On January 23rd, millions of Venezuelans took to the streets in support of Juan Guiado, the president of the National Assembly, as he swore himself in as interim president. While Guiado has the support of many foreign governments, including the United States, President Nicolas Maduro insists that he is the rightful leader. How did Venezuela get to its current economic and political crisis? What happens next? Venezuelan columnist Moisés Naím discusses the future of the country with World Affairs CEO Jane Wales. We want to hear from you! Please take part in a quick survey to tell us how we can improve our podcast: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/PWZ7KMW

Moisés Naím: A Country on the Brink: Venezuela and a Contested Presidency

Geopolitical turmoil. A warming planet. Authoritarians on the rise. We live in a chaotic world that’s rapidly shifting around us. 

“On Shifting Ground with Ray Suarez” explores international fault lines and how they impact us all. 

Each week, NPR veteran Ray Suarez hosts conversations with journalists, leaders and policy experts to help us read between the headlines – and give us hope for human resilience.

A co-production of World Affairs and KQED.

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Silicon Valley relies on a huge foreign born workforce, mostly from India and China, to provide specialized skills in fields like engineering, biotech, AI and computer science. But after layoff, these visa holders have 60 days to find a new job, or lose their residency in the United States.   In 2023, tech reporter Pranav Dixit dug into the mass layoffs in Silicon Valley, and why these drastic reductions were forcing some foreign-born workers to reevaluate the decision to live in the US. At the time he was working for Buzzfeed News. But when the news unit shut down, Dixit was put in the same precarious situation as the H-1B workers he covered in his reporting.   Ray Suarez catches up with Pranav Dixit to get an update on his complicated journey to find new work, and his race to stay in the United States.    Read more of Pranav Dixit’s reporting for Buzzfeed:  Laid-Off Tech Workers On H-1B Visas Might Be Forced To Leave The Country   Guest:   Pranav Dixit, senior editor at Engadget   Host:     Ray Suarez  If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

On Borrowed Time: A Tech Reporter’s Precarious Race to Stay in the US

In 2018, Chinese scientist He Jianku sent shockwaves through the world’s medical and scientific world when he claimed to have made two children immune to HIV using a powerful gene-editing technology called “CRISPR”. After a three-year prison sentence, Jianku is back in the lab, but should he be experimenting with human genes?   Ray Suarez talks with Dr. Alta Charo, the Warren P. Knowles Professor Emerita of Law and Bioethics at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, about the ethics of CRISPR, and the opportunities and risks of the technology.   Guest:   Dr. Alta Charo, the Warren P. Knowles Professor Emerita of Law and Bioethics at the University of Wisconsin at Madison   Host:   Ray Suarez, host of World Affairs   If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Should We Be Afraid of Gene-Editing?

According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies, access to water in Gaza has dropped by 95 percent since October 7th, and as many as seven-in-ten Gazans are drinking salty and contaminated water to survive. Water is at the center of environmental challenges facing the whole Middle East, and it is perhaps the most pressing concern for desperate Gazans. So what are regional NGOs doing to provide clean water to millions of displaced people?   Climate One’s Greg Dalton speaks with Nada Majdalani, Palestinian Director of EcoPeace Middle East, about Ecopeace’s three-decade journey to water security in the Middle East. Then, Ray Suarez speaks with Dr. Tareq Abu Hamed, Executive Director of the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies, to understand how climate scientists are trying to rebuild in Gaza following the recent violence.   Guests:    Nada Majdalani, Palestinian Director of EcoPeace Middle East    Dr. Tareq Abu Hamed, Executive Director of the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies   Host:    Ray Suarez   Greg Dalton, founder and co-host, Climate One

Water Security, and Why Israelis and Gazans Must Work Together

By 2030, it’s estimated one out of every six people on planet earth will be over 60. Thanks to leaps in technology and public health, people are living longer and better than ever before.    We’re taking a look at what economists and demographers are calling “the Silver Wave.” Ray speaks with MIT’s Joseph F. Coughlin,and New York Times Tokyo Bureau Chief Motoko Rich, on the challenges – and opportunities – that global aging presents.    Guests:    Joseph F. Coughlin, PhD, Founder and Director of MIT’s AgeLab   Motoko Rich, Tokyo Bureau Chief for the New York Times   Host:   Ray Suarez   If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.  

The Silver Wave: Challenges and Opportunities of Global Aging

For the most part, the world has gone back to normal. We’re getting on planes… going to concerts… but many Americans haven’t changed their pandemic drinking habits. And this increased consumption trend is especially high for older Americans.   In 2020, alcohol accounted for more than 11,000 deaths among those 65 and up – that’s an 18 percent increase from the previous year – and many of those cases went untreated.    Ray speaks with Keith Humphreys, Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University, to understand why.   Guest:   Keith Humphreys, Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University   Host:     Ray Suarez   If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.  

Moisés Naím: A Country on the Brink: Venezuela and a Contested Presidency

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