Fireside Chats: The Roosevelt Group Podcast

In this season finale, Aarya and special guest host Fergus sit down with Fife's very own MSP Willie Rennie for a conversation that ranges from Holyrood to Helsinki, covering Scotland's place in a continent that has serious questions about the future.

In this episode, Aarya speaks to David Meale, former deputy chief of mission at the US Embassy in Beijing, and now head of Eurasia Group's China practice.

In this episode, we get into the wave of purges inside China's military leadership, what it tells us about Xi Jinping's grip on power, and why it matters . We talk trade, the fragile state of US-China relations, and the indicators to watch to understand where US China relations are actually heading.

In this episode, Professor Aguilar and I sit down and have a discussion about theology, the Vatican's role in geopolitics, and China's stance on Tibetan monasteries.

In the second episode. Aarya sits down with Dr Annette Stimmer of the School of International Relations, where they talk on how norms are shaped in the current international system and the Ukraine War.

In this hallmark first episode, Aarya sits down with Professor Anthony Lang of the School of International Relations, where they talk about global constitutionalism, the current state of the US-China trade deal, and even Golf!

This introductory episode introduces the hosts and ushers in a New Age for Fireside Chats.

In her final episode as host, Brooke Ryback interviews multiple Roosevelt Group members, documenting the creative process of publishing the think tank's yearly New Annales from start to finish. She first speaks with Roosevelt Groups' Head of the New Annales, third year Stella Mortarotti, to contextualize the hard work put into a publication truly worth celebrating. Then, Brooke brings listeners along to the celebration and launch of this year's publication "Subversion" which took place at The Hide on 20 March, 2025 in St Andrews.

In our first episode of Semester 2 in the 2024/2025 academic season, host Brooke Ryback brings in a friend and fellow podcast host Julianna Tully! Co-Head of the UNA St Andrews' own podcast, Julianna relates to Brooke her flourishing love of podcasting and her work with UNA St Andrews. The two also talk about the influence the performative arts, learning new languages, and exploring a wide range of subject matters through opportunities like Roosevelt Group had on their lives. Through it all, they come to find a shared recurring insight: sometimes 'rejection therapy' is the lesson we never knew we needed.

It is no longer summer and, finding herself cozying up in St Andrews and settling into the first semester of the 2024/2025 academic year, Brooke chats with President Elisenne and Vice President Gokul to catch up, express each other’s goals as fourth years and leaders. With the future very much on their mind, while also recalling their semester abroad experiences, summer projects, and overall experience at St Andrews, Elisenne, Gokul, and Brooke inspire each other to 'pass it forward' and cultivate others' passions as they pursue their own.

In the final episode of Brooke's 2024 Summer Series, she takes you into her world (and literal soundscape) of San Diego. Taking you with her to interview her high school teacher and mentor Katie Turner, Brooke opens discussion from the importance of visual learning, ability of creative writing to achieve restorative justice for all ages, to finding root solutions to rehabilitate those in the US prison system. This episode makes clear more thought, creativity, imagination, and - most importantly - wisdom can be reaped out of children's literature for people of every age.

We extend our gratitude to Katie Turner for providing her insights and sharing her passions with us at Roosevelt Group! Further, we thank her alongside Joyride Bookshops and The New Children's Museum for their work in bettering society today and inspiring future generations.