Ten Notable Trending Globally Episodes

Gender, Governance, and Islam

Policy-makers and the media have a problem when it comes to talking about gender in many Muslim-majority nations: too often it’s discussed only in the context of religion or culture, and politics is left out of the equation. On this episode, Sarah Baldwin talks with Nadje Al-Ali [watson.brown.edu/people/faculty/Al-Ali], an anthropologist at Watson's Center for Middle East Studies [watson.brown.edu/cmes/]. They discuss the various ways gender and politics intersect in Muslim-majority countries, at scales both local and global. They also talk about Al-Ali’s forthcoming book Gender, Islam & Governance [edinburghuniversitypress.com/book-gende…am-hb.html], which she co-edited with Deniz Kandiyoti and Kathryn Spellman Poots.

Stephen Kinzer on the birth of American imperialism

Famed journalist Stephen Kinzer reads an excerpt from his new book, The True Flag, and discusses American imperialism today and yesterday.

Making Sense of the US and Greenland's Relationship
Even by our current standards for presidential news, President Trump’s inquiries into purchasing Greenland this summer were surprising. And while few people took it seriously, Watson political scientist Jeff Colgan still wants to make clear: the US’s relationship with Greenland is no joke.

On this episode of Trending Globally, Sarah and Jeff talk about Greenland's role in the Cold War, the politics of nuclear waste clean-up, and the challenges of building a train line...inside of a glacier. They also look at how, with climate change, the US’s relationship to Greenland will matter more and more in the coming decades. This might have been the first time you heard about Greenland on the nightly news, but it probably won’t be the last.

Trump, Brexit & the rise of global illiberalism
Edward Steinfeld, director of the Watson Institute, queries political scientist Margaret Weir and political economist and director of the Rhodes Center [https://watson.brown.edu/rhodes] Mark Blyth about the rise of illiberalism across the globe.

Democratic Erosion

Is democracy in decay? That's the central question animating a new course: democratic-erosion.com/ designed by Robert Blair: watson.brown.edu/people/faculty/blair, a political scientist at Brown University's Watson Institute, and colleagues in universities across the United States. The course, which has garnered national attention: www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/mag….6dc9e68cbc25, is designed to go beyond the dire headlines and partisan positions and determine whether or not the threats to democracy are real--and if they are, what can be done about it.

Blair is joined by Minch Cerrero, a PhD student from the University of the Philippines, and Aidan Calvelli '19, a political science (theory) concentrator at Brown, both of whom took the course and attended the conference.

Mapping Social Mobility in America

In this episode, Mark Blyth talks with Watson economist John Friedman [watson.brown.edu/people/faculty/JFriedman] about his work charting social mobility in America. He and his colleagues have created the “Opportunity Atlas,” [opportunityinsights.org/] an interactive tool that uses U.S. Census Bureau data to map social mobility in great detail. It measures the likelihood of moving up in society based on where people live -- down to the block they grew up on [Read more: www.nytimes.com/2018/10/01/upshot…hild-poverty.html]. The findings are highly detailed and often surprising, and they’re changing the discussion about mobility in America.

Three Experts, Three Angles on the Immigration Crisis

Immigration is an inherently interdisciplinary subject. On this episode, Sarah talks with three postdoctoral fellows at Watson doing work on immigration: Aileen Teague, Rawan Arar, and Almita Miranda. A historian, a sociologist, and an anthropologist, they’re the perfect guests to help connect the dots on such a pressing, multifaceted topic.

Violence, Fear and Upper-Class Seclusion in Mexican Cities

In Mexican cities, the war on drugs has created a culture of such fear that upper class cities within cities are developing, and drawing on both private and public resources for protection.

'Unlearning Race' with Thomas Chatterton Williams

On this episode of Trending Globally, Watson Economics Professor Glenn Loury talks with writer Thomas Chatterton Williams. Williams’s 2010 memoir ‘Losing My Cool: Love, Literature, and a Black Man’s Escape from the Crowd,’ [www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/30424…0143119623/] combined cultural criticism with his own personal story, of falling in (and out) of love with hip hop culture growing up. His forthcoming book ‘Self Portrait in Black and White: Unlearning Race,’ continues his exploration of issues at the intersection of race, culture, family, and his own story. Thomas visited Watson this Spring, and Glenn sat down with him for a wide-ranging conversation about race, literature, family, and life in Paris.

Making Sense of Brazil's 2018 Presidential Election: Part 1

In part one of this three part series, Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and Jim Green, Professor of History and Director of the Brazil Initiative at Watson [watson.brown.edu/brazil], explore the implications of the upcoming 2018 Brazilian Presidential Election

Comments by Jim Green in The Guardian: www.theguardian.com/world/2018/oct/…idential-latest