Multilateral institutions and the global financial system are on a transformative journey aimed at confronting the dual challenge of climate change and sustainable development. This multifaceted agenda involves substantial improvements to the governance structures of multilateral development banks, the redefinition of objectives and targets, and the creation of innovative financial instruments to mobilise both public and private capital for investments in climate and development. However, the jo...
Oct 26, 2023•47 min•Season 1Ep. 4
An address by Hadja Lahbib, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belgium, on business and human rights. The event was presided over by Her Royal Highness Princess Astrid of Belgium, who led the Belgian Economic Mission to Australia. Following her address, the Minister joined the Lowy Institute’s Research Director Hervé Lemahieu for a panel conversation alongside Dr James Cockayne, Anti-Slavery Commissioner for New South Wales, and Professor Justine Nolan, Director of the Australian Human Rights Instit...
Oct 25, 2023•46 min
The FDC Pacific Lecture, was given by the Prime Minister of the Republic of Fiji, the Hon Sitiveni Ligamamada Rabuka. The Hon Sitiveni Rabuka is Fiji’s seventh elected Prime Minister, having previously served in the role from 1992 to 1999. He is also the current Minister for Foreign Affairs, Climate Change, Environment, Civil Service, Information, Public Enterprises and Veteran Affairs. Prime Minister Rabuka has a distinguished military career and served as the Chair of Fiji’s Great Council of C...
Oct 18, 2023•1 hr 21 min
After a decade of foreign aid cuts, deprioritisation, and then securitisation, Australia finally has a new international development policy that aims to return development to the heart of Australia’s international statecraft. Leading that charge is Australia’s Minister for International Development and the Pacific, the Hon Pat Conroy. In this episode of Development Futures, Minister Conroy sits down with Roland Rajah , the director of the Indo-Pacific Development Centre at the Lowy Institute, to...
Oct 12, 2023•43 min•Season 1Ep. 3
The Rothschild & Co Distinguished International Fellowship brings an internationally recognised intellectual and policy leader to Australia to help deepen our debate on global issues. Shivshankar Menon served as India’s National Security Adviser from 2010 to 2014, and prior to that as foreign secretary and ambassador to Beijing and Islamabad, among other capitals. India, along with Asian geopolitics, has undergone rapid and accelerating change. Will India assume the role of a traditional pow...
Oct 12, 2023•1 hr 1 min
In this episode of The Director’s Chair , Michael Fullilove speaks to the leading Indian scholar and diplomat, Shivshankar Menon. They discuss Hamas’s attack on Israel, how India manages its relationship with China, and why he is an optimist about the relationship between India and Australia. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Oct 09, 2023•36 min•Season 4Ep. 2
The Group of 20 Common Framework was established in October 2020 as stress in sovereign debt levels of low-income countries began to emerge. However, the Framework is yet to substantially deliver on its objective of providing relief to those countries. Mariza Cooray , Senior Economist at the Lowy Institute’s Indo-Pacific Development Centre, discusses the Common Framework and the broader debates on issues in sovereign debt reform with experts Ugo Panizza and Mitu Gulati . Together, they explore w...
Oct 05, 2023•42 min•Season 1Ep. 2
The Green Climate Fund – the largest climate fund in the world – is seeking a new cash injection by donors in October 2023. But it's not all smooth sailing. Alexandre Dayant, the Deputy Director of the Indo-Pacific Development Centre, discusses a recent Lowy Institute policy brief with two of the authors, Georgia Hammersley and Roland Rajah. Together, they explore the key challenges hampering the Fund's efficiency, propose several reforms, and spotlight Australia's potential role in helping real...
Sep 29, 2023•41 min•Season 1Ep. 1
An address by foreign relations expert and former diplomat Dr Martin Indyk on US diplomacy in the Middle East and elsewhere, and lessons from history. Dr Indyk discussed his recent biography, Master of the Game: Henry Kissinger and the Art of Middle East Diplomacy, and the relevance of US diplomat Dr Kissinger for modern foreign policy challenges, including in Ukraine. After his remarks, Dr Indyk spoke in conversation with the Lowy Institute’s Executive Director Dr Michael Fullilove. Dr Martin I...
