Explore our in-depth articles and expert analysis on global risks, geopolitical shifts, and emerging threats. Dive deeper into the complex topics explored in our show with thought-provoking content on international risk management.
Wars do not end when the shooting stops. Across Ukraine, Syria, Myanmar, Afghanistan, and dozens of other conflict affected regions, communities continue to live with the hidden legacy of violence buried beneath their feet. Landmines, unexploded artillery shells, cluster munitions, and improvised explosive devices remain active long after ceasefires, peace agreements, or military withdrawals. In…
Workplace violence is no longer viewed as a rare or isolated risk. Across the United Kingdom, incidents of violence at work have continued to rise, while organisations globally are confronting increasingly complex operating environments shaped by geopolitical tensions, social volatility, insider threats, economic uncertainty, and growing societal polarisation. In this episode of The International Risk…
A carbon-negative state at the centre of a global ecological contradiction Climate discourse remains dominated by emissions targets, carbon markets, and the protracted choreography of international negotiations. Beneath these institutionalised debates lies a far more immediate and destabilising challenge: the gradual degradation of the ecological systems upon which modern economies fundamentally depend. Few countries illustrate…
In this episode of The International Risk Podcast, host Dominic Bowen speaks with Zsuzsanna Szelényi, foreign policy specialist, former member of the Hungarian Parliament, and Programme Director at the CEU Democracy Institute, about Hungary’s dramatic political transformation following the end of Viktor Orbán’s 16-year rule. After 16 years of increasingly authoritarian governance, Hungary has voted…
Traditional approaches to transitional justice continue to treat environmental harm as a peripheral concern. In global climate diplomacy, the environmental cost of war predominantly exists outside formal accounting. Such an emission is becoming harder to sustain as conflicts intensify and military spending rises across major powers. When delegates gathered for COP30 in November 2025, the…
When missiles strike refineries and cities burn, the damage is measured in casualties and territory. Far less visible is another front line: the atmosphere. In the first 14 days of the conflict involving Iran, an estimated 5 million tonnes of CO₂-equivalent emissions were released, roughly comparable to the annual footprint of a small state, and…
Conflict has traditionally been understood as a transition from peace to war, defined by identifiable actors, geographic boundaries, and military engagements. Increasingly, however, this framework is becoming difficult to sustain. Contemporary conflict is less a discrete event and more a continuous process unfolding across multiple domains simultaneously, from military operations and cyber activity to financial…
Written by Edward Penrose – 24.04.2026 For security leaders, policymakers, and risk professionals, the most dangerous mistake today is to assume that terrorism is receding simply because some of its older forms have weakened. Terrorism is not disappearing; instead, it is mutating. What analysts previously perceived as a relatively bounded problem of distinct organisations and…
When ransomware shuts down a pipeline, exposes hospital data, or forces a local authority offline, the disruption is often framed as a technical failure. In reality, these incidents represent the visible edge of something far more structured: a global criminal economy that increasingly mirrors the organisation of legitimate industry. Ransomware has evolved from opportunistic hacking…
Climate change is no longer a distant or abstract risk in the context of global security. It is actively reshaping the physical environment in which military systems operate, altering the reliability of infrastructure, and introducing new forms of uncertainty into strategic decision-making. As Dr Florian Krampe of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) argues…
