Acclaimed author and popular podcaster Julia Galef joins us for a fascinating discussion about how embracing a scout’s mindset, one that champions curiosity and truth-seeking over knee jerk reactions, will give us the tools we need to make smarter decisions. QUOTES: JULIA GALEF “The scout's motivation is to go out, see things as clearly as possible and form as accurate a map of a situation or an issue as they can including all of the areas of uncertainty…as you learn mor...
Apr 12, 2022•1 hr•Season 2Ep. 73
This program provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein , the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths , Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates. This week’s Munk Members podcast explores two stories in the news. First, Russian troops withdraw from areas around Kiev leaving a trail of war crimes...
Apr 08, 2022•18 min•Season 2Ep. 16
The Matrix, The Truman Show, and now more recently Westworld. Popular culture has long been captivated by the notion that our lives and the world we inhabit in are nothing more than an advanced computer simulation. But it’s also an argument that is being given more credence by world renowned philosophers and scientists. The leading proponents of the “simulation hypothesis” believe that the mathematical nature of the universe is itself the strongest proof we exist in an artifici...
Apr 05, 2022•47 min•Season 2Ep. 72
This program provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein , the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths , Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates. This week’s Munk Members only podcast focuses on two stories in the news. First, after a promising start to the week that featured peace talks in Ista...
Apr 01, 2022•15 min•Season 2Ep. 15
Pandemic government spending, labour shortages, rising gas prices, and supply chain bottlenecks have led to a surge in inflation and some of the fastest price gains for a broad range of goods and services in the last 40 years. In response, some financial experts expect central banks to raise rates multiple times this year and start selling off some of the hundreds of billions in bonds they purchased during the pandemic. The threat of entrenched inflation supposedly requires central banks to resp...
Mar 29, 2022•52 min•Season 2Ep. 71
This program provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein , the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths , Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates. This week’s Munk Members podcast digs into the latest developments out the War in Ukraine. First up, where are we at thirty days into this conflict? I...
Mar 25, 2022•21 min•Season 2Ep. 14
World-renowned philosopher and cognitive scientist Daniel Dennett joins us for a special Munk Dialogue on the origin of human consciousness, and how our minds have been shaped by natural selection and generations of cultural evolution. QUOTES: DANIEL DENNETT “We have more degrees of freedom than any other organism alive. We're autonomous, we pull our own strings… the primary moral responsibility of every human being is to not become a puppet of others.” The host of the Munk De...
Mar 22, 2022•54 min•Season 2Ep. 70
This program provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein , the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths , Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates. This week’s Munk Members podcast catches up on the week of news out Ukraine and digs into the Munk Debates recent one-on-one podcast debate on NATO an...
Mar 18, 2022•28 min•Season 2Ep. 13
Prior to Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine, talks between Vladimir Putin and Western leaders largely centered around NATO’s eastward expansion: The Russian leader demanded that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization deny membership to Ukraine and Georgia and roll back troop deployment in countries that joined after 1997. These demands were ultimately rejected, and Russia’s response was a military assault on Ukraine that has shattered longstanding peace in Europe and weakene...
Mar 16, 2022•1 hr 1 min•Season 2Ep. 69
This program provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein , the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths , Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates. This week’s Munk Members podcast explores the issues and ideas raised in Janice Stein’s important article this week in Foreign Policy magazine. ...
Mar 11, 2022•23 min•Season 2Ep. 12
He’s been heir to the throne for 70 years, waiting to take over as King of Great Britain from the country’s longest serving monarch, his mother, Queen Elizabeth. But as the Queen’s advanced age and fragile health becomes ever more apparent, many in the UK are wondering whether Charles is the right man to take over the throne from his long-beloved and admired mother. The Prince’s critics point to a sense of entitlement and dour personality unbecoming of a monarch. He lectu...
Mar 08, 2022•43 min•Season 2Ep. 68
This program provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein , the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths , Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates. This week’s Munk Members podcast focuses on the ongoing invasion of Ukraine by Russia. Janice and Rudyard discuss how the conflict has escalated over ...
Mar 04, 2022•22 min•Season 2Ep. 11
This program provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein , the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths , Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates. This is a special edition of the Munk Member’s podcast focusing on the extraordinary series of developments in Eastern Europe that have culminated wit...
Mar 01, 2022•31 min•Season 2Ep. 10
Gad Saad joins us for an in-depth discussion on how lazy thinking and intellectual tribalism is killing common sense and rational debate. QUOTES: GAD SAAD "When you have a collectivist society, you have cohesive norms, and you have rituals of purity that are easier to implement" The host of the Munk Debates is Rudyard Griffiths - @rudyardg . Tweet your comments about this episode to @munkdebate or comment on our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/munkdebates/ T...
Mar 01, 2022•1 hr 1 min•Season 2Ep. 67
This is a sample of the Munk Members-Only Podcast . The program provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein , the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths , Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates. This episode of the Munk Member’s podcast features a one-on-one interview between Janice Gross Stei...
