x

75% of people globally want unbiased news (Pew Research) but are concerned they're not getting that.

Get balanced coverage with Symby. See how stories are covered across diverse outlets and spot when one side covers a story the other skips.

PODCAST

In Pursuit of Development

Step into conversations that travel across continents and challenge the way you think about progress. From democracy and inequality to climate resilience and healthcare, Dan Banik explores how societies navigate the complex terrain of democracy, poverty, inequality, and sustainability. Through dialogues with scholars, leaders, and innovators, In Pursuit of Development uncovers how ideas travel, why policies succeed or fail, and what it takes to build a more just and resilient world. Expect sharp

science social sciences

All Episodes

00:56:56

"Global Britain": Inspired vision or wishful...

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/06/02

Following Brexit, Britain has expressed a desire to play an important new role in world affairs. The idea of "Global Britain" has thus made a comeback with free trade as its core element. Indeed, Global Britain appears to be a catchy label for the UK’s ambition to look beyond Europe for new commercial opportunities and pathways to global influence. But critics argue that “A positive image of Global Britain must be earned, not declared.” And that the narrative of Global Britain will only be

en

00:58:14

How does digital technology affect healthcare? —...

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/05/26

There is considerable attention on the pivotal role that digital technology can play in providing better healthcare. The term “digital health” is broad in scope and includes mobile health (mHealth), health information technology, tele-health and telemedicine, virtual care, remote monitoring, and wearable devices. Indeed, for many years, I have been a big fan of wearable devices such as my Fit-bit wristband and am obsessed with monitoring my various stats such as number of steps walked or run every

en

01:00:20

Reimagining development — Hannah Ryder

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/05/19

Do current “development” structures work? If not, why? And what solutions are out there that place greater agency in low-income countries to shape these development structures and results?Hannah Ryder is the CEO of Development Reimagined, an international development consultancy in China, which provides strategic advice and practical support to African, Chinese, and international stakeholders on issues ranging from the Belt and Road Initiative to Africa’s growth markets to green growth and China’s

en

01:01:12

Navigating by judgment to achieve development impact...

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/05/12

In an excellent book on how aid agencies manage foreign aid projects, Dan Honig argues that tight top-down controls and a focus on target-setting and metrics often lead aid projects astray. If one navigates from the top, one may achieve more management control, more oversight, and more standardized behavior. But this may be at the cost of flexibility and adaptability. By contrast, if one empowers those closest to the ground, and focuses on what field agents can see and learn, we may apply so-called

en

01:07:46

Democracy and crisis response in India — Patralekha...

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/05/05

India is experiencing a devastating second wave of the pandemic. Indeed, the country appears to be going through one of the darkest moments in its post-independence history with new records broken every day for new cases of Covid-19. There are also growing concerns that even these staggering numbers that have been officially reported are in reality an undercount. And then there is the crippling shortage of life-saving supplies such as medical oxygen.Critics claim that the Indian government has

en

01:01:16

The globalization of foreign aid — Liam Swiss

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/04/28

Why do aid agencies from wealthy donor countries with diverse domestic political and economic contexts arrive at very similar positions on certain foreign aid policies and priorities?In his book, The Globalization of Foreign Aid: Developing Consensus, Liam Swiss examines how certain ideas and practices influence the work of aid agencies in Canada, the United States and Sweden and how aid agencies end up adopting common policy priorities such as in the fields of gender and security. He argues that

en

01:03:15

Nigeria and the inadequacies of the resource curse...

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/04/21

There is considerable academic literature on the resource curse thesis which aims to explain why resource-rich countries have not benefited from their oil and mineral resources. And this resource curse thesis within economics, political science, and sociology has numerous economic, political, social, and environmental dimensions.But in her work, our guest has often highlighted the inadequacies of the “resource curse” thesis particularly in explaining dissatisfaction with the pace of economic

en

01:07:30

Can we domesticate the state or will it domesticate...

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/04/14

With many path-breaking books, James C. Scott has for long been a key figure in Southeast Asian Studies and in the comparative study of agrarian societies, peasant politics and resistance studies. His hugely influential scholarship crosses disciplines, shaping political science, anthropology, and history.In this conversation, we focus on a selection of Prof. Scott's books, including Seeing Like a State, which is a magisterial critique of top-down social planning, The Art of Not Being Governed,

en

00:57:26

Population and development: Risks and opportunities —...

