PODCAST · education
Global Politics
by La Trobe University
Podcasts on issues of world politics.
Episodes
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Australia-China Relations: Finding the Elusive Balance
The relationship with China is of critical importance to Australia. It is also increasingly complex, being influenced by economics, domestic factors and strategic forces. Yet it is a relationship with underlying tension. China and Australia sometimes find themselves on different sides of the…
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Why is China Annoyed With Australia? (Australia-China Relations #2)
Australia has implemented a wide range of policies which, while not explicitly anti-China, are definitely interpreted that way. Other countries are taking notice and inspiration from such actions. Find out more about the La Trobe Asia Brief on Australia-China relations....
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Can Australia Defend Itself in the Asian Century?
For decades in Australia we have assumed that America will prevent any serious emerging military threats to Australia, or defend us from them if they do, but now America's power in Asia is waning and those old assumptions are no longer valid. So what now? We have never really tried to defend...
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Unmaking the Himalaya: Geopolitics, Environment, Citizenship
In recent years, the Indian and Chinese states have become increasingly assertive in the Himalaya. Driven in part by their mutual enmity and border disputes, both states have undertaken massive infrastructure developments, enabling vast new extractive projects, and a rush of troops and tourists...
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A Chinese Scholar on China
When talking about Chinese international politics, the loudest voices are often western ones, and the Chinese perspective is limited to official party lines. In a rare interview, Professor Zhu Feng gives his thoughts on the US/China trade war, the South China Sea, China relations with Australia,...
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A Testing Friendship (Australia-China Relations #1)
For the most part, China has seen Australia as an especially agreeable and non-troubling partner, as a predictable American security ally but with a friendly twist. This is changing, and the pressure is intensifying for Australia to rebuild its standings with Beijing. Find out more about the La...
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Developing the Brahmaputra River
China and India share a 4000km long border, and it’s been a relationship that has had its tense moments. This situation is made all the more complicated by the Brahmaputra river - rivers recognise no borders, and its resources are always in high demand. Guest: Dr Ruth Gamble (David Myers Research...
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Defection From North Korea
For most defectors the decision to leave North Korea is never an easy one, and there are major difficulties in addressing the refugee crisis. Those crossing into China risk arrest and deportation, and the safety of those left behind is often in question. Hyeonseo Lee defected from North Korea in...
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What's Happening to the Uyghurs in China?
In the Chinese region of Xinjiang, tens of thousands of ethnic Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities have been detained inside enormous extrajudicial ‘re-education camps’. China claims the region faces a serious threat from Islamist militants and separatists, stirring up tensions between the mostly...
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How Kawaii Invaded Downtown Tokyo
The vibrant fashion styles of Tokyo are notable for their colour and playfullness, and the shojo culture (girls) draw on anime, manga, literature, film and cosplay. The distinctive fashion movement has evolved to embrace culture and identity, and in this panel we will hear from four experts about...
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India's Statue of Unity
India will soon be unveiling the world’s tallest statue, the Statue of Unity. At 182m tall it towers over its nearest competitor by more than 50m. The statue in the Narmada district of Gujarat is of independence leader Vallabhbhai Patel. The project has been championed by India's Prime Minister...
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A Walk Along The Bund, Shanghai
The Bund, or Wai Tan in Chinese, is a waterfront strip in central Shanghai. It is within the former Shanghai International Settlement, and so all the buildings there have a grand colonial feeling, right across the river from the Pudong district, with some of the most modern and radical…
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Is Asia on the Brink of War?
Asia is at a dangerous moment. China is rising fast, North Korea may be assembling more nuclear weapons, Japan is building up its military and The United States, for so long a stabilising presence in Asia, is behaving erratically. What can the world’s major powers can do to avoid an eruption of...
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Australia and China in the Pacific
In recent months there has been intense speculation in the media and in policy forums about China’s involvement in the Pacific. In turn, this has raised questions about the Australia’s historical and continuing role in the region, as well as evolving issues around sovereignty and neo-colonialism....
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Cooperation in Contested Asia
East Asia’s security environment is changing rapidly. China’s power and confidence is rising, the US is increasingly introspective and uncertainty abounds about its power and purpose.As a new equilibrium has yet to be established in the security order, how can middle ranking countries like Japan...
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How Asia Goes to War
Asia is at a dangerous moment. China is rising fast, and its regional ambitions are growing. Reckless North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un may be assembling more nuclear weapons, despite diplomatic efforts to eradicate his arsenal. Japan is building up its military, throwing off constitutional...