Feb 25, 2022•21 min•Season 2Ep. 9
It’s been almost two years since COVID-19 was first declared a pandemic, and yet every few months a new variant emerges, sweeping through entire populations and thwarting any plans for a return to pre-covid normal life. While many governments are still using lockdowns, mask mandates, online school and business closures in order to blunt the surges and prevent a health care collapse, some countries like England and Denmark are pivoting away from these measures, aiming to treat COVID as we d...
Feb 23, 2022•57 min•Season 2Ep. 66
This program provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein , the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths , Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates. This is a special edition of the Munk Member’s podcast focusing on the extraordinary series of developments in Eastern Europe that have culminated wit...
Feb 22, 2022•36 min•Season 2Ep. 8
This is a sample of the Munk Members-Only Podcast . The program provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein , the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths , Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates. This week’s Munk Members podcast focuses on two big stories in the news. First, Canada declares its...
Feb 21, 2022•26 min•Season 2Ep. 7
By now we’ve all heard of ‘cancellations’ across North American campuses – professors who face reputational and professional damage due to deviating opinions – or students who are forced to recant for behaviour deemed problematic by contemporary culture. A new institution of higher learning is hoping to change all that. The newly created University of Austin aims to prioritize and protect freedom of expression and intellectual diversity. Its supporters argue that un...
Feb 15, 2022•48 min•Season 2Ep. 65
This is a sample of the Munk Members-Only Podcast . The program provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein , the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths , Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates. This week’s Munk Members podcast focuses on three topics in the news. First, Canada’s so-call...
Feb 11, 2022•15 min•Season 2Ep. 6
Lisa Feldman Barrett joins us for a far-reaching discussion on the science of emotions: in the battle between thoughts and feelings, which determines human behaviour? QUOTES: LISA FELDMAN BARRETT “People love novelty when it comes to food and clothes etc, except when it comes to each other. When it comes to other people, humans tend to gravitate to similarity, to people who love the same way they do, behave in predictable ways or, or have the same beliefs and values” The host o...
Feb 08, 2022•1 hr 7 min•Season 2Ep. 64
This is a sample of the Munk Members-Only Podcast . The program provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein , the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths , Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates. This week’s Munk Members podcast explores two important stories in the news and the key insights of...
Feb 04, 2022•23 min
The United States has long been admired as the world’s most stable and enduring democracy. However, many experts now believe there is a growing and real risk the country could plunge into civil war. Deep political divisions, weakened institutions, racial unrest, allegations of voter fraud, and partisan news coverage are eviscerating social cohesion and political compromise. Red and Blue America are separated by more than ideology; their disagreements are about basic fundamental values that...
Feb 01, 2022•48 min•Season 2Ep. 63
This is a sample of the Munk Members-Only Podcast . The program provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein , the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths , Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates. This week’s Munk Members podcast focuses on two stories in the news. First, what should we be makin...
Jan 28, 2022•21 min
Vegetarianism, Veganism, Pescetarianism, Flexitarianism. Never before have there been so many ways to define how and what we eat. But are these choices simply a matter of personal taste, or do they reflect a broader ethical conundrum about what we put in our bodies? Ethicists, animal rights activists, and environmentalists increasingly argue that what we eat constitutes a moral choice. Consuming animals or animal products is inherently unethical, depriving living, sentient beings fro...
Jan 25, 2022•43 min•Season 2Ep. 62
This is a sample of the Munk Members-Only Podcast . The program provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein , the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths , Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates. This week’s Munk member’s podcast explores two big stories in the news this past week. First,...
Jan 21, 2022•22 min
Steven Pinker joins us for a thought-provoking, members-only discussion on how sectarian solidarity and our pursuit of self-interest has led to the demise of objectivity, truth, and collective rationality. QUOTES: STEVEN PINKER “The most pervasive and robust cognitive bias is the one in which people steer their reasoning toward a conclusion that is one of the sacred values of their own tribe.” The host of the Munk Debates is Rudyard Griffiths - @rudyardg . Tweet yo...
Jan 18, 2022•56 min•Season 2Ep. 61
This is a sample of the Munk Members-Only Podcast . The program provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein , the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths , Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates. This week’s Munk Members podcast focuses on the big geopolitical story of the moment, the growing r...
Jan 14, 2022•18 min•Season 2Ep. 2
2020 was a deadly year for North America’s substance abusers. Over 6,000 Canadians and 93,000 Americans died from opioid related deaths, a significant increase from 2019. And while cannabis recently became legal in Canada and parts of the US, many believe that the only way to solve the current crisis is by legalizing all drugs, especially opiates. Supporters say legalization will reduce crime, free up police resources, and generate millions in tax revenue that can be used to rehabilitate a...
Jan 11, 2022•46 min•Season 2Ep. 60
This is a sample of the Munk Members-Only Podcast . The program provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein , the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths , Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates. This week’s episode of the Munk Members podcast explores the Canadian province of Ontario’s d...
Jan 07, 2022•43 min•Season 2Ep. 1
