials while 'White Turks' bemoan the slide to authoritarianism. However, Erdogan-aligned candidates faltered at recent municipal elections, inspiring fresh hope for change. Has the President's pyramid begun to crumble?

With America's global influence in decline and China steadfast in its pursuit of regional dominance, Australia sits at the cross-roads of an uncertain future. This week we spoke with national security expert Dr Euan Graham about whether Australia is prepared for the Asian Century or doomed to conflict with China.

Tensions between India and Pakistan over Kashmir have reignited after India stripped the contested border region of its long-standing autonomy. We spoke with India expert Dr. Pradeep Taneja to understand why Kashmir is beset by instability and uncertainty over its political future.

For the first episode of Season 4, we spoke with Prof. John Burns about the evolving political crisis in Hong Kong. Frustrations over Chief Executive Carrie Lam's handling of the proposed extradition bill has pushed millions onto the streets and led to wider calls for fully democratic elections.

Today we spoke with Dr. Sebastian Kaempf, Senior Lecturer in Peace and Conflict Studies at the School of Political Science and International Studies at the University of Queensland, to discuss the role a transforming global media landscape is playing in contemporary conflicts, the visualisation of warfare in popular culture and what this means for traditional media institutions.