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/04/07

An article in The Economist magazine in September 2018 argued that high birth rates is one of the main culprits for pervasive poverty on the African continent. The article, in particular, cited the example of Tanzania, where the then President John Magufuli did not apparently see the point with birth control, having announced in 2016 that women could throw away their contraceptives as state schools will be free. President Magufuli subsequently claimed that a major consequence of widespread

en

01:02:58

Imperialism and the developing world — Atul Kohli

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/03/31

Western imperialism has fundamentally shaped the developing world. In particular, Great Britain and the United States – the dominant capitalist powers of the 19th and 20th centuries, respectively, have played a major role in this historical process. But why did they pursue imperialism? And what effects did such imperial practices have on the developing world? These are the key questions that Atul Kohli examines in his brilliant new book, Imperialism and the Developing World: How Britain and the U.S

en

01:03:34

Summit diplomacy and African agency — Folashadé Soulé

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/03/24

Several countries are vying for the African continent’s attention. While there has been considerable attention on China’s and India’s motives and interests, Russia, Germany, France, the UK, Turkey, Japan, South Korea and Middle Eastern countries are all trying to increase their footprint on the continent. An important first step for many of these countries is to organize a summit – a major gathering of leaders and other high-level officials to discuss how African countries can further strengthen

en

01:07:45

India-Africa relations — Renu Modi

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/03/17

While a considerable amount of world attention is focused on China’s commanding presence on the African continent and the impact of Beijing’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative, India’s activities in Africa have received limited attention. This is indeed surprising because India has an over 2000-year presence on the continent and India-Africa relations have witnessed a major upsurge in recent years.In its relations with African countries, India frequently highlights the economic and philanthropic

en

01:10:49

Corruption and political settlements — Mushtaq Khan

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/03/10

One of the dominant explanations for elusive development in many parts of the world is the negative role played by corruption in the development process. And many national and local governments as well as international aid agencies have spent considerable time and resources trying to come up with plans to combat the corruption menace. But anti-corruption policy has often been difficult to implement and many well-intentioned efforts have had limited impact. Despite the challenges associated with

en

01:05:18

The impact of the sustainable development concept —...

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/03/03

Since its inception in the international development discourse in the late 1980s, sustainable development has often been celebrated for its rhetorical appeal to political correctness. But is it a useful tool for global development?The idea of “sustainable development” has not only acquired new layers of meaning over the years but has in many ways witnessed a rejuvenation since 2015 following the adoption by world leaders of the 2030 Agenda and its accompanying 17 Sustainable Development Goals

en

01:02:16

The future of aid — Jonathan Glennie

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/02/24

International public finance, that is required to address global challenges in the decades to come, is woefully inadequate. And rather than aid, which offers an obsolete approach, we should be talking about joint investments – or as my guest this week puts it, Global Public Investment (GPI).In his recent book, The Future of Aid: Global Public Investment, Jonathan Glennie urges us to move away from the patronizing and outdated aid narrative. For starters, he points to the ambitious SDGs and the need

en

00:30:08

Vaccine nationalism and vaccine equity — Antoine de...

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/02/20

I was recently made aware of the fact that 10 wealthy countries have monopolized 75% of all vaccinations delivered worldwide. This has led the United Nations to sharply criticize the world’s wealthy countries for hogging Covid vaccines. In light of growing vaccine nationalism, many voices have for long been calling for global sharing of vaccines. But it turns out 130 countries have not received a single dose of a Covid vaccine. Thus, we are at a critical moment when vaccine equity appears to be the

en

01:00:04

Knowledge production and network-building in China’s...

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/02/17

Within international relations theory and foreign policy circles, there is considerable interest in understanding China’s rise to power. In an exciting new book, my guest argues that China’s various types of encounters with countries in the Global South are very different from the behaviour and investment strategies of the US and European countries. In Shaping the future of power: Knowledge Production and network-building in China-Africa Relations, Lina Benabdallah explores the integrated roles of

en

00:36:30

How to distribute a Covid-19 vaccine ethically —...

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/02/13

As Covid vaccines become available, health officials, policymakers, philanthropic organizations and people like you and me are being confronted with numerous ethical challenges and moral dilemmas. Who should get the vaccines first and how long should others wait? What about the inequality of access to vaccines between countries?Some of us may agree that rich countries have a moral responsibility to subsidize vaccination programs around the world. But how best can this be achieved? And what types of

en

00:53:37

How India became the "pharmacy of the world" — Rory...

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/02/10

One of the many ways in which India has expanded its influence in global affairs relates to pharmaceutical products. The Indian pharmaceutical sector has enthusiastically highlighted its ability to develop Triple A technology (affordable, available, adaptable). By encouraging research hubs and offering a steady supply of affordable drugs to many countries, including the United States, India has rapidly moved from being a pharmacy for low-income countries to becoming the “pharmacy of the world”. The

en

00:55:27

Political violence and development — Patricia Justino

In Pursuit of Development ·

2021/02/02

People living in areas prone to, or affected by, conflict tend to suffer from many types of deprivation. Some scholars argue that conflict is an important driver of severe food crises and famines, and that undernutrition worsens in situations of prolonged conflicts and in countries and regions with weak institutional capacity. In recent years, Syria, Yemen, Afghanistan, South Sudan and Ethiopia are just some of the examples that have been used in the literature to illustrate the close linkages

en

171 results

Similar Podcasts

Classic Radio Science Fiction

solgoodmedia.com

Mission to Mars

Inception Point Ai

The 365 Days of Astronomy

365DaysOfAstronomy.org

Creek Devil

william Jevning

UFO Chronicles Podcast

Nik Hunter