Sep 13, 2023•1 hr 3 min
During a brief visit to Sydney, Major General (Ret'd) Tamir Hayman, Managing Director of the Institute for National Security Studies in Israel, offered the Lowy Institute’s Sam Roggeveen his unique insights on where momentum now lies in the Ukraine war, whether Iran will pursue a nuclear weapon or stop just short of building one, and the role of secret intelligence in an age of ‘information super-abundance’. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Sep 05, 2023•28 min
In this episode of Pacific Change Makers, Dr Jessica Collins speaks with Vanuatu MP Gloria Julia King – a mother of four, and a former national football player who is the first woman to be elected to Vanuatu’s parliament in 14 years. Ms King pays respect to women who trailblazed before her but says, more than four decades on from independence, little has changed for women trying to make a career in national politics. At a recent FIFA World Cup Gender Symposium hosted by Australia’s Foreign Minis...
Aug 24, 2023•33 min
In this episode of The Director’s Chair , Michael Fullilove speaks with Kaja Kallas , the Prime Minister of Estonia. They discuss Estonia’s strong support for Ukraine in the face of Russia’s invasion, the future of Russia in world affairs, and why democracies must work together to counter aggression and reinforce support for the international rules-based order. Kaja Kallas has been the Prime Minister of the Republic of Estonia since 2021. She first became a member of Estonia’s parliament, the Ri...
Aug 17, 2023•30 min•Season 4Ep. 1
In May 2023, Thailand held a general election. Now nearly three months after the vote, there's no new prime minister, no new government and the largest party in parliament, Move Forward, won't lead the country. Dr Gregory Raymond at the Australian National University sits down with Lowy Institute Research Director Herve Lemahieu to discuss the murky state of affairs in Thai politics and what could happen next. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Aug 11, 2023•37 min
Three years of global turmoil have broken many of our underlying assumptions about the world. Australians have emerged from this period with dramatically different views on the threats facing the nation. They express a sober optimism in some areas. And they have cautiously reassessed Australia’s relations with great powers. The Lowy Institute held an event at the National Gallery of Victoria to unpack the findings of the 2023 Lowy Institute Poll. Now in its nineteenth year, this flagship researc...
Jul 26, 2023•1 hr 1 min
Russia’s war in Ukraine is now well into its second year. Ukraine’s much-foreshadowed counter-offensive is developing more slowly than expected. Meanwhile, Russia’s leadership was rocked by the recent failed mutiny by the private Wagner paramilitary group. The Lowy Institute hosted Mick Ryan and Zoya Sheftalovich earlier in 2023 for an update on the Ukraine war. In July 2023, with Ukraine on the offensive and Russia’s internal political instability, we again hosted these two compelling experts t...
Jul 20, 2023•1 hr 3 min
In this episode of Conversations, Director of the Southeast Asia Program Susannah Patton talks with Thomas Parks, author of the recently published book, Southeast Asia’s Multipolar Future: Averting a New Cold War about how Southeast Asian countries are navigating growing US-China rivalry and the roles of the region’s diverse external partners, including Japan, Australia and India. Parks is optimistic about the future of the region, but also highlights emerging risks that could threaten Southeast...
Jul 10, 2023•37 min
What do Australians see as the key threats to the nation? How do they view China and the United States in the context of rising regional tensions? What do they think of AUKUS and nuclear-powered submarines? And how have attitudes to climate change and democracy evolved over time? Join us in Canberra unpack the findings of the 2023 Lowy Institute Poll. Now in its nineteenth year, the Lowy Institute’s flagship annual poll is the longest running and broadest survey of Australian public opinion on f...
Jun 30, 2023•1 hr
In this podcast Dr Meg Keen speaks with Solomon Islands’ opposition MP Peter Kenilorea about the challenges ahead as the country gears up to host the Pacific Games and face an election early next year. Peter shares his thoughts on domestic security, slow economic growth, geopolitics and Solomon Islands-China relations: “My biggest fear is to be so dependent on one partner … you’re at their whim”. He reflects on the high expectations from his electorate and pressing social issues such as deliveri...
Jun 30, 2023•39 min
In this episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, Nonresident Fellow Dr Bobo Lo speaks with International Security Program Director Sam Roggeveen about the attempted coup by elements of the Wagner paramilitary group led by Yevgeny Prigozhin. They discuss the mutiny, the likely impact on Russia’s leadership, and what effect it will have on the future direction of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Dr Bobo Lo is a Nonresident Fellow at the Lowy Institute and a Senior Fellow at the Center for European Policy ...
Jun 29, 2023•35 min
In this episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, Project Director and Research Fellow Dr Jennifer Hsu talks with Dr Max Grömping and Professor Jessica Teets to explore how lobbying by civil society organisations works in an authoritarian context. Using case studies from China, Russia, Belarus, Cambodia, Malaysia, Montenegro, Turkey and Zimbabwe, Lobbying the Autocrat explores how citizen advocacy organisations carve out niches in the authoritarian policy process, even influencing policy outcomes...
