Perry World House

Join us for a conversation on the role the media played in the 2024 elections seen around the world.In 2024, nearly two billion people were eligible to perform their basic democratic right: to cast a vote. In countries including Indonesia, Mexico, the UK, India, and the U.S., media played a key role in framing the issues, candidates, and parties at the heart of these elections. Yet in many cases reporting lacked the independence, objectivity, and accuracy that is essential to a meaningful democratic process. This event, featuring Perry World House Visiting Fellow Des Freedman and journalist and editor Carol Giacomo,

Join us for a conversation about climate finance ahead of COP29.As global temperatures continue to rise, so does the urgency for transformative climate finance to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to climate impacts globally. But how the world will raise and wield the finance needed - some US$3 trillion a year globally by 2030 – remains fraught.Policymakers are negotiating mileposts like the NCQG (New Collective Quantified Goal), an agreed amount developed countries will provide to developing countries for climate action. But the reality is that no matter what they agree, it won’t be enough. The debate on how to

Join us for a conversation looking at the world through the lens of democracy, climate change, security, and human rights.As we start a new semester, we are confronted with a world that has seen significant changes and major global events. In a year that will see more people than ever before going to the polls, there have already been multiple elections of consequence—including in France, India, Iran, Venezuela, and the UK. Conflict continues in the Middle East, Ukraine, and Sudan – and too many other places. Technology is rapidly shifting the global landscape through advances in AI, blockchain, and autonomous

Join us for a conversation about consequences of gender toxicity on a global scale. In a world threatened by armed conflicts, climate collapse, widening inequality, and potentially ungovernable technologies, political leaders have plenty on their plates. At the same time, regressive and repressive gender policies are taking center stage in many places around the world. For instance, women’s rights are in continued crisis in Afghanistan; women’s health care is under assault in too many places, including the U.S.; and loudly anti-feminist presidents govern Argentina and El Salvador. Why have reductive, exclusionary, and even life-endangering reproductive and gender-based policies gained such traction globally? How

A discussion with Omar Dajani and Mira Sucharov about Middle East history, and how differences do not need to divide people.Over the last several months, the peoples of Israel-Palestine have suffered trauma on a scale that is unprecedented even for two nations painfully familiar with tragedy. The terrorist attack launched by Hamas on October 7 resulted in the greatest loss of civilian life of any day in Israel’s history. And Israel’s subsequent military assault on the Gaza Strip has led to more civilian deaths than twenty years of war in Afghanistan. Across the country and around the world, debates about

A discussion on the key outcomes of COP28, the UN Climate Conference.Against the backdrop of an escalating climate crisis and another hottest year on record, the annual United Nations Climate Conference (COP28) convened in the United Arab Emirates to chart a path forward. Policymakers made key strides at the conference, agreeing to “transition away from fossil fuels;” operationalizing the loss and damage fund; and laying out targets to build resiliency under a Global Goal on Adaptation. The COP Presidency also co-hosted the first-ever Local Climate Action Summit for city leaders and dedicated a day to discussing the climate-health nexus.While these

A discussion about Michael Mann's new book, Our Fragile Moment: How Lesson's from Earth's Past Can Help Us Survive the Climate CrisisA rapidly warming climate is driving natural catastrophes. Drought, fire, sea level rise, heatwaves, flooding, and storms threaten the wellbeing of people all around the world. As the dangers unfold, global warming becomes a lived experience, and it feels too late to act. In his new book, Our Fragile Moment, Michael Mann turns this climate doomism on its head by looking to Earth’s history for inspiration. Humanity’s inception, and some of its greatest innovations, are the result of large-scale

Join Perry World House for an expert discussion on the unfolding events in the Middle East.Fifty years after the Yom Kippur War redefined boundaries in the Middle East and solidified Israel as a regional power, the world awoke to the news that Hamas launched a bloody surprise attack from Gaza into Israel. The ongoing attacks have left hundreds of Israeli and Palestinian civilians dead and thousands more injured, and have prompted Israeli leadership to declare that the country is at war with Hamas. What led to this attack? How has and will the international community respond? And what might we

A discussion on how food can be used as an instrument of diplomacy with celebrity chefs Amanda Freitag and Michael Solomonov.Food is an indelible instrument of foreign policy. A good meal can literally bring people to the table – and keep them there – to learn more about one another. But introducing national gastronomy abroad is a delicate process. Chefs must listen to and learn from the history and stories that inform the table customs of others. They must share their own culinary journeys in a way that fosters connection. Across an increasingly complex global landscape, what does it take

A discussion on the goals of the Treaty to Ban Nuclear Weapons, and if it is possible to eradicate nuclear weapons from our world.Can countries around the globe band together to ban nuclear weapons? That is the goal of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, an international treaty that outlaws nuclear armaments. Since its entry into force in 2021, 65 states have ratified the agreement, and it has become a touchpoint around which countries without nuclear arsenals are working to drive new norms. No nuclear powers have agreed to sign onto the treaty and destroy their nuclear arsenals

A discussion with experts on the possibility of the de-escalation of nuclear threats amid growing geopolitical tensions.The Doomsday Clock, a measure of how close humanity is to destroying itself, implies that we are closer to apocalypse than ever before. Russian nuclear threats continue in Ukraine, with a nuclear power plant trapped in the war zone. The suspension of New START and growing civilian stockpiles of plutonium are additional stressors. Meanwhile, great powers continue to expand and modernize their nuclear arsenals, further raising the stakes. The impacts of a nuclear accident, meltdown, or attack will reverberate around the world, undermining our

