India is the fastest growing economy in the world and contains 1.3 billion people, and this week features a unique look into the government of India from an insider’s perspective.

Sajeesh Kumar is a Lee Kuan Yew Fellow at Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. He is a career civil servant with the Government of India. Before his fellowship, he was Director of the Smart City Mission at the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India.

Zachary’s scene setting poem places us on the ground in India with, “Indian Soul.”

How do Americans interact with the wider world? What are the enduring strengths and weaknesses of US foreign policy?

Jeremi sits down with Dr. Charles Edel to discuss US foreign policy in a historical context.

Zachary kicks it off with his poem entitled, "An Old Forgotten Song."

Dr. Edel is the co-author (with Hal Brands) of a major new book, The Lessons of Tragedy: Statecraft and World Order. He is a senior fellow at the United States Studies Centre. Previously, he was associate professor of strategy and policy at the US Naval War College, and served on the US Secretary of State's policy planning staff from 2015 to 2017. In that role, he advised Secretary of State John Kerry on political and security issues in the Asia Pacific region.

Dr. Jeremi Suri calls up his colleague Dr. David Fields, a scholar and expert on North Korea to take an even-handed look at the state of the country and how the rest of the world can understand a society that seems so very different from our lives in America, Europe and elsewhere. How do we understand this society and its leadership? What can Americans do to improve relations with North Korea? What role should ideas of democracy play?

Dr. David P. Fields is the associate director of the Center for East Asian Studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He is the author of Foreign Friends: Syngman Rhee, American Exceptionalism, and the Division of Korea and editor of The Diary of Syngman Rhee. He has published in the North Korea Review, Journal of American-East Asian Relations, SinoNK.com, and in the Working Papers Series of the Cold War International History Project.

Uses and Abuses by Young People

Jeremi sits down with Aurin Bagchi and Lexi Marie Seay to discuss social media and its good and bad effects on young people.

Zachary kicks it off with his poem, "A Social Species."

Aurin Bagchi is a student at the University of Texas at Austin and is enrolled in Jeremi's History of the United States Since 1865 course.

Lexi Marie Seay is a student at Texas State University, but lives and works in Austin, TX.

New Approaches to Prevention and Prosecution — How can we do better?

Hanna Senko is a sexual assault survivor whose case was closed via exceptional clearance by the Austin Police Department. She now serves as a survivor speaker, writer, and advocate fighting for change in the understanding, reporting, and handling of sex crimes.

Alison Alter was elected in 2016 as the City Council representative for District 10 in Austin, Texas. Among many other things, she recently authored city legislation requiring the Austin Police Department to conduct an external audit of its procedures for handling sexual assault cases.

What is it? How are people pursuing it today?

This week, Jeremi discusses the American Dream with Professor Samuel J. Abrams.

Zachary sets the scene with his poem, "After the Dreams."

Samuel J. Abrams is professor of politics at Sarah Lawrence College and a visiting fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. He is the author of a recent study on the topic of the American dream, summarized in the New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/05/opinion/american-dream.html