In Focus by The Hindu

Helen Clarkson, CEO of Climate Group and climate leader who runs Climate Week events, talks about Mumbai’s climate risks and clean energy choices. She discusses grid and finance hurdles, the surge in renewables and rising electricity demand, threats from heat, floods and sea-level rise, and the risks of fossil-fuel lock-ins from data centres and infrastructure.

Shobhankita Reddy, a research analyst at the Takshashila Institution who studies critical minerals and tech geopolitics, digs into India’s rare earth plans. She discusses China’s processing dominance, recent export controls and how companies are diversifying. She reviews India’s policy shifts, the National Critical Mineral Mission and the design of rare earth corridors.

Uthra Ganesan, The Hindu’s hockey correspondent who analyzes team performance and tactics, breaks down India’s worrying Pro League losses. She highlights defensive, goalkeeping and fitness concerns. She discusses the need to refresh the long-standing core, missed chances to blood youngsters, and the search for a reliable goalkeeper. The pressure on coaching and quick fixes before major tournaments is also examined.

Dr Lakshmi Vijayakumar, psychiatrist and founder of Chennai suicide-prevention centre SNEHA. She explains how heavy social media use alters young brains and reward circuits. She discusses addiction-like dopamine loops, impacts on sleep, attention and self-esteem, and practical guardrails parents can use. The conversation covers recovery timelines and policy options for safer digital lives.

Suhasini Haidar, diplomatic affairs editor and foreign policy analyst, breaks down Marco Rubio’s Munich speech and its push for a resurgent Western order. She explores its civilisational framing, nostalgia for empire, economic reshoring and migration politics. The discussion traces implications for the Global South and where middle powers like India might land amid a US-China tug-of-war.

Yannick Colaco, co-founder of FanCode with two decades in sports media, and Abhik Chatterjee, CEO of Kerala Blasters with long ISL experience, discuss football's place in India. They debate fandom size, media rights and streaming strategies. They talk club sustainability, talent development, governance challenges and whether cricket's dominance affects football's growth.

Sanjaya Baru, policy analyst, economist and former advisor to PM Manmohan Singh, unpacks Japan’s shifting strategic posture. He discusses Sanae Takaichi’s rise and political lineage. He examines changes in defence thinking, Tokyo’s stance toward China and Taiwan, and implications for India–Japan ties and regional alignments.

Joyojeet Pal, a University of Michigan information professor who studies tech, surveillance and immigration enforcement. He discusses ICE’s expanding militarized role and recent deadly raids. Short takes cover sanctuary city tensions, who is being targeted, community resistance and the political and technological forces reshaping enforcement.

Rakesh Sood, former Indian ambassador and arms control expert, unpacks the fallout from New START’s end. He outlines what the treaty limited and why inspections mattered. He discusses how the Ukraine war and new technologies reshape strategic calculations. He warns about erosion of arms control norms and the challenges of a multipolar nuclear landscape.

Rana Dasgupta, novelist and essayist who studies global politics, discusses the fragility of the nation-state and why it feels recent. He explores how states became secular authorities, the rise of nationalism amid systemic failure, tech-driven post-nation ideas, and whether new nonterritorial communities or multipolar orders could address climate and social crises.