As global warming continues to intensify, ecologically sensitive urban places are particularly prone to its consequences.As global warming continues to intensify, ecologically sensitive urban places are particularly prone to its consequences. Focusing on the world-renowned Galapagos Islands, a place experiencing meteoric growth in land- and sea-based tourism (up from 18,000 in 1980 to 271,000 in 2019) as an example, the speakers, a student/professor team engaged in Penn IUR’s Galapagos Goes Green Project, will underscore their efforts to increase public awareness about the conflict between local desires to maximize visitors and resulting induced negative effects (e.g., uncontrolled urban growth, increased use

A discussion on climate change's role in biodiversity loss, and what can be done to reverse course.Canadian and Hawaiian wildfires; a bleached Great Barrier Reef; flooding in Pakistan and Nigeria; drought in Somalia; and devastating Cyclones across Malawi and Mozambique are just some of the recent climate driven natural disasters rearranging and challenging the ecosystems on which we all depend. The United Nations calls the confluence of climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution a “triple planetary crisis.” A million species are at risk of extinction by 2050. Despite global calls to act, the world is suffering increasingly severe and often irreversible impacts

A discussion on the potential impact of diseases like avian flu, swine flu, Ebola, and SARS-CoV-2, which all emerged from animal sources.In 2022, over 55 million birds across the United States died from bird flu, making it the worst ever outbreak in the country. As climate change and human encroachment on animal habitats bring humans and animals into ever closer contact, the risk of animal diseases infecting humans – zoonotic diseases – grows. We have already experienced these devastating effects with the 2009 swine flu pandemic, the 2014-15 zika virus epidemic that affected North and South America, and the 2014-16

A conversation about how extreme heat impacts our lives with Jeff Goodell, author of the forthcoming book "The Heat Will Kill You First."Heatwaves – often referred to as “silent killers”– are among the deadliest of all natural disasters worldwide. Extreme heat also threatens the systems we rely on every day, from agricultural production to energy provision. 2022 saw India – the world’s second largest wheat producer – ban grain exports as a heatwave stunted crops, while parts of China’s longest river dried up, affecting hydropower and shipping. Europe alone reported over 15,000 heat related deaths. In his forthcoming book, The

As our planet grows ever warmer, cities are especially vulnerable to the growing threat of extreme heat.In urban centers across the globe, congestion, the built environment, and intensive energy use can drive temperatures to dangerous highs. With cities housing over 50 percent of the world’s population and producing around 70 percent of greenhouse gas emissions, urban leaders have a major role to play in addressing this climate driven challenge. They have to keep cities cool while using energy sustainably, and change built environments that trap heat. Disadvantaged communities are at the most risk, with limited access to green spaces, basic

Join the Water Center at Penn for our Water Industry Career Day on October 28th from 10:45AM - 1:30PM at the Perry World HouseSave the date for The Water Center at Penn’s Water Industry Career Day event, hosted on October 28th from 10:45am to 1:30pm at Perry World House. This event is presented in partnership with the Penn Alumni Water Forum, PennClubH2O, Penn Earth and Environmental Sciences Department, Penn Environmental Innovations Initiative, Perry World House, Penn Career Services, and Wharton MBA Career Management. We'll feature presentations from water industry leaders across the private and public sectors, and students will have

A discussion of Indigenous land rights focusing on history, ongoing negotiations, and the global significance of the Maya struggle.Indigenous Peoples across the Americas have faced more than five centuries of colonial occupation and exploitation. The struggle for Indigenous rights – especially Indigenous land rights – continues to this day. Indigenous and community lands cover more than fifty percent of the world’s surface, but just five percent of these lands are actually legally owned by Indigenous Peoples and local communities. Despite many challenges, the Maya People have made significant progress on land rights in recent years, winning legal victories in Belize

Are We There Yet? United Nations Goal of Universal Access to Sanitation Services by 2030 – Progress, Challenges, and SolutionsThe lack of adequate sanitation and hygiene kills over 4,500 people per day, many of them children. It also results in many illnesses, and disruptions to education. This year marks the midpoint between when the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) were set (2015) and the deadline for when they are to be accomplished (2030). SDG 6 includes universal access for sanitation services as one of its goals and there is still a great amount of work to be done to meet

A confluence of events threatens food security around the world.The risk of severe famine in some developing countries is growing ever greater. The Russian invasion of Ukraine has disrupted crucial supplies of grain and fertilizer, and while a deal to allow grain exports is now in place, its future is unclear. Extreme heat in India, Europe, and the US has stunted crops, with India banning wheat exports to assure its own needs are met. Oil prices have shot up, increasing costs for the global agricultural complex. Meanwhile, pandemic-related supply chain disruptions have roiled the global economy, making key staples harder

The world is gradually emerging from more than two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, with its economic order perhaps permanently changed.Global trade and supply chains have dominated the world economy for decades, boosted by neoliberal policies that prized efficiency over resilience to disruption, but the pandemic exposed their fragility. Shortages of essential goods, from semiconductor chips to foodstuffs, were felt around the world, and the lack of critical medical equipment—such as personal protective items like masks and gloves —hampered public health efforts in many countries. In response, national economies are beginning to shift focus from global to local, with regional