The Final Service

Now that the global economy is mostly on hold, the demand for oil has dropped dramatically, destroying the market and threatening countries whose economies depend on selling it. Saudi Arabia and Russia have been engaged in an oil-price war to keep the markets in their favor. Saudi Arabia saw another economic loss when the kingdom decided to limit access to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. Meanwhile, violence in some of the most at risk countries rages on. In Yemen, preventable diseases like cholera already threaten people with limited access to healthcare and basic necessities. Would a global ceasefire help war-torn countries like Yemen manage their coronavirus outbreaks? On this week’s episode, we talk with experts from around the world about Yemen, oil and Saudi Arabia.

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On this week’s episode, we check in with correspondents and artists from around the world. Dr. Erica Ollmann Saphire was instrumental in organizing a global effort to defeat Ebola. Can her team do it again for COVID-19? Co-host Ray Suarez also talks with journalists in Italy and South Africa, who are watching their countries’ responses to the pandemic closely. And though it feels like the rest of the world has come to a complete stop, artists have found creative ways to collaborate and keep us entertained. Members of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra created a virtual performance of Aaron Copland’s Appalachian Spring, which was commissioned in 1942 in a world at war. And lastly, photojournalist Caroline Gutman talks about her new exhibit, the Rhythm of Indigo, which documents indigenous Miao communities in China working to preserve centuries-old handicraft traditions at risk of disappearing.

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On this bonus episode, we get behind the scenes of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra’s virtual performance of Aaron Copland’s Appalachian Spring. It was the brainchild of Principal Double Bass Jeffrey Beecher. 

Then we take you to the remote and mountainous villages of Guizhou Province, China, where indigenous Miao communities are working to preserve centuries-old handicraft traditions that are at risk of disappearing. Our guide is Caroline Gutman, photojournalist and co-founder of Nu Market.

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Breaking news about novel coronavirus is dominating headlines, making the context we need to understand it more important than ever. This week, as the virus redefines every aspect of our lives, we’re turning to the experts to help us understand where we were before the news of COVID-19 hit and how we ended up where we are today. What can we learn from past pandemics? How will this change our relationship with China, where this all began? First, we have Dr. Peter Piot, Director of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine to discuss the Spanish flu, his experiences fighting the Ebola outbreak, including, what a resilient global health system looks like and what needs to happen to be prepared for a pandemic. Next, we hear from David M. Lampton, of the Stanford Spogli Freeman Institute, to discuss the complicated history behind the US - China relationship.

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Taiwan is just 81 miles from mainland China, but it has managed to prevent an outbreak of the rapidly spreading COVID-19 disease. Stanford University’s Dr. Jason Wang explains how Taiwan acted quickly, aggressively and strategically to prevent the type of outbreaks and death rates we’re now seeing around the world. We also hear from William Yang, Taipei correspondent for Deutsche-Welle.   Today’s unrelenting coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic can feel overwhelming. Though it may seem like the world around us has come to a stop, major global events march on. Stories about U.S. airstrikes against an Iran-backed militia in Iraq and Vladimir Putin’s new plan to become president for life may not be front page news today, but they will inevitably demand our attention soon. This week on the podcast, Deb Amos, international correspondent for NPR and Michele Kelemen, NPR’s diplomatic correspondent, talk with Ray Suarez about the world’s most important stories that you might have missed.   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

The World Health Organization is warning all countries to take the threat of a coronavirus global pandemic seriously as governments around the world are scrambling to effectively contain the spread of COVID-19. Local health officials worldwide are preparing for widespread outbreaks while encouraging citizens to remain calm. Financial markets are bracing for the worst as many schools and corporate offices are closing their doors. On this week’s episode, Ray Suarez talks with Larry Brilliant, a renowned epidemiologist, credited with playing a major role in eradicating smallpox, and Pulitzer Prize-winning global health journalist Laurie Garrett. We also get dispatches from Rafael Suarez in China, Christopher Livesay in Italy and Peter Kenyon, who recently returned from Iran.

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How did El Salvador become one of the most violent countries on earth? And what role did the United States play in creating the notorious MS-13 gang? On this week’s episode, we explore the origins of El Salvador’s bloody gang war with journalist William Wheeler. Wheeler spoke with gang members, frustrated reformers, crime investigators and government officials to better understand the violence in the country and what is driving El Salvadorans northward and for his new book: “State of War: MS-13 and El Salvador’s World of Violence.” He is in conversation with World Affairs executive producer Joanne Elgart Jennings.

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The deadly civil war in Syria has raged for almost a decade. For besieged civilians, accessing basic services, like health care, comes with extraordinary risks. In his Academy Award® nominated documentary film, The Cave, director Feras Fayyad reveals a world of hope and safety inside a subterranean hospital. The hospital’s director is 29-year-old Dr. Amani Ballour. In a patriarchal society, she is a force and an inspiration as she keeps the hospital running through air bombardments, chronic food shortages and the threat of chemical attacks. Ray Suarez talks with Fayyad and Ballour about the National Geographic film and the current situation in Syria.

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US - India relations are back in the spotlight as President Trump travels to the world’s largest democracy. The visit comes as India faces the slowest economic growth since 2009 and social unrest against Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, which has been pushing a Hindu nationalist agenda. Ray Suarez gets a debrief from Tanvi Madan, director of the India Project at The Brookings Institution and author of Fateful Triangle: How China Shaped U.S.-India Relations During the Cold War.

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Are we witnessing the end of Hong Kong as we know it - or is this the biggest challenge yet to China’s authoritarian rule? This week on the podcast, we’re looking at what’s driving the protests in Hong Kong and why the demonstrations have persisted for so long. We walk through the history of Hong Kong, right up to today with: Jeffrey Wasserstrom, professor of history at UC Irvine and author of Vigil: Hong Kong on the Brink, and former East Asia Correspondent for NPR and PRI’s The World, Mary Kay Magistad.

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