Global

cri·​sis

noun: the turning point for better or worse in an acute disease or fever

In our second mini-episode, our host Travis Green chats with Venezuelan journalist, Carla Angola. In less than 20 minutes, they breakdown the nature of the Maduro regime's repression, the media environment, and the international community's response to the crisis in Venezuela.

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Global is a monthly podcast that features one country per episode and delivers an on-the-ground look at our rapidly changing world.

We've added a monthly 15-to-20 minute themed-based podcast that will cover broader topics like Chinese influence, election meddling, democratic backsliding and everything in-between.

In 2014, Russian forces took control of the Crimean peninsula causing international uproar and sanctions to be placed on Russia. But it wasn't the first time that Russia had seized neighborhood territory. Six years before the annexation of Crimea, Russia crept into Georgia, occupying 20 percent of the country to this day. Data tells us that Georgians want to lean to the West. But, how are they supposed to do that with the Kremlin on their back?

In 2008, Senator John McCain spoke to a crowd following the news of Russia's invasion of Georgia and said, "Some Americans, when they read this news, may wonder where Georgia is or why we should care about the conflict between Georgians and the Russian army. It's, after all, a small, remote, and obscure place. But history is often made in remote, obscure places... Today we are all Georgians."

On this episode of Global, we speak to:

Damon Wilson (@DamonMacWilson) - Executive Vice President, Atlantic Council. Damon served as Senior Director for European Affairs at the National Security Council during Russia's invasion of Georgia in 2008.

Eka Gigauri (@katgigauri) - Executive Director, Transparency International Georgia. Transparency International is one the leading government watchdogs in Georgia.

Jamie Kirchick (@jkirchick) - Foreign Correspondent and Visiting Fellow, Brookings Institution. He's the author of "The End of Europe: Dictators, Demagogues, and the Coming Dark Age"

John DiPirro (@JohnPaulDiPirro) - IRI's Georgia Program Director based in Tbilisi

de·cen·tral·i·za·tion

noun: the transfer of authority from central to local government

Thanks Merriam-Webster! But, what does that REALLY mean?

In this mini-episode, our host John Tomaszewski chats with democracy and governance specialist, Eguiar Lizundia. In 20 minutes, they breakdown what decentralization is, and its effects on countries around the world.

. . .

Global is a monthly podcast that features one country per episode and delivers an on-the-ground look at our rapidly changing world.

We are now adding monthly 15-minute themed based podcasts that will cover Chinese influence, election meddling, democratic backsliding and everything in-between.

Six years after the fall of Muammar Gadhafi, Libya remains in a chaotic state. In 2011, the regime of Gadhafi responded to protests in eastern Libya with violence, leading to a revolution that brought his 42-year regime to an end. Only three years later, armed conflict broke out after the second parliamentary elections, leading to political divisions and intense conflict.

Libya’s future is uncertain. What are the country’s next steps? How can Civil Society help bring Libya towards peace? And, where is Libya headed?

Find out on this episode, of our podcast Global.

Our hosts speak to:

Dr. Frederic Wehry, Senior Fellow of the Middle East Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and author of "The Burning Shores: Inside the Battle for the New Libya."

Taezeez "Tooza" Alhasaeri, Digital Media Editor of the Zuwara Municipal Government. Zuwara was the first town to elect its local council after the fall of Gadhafi democratically.

Christopher Livesay, an award-winning foreign correspondent based in Rome. In 2018, Livesay was the first American TV correspondent to report from Libya in a year and had to flee the country amid government threats for shedding light on migrant trafficking, torture, and abuse. His work was featured on the PBS NewsHour.

Caitlin Dearing Scott, IRI’s the Middle East and North Africa Program Manager.

In early February 2018, the island republic of the Maldives descended into political chaos as former President Abdulla Yameen used a state of emergency to crack down on opposition. The region watched as Yameen suppressed dissent, imprisoned members of the Supreme Court and attacked members of the independent press. Meanwhile, both Chinese and Indian ships began to conduct exercises nearby, the first time Chinese navy vessels had entered the Indian Ocean in four years.

