"Wake" with Luke Vargas

In Central Africa, East Africa and in war-torn Yemen, tens of millions of people are on the verge of starvation. If you thought modern agriculture and a global economy would prevent famine, think again.

So what are we doing wrong? Why can't we conquer famine? What can the U.S. and the world do to address the current crisis?

To help us answer those questions are:

• Deepmala Mahla, South Sudan country director for Mercy Corps

• Ambassador Princeton N. Lyman, special advisor to the president of the United States Institute for Peace and former U.S. special envoy to South Sudan

• Olivier Rubin, associate professor at Roskilde University and author of Contemporary Famine Analysis

If you enjoy this discussion, please follow us on Twitter @WakeOnAir. To share feedback with us, send us an email to [email protected].

Recorded July 13, 2017.

Hosted by Luke Vargas.

After four years of talks, a brand new E.U.-Japan free trade deal is complete. With the U.S. out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a US-EU trade deal on hold, and a protectionist U.S. President, what can we expect on the global free trade horizon?

Is the rest of the world continuing to deal as the U.S. backs away?

To help us answer those questions are:

• Iana Dreyer, founder and editor of Borderlex.EU, an online news outlet that focuses on EU trade policy

• Caroline Freund, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute of International Economics and a former World Bank, IMF and Federal Reserve official

• Joshua Meltzer, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution's Global Economy and Development Project and a former Australian trade representative to the U.S.

If you enjoy this discussion, please follow us on Twitter @WakeOnAir. To share feedback with us, send us an email to [email protected].

Recorded July 7, 2017.

Hosted by Luke Vargas.

The Pentagon is said to be readying plans to send 4,000 new U.S. troops to Afghanistan, scaling up U.S. involvement there 16 years after the Afghan war began. But where is the public discourse about why the troops are needed? It's even hard to tell what President Trump thinks – he's told his generals they're in charge of setting troop levels.

What is the mission in Afghanistan? What can we learn from Trump's approach to the war?

To help us answer those questions are:

• Peter Viggo Jakobsen, Associate Professor in the Department of Strategy at the Royal Danish Defence College

• Rebecca Zimmerman, policy researcher at the RAND Corporation

If you enjoy the show, follow us on Twitter @WakeOnAir. Want to leave us feedback? Shoot us an email at [email protected]

Recorded June 28, 2017.

Hosted by Luke Vargas.

Earlier this year, an expert panel of the World Health Organization updated the Essential Medicines List, a collection of the most effective medicines used to treat the most prevalent health conditions. To save lives, extend life expectancies and raise billions out of poverty, these essential medicines need to be made available.

How well is the world doing in that quest? What about here in the U.S., and where does the principal of health access figure in the health reform push in Washington?

To help us answer those questions are:

• Suzanne Hill, Director of the Essential Medicines and Health Products Department at the World Health Organization in Geneva

• Merith Basey, North American Executive Director of Universities Allied for Essential Medicines

• Peter Maybarduk, Director of the Access to Medicines Project at Public Citizen

If you enjoy the show, follow us on Twitter @WakeOnAir. Want to leave us feedback? Shoot us an email at [email protected]

Recorded June 22, 2017.

Hosted by Luke Vargas.

Part two of a two-part look at the consequences of the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Agreement on climate change.

President Trump's announced withdrawal from the Paris Agreement sent a strong signal about his administration's priorities; if climate change is occurring, it's not urgent enough for the U.S. to get worked up about.

But reports from the front lines of ecology, public health, and humanitarian crises are loud and clear: climate change is not something we can wish away.

Today we'll hear from three experts about how climate change is impacting their work. And we'll consider ways to address the challenges of an increasingly volatile climate.

Our guests include:

• George Thurston, Director of the Program in Exposure Assessment and Human Health Effects at New York University's Department of Environmental Medicine

• Sarah Henly-Shepard, a Senior Advisor for Climate Change and Resilience at Mercy Corps

• Jake Weltzin, ecologist with the U.S. Geological Survey and Executive Director of the USA National Phenology Network

If you enjoy the show, follow us on Twitter @WakeOnAir. Want to leave us feedback? Shoot us an email at [email protected]

Recorded June 15, 2017.

Hosted by Luke Vargas.

Part one of a two-part look at the consequences of the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Agreement on climate change.

