WIIS Brussels Voices

In this miniseries, WIIS Brussels invites women to share their experience and expertise on the multi-dimension of climate security.

For this bonus episode, recorded a year after the miniseries publication, Sabrine Dao, Sofiia Shevchuk and Mona Koehler-Schindler look back at what we've learned through the miniseries and share their expertises.

Mona and Sofiia with their diverse rich professional and personal experiences share their insights on the reality check of climate security situations across different geographical areas, such as Afghanistan, Ukraine and more.

The episode is introduced by Laura Djuragic, Deputy Public Affairs Adviser, US Mission to NATO. We want to express our gratitude to the US Mission to NATO for providing funding for this mini-series on climate security.

Follow and connect with our guests and hosts:

• Mona Koehler-Schindler, LinkedIn
• Sofiia Shevchuk, LinkedIn, Twitter, website, VONA
• Sabrine Dao, Human Rights Advisors (HRA)

Learn more by looking at:

• WIIS Brussels Event “Climate Security Risks: Towards more inter-institutional cooperation?” with Kathy Giles-Diaz, Dr Simon Sparsø Damkjaer, Jordan Koop & Iina Lietzén
• Sofiia Shevchuk’s publication “Ecological Consequences of Russia’s Full-Scale Invasion of Ukraine: Accountability, Compensation, and Sustainable Recovery”, published with the European Liberal Forum Study "Designed in Brussels, Made in Ukraine: Future of EU-Ukraine Relations"

This episode was funded by a grant from the United States Department of State. The opinions, findings and conclusions stated herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the United States Department of State

Credits

• Music: Original creation
• Production: Sabrine Dao (All At Once Entertainment)

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Join us for a special episode as we delve into the Women in CT report, a project implemented by WIIS Brussels with the support of the European Commission’s Directorate General for Foreign Policy Instrument. (FPI). Hosted by Ilana, this episode welcomes Jessica White, Senior Research Fellow in RUSI’s Terrorism and Conflict group who brings her expertise as a former intelligence and language analyst in the United States Navy & Florence Ferrando, co-author of the report and senior consultant in security and defence.

Prepare to be enthralled as Ilana delves into the Women in CT report, unraveling the reasons why the establishment of these pioneering guidelines to promote the role of women in counterterrorism is imperative. From exploring the roots of gender disparity in counterterrorism to unveiling potential solutions, this conversation highlights the profound impact of gender mainstreaming and the inclusion of marginalised groups on the success of counterterrorism operations. 

Be introduced to the project's recommendations aimed at narrowing the gender gap and dismantling the gendered perspective that affects counterterrorism strategies.

This episode features: 

• Ilana Bet-El ; LinkedIn
• Jessica White; LinkedIn; Twitter
• Florence Ferrando; Twitter 

Learn more: 

• Download the English or French version of the report 
• Get your copy of « Gender Mainstreaming in Counter-Terrorism », the book written by Jessica White 
• Listen to « Decoding Counterterrorism » a podcast series hosted by Jessica White

WIIS Brussels

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Credits

Music: Free from copyright

Production: Florence Ferrando

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What do agreements, sanctions, trade, business, crises and negotiations have in common? Diplomats. If money makes the world go around, diplomats pave its way: they enable the connections between states, multilateral institutions, leaders and the unfolding realities of the world. And they are especially crucial now, with the world in turmoil. The war in Ukraine and its fallout, the growing US-China rivalry, the bloody conflict in Sudan, the increasing threats of climate change — these are just a few obvious and rapidly unfolding global events, all demanding attention and action. And while it is the media that brings them to us all, the diplomats work behind the scenes to connect the people, the issues and the crisis, as well as to seek and negotiate compromises and solutions. 

To better understand the complexities of modern diplomacy, and especially its crucial role in bridging economies, business and international trade, Ilana Bet-El is joined by two eminent ambassadors: Nina Vaskunlahti, Under-Secretary of State for External Economic Relations at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, and formerly Ambassador of Finland to India and Turkey; and Dr Ailish Campbell, Ambassador of Canada to the European Union and formerly Chief Trade Commissioner of Canada and Assistant Deputy Minister, leading Global Affairs Canada’s team of Trade Commissioners across the world. This insightful and wide ranging conversation reveals the realities of modern diplomacy, the fallout of the war in Ukraine, the complexities of sanctions and trade negotiations, and much more.

This episode was recorded on 9 May 2023 and features:

• Ilana Bet-El ; Linkedin
• Nina Vaskunlahti ; LinkedIn
• Ailish Campbell ; Twitter

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Credits

Music: Free from copyright

Production: Florence Ferrando

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Sanctions have become central to the Western response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with ever escalating packages being announced every few weeks, notably by the US and the EU. But sanctions did not start in 2022. Indeed, Russia was first sanctioned over Ukraine in 2014, after it annexed Crimea — and over decades states such as North Korea, Iran, Nicaragua and various others have been subject to a variety of restrictions, bans and many other measures, largely related to economics. As such, sanctions have clearly become a core tool of international statecraft; the question is: do they work?

