Root of Conflict

How do ex-combatants transition back into society after conflict? In this episode, we speak with Dr. Erin McFee, a political anthropologist and UKRI Future Leaders Fellow at the London School of Economics. Focusing on Colombia and the reintegration of the FARC, her team studies reconciliation in post-conflict societies—the interventions that create interpersonal trust between former perpetrators of violence and former victims of violence as they build their everyday lives together.

This podcast is produced in partnership with the Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of Global Conflicts. For more information, please visit their website at www.thepearsoninstitute.org

Access the transcript here: https://thepearsoninstitute.org/news-and-media/podcast

Podcast Production Credits:
Interviewing: Connor Christensen and Andrea Mariño Varela
Editing: Ricardo Sande
Production: Reema Saleh

How do war and displacement disproportionately impact women? In this episode, we speak with Dr. Lina Haddad Kreidie, a political psychologist and Academic Director of Gender Studies at the Lebanese American University. Her research centers marginalized communities, mainly displaced and refugee women in the Middle East. We discuss her work with the Intisar Foundation—studying drama therapy as a mental health intervention for refugee women and how it’s impacted communities within the camps.

This podcast is produced in partnership with the Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of Global Conflicts. For more information, please visit their website at www.thepearsoninstitute.org

Access the transcript here: https://thepearsoninstitute.org/news-and-media/podcast

How does African philosophy shape African political institutions? And how have they evolved separately from European models of statehood and development? In this episode, we speak with Dr. Francis Njoku, Professor of Philosophy at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka and a visiting scholar at the Harris School. We talk about his research and how homegrown solutions to African problems can come from within.

This podcast is produced in partnership with the Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of Global Conflicts. For more information, please visit their website at www.thepearsoninstitute.org

Access the transcript here: https://thepearsoninstitute.org/news-and-media/podcast

The Pearson Global Forum is our annual in-person and virtual convening on discrimination and marginalization. Join us to hear from global experts as they discuss various topics including the social cost of discrimination, the crisis in Lebanon, and bias in media coverage of conflict. The event is free and open to all on October 14. More information at www.thepearsonglobalforum.org.

Podcast Production Credits:

Interviewing: Christelle Inema

Editing: Ricardo Sande

Production: Reema Saleh

What should we learn from the aftermath of the US War in Afghanistan? And what decisions could’ve brought a better outcome? The fall of Kabul to the Taliban last year marked the end of America’s longest war in history, with former Afghan government unable to retain control of the country. In this episode, we speak with Carter Malkasian, a historian and author of “The American War in Afghanistan: A History” – a comprehensive history of the US intervention, conflict, and withdrawal in the country. A former advisor to American military commanders in Afghanistan, Malkasian has extensive experience working in conflict zones and has published several books in his career.

This podcast is produced in partnership with the Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of Global Conflicts. For more information, please visit their website at www.thepearsoninstitute.org

Access the transcript here: https://thepearsoninstitute.org/news-and-media/podcast

The Pearson Global Forum is our annual in-person and virtual convening on discrimination and marginalization. Join us to hear from global experts as they discuss various topics including the social cost of discrimination, the crisis in Lebanon, and bias in media coverage of conflict. The event is free and open to all on October 14. More information at www.thepearsonglobalforum.org.

How is the Myanmar military exacerbating human rights abuse in the country? In February 2021, the Myanmar military initiated a coup – throwing the country back into its long history of authoritarian rule. As the military has taken control, public resistance has become unprecedented. In this episode, we speak with Jason Gelbort, an international lawyer and legal advisor to ethnic nationality organizations in Myanmar. He is the Founder and Executive Director of Upland Advisors, a not-for-profit organization supporting sustainable peacebuilding initiatives and human rights advocacy.

This podcast is produced in partnership with the Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of Global Conflicts. For more information, please visit their website at www.thepearsoninstitute.org

Access the transcript here: https://thepearsoninstitute.org/news-and-media/podcast

Podcast Production Credits:
Interviewing: Sahara Chen and Anupriya Nag
Editing: Ricardo Sande
Production: Reema Saleh

What are African solutions to African challenges? And how can African agency act as a counterpoint to the divisions and legacy of colonialism? In this episode, we speak with Ambassador Martin Kimani, the Permanent Representative of Kenya to the United Nations, about his recent speech criticizing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the failures of Western intervention, and what worldbuilding after colonialism can look like.

