Development Futures

Global progress on gender equality is stalling, and in some places going backwards. The World Economic Forum estimates that, at current rates, Asia and the Pacific won't reach gender parity for 179 years. In this episode, host Roland Rajah is joined by Grace Stanhope (Lowy Institute) and Professor Katrina Lee-Koo (University of Queensland) to analyse why gender equality is under siege. They discuss shrinking aid budgets, the politi...

International trade has faced multiple shocks in recent years, making the need to reform the architecture of global trade more urgent than ever. Aligning new trade rules with global net-zero ambitions will be crucial to providing the necessary incentives for firms and economies to decarbonise. Many have already recognised the need to “green” trade. But how to do it?

The Lowy Institute’s Grace Stanhope and Robert W...

It has been just over a year since the Trump administration's dramatic cuts to America's foreign aid budget and the shuttering of USAID. With other major donors also slashing their aid programs — potentially causing 22 million additional avoidable deaths by 2030 — what does this mean for Australia's development efforts? A new OECD review of Australia's aid program provides a timely opportunity to assess the health and f...

The United Nations is facing two simultaneous disruptions: the planned UN80 reforms, timed to refine the organisation’s structure and mandate during its 80th anniversary, and budget cuts led by the Trump administration. Lowy Institute Research Fellow Grace Stanhope speaks with UN financing expert and author Dr Ronny Patz, and Ryan Neelam, the Lowy Institute’s Director of Public Opinion and Foreign Policy, about the fina...

The Institute’s Dr Melanie Pill speaks with Professor Thomas Hale, author of Long Problems: Climate change and the challenge of governing across time, about the difficulty of addressing issues, like climate change, that have such distant consequences. They discuss the barriers to addressing and governing long problems, how to build stronger institutions, and how international negotiations and agreements can be ...

As global donors retreat from development finance, Southeast Asia stands to lose billions of dollars in critical support. In this episode, we launch the Lowy Institute’s 2025 Southeast Asia Aid Map and unpack what the wave of US, UK and European aid cuts mean for the region. Roland Rajah, Director of the Institute’s Indo-Pacific Development Centre, is joined by the Map’s lead authors Alexandre Dayant and Grac...

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto campaigned on a promise of continuity and better economic performance. Is Prabowo living up to his campaign promises or taking the country in a new direction? The Lowy Institute's Lead Economist, Roland Rajah, speaks with Dr Eve Warburton, Director of the Australian National University's Indonesia Institute, and Indo-Pacific Development Centre Research Fellows Dr Hilman Palaon and Robert Walker...

The Lowy Institute Re-Cast series republishes the best podcasts from our archives. In case you missed them the first time around or if you want revisit these engaging conversations, the Re-Cast series has you covered.

Can we measure national success beyond economic growth? In August 2024, Professor Robert Costanza spoke with the Lowy Institute’s Alexandre Dayant about why countries need to move away from gross domestic produc...

Donald Trump has moved quickly to impose tariffs on literally every country in the world. Trump’s tariffs against Australia are not only affecting matters of trade; they potentially infringe Australian sovereignty. The Lowy Institute’s Lead Economist Roland Rajah sits down with Dr Jenny Gordon, Lowy Institute Nonresident Fellow and Honorary Professor at the Australian National University, to discuss the economics and pe...

The Trump administration is taking an axe to the world’s biggest foreign aid program, dismantling its US Agency for International Development and freezing billions of dollars in foreign assistance. The Lowy Institute’s Lead Economist Roland Rajah is joined by Deputy Director of the Indo-Pacific Development Centre, Alexandre Dayant, and Research Associate, Grace Stanhope, to dive into what’s hap...

The Trump administration’s recent dismantling of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and freeze on most US foreign aid has created havoc within the international aid and development sectors. Prior to these major announcements, the Lowy Institute’s Lead Economist Roland Rajah spoke with Masood Ahmed, President Emeritus of the Center for Global Development, in December last year. They discus...

As part of the Lowy Institute Re-Cast series, we are republishing the best podcasts of 2024. In case you missed them the first time around or if you want revisit these engaging conversations, the Re-Cast series has you covered.

As we usher in the new year, the global economy is at a turning point. From confronting an economic development crisis and addressing the good-jobs dilemma, to navigating the climate transition and charting ...

As part of the Lowy Institute Re-Cast series, we are republishing the best podcasts of 2024. In case you missed them the first time around or if you want revisit these engaging conversations, the Re-Cast series has you covered.

China is facing many economic problems, at home and abroad. The two are connected. Weak demand at home has contributed to a sharp rise in Chinese manufacturing exports, especially in green technologies such ...

Trillions of dollars are needed to meet the world’s climate and development goals. Joan Larrea, CEO of Convergence, a global blended finance network, speaks with the Lowy Institute’s Roland Rajah about how blended finance, which uses government and philanthropic money to increase private investment, could be the answer. Joan shares her insights on what blended finance can realistically achieve, what’s ne...

Each year, the Lowy Institute updates is Pacific Aid Map – the most comprehensive database tracking aid and development flows to the Pacific Islands region ever assembled. In this episode of Development Futures, lead authors Alexandre Dayant and Riley Duke join Dr Jessica Collins to unpack the key insights from this year’s report and explore key questions.  How is the international community supporting the Pacific ...

In this episode, we explore what might happen at COP29, the upcoming UN climate summit in Baku, Azerbaijan. With global emissions at record highs and climate impacts intensifying, this year’s conference will focus on setting a new climate finance goal to drive global climate action. The Lowy Institute’s Alexandre Dayant is joined by Indo-Pacific Development Centre climate experts Dr Melanie Pill and Georgia Hammersley, ...

Eighty years ago, the Bretton Woods agreement shaped the global financial system to build a better world. While its institutions remain vital, they are struggling to meet today’s challenges — climate change, economic insecurity, and a multi-trillion-dollar development financing gap. In this podcast, Lowy Institute researchers Alexandre Dayant, Michelle Lyons and Roland Rajah explore the proposal for an Indo-Pacific Econ...

In this episode, we delve into the United Nations Loss and Damage Fund, the most concrete effort to address restitution for those impacted by climate change. As the recently appointed board begins crafting a global fund to financially support climate victims, much remains unresolved, including complex questions about who is eligible for money and how they can access it, how to quantify intangible impacts such as the loss of traditi...

Can we measure national success beyond economic growth? Professor Robert Costanza speaks with the Lowy Institute’s Alexandre Dayant about why countries need to move away from gross domestic product as the measure of economic prosperity and factor in other complementary gauges of success. In a time of high inflation, increased cost of living, and growing environmental degradation, Professor Constanza argues that moving “...