Lowy Institute

Director of the Lowy Institute's International Economy Program Leon Berkelmans describes the latest developments in Europe, and possible implications for Asia.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On Tuesday 30 June, Lowy Institute International Economy Program Director Leon Berkelmans spoke to the Economics Society of Australia on negative interest rates.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On Monday 22 June, the Lowy Institute hosted a conversation between Lowy Institute International Economy and G20 Studies Centre Program Director Dr Leon Berkelmans and Lowy Institute visiting scholar Dr Yu Ye. Dr Ye is a political economist and Associate Professor at the Shanghai Institute for International Studies (SIIS), one of China’s leading think tanks.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As the Lowy Institute releases its eleventh annual Lowy Institute Poll, Alex Oliver speaks with Sol Lebovic, who has provided independent advice and technical support to the Lowy Institute on our polling program for several years. Sol is one of Australia’s most distinguished pollsters, founding Newspoll in 1985 and directing it for more than two decades.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On 11 June the Lowy Institute was pleased to host a special event with Australian Foreign Minister The Hon Julie Bishop MP. The Minister outlined her vision for Australian foreign policy in an evolving strategic and economic global environment, and how the expansion of Australia’s diplomatic network – the largest single increase in 40 years – will support the Australian Government’s efforts to make Australia a safe and more prosperous nation.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Peter Greste is an award-winning journalist and correspondent. He has worked for a number of news organisations including Reuters and the BBC before joining Al-Jazeera's English news channel.In December 2013 Greste and two Al-Jazeera colleagues, Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed, were arrested in Cairo on charges that included aiding a terrorist group. Greste was deported after spending 400 days in an Egyptian jail but is still facing criminal charges, alongside Fahmy and Mohamed, in an ongoing trial.On 10 June, Greste joined Lowy Institute Research Director Anthony Bubalo for a conversation on his time in jail, the prospects for Fahmy and Mohamed, Al-Jazeera as a news organisation, and what his experience means for press freedom in Egypt and around the world.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Later this week Australia is due to host a regional summit on countering violent extremism.In this podcast Anthony Bubalo talks to Dr Anne Aly about this summit and a previous summit on the topic held by the US in February 2015.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What makes a young man or woman want to travel to Iraq to join Islamic State? What motivates so-called 'lone wolves' to plan acts of terrorist violence in Australia? The Lowy Institute was pleased to host distinguished Australian academic Dr Anne Aly to explore these and other questions as she examined why some individuals and groups transition from radical thought to violent extremism.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Enacted in 1980, the one child policy was designed to allow China's development to forge ahead. Demographers estimate that at between 100 and 400 million births were averted as a direct result of this policy, and some Chinese argue that this has helped China achieve the momentous task of lifting over 550 million people out of poverty. However, the policy has been controversial, with accusations of human rights abuses in implementation, unusually high sex ratios at birth, as well as concerns about the social implications of a generation of single children.On Monday 25 May, acclaimed journalist and novelist Ms Xue Xinran joined Lowy Institute East Asia program Director Merriden Varrall in a conversation about how the one child policy, introduced in 1978, is affecting the Chinese social, economic, and political landscape.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For Australia, China's foreign policy, particularly in the Asian region, is of critical importance. To respond effectively to China's activities in a way that protects Australia's interests, we need to know not only what China is doing, but why. There appears to be a contradiction in Chinese foreign policy that Xi Jinping is prioritising good relations with countries on the periphery, however at the same time, insists China will not compromise on any issue pertaining to its territorial sovereignty. How can this apparent tension be resolved, particularly when China blames tensions around its periphery on the U.S. Rebalance to Asia, not on its own policies. The U.S. says China is intimidating its neighbours and not abiding by international law. Who is right?On 21 May, John Garnaut and Bonnie Glaser discussed China's regional policy with Lowy Institute East Asia Program Director Merriden Varrall.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.