A large majority of sanctions are economic, for after all: money makes the world go around. Therefore, in order to understand sanctions it is best to talk to economists, and in this episode Ilana Bet-El is joined by Agathe Demarais, Global Forecasting Director at the Economist Intelligence Unit, and Elina Ribakova, nonresident senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics and Vice President at the Kyiv School of Economics. Join them in a great conversation that starts from basics — what is an economist and the difference between strategy and tactics — and reaches far and wide in the world of economic statecraft and the war in Ukraine. If you want to know if sanctions work, listen closely!

This episode was recorded on 21 April 2023 and features:

• Ilana Bet-El ; Linkedin
• Agathe Demarais ; Twitter
• Elina Ribakova ; Twitter

Want to learn more? Follow the link to access extra resources from or recommended by our brilliant guests!

WIIS Brussels

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Credits

Music: Free from copyright

Production: Florence Ferrando

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

International Women’s Day is on 8 March, but for women every day is Women’s Day: work and home, success and failure, families and friends, battles for equality and rights — they may come into focus once a year, but women live them every day.

In this episode of Women Leaders Ilana Bet-El talks to Arancha Gonzalez Laya, who knows much about the rights of women as well as the deliberations of government. Former Foreign Minister of Spain and Assistant Secretary General of the UN, she is currently Dean of the Paris School of International Affairs, a member of Global Women Leaders Voices.

Exploring more historical facts around International Women’s Day, discover why as a young girl in Spain Arancha was fascinated by the European Union and the Spanish perception on international and European affairs. With deep insight, Arancha shares her view on the current transiting word and international system failures, based on her proven experience of governmental deliberations and international institutions.

This episode was recorded on 28th February 2023 and featured:

• Arancha Gonzalez Laya: Twitter , LinkedIn
• Ilana Bet-El ; Linkedin

Want to learn more? 

• Olympe de Gouges, The declaration of the rights of women (September 1791)
• Paris School of International Affairs website
• The European Council on Foreign Relations survey mentioned by Arancha - United West, divided from the rest:Global public opinion one year into Russia’s war on Ukraine
• UNESCO, Gender equality and education 
• UN Women, International Women’s Day 2023 « DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality» 
• Global Women Leaders Voices website

WIIS Brussels

Discover our organisation and is range of activities and follow us on all media

Credits

Music: Free from copyright

Production: Florence Ferrando

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

China is frequently in the news. In fact, it sometimes seems as if it is always in the news – from surveillance balloons over America to international supply chains, and from world governance to world trade, it is always a central issue. Yet in truth, China remains an enigma, or simply unknown, to many.

At the turn of the century and for some years after, China was seen in the west as a potential partner in both economic and governance terms. No more. For the US, it is now the biggest threat to the international system and the only competitor for global leadership. For the EU it is an economic competitor and a systemic rival. In short, in the global north, China is seen increasingly in negative terms. But in the global south the story is slightly different: with its Belt and Road Initiative, that makes no demands for democracy or regime change, and with its immense infrastructure projects — especially in Africa — China has literally bought a lot of fans. 

So which is the real China? A threat or a friend? Ilana Bet-El explores this question and many others with two experts on China: Dr Mareike Ohlberg, Senior Fellow in the Asia Program at the Berlin office of the German Marshall Fund; and Dr May-Britt Stumbaum, Team leader on Asia Pacific Security at the Bundeswher University in Munich, and Professional Fellow at the Free University in Berlin. Reflecting on the cultural foundations of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the absolute dominance of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the conversation focuses on how China actually works — and what it seeks to attain on the world stage.

The episode was recorded on 2 February 2023, and features:

• Dr Mareike Ohlberg
• Dr May-Britt Stumbaum
• Ilana Bet-El

Works mentioned

• Hidden Hand: Exposing How the Chinese Communist Party is Reshaping the World
• Hybrid CoE Trend Report 8
• European Countermeasures Against Chinese Influence Operations

Credits

Music: Free from copyright

Production: Free Range Productions, Florence Ferrando

WIIS Brussels

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Start the year with Ilana Bet-El welcoming her WIIS friends Florence Ferrando, co-producer of the Women Leaders podcast, and Pauline Massart, Partner at Avisa-Partners. This bonus episode was recorded following a conversation in December between the three women, focused on the eventful year that was 2022 and some ideas about 2023.

Looking backwards and forwards, the conversation brings their views on the current global political leadership, how the war in Ukraine is also playing out on social media and impacting our daily lives in so many ways, and the so-called global system. 