Listen to Ambassador Kimani’s speech to the United Nations on Russia and Ukraine: https://www.npr.org/2022/02/22/1082334172/kenya-security-council-russia

This podcast is produced in partnership with the Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of Global Conflicts. For more information, please visit their website at www.thepearsoninstitute.org

Access the transcript here: https://thepearsoninstitute.org/news-and-media/podcast

Podcast Production Credits:

Interviewing: Deqa Aden, Josephine Lando, and Nancy Smith

Editing: Aishwarya Kumar and Ricardo Sande

Production: Reema Saleh

How do non-profits navigate changes in humanitarian aid policy? And how is the philanthropic sector evolving? In this episode, we speak with Liz Drew, a Chicago-based strategist with nearly two decades of leadership in advancing human rights, gender equity, and social justice. From working as a U.S. State Department and White House advisor in the Obama administration to leading international programming at Heartland Alliance, she shares insights from her work on human rights, HIV/AIDS, and refugee protection programming.

This podcast is produced in partnership with the Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of Global Conflicts. For more information, please visit their website at www.thepearsoninstitute.org

Access the transcript here: https://thepearsoninstitute.org/news-and-media/podcast

Podcast Production Credits:
Interviewing: Deqa Aden
Editing: Aishwarya Kumar and Reema Saleh
Production: Reema Saleh

What makes conflict win out over compromise? In this episode, we speak with Dr. Chris Blattman, an acclaimed expert on violence and conflict. His recent book, “Why We Fight,” draws on economics, political science, and psychology to examine the root causes of war and the paths to peace.

In light of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the other ongoing conflicts our world faces today, many of us are wondering, is resorting to violence the norm? Are the paths to war easier than the paths to peace? Examining real-world interventions, “Why We Fight” explores why violent conflict is rare in reality and how successful societies interrupt and end violence through peacebuilding.

This podcast is produced in partnership with the Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of Global Conflicts. For more information, please visit their website at www.thepearsoninstitute.org

Access the transcript here: https://thepearsoninstitute.org/news-and-media/podcast

Podcast Production Credits:
Interviewing: Deqa Aden and Ana Camila Vasquez
Editing: Aishwarya Kumar
Production: Reema Saleh

How does disinformation fuel modern conflict? In this episode, we speak with Nina Jankowicz, an expert on disinformation and a Global Fellow at the Wilson Center. We talk about her debut book, "How to Lose the Information War," which takes the reader through several case studies of how Western governments are impacted by Russian disinformation tactics and how to navigate the future of conflict. We also talk about her upcoming book, "How to Be a Woman Online," coming out April 21, on how to deal with gendered harassment and abuse in online spaces.

Note: this episode was recorded in November of 2021, before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, so keep that in mind as you're listening. In the past month, we've seen misinformation and disinformation efforts ramp up, so it's important to understand how these strategies work and what threats they pose.

This podcast is produced in partnership with the Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of Global Conflicts. For more information, please visit their website at www.thepearsoninstitute.org

Access the transcript here: https://thepearsoninstitute.org/news-and-media/podcast

Podcast Production Credits:
Interviewing: Annie Henderson and Reema Saleh
Editing: Aishwarya Kumar
Production: Reema Saleh

How can we build more peaceful, resilient societies? In this episode, we speak with Steve Killelea, a global philanthropist focused on peace and sustainable development and author of “Peace in the Age of Chaos.” He is the founder of the Institute for Economics and Peace and the Global Peace Index, which measures and ranks the peacefulness of 163 different countries around the world.

This podcast is produced in partnership with the Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of Global Conflicts. For more information, please visit their website at www.thepearsoninstitute.org

Access the transcript here: https://thepearsoninstitute.org/news-and-media/podcast

Podcast Production Credits:

Interviewing: Deqa Aden and Reema Saleh

Editing: Aishwarya Kumar

Production: Reema Saleh