The scientific consensus is that climate change will wreak havoc on the planet if unchecked. That's why more than 190 countries signed on to the Paris Agreement. President Trump's pullout from Paris is one sign the U.S. administration thinks it can dodge the issue of climate change and isolate itself from a changing planet.

But other countries are taking the risk of climate change a lot more seriously. What do they know that the Trump administration does not, and how might that hurt America?

Helping us consider those questions are:

• Frank Yu, Principal Consultant, Asia-Pacific Power & Renewables, Wood Mackenzie

• Paul McConnell, Research Director, Global Trends Team, Wood Mackenzie

• Nate Aden, Research Fellow, World Resources Institute

• Samantha Gross, Fellow, Cross-Brookings Initiative on Energy and Climate

If you enjoy the show, follow us on Twitter @WakeOnAir. Want to leave us feedback? Shoot us an email at [email protected]

Recorded June 8, 2017.

Hosted by Luke Vargas.

There's the Catholic Church, and then there's the Holy See. A nation with diplomats in 183 countries — and they're not sitting on their hands. From starting up talks between the U.S. and Cuba to trying to mediate the crisis in Venezuela, the Vatican diplomatic corps is as active as ever.

What role can Vatican diplomacy play in the world? Could the Church's diplomatic contributions be more useful now than ever?

Helping us consider those questions are:

• Archbishop Bernardito Auza, Vatican Permanent Observer to the United Nations.

• Father Drew Christiansen, Distinguished Professor of Ethics and Global Human Development at Georgetown's School of Foreign Service.

• Dr. Jodok Troy, visiting scholar, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies at Stanford University's Europe Center.

If you enjoy the show, follow us on Twitter @WakeOnAir. Want to leave us feedback? Shoot us an email at [email protected]

Recorded May 31, 2017.

Hosted by Luke Vargas.

Distributed by Talk Media News.

Last weekend, President Trump visited Saudi Arabia on his first foreign trip. King Salman welcomed Trump with a lavish reception. And when Trump gave a big speech on Islam, he lavished praise on Saudi Arabia for its anti-terror efforts and its promotion of equality. Trump's main target, meanwhile, Iran.

Trump says Saudi Arabia and Iran, but does he mean Sunni and Shia?

Is the U.S. taking sides in one of the world's most contentious religious struggles? And if so, what might the consequences be?

• Dr. Lina Khatib, head of the Middle East and North Africa Programme at Chatham House.

• Perry Cammack, fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and former Middle East policy advisor to Secretary of State John Kerry.

If you enjoy the show, follow us on Twitter @WakeOnAir. Want to leave us feedback? Shoot us an email at [email protected]

Recorded May 26, 2017.

Hosted by Luke Vargas.

Distributed by Talk Media News.

Venezuela has descended into chaos. Thousands have been marching in the streets for weeks to protest President Nicolás Maduro, whom them accuse of trampling the constitution, using every means necessary to cling to power. All the while, inflation, unemployment, curfews, rations and violence against protesters are making life in Venezuela miserable and dangerous.

What is driving the crisis in Venezuela? Have we reached a tipping point?

Helping us to consider those questions are:

• David Smidle, senior fellow at the Washington Office on Latin America, specializing in Venezuela.

• Juan Nagel, professor of economics at Universidad de Los Andes – Santiago.

• Kajsa Norman, journalist and author of 2017 book, "A Hero's Curse: The Perpetual Liberation of Venezuela"

If you enjoy the show, follow us on Twitter @WakeOnAir. Want to leave us feedback? Shoot us an email at [email protected]

Recorded May 18, 2017.

Hosted by Luke Vargas.

Distributed by Talk Media News.

Read up on solar energy prices and you'll find a headline proclaiming record low rates for power generation. Renewable energy prices are becoming competitive with fossil fuels. On a given day, Germany generates most of its power from renewables. China is mass producing affordable solar panels, while American engineers and entrepreneurs dream up radical new technologies.

How is cheap renewable energy changing the world? How could it reshape America?

Helping us to consider those questions are:

• Ethan Zindler, head of the Americas division at Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

• Mara Prentiss, professor of Physics at Harvard University and author of the 2015 book, "Energy Revolution: The Physics and the Promise of Efficient Technology."

If you enjoy the show, follow us on Twitter @WakeOnAir. Want to leave us feedback? Shoot us an email at [email protected]

Recorded May 10, 2017.

Hosted by Luke Vargas.

Distributed by Talk Media News.