In September 2018, Maldivians went to the polls in unprecedented levels to take their authoritarian leader out of office. Pledging more transparency in government and an obligation to human rights, opposition candidate Ibrahim Solih of the Maldivian Democratic Party won by a margin of 17 percent.

Maldivians have made it clear what direction they want the country to move towards. But will the country be able to secure a prosperous, stable and free future? Our hosts speak to Special Representative to President Solih and former Minister of Foreign Affairs Ahmed Naseem (@KerafaNaseem), IRI's Resident Program Director in the Maldives John Kachtik, and the Minister of Planning and Infrastructure Mohamed Aslam.

In 1930, a military coup ended seven decades of constitutional government in Argentina. Over the next 46 years, a revolving door of democratically elected leaders and military regimes culminated in the junta-led Dirty War, transforming a once limited executive into one of the region’s most iron-fisted institutions. Ten consecutive civilian administrations have since tried a variety of remedies to long-standing problems with inflation, debt and instability, with some success.

Still, old habits die hard. What’s next for Argentina?

On this episode our hosts speak to Dr. Benjamin Gedan, Senior Adviser of Latin America Programs and Director of the Argentina Project at the Wilson Center; open government and transparency expert, and General Manager of Directorio Legislativo, Agustina De Luca; and Ambassador Lino Gutierrez, U.S. Ambassador to Argentina from 2003 to 2006.

Zimbabwe experienced nearly four decades of authoritarian rule under Mugabe's leadership, which included economic degradation, political repression, and state-sponsored violence. On July 30, 2018, Zimbabweans went to the polls to participate in the most significant elections of their lifetime. For the first time since 1987, Former President Robert Mugabe's name did not appear on the presidential ballot.

With the struggle for independence, land, and power running throughout Zimbabwe's history, what is next for the country?

Out hosts speak to John Robertson, a native Zimbabwean and economist based in Harare who has commented extensively on the economic problems facing Zimbabwe today for a range of publications including Bloomberg and the Economist; Paul Mangwana a practicing lawyer and the Secretary of Legal Affairs for the ZANU PF party; Liz Lewis, Deputy Director of the International Republican Institute's Africa Division; and David Coltart, a human rights lawyer who has been active in Zimbabwean politics since the early 1980s.

A recent Moroccan consumer boycott is demonstrating the real economic and political consequences of citizen action. The boycott threatens the influence and stability of the current political status quo and even has the potential to influence national policy and international relations.

How did Morocco get here? What has driven the impact and widespread adoption of the movement so far? Who can ultimately respond to Moroccans’ demands? And, what does the future of this North African country look like?

Our hosts speak to Carnegie Endowment for International Peace Fellow Dr. Sarah Yerkes; Aimane Cherragui, a Moroccan political activist and President of SimSim-Participation Citoyenne, a non-profit that aims to use information and communication technologies (ICT) to support and facilitate the participation of citizens in the governmental process; and governance expert and IRI Morocco Country Director, Imara Crooms.

The April 2018 election of Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed has been seen as a turning point for Ethiopia. Against a backdrop of both economic growth and civil unrest the past decade, Ethiopians at home and abroad are cautiously optimistic about the change Dr. Abiy represents. Will the country be able to sustain this momentum to improve in areas like human rights, ethnically-driven politics, and opportunities for youth?

Our hosts speak to Dr. Menna Demessie, Vice President for Research & Policy Analysis, Congressional Black Caucus Foundation and National Youth Coordinator at Society of Ethiopians Established in the Diaspora; former political prisoner and Secretary General of the Oromo Federalist Congress opposition party Bekele Gerba; and civic activist and survivor of torture Fekade Ancho who currently works with the Torture Abolition and Survivors Support Coalition.

Life in North Korea is a mystery to most of the world and few know what day-to-day existence entails for the average North Korean. How did North Korea become a hermit kingdom? And what does it really look like on the ground?

Our hosts speak to Dr. Andrei Lankov, Director, NKNews.org and Professor at Kookmin University; Pulitzer-nominated veteran foreign correspondent Jean Lee who led the Associated Press news agency’s coverage of the Korean Peninsula as bureau chief from 2008 to 2013; and North Korean defector Sehyek Oh who currently is a researcher at the Transitional Justice Working Group.