Why It Matters

Works of art and cultural heritage sites are common casualties in war. In many cases, the sale of plundered treasures has helped finance ongoing conflict. In this episode, two experts examine the history of conflict-driven looting. Along the way, they trace the opaque, unregulated international art market that allows irreplaceable treasures to travel from strife-torn regions to the catalogues of prestigious auction houses.

Featured Guests: 

Amr Al Azm (Professor of History and Anthropology, Shawnee State University) 

Tess Davis (Executive Director, Antiquities Coalition)

For more information on this episode, visit us at cfr.org/podcasts/treasures-looted-war

For decades international students enjoyed bipartisan support in the U.S., with strong consensus that they fueled American innovation, job creation and competitiveness. But in recent years the pipeline of international students has come under threat, and other nations are seizing the opportunity to take in the world’s brightest students.

Featured Guests: 

Esther D. Brimmer (Executive Director and CEO of NAFSA) 

Edward Alden (Senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations; the Ross distinguished visiting professor at Western Washington University)

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit us at cfr.org/podcasts/why-we-need-international-students

As the effects of climate change move from scientific predictions to daily headlines, some investors have begun sounding the alarm about impending dangers to financial markets. In this episode, experts break down the intersection of climate change and the economy, and examine whether the persuasive power of the dollar can be leveraged in the fight for climate action.

Featured Guests: 

Kate Mackenzie (Green Columnist, Bloomberg) 

Michael Greenstone (Professor of Economics, University of Chicago)

For more information on this episode, visit us at cfr.org/podcasts/pricing-our-climate

Hosting the Olympics is a monumental undertaking that often leaves behind rusted stadiums and financial losses. So why do nations compete to do it? This episode examines the political history of the games, and the soft power that countries hope to gain by hosting them.

Featured Guests: 

Jules Boykoff (Professor of Political Science, Pacific University) 

Katharine Moon (Professor of Political Science, Wellesley College)

For more information on this episode, visit us at cfr.org/podcasts/hey-remember-olympics

Whether you think we are making history or repeating it, it’s safe to say we are living in a historic time. In this episode, Why It Matters asks three historians to weigh in on how to use the past to examine the present and make better choices for the future.

Featured Guests: 

Richard N. Haass (President, Council on Foreign Relations) 

Margaret MacMillan (Professor of History, University of Toronto) 

Annette Gordon-Reed (Charles Warren Professor of American Legal History, Harvard Law School)

For more information on this episode, visit us at cfr.org/podcasts/living-history

The killing of George Floyd, the anti-racist protest movement that followed, and the administration’s response have shaken America, and reverberations can be felt across the globe. It is unclear what type of reform will follow the U.S. protests, but it is undeniable that the world is watching what happens closely.

Featured Guests: 

Chika Oduah (Independent Multimedia Journalist) 

Keith Richburg (Director, Journalism and Media Studies Center at the University of Hong Kong)

For more information on this episode, visit us at cfr.org/podcasts/world-watching-us

It is estimated that twenty to forty million people around the world are victims of human trafficking. Of these, the majority are trafficked for labor, and many of them are exploited in the United States.

Featured Guests: 

Susy Andole (Voices of Hope, Anti-Trafficking Program, Safe Horizon) 

Mark P. Lagon (Chief Policy Officer, Friends of the Global Fight Against AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria) 

Anita Teekah (Senior Director, Anti-Trafficking Program, Safe Horizon)

For more information on this episode, visit us at cfr.org/podcasts/human-cost-labor-trafficking

China is undertaking massive infrastructure projects across the world and loaning billions of dollars to developing nations. On paper, the objective is to build a vast trade network, but is China also exporting authoritarianism?

Featured Guests: 

Jessica Chen Weiss (Associate Professor of Government, Cornell University) 

Elizabeth C. Economy (C. V. Starr Senior Fellow and Director for Asia Studies)

For more information on this episode, visit us at cfr.org/podcasts/exporting-authoritarianism

Roughly four hundred million people in India use the encrypted messaging platform WhatsApp. Now, the country’s ruling party is trying to force WhatsApp to let the government trace and censor messages. The outcome could change digital freedoms in the world’s largest democracy, and could have strong implications for the future of privacy everywhere.

Featured Guests: 

Seema Mody (Global Markets Reporter, CNBC) 

Vindu Goel (Technology and Business Reporter, New York Times) 

Chinmayi Arun (Resident Fellow, Yale University)

For more information on this episode, visit us at cfr.org/podcasts/whatsapp-india

What’s the true cost of cheap clothes? Fast fashion has become a multibillion-dollar industry in recent decades, reshaping the world’s shopping habits. But the industry’s low prices disguise a staggering environmental cost.

Featured Guests: 

Elizabeth Segran (Senior Staff Writer, Fast Company) 

Linda Greer (Senior Global Fellow, Institute for Public and Environmental Affairs Beijing China) 

Amber Valletta (Activist, and founder, Master & Muse)

For more information on this episode, visit us at cfr.org/podcasts/wearing-world-out