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“I still can’t get his voice out of my head,” George Packer writes of the late diplomat Richard Holbrooke. “One day I know it will start to fade, along with his memory, along with the idea of a life lived as if the world needed an American hand to help set things right.” The Atlantic’s George Packer sits down with Walter Isaacson to discuss the life and ambitions of Richar...
Donald Trump’s America First philosophy and his retreat from international alliances led pundits to dub Germany’s Angela Merkel the new leader of the free world, but today’s global leadership appears more muddled than ever, especially as Brexit and unrest in Italy threatens the integrity of the European Union. Across the Pacific and Africa, countries are being forced to re...
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has upended settled arrangements of the balance of geopolitical power and raised questions about the US approach to foreign affairs more broadly. What does the conflict in Europe mean for the challenges presented by China and other actors on the global stage? What will US leadership in the Middle East look like going forward? Has the volatility...
Inequitable and untimely responses to COVID-19 and other pandemics. Disproportionate health impacts of climate change in Africa. Unequal financing mechanisms. Lack of reliable data and information. A dearth of leadership guided by human-centered values. These are a few of the many challenges that stand in the way of global health and development systems that work for all....
The US government misjudged the rise of China over the last decade — as the country has grown in economic power, it's become more rambunctious internationally, not less. Its Belt and Road Initiative is winning over countries that used to be US allies. It’s expanding its military power and reach in the South China Sea, attacking US companies in cyberspace, and advancing in...
Among the things that keep former CIA director and retired General David H. Petraeus up at night: the rise of ISIS, the rise of robots, and a country straying from its basic principles of inclusiveness. Join Petraeus and security expert Jane Harman, a former congresswoman who heads the Woodrow Wilson Center, for a wide-ranging conversation about the threats we face at home...
US officials have cited North Korea as the hardest intelligence collection target in the world; the problem of understanding its opaque leadership has challenged two generations of policymakers. Today, the rambunctiousness of its nuclear program belies a bleak, troubled economy, where millions face starvation and the regime faces such cash and technology shortfalls that it...
The Democratic majority in Congress hangs by a thread, and with it the Biden administration’s ability to accomplish much of its agenda. What the past two years have shown us is a party with aging leadership, held hostage by two senators, and divided by different visions of its core mission and values. With the 2022 midterms just around the corner and questions already bein...
In a time of uncertainty, rapid change, and disruption, who is best positioned to move society forward? Many are losing faith not only in government, but in the institutions of journalism, nonprofits, and higher education. What role should these organs of civil society play in today’s fractured world, and how can people of good will come together to best make a difference?...
Often overshadowed by terrorism, nuclear weapons, and cybercrime in the public imagination, pandemics may actually be the more existential threat to human civilization. And most experts agree: We’re woefully unprepared, and crucial funding for basic research, foreign aid, and preparedness is on the chopping block. What lessons have we learned from the Ebola crisis that can...
Cities are responsible for 70 percent of global carbon emissions, and by 2050, two out of every three people will live in one. Fortunately, cities are getting serious about environmental footprint — New York announced its own Green New Deal, Melbourne aims to be carbon neutral by 2020, and Los Angeles will use 100 percent renewable energy by 2045. Mayors are often more nim...
The Trump Administration says it is “committed to a foreign policy focused on American interests and American national security” and that “the world will be more peaceful and more prosperous with a stronger and more respected America.” Others have called Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris agreement, waffling commitment to NATO, and abandonment of the TPP dangerous acts of i...