Lowy Institute

In this episode, Lowy Institute lead economist Roland Rajah is joined by Dr Vijaya Ramachandran and Dr Sam Geall to discuss the outcomes from the COP26 Glasgow Climate Change Conference and deeper rifts in international climate policy and politics. They discuss whether COP26 succeeded in 'keeping 1.5 alive', and China's role in global climate efforts given geopolitical tensions with the US. They also discuss whether some Western governments are engaged in 'colonialism in green', whether India played a 'spoiler' role at the talks, and the huge unmet need for greater climate finance to help poor countries. They also talk about where opportunities might lie for future progress in global climate policy. Dr Vijaya Ramachandran is the Director for Energy and Development at the Breakthrough Institute. Dr Sam Geall is a research fellow at the University of Sussex and associate fellow at Chatham House.

The 2021 Lowy Lecture was delivered by US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan. Mr Sullivan is one of the sharpest and most influential policymakers in the world and a trusted adviser to Joe Biden, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.

Mr Sullivan spoke on the Biden administration’s foreign and security policies in an era of pandemics, growing climate risk and competition with China and Russia. His Lowy Lecture was followed by an extended Q&A with Lowy Institute Executive Director Dr Michael Fullilove.

The Lowy Lecture is the Lowy Institute’s flagship annual event, at which a prominent speaker reflects on Australia and the world. Past Lecturers have included German Chancellor Angela Merkel, UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, author and broadcaster Fareed Zakaria, and three Australian prime ministers, including Scott Morrison.

Jake Sullivan is the National Security Adviser to US President Joe Biden. Mr Sullivan served as Senior Foreign Policy Adviser to Hillary Clinton's 2016 election campaign, National Security Adviser to Vice President Joe Biden, Director of Policy Planning at the US Department of State, and Deputy Chief of Staff to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. In 2017, Mr Sullivan served as the Lowy Institute’s Distinguished International Fellow.

Dr Michael Fullilove AM is the Executive Director of the Lowy Institute. He writes widely on global affairs in publications such as The New York Times, The Atlantic and Foreign Affairs. Dr Fullilove is the author of several books, including Rendezvous with Destiny: How Franklin D. Roosevelt and Five Extraordinary Men Took America into the War and into the World (Penguin).

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The 2021 Lowy Lecture was delivered by US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan. Mr Sullivan is one of the sharpest and most influential policymakers in the world and a trusted adviser to Joe Biden, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.

Mr Sullivan spoke on the Biden administration’s foreign and security policies in an era of pandemics, growing climate risk and competition with China and Russia. His Lowy Lecture was followed by an extended Q&A with Lowy Institute Executive Director Dr Michael Fullilove.

The Lowy Lecture is the Lowy Institute’s flagship annual event, at which a prominent speaker reflects on Australia and the world. Past Lecturers have included German Chancellor Angela Merkel, UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, author and broadcaster Fareed Zakaria, and three Australian prime ministers, including Scott Morrison.

Jake Sullivan is the National Security Adviser to US President Joe Biden. Mr Sullivan served as Senior Foreign Policy Adviser to Hillary Clinton's 2016 election campaign, National Security Adviser to Vice President Joe Biden, Director of Policy Planning at the US Department of State, and Deputy Chief of Staff to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. In 2017, Mr Sullivan served as the Lowy Institute’s Distinguished International Fellow.

Dr Michael Fullilove AM is the Executive Director of the Lowy Institute. He writes widely on global affairs in publications such as The New York Times, The Atlantic and Foreign Affairs. Dr Fullilove is the author of several books, including Rendezvous with Destiny: How Franklin D. Roosevelt and Five Extraordinary Men Took America into the War and into the World (Penguin).

In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with Senator Penny Wong, the Shadow Foreign Minister and Leader of the Opposition in the Senate. Penny was elected to the Senate in 2001 and was appointed to Shadow Cabinet in 2005. She served as Climate Change Minister between 2007 and 2010 and as Finance Minister between 2010 and 2013.

Michael and Penny discuss the politics of climate change in Australia, the AUKUS pact, and the findings of the Lowy Institute’s Diplomat Database. Penny reflects on her upbringing, Labor’s priorities for the region, and the current state of the Australia-China relationship.

In this episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, former deputy speaker of the Afghan parliament and women’s rights activist Fawzia Koofi joins Lowy Institute Research Fellow Lydia Khalil for a discussion on the heartbreak of leaving Afghanistan, the prospects for the country under Taliban rule, and the future of human rights in the country. Ms Koofi was previously a member of the Afghan delegation negotiating peace with the Taliban in Doha Qatar. This interview was originally scheduled in August 2021. However, Ms Koofi was placed under house arrest as the Taliban consolidated their hold over Kabul following the US military withdrawal from the country. It was not until she could negotiate her evacuation that she was able to speak.

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In this episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, former deputy speaker of the Afghan parliament and women’s rights activist Fawzia Koofi joins Lowy Institute Research Fellow Lydia Khalil for a discussion on the heartbreak of leaving Afghanistan, the prospects for the country under Taliban rule, and the future of human rights in the country. Ms Koofi was previously a member of the Afghan delegation negotiating peace with the Taliban in Doha Qatar. This interview was originally scheduled in August 2021. However, Ms Koofi was placed under house arrest as the Taliban consolidated their hold over Kabul following the US military withdrawal from the country. It was not until she could negotiate her evacuation that she was able to speak.

In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with Senator Penny Wong, the Shadow Foreign Minister and Leader of the Opposition in the Senate. Penny was elected to the Senate in 2001 and was appointed to Shadow Cabinet in 2005. She served as Climate Change Minister between 2007 and 2010 and as Finance Minister between 2010 and 2013.

Michael and Penny discuss the politics of climate change in Australia, the AUKUS pact, and the findings of the Lowy Institute’s Diplomat Database. Penny reflects on her upbringing, Labor’s priorities for the region, and the current state of the Australia-China relationship.

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In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with the former Jordanian diplomat, UN High Commissioner for  Human  Rights and think tank president  Dr  Zeid  Ra’ad  Al Hussein. Zeid served as Jordan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations and Ambassador to the United States, and served as UN High Commissioner for  Human  Rights between 2014 and 2018. Zeid is the CEO and President of the International Peace Institute in New York and a professor of the practice of law and human rights at the University of Pennsylvania.  

Zeid and Michael speak about global efforts to address climate change, the situation in Afghanistan, and China’s record on human rights. Zeid reflects on his time as High Commissioner and his lifelong association with the UN, and discusses what the pandemic reveals about the international community.

In this episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, Research Fellow Jennifer Hsu talks with Fan Yang and Fergus Ryan about Fan’s recent paper for the Lowy Institute, titled “Translating Tensions: Chinese-Language Media in Australia”. The paper is one of the first to provide insight into the published content of Chinese-language media organisations in Australia as it relates to Australia-China relations.

Fan Yang is a PhD candidate at the School of Communication and Creative Arts, Deakin University. She researches Chinese-language media on WeChat with a focus on human-technology mediation. Her doctoral thesis is entitled “News Manufactories on WeChat: The Word Business, Censorship and Pseudo-Journalism”. She has published in various outlets including Asia & the Pacific Policy Studies, Policy Forum, Media International Australia,The Conversation, and others.

Fergus Ryan is a Senior Analyst with Australia Strategic Policy Institute’s International Cyber Policy Centre. He has worked in media, communications and marketing roles in China and Australia for close to a decade and has published widely on Chinese tech, entertainment and media industries. Most recently, Fergus was a journalist for The Australian.

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