The episode was recorded on 6 January 2023 and featured:

• Pauline Massart: Twitter ; LinkedIn
• Florence Ferrando: Twitter ; LinkedIn
• Ilana Bet-El ;  Linkedin

Credits

Music: Free from copyright

Production:  Florence Ferrando

WIIS Brussels

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The media and journalism are nowadays commonly assumed to be interchangeable. But in truth, they are truly different: journalism is an honourable profession, dating back at least to the 19th century and devoted to reporting facts and discovering the truth; media are platforms upon which everything from journalism to pure hatred are distributed widely and profoundly. Nevertheless both remain essential to the modern pursuit of power and its daily exercise in our lives — be it political, military, cultural, social and many others. From Covid to wars, government scandals to climate change, we need journalism to bring us the facts, and we need the media to help communicate them.

Women journalists and reporters have long been a strong pillar of the profession and expert media actors. In this December episode Ilana Bet-El, noting her start in journalism in the 1980s, debates its current transformations with Suzanne Lynch, Chief Brussels Correspondent and Associate Editor at Politico Europe and host of its EU Confidential podcast, and Stefanie Bolzen, UK correspondent for Die Welt and Welt am Sonntag. 

The conversation explores such issues as what drives people to become journalists (ambition, interest and chance), the differences and synergies between media, journalism and communication, and the sector transformation with the move to digital. Both women also share their behind-the-scenes of different capitals, highlighting the similarities and differences from a reporter's perspective between Brussels, London and Washington and how they navigate between reporting international and foreign news while reaching out to national and global audiences. In a fun and flowing episode there are many ideas, inspirations and gems of advice scattered throughout!

The episode was recorded on 7 December 2022. and featured:

• Suzanne Lynch: Twitter ; LinkedIn
• Stefanie Bolzen: Twitter ; LinkedIn
• Ilana Bet-El ;  Linkedin

Credits

Music: Free from copyright

Production: Free Range Productions, Florence Ferrando

WIIS Brussels

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When wars end, non-war begins. Negotiations are held and treaties signed, and with luck peace follows. But that is not always the case. On the 11th of November 1918 the First World War finally ended, with an armistice, leaving some 20 million people dead, half of them civilians, and more or less the same number wounded, mostly military. In 1919 the Paris peace Conference followed: a vast event bringing delegations from far and wide, with the purpose of recreating not only Europe but also the world. Empires ended in Paris, and new states were born. Hope was apparent, as was a desire for retribution. In the end, peace was declared — but it would take another, even more horrendous Second World War to attain the shining goal, at least in western Europe and some other parts of the world.

In this episode Ilana Bet-El traces the outlines of these momentous events with Margaret MacMillan, emeritus professor of History at the University of Toronto and an emeritus professor of International History at Oxford University. The author of many significant books on war and peace, she is a world expert on the Paris Peace Conference, having literally written the most significant book on it.

The conversation starts with the point of ending, the armistice — still a day marked with sadness and remembrance in many parts of the world, but also with joy of creation in others. And it moves to the point of beginning, the Paris conference, often thought of as the Versailles Treaty — which dealt with Germany but was only one of five treaties signed in Paris, each dealing with a collapsed empire or region. And all five were brought together into a larger framework, detailing a new system of world governance centred around the League of Nations. It was a visionary moment, but far from simple or coherent; and as the conversation reflects — it has many lessons for our times.

The episode was recorded on 4 November 2022. and featured:

• Margaret MacMillan
• Ilana Bet-El

Correction: it was mentioned that the Royal family entered Brussels on 19 November 1918, whereas it was 22 November.

Credits

Music: Free from copyright

Production: Free Range Productions, Florence Ferrando

WIIS Brussels

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It isn’t possible to evade or even ignore the war in Ukraine: from energy and food prices to the instability of global governance, the fallout is immense, and increasing. The people of Ukraine are suffering the harshest effects, but the surrounding states also feel the war strongly, and in a variety of ways. From waves of Ukrainian immigrants caused by Russia’s aggression to waves of Russians fleeing Putin’s grasp, those living next to the war are far more exposed to its realities than those living further afield. 

Ilana Bet-El is joined by two great parliamentarians to discuss these realities: Salome Samadashvili, member of parliament with Lelo for Georgia party and former Ambassador to the EU; and Dovilė Šakalienė, member of parliament for the Social Democrats in Lithuania and a member of its Committee on National Security and Defence. 

This hard hitting conversation is about dealing with the immediate impact of the conflict in Lithuania and Georgia, as well as the broader political context — the gaps in reality and politics between east and west in Europe, the difference between being in the EU and NATO, as is the case for Lithuania, and outside it — as is the case for Georgia. More fundamentally, the conversation looks back at mistakes made regarding Russia and European security since the end of the Cold War, and forward to the possibilities of ending the war.

This episode was recorded the 12th October 2022 and featured:

• Salome Samadashvili; Wikipedia & Twitter 
• Dovile Šakalienė: Seimas website; Twitter & Facebook
• Ilana Bet-El

WIIS Brussels

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Credits

Music: Free from copyright

Production: Free Range Productions, Florence Ferrando

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.