Seth Shelden is General Counsel and United Nations Liaison for ICAN (the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons), the Nobel Peace Prize-winning organization spearheading efforts to abolish nuclear weapons through the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW). 

This episode is in two parts. The first was recorded live during the NPT Review Conference. The second is a retrospective conversation recorded after the conference ended without agreement for the third consecutive time.

What we cover:

What ICAN does and how Seth got there 

What the NPT is, why it matters, and what three consecutive failures mean for the non-proliferation architecture

The final days of the conference: the atmosphere in the hallways, what the TPNW bloc achieved, and what they couldn't hold

The US arguing — in open session — that there is no norm against nuclear testing, and what that signals

Why AI risk language was deleted from the final document

How Seth actually spends his days at these conferences — including meetings with the Trump administration

The TPNW review conference coming in November 2026, and why it matters

A play about nuclear weapons being workshopped across New England (Seth is performing in it)

Seth’s honest five-year bet on where this is all heading

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