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Australia Needs More Asia, Less US
For decades Australia’s security and economic policy has been developed based on an established regional order coming out of World War II, but we are now in turbulent times. Strong personalities and strained tensions means a change in the balance of power in the Asian region. Guest: Gareth Evans...
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Recycling in India
Waste in India is an important and visible issue, and the country is struggling to manage and process recycling. While a reported 60% of plastics are recycled the volume of garbage is immense, and much of the industry is informal. Guest: Assoc. Professor Assa Doron (College of Asia and the…
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Refugee Crisis: Human Rights and North Korea
For most defectors the decision to leave North Korea is never an easy one, and there are major difficulties in addressing the refugee crisis. Those crossing into China risk arrest and deportation, and the safety of those left behind is often in question. The status of these refugees is an...
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Japan's Greying Population
Japan is one of many countries faced with an ageing population, but the problem is quite pronounced. The world's lowest fertility rate combined with a high life expectancy gives it the oldest mean age in the world of 46.1. A third of Japanese are aged over 60, and the country's population is...
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Emperor Qin's Terracotta Army
The mausoleum of Emperor Qin is a national treasure of China, and is known throughout the world for the army of terracotta warriors that guard his final resting place. The army of terracotta warriors is vast, and we are still discovering how they are made,and how best to preserve them. Guest:...
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When Trump Met Kim
On 12th June 2018 the world witnessed a peace summit between two long feuding leaders the United States president Donald Trump and North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un. While the meeting was unprecedented but did it deliver anything worthwhile, or was it just a glorified photo-op? Guest: Dr Michael...
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Fallout: North Korea and Nuclear Weapons
In recent history the world witnessed a peace summit between the United States president Donald Trump and North Korean dictator Kim-Jong Un. While Trump cites his negotiating and business skills in bring Kim to the table, Kim would likely see it as an acknowledgement of the threat he poses with...
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Chinese Philosophy
Chinese philosophy has a long history stretching back more than two thousand years and covers schools of thought such as Confucianism, Taoism, Legalism, and Buddhism. It has had a deep influence on the cultural and political development of the nation and people of China. Guest: Professor John...
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Will China Have an Economic Slowdown?
China's economy has long been a story of success and growth, and being the second largest in the world has given it a position of power in the global economy. But could there be signs of an economic slowdown ahead of China? What steps would they have to take to safely navigate it? Guest…
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Waste of a Nation: Garbage and Growth in India
India’s fast-growing population, and aspirations to join the throwaway prosperity of the developed world, generate vast quantities of waste, sewage and pollution. In attempting to mitigate these problems, India displays strengths and weaknesses, and the Clean India campaign has found successful...
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Ageing Asia
Asia’s elderly population is on track to reach a billion by 2050, and there are few governments prepared to meet this change, which will have wide social and economic consequences. Guest: Professor Thomas Klassen (Political Science at York University in Ontario, Canada).
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Australian Foreign Policy in a Contested Indo-Pacific Region
The future of the Indo-Pacific region is being buffeted by an array of complex forces including the return of great power rivalry, rising illiberalism, and growing nationalism. SPEAKERS: The Hon Julie Bishop MP (Minister for Foreign Affairs and Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party) Professor Nick...
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China Under Surveillance
Any visitor to China will be acutely aware of the amount of security, and nowhere is this more visible than the nation’s capital, Beijing. Guards are frequent, Cameras are plentiful, and the electronic data mining is extensive. GUEST: Bill Birtles (China Correspondent, Australian Broadcasting...
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Educating China's Little Soldiers
The Chinese education system has had its criticisms, but many argue that it delivers, at least in the larger cities such as Shanghai and Hong Kong. Students are pushed to study, with many students attending after-school tutoring, and qualities such as respect and dedication are held to a higher...
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Jakarta is Sinking (Asia and the Environment #4)
Indonesia is a sprawling nation of islands across south-east Asia, and two environmental concerns are significant – deforestation and rising sea levels. The deforestation rate is one of the highest in the world, and rising sea levels threaten much of their territory, including the capital…
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China's Green Leadership (Asia and the Environment #3)
China operates on a scale that outclasses every other country, and are taking climate change seriously. As the world’s biggest polluter many would say that this is the way it should be. But does this give China an advantage and a global platform in green leadership? And are they making the most…
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North Korea's Vulnerable Ecology (Asia and the Environment #2)
North Korea is a country that can little afford a close examination of ecological impact. The environment exists and is protected as long as it is useful as a resource to the authoritative state. Despite this it holds an important place in the mythology of the country, and retaining elements of…
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Pollution and Priorities in India (Asia and the Environment #1)
India struggles with environmental imperatives. Its cities have the worst air pollution in the world, its iconic rivers are, in some places, literally dead and human development pressures will often override concerns of the natural environment. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made commitments to...
