Episode 342: You Can’t Kill an Idea: War, Power and 40 Years as a Foreign Correspondent with Humphrey Hawksley

The global landscape feels increasingly unsettled. Conflict in the Middle East, Sudan and Ukraine to wider geoplitical, technological and climatic shifts, the world is going though a period of rapid change. At the same time, the nature of conflict and the way it’s reported has changed dramatically over the past few decades. So today we’re…

Episode 340: Iran Escalates: How Geopolitical Shock Becomes Organisational Crisis with K. Campbell

In this episode, we host K. Campbell to examine how the escalating conflict with Iran should be understood not only as a military confrontation but as a wider risk event with implications for shipping, supply chains, critical infrastructure, and corporate decision-making. Drawing on his background in intelligence and security risk management, Campbell explains why the key escalation…

Episode 339: Disinformation, Information Disorder, and Democratic Resilience in a Fragmented Media Environment with Natalie Martin and Eliot Higgins

In this episode of The International Risk Podcast, Dominic Bowen speaks with Natalie Martin and Eliot Higgins about the growing impact of disinformation, digital media, and information disorder on global security and democratic resilience. As the information environment becomes faster and progressively fragmented, the episode explores how trust in institutions is being challenged and how…

Episode 338: Louis Theroux & the Manosphere: When Misogyny Goes Mainstream with Dr. Allysa Czerwinsky

You might’ve seen the recent Inside the Manosphere documentary by Louis Theroux. About a year ago we had this episode with Dr. Allysa Czwerinsky discussing this exact topic! Misogyny is no longer confined to the fringes, it’s part of the mainstream. Find out more about who is harmed, how online rhetoric shapes real-world consequences, and the blurred…

Episode 337: Inside Russia’s Political War Against the West with Professor Mark Galeotti

In this episode, we host Professor Mark Galeotti to explore how Russia wages political warfare against the West beyond the conventional battlefield. Drawing on decades of work on Russian power, intelligence, organised crime, and state coercion, Professor Galeotti explains why Moscow’s challenge to Europe is not best understood simply through hard power but rather through sabotage, disinformation,…

Episode 336: Climate Change as a Threat Multiplier: Why the Lake Chad Basin Matters for Global Security with Cedric de Coning and Andrew E. Yaw Tchie

In this episode of The International Risk Podcast, Dominic Bowen speaks with Cedric de Coning and Andrew E. Yaw Tchie about the complex relationship between climate change, conflict, and human security in the Lake Chad Basin. Once a vital lifeline for millions of people across Nigeria, Niger, Chad, and Cameroon, the region has become a…

Episode 335: Water Scarcity and Systemic Risk in Iran with Milad Jafari

Iran is facing what many experts describe as a looming state of “water bankruptcy”— a crisis where demand has so profoundly outstripped supply that the very foundations of economic stability, social cohesion, and national security are under strain. From drying reservoirs in Tehran to collapsing aquifers and land subsistence, water is no longer just an…

Episode 334: North Korea: Strategic Signalling, Economic Constraint, and Regional Risk with Rachel Minyoung Lee

This episode with Rachel Minyoung Lee examines the evolving risk landscape surrounding North Korea, moving beyond headlines focused solely on nuclear escalation to explore the country’s broader strategic behaviour. We discuss how Pyongyang balances military signalling with pragmatic decision making, why weapons tests and military exercises are often calibrated rather than impulsive, and how sanctions, limited trade,…

Episode 333: Securing the State: Crisis Management and Counterterrorism Strategy with Professor Sir David Omand

In this episode, we host Professor Sir David Omand to explore crisis management, counterterrorism, and intelligence at the highest levels of the British state. Drawing on a career that includes senior roles at GCHQ, the Home Office, the Cabinet Office, and the Joint Intelligence Committee, Sir David reflects on how governments prepare for crises, why some threats…

Episode 332: Who Pays for Climate Damage? Climate Litigation, Attribution and Accountability with Dr Rupert Stuart-Smith

In this episode of The International Risk Podcast, Dominic Bowen speaks with Dr Rupert Stuart-Smith about the rapid expansion of climate litigation and what it means for corporate strategy, financial stability, and international risk. The discussion explores how climate lawsuits have evolved from targeted environmental challenges into a structural feature of the climate transition, reshaping…