Jun 23, 2023•44 min
China’s remarkable economic rise has long been a key factor in global geopolitical discussions. But how soon and at what height will China’s economy peak? What are the implications for China’s ambitions in the world? For years, predictions suggested that China’s economic power would surpass that of the United States by the end of this decade. However, recent developments, backed by Lowy analysis, have challenged this assumption. In this event we unpacked the findings of original Lowy Institute r...
Jun 22, 2023•1 hr 6 min
In this episode of Conversations, Susannah Patton, Director of the Lowy Institute’s Southeast Asia Program, talks with Dr Nguyen Hung Son, Vice President of the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam. They discuss Vietnam’s foreign policy outlook, relations with external partners, including Australia, and how Vietnam sees key regional issues such as the South China Sea, Taiwan, and the conflict in Myanmar. Dr Son highlights Vietnam’s continued focus on diplomacy within ASEAN, as well as its interest in a...
May 25, 2023•40 min
The World Bank recently released its “Evolution Roadmap”, aimed at responding more efficiently to growing poverty reduction needs and better addressing climate change challenges. While the roadmap provides a good starting point — outlining the evolution of the bank's mission, operations and financing model — it falls short in providing concrete and detailed strategies to achieve an ambitious reform. To discuss the roadmap and the future of the World Bank, Deputy Director of the Lowy Institute’s ...
May 15, 2023•39 min
Australia is home to 1.4 million people with Chinese ancestry. At a time of heightened concern about national security and foreign interference, how do Chinese-Australians see Australia and their place in it? How do Chinese-Australians consume news and information? And how do they view the wider world, including the growing geopolitical tensions in the region? On 2 May the panel unpacked the findings of the 2023 Being Chinese in Australia: Public Opinion in Chinese Communities survey report with...
May 03, 2023•58 min
Australia’s strategic outlook on the Indo-Pacific is changing rapidly, as reflected by the recent AUKUS announcement, forthcoming Defence Strategic Review and membership of new regional minilateral groupings such as the Quad. These changes will have important implications for Australia’s relations with neighbouring countries in Southeast Asia, and especially Indonesia, highlighted by Jakarta’s mixed response to the AUKUS announcement in 2021. How widespread are concerns about AUKUS and Australia...
May 01, 2023•1 hr 4 min
On Monday 24 April 2023, Australia’s government published the public version of its Defence Strategic Review, a report it commissioned on coming to office to set the agenda for reforms to the posture and structure of the Australian Defence Force. Positioned alongside the government’s commitment to the AUKUS security agreement, the Review and the government’s response to it have signalled major changes to how Australia intends to invest in military technology, hardware and personnel over the next...
Apr 28, 2023•28 min
In this episode of Pacific Change Makers, Dr Meg Keen speaks with Sharon Bhagwan-Rolls in Suva, Fiji about social activism in the Pacific. Sharon is the Regional Representative of the Shifting the Power Coalition, a Pacific Island feminist coalition working on challenges affecting the region's future including climate change, social justice, and gender and community equality. She speaks with Meg about how her family and faith have motivated her to make a difference. They discuss how women and ma...
Apr 27, 2023•32 min
On 19 April, the Lowy Institute hosted the launch of the 2023 Being Chinese in Australia: Public Opinion in Chinese Communities survey report with author and Lowy Institute Research Fellow Dr Jennifer Hsu, along with guests Samuel Yang and Lucy Du. The event was chaired by the Director of the Institute's Public Opinion and Foreign Policy Program, Ryan Neelam. Dr Jennifer Hsu is a Research Fellow and the Project Director of the Multiculturalism, Identity and Influence Project at the Lowy Institut...
Apr 20, 2023•1 hr 2 min
With the announcement of Australia’s pathway towards nuclear-powered submarines, and the forthcoming release of the Government’s response to the Defence Strategic Review, this event offered the rare opportunity to hear from Australia’s most senior military officer about the international security environment and how Australia is responding to it. After his remarks, General Angus Campbell AO DSC spoke in conversation with the Lowy Institute's Executive Director Dr Michael Fullilove AM. General Ca...
Apr 11, 2023•1 hr 1 min
The announcement of Australia’s preferred technology pathway for the acquisition of nuclear-powered submarines has been described as the most significant shift in the country’s strategic outlook since the Second World War. Coupled with the forthcoming publication of the Defence Strategic Review, Australia’s national security environment is set for significant change. What is the future of Australian defence policy, Australia’s place in the region, and its relations with the United States and the...
Mar 24, 2023•1 hr 1 min