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China Ascendant with Kevin Rudd
With China's emergence as a power of the first rank it has changed the Asian region and indeed the world. It has reordered established patterns of trade and investment, unsettled a longstanding balance of power in Asia, and brought old historical antagonisms to the surface. As President Xi…
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China and a New World Order
China’s emergence as a global power of the first rank has changed the Asian region and the world. It has reordered established patterns of trade and investment, unsettled a long standing balance of power in Asia and brought old historical antagonisms to the surface. What options exist for…
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Lecture: China-Australia Relations: Affluence, Influence and Soft Power
China and Australia have relationship anchored by strong trade bonds, and there is a respectful prime-ministerial level dialogue between the two countries. Yet it is a relationship with underlying tension. China and Australia sometimes find themselves on different sides of the table in some...
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Lecture: The Changing World Order?
Australia has a vital set of relationships with its Asian neighbours, built on the foundation of shared geography, security interests and mutually beneficial trade. Over recent decades Japan and China have become global powerhouses and India may yet join them. Having strong, beneficial relations...
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Rethinking Education in China
Western countries are impressed by the performance of China's schools in international tests and search for the secrets of their success, but are we overlooking the punishing nature of elite schooling in China and its role in increasing inequality? Guest: Professor Edward Vickers (Comparative...
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Modi's Economic Leadership
India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, is a man with strong views on economics. He came into office in 2014 with a vision for India to be a global manufacturing power, and promises that his leadership will usher in economic revival. Has Modi's economic leadership paid off, or is India still…
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Democracy and the China Model
For the past 15 years western democracies have appeared to reach a crisis point. Cynicism towards political institutions is widespread, with results in the UK and the United States the most visible manifestation of this trend. In contrast, the Chinese Communist Party has overseen the greatest...
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The Relentless Invention of Modern India
Modern India stands on the threshold of becoming a global power. As it seeks to revitalise its economy and improve the health and education prospects of its citizens, improve its fractious relations with China and Pakistan and make its mark on the global stage, the key to understanding its future...
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Asian Migration to Melbourne in the 1890s
Much of migration to Melbourne is studied in a post-war context dominated by Greeks and Italians fleeing a post-war Europe, but it undoubtedly goes back much further. Asian migrants played a notable part in the city’s growth, and these people bought new languages and culture with them. Guest: Dr...
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Education and Society in Post-Mao China
Recent years have witnessed mingled alarm and envy in the West at the supposed excellence of China's education system - epitomized by Shanghai's PISA success. But much public discussion of the context for that success, and of the nature of the education system that has produced it, remains...
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The Chinese Communist Party
China’s political and economic growth in the past three decades has been rapid and impressive, and central to this transformation has been the role of the Chinese communist Party. It controls the government, courts, media and military, and its decisions have a global impact. Guest: Richard...
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Trump vs North Korea
A North Korean threat is a reality Asia has had to deal with for some time, but now that they have nuclear weapons that can reach the United States mainland the stakes of changed. Tensions on the Korean peninsula remain high, and two unpredictable and strong-willed leaders, Kim Jong-Un and Donald...
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Duterte's Ambition: A Challenging Future for the Philippines
The Philippines’ maverick president, Rodrigo Duterte, has had a turbulent first year in office. His crime fighting agenda, popular with the middle class during the election, has delivered a bloody and devastating war on drugs with crowded prisons and thousands killed in the streets. Internal...
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Japan Faces an Uncertain Asia
Japan has a challenging future. Its population is declining, the economy remains anaemic while the country’s security environment is extremely challenging. North Korea presents an existential threat, and China’s growing military power threatens the country’s long-term interests. Even though it is...
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Asia's Reckoning
For more than half a century, American power in the Pacific has successfully kept the peace. But it has also cemented the tensions in the toxic rivalry between China and Japan, consumed with endless history wars and entrenched political dynasties. Now, the combination of these forces with Donald...
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China Matters (Melbourne Book Launch)
Australia and China face a new era, but are we ready? Australia’s prosperity and security are linked to China as never before. But what kind of a country is China becoming? Will its demand for Australian goods and services increase? Can the Communist Party continue to keep the middle class...
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Podcasts on issues of world politics.
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La Trobe University
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