Global Dispatches -- World News That Matters

Hundreds of world leaders are descending on the United Nations for a one day meeting on climate change. This is a big deal for the United Nations, for diplomacy, and possibly for the planet. So who i…

Ruth Messinger cut her teeth in New York City politics. She was a long serving member of the city council and one-time candidate for Mayor. She made the move from municipal politics to global affair…

The Central African Republic is far from the headlines these days, which is unfortunate. Things are bad, but there's a potential that the situation may improve in the coming weeks as the current Afri…

It looks increasingly likely that the United States will expand its military operations against ISIS to Syria. Mark speak with William McCants of the Brookings Institution about the prospects and pit…

In many ways, the fear of ebola is more deadly and consequential than the virus itself. Jina Moore of BuzzFeed just returned from a reporting trip to Liberia where she detailed how the outbreak is tr…

Hi all-

No interview this week. Rather, after 30 longform interviews I thought it was a good time to take a quick break and update you all on where I want to take this podcast. 

South Sudan is quite possibly on the verge of famine. The conflict that erupted in December shows little signs of abating. The peace process is halting and in the meantime the humanitarian situation …

The United Nations released a grave warning this week that some 1,500 women have been captured as sex slaves by the Sunni extremist group that is rampaging through parts of Iraq and Syria. Mark speak…

Chris Hill was born into the foreign service...and he stayed there. He has served as Ambassador to Iraq and as the lead American negotiator in the six party talks on North Korea's nuclear program. A…

The Palestinian Authority may ask to join the International Criminal Court, potentially paving the way for war crimes charges to be brought against both Israelis and Palestinians. Mark speaks with i…

The international development pioneer and founder of the Center for Global Development is on the line this week. Nancy Birdsall tells Mark about how she got her start in international development in…

An Ebola outbreak in west Africa has claimed more than 600 lives. Mark Leon Goldberg speaks with Gregory Hartl of the World Health Organization who explains why the international community has had …

As the conflict in Gaza drags on, there's a renewed diplomatic effort to secure a ceasefire. Mark speaks with Michael Hanna of the Century Foundation about the complex diplomatic efforts underway, th…

CARE CEO Helene Gayle is on the line this week. The medical doctor from upstate New York tells Mark how she became the head of one of the largest international humanitarian relief NGOs on the planet…

In the fight between humanity and the AIDS virus, humanity is winning. That is the top line conclusion you can draw from the newest global data about HIV/AIDS from the United Nations. Erin Hofhelder …

There is a refugee crisis in the USA. Since October over 50,000 children and tens of thousands of families have streamed across the southern border of the United States. What is compelling this surg…

It's a special edition of the podcast today! I have a number of officials from the United Nations on the show. These interviews were conducted on location at the United Nations. Each conversation la…

All eyes are on Vienna as delegations from the United States, Germany, France, the UK, Russia and China meet with Iranian officials in a final push to secure a comprehensive agreement over Iran's nuc…

Turkish foreign policy is always a fascinating case study. As the sunni insurgency in Iraq is gaining steam, how are Turkish foreign policy elites responding? What are Turkey's near term strategic g…