Ian Linden

Ian Linden

Professor Ian Linden formerly taught at the School of Oriental & African Studies in London and is a visiting Professor at St Mary’s University, Strawberry Hill, London. He worked for the Swedish Government in the 1980s liaising with the African National Congress in apartheid South Africa.  A past director of the Catholic Institute for International Relations where…

Episode 228: The Scramble for Africa with Ian Linden

Coordinated and Produced by Elisa Garbil Today we discuss the New Scramble for Africa! Dominic and Ian Linden