Ahead of Canadian elections on September 20, two experts in Canadian politics profile the current prime minister, Justin Trudeau. They explore why he's so much more popular abroad than at home and assess what his real foreign policy record has been beyond being a celebrity.

Featuring Alex Marland, professor of political science at Memorial University of Newfoundland and Jeremy Wildeman, Research Fellow at the Human Rights Research and Education Centre, University of Ottawa and Adjunct Assistant Professor at Queen's University, Ontario.

In our second story (at 28m55), we hear about research providing new clues on why mosquitoes bite some people more than others. Madelien Wooding, a researcher at the Department of Chemistry at the University of Pretoria, explains how her team pinpointed some of the chemical compounds that make our skin more attractive to mosquitoes.

We also hear (25m50) from Clea Chakraverty, politics editor at The Conversation in France about their new podcast series on what it takes to be president of France, Moi président·e, and Moina Spooner, assistant editor at The Conversation in Nairobi, recommends some reading on two concerning recent events in Guinea (39m38).

The Conversation Weekly is produced by Mend Mariwany and Gemma Ware, with sound design by Eloise Stevens. Our theme music is by Neeta Sarl. You can sign up to The Conversation’s free daily email here. Full credits for this episode available here.

Further reading

• From sunny ways to pelted with stones: Why do some Canadians hate Justin Trudeau?, by Fenwick McKelvey, Concordia University and Scott DeJong, Concordia University
• Rhetoric Check: Historically, how important is the 2021 Canadian election?, by Alex Marland, Memorial University of Newfoundland
• Canada’s non-diplomacy puts Canadians at risk in an unstable Middle East, by Jeremy Wildeman, University of Bath
• We’re a step closer to figuring out why mosquitoes bite some people and not others, by Madelien Wooding, University of Pretoria and Yvette Naudé, University of Pretoria
• Pasha 121: Why we need mosquitoes, featuring Jeremy Herren, Scientist, International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology
• Guinea coup highlights the weaknesses of West Africa’s regional body, by Benjamin Maiangwa, Lakehead University
• Marburg in Guinea: the value of lessons from managing other haemorrhagic outbreaks, by Michelle J. Groome, National Institute for Communicable Diseases and Janusz Paweska, National Institute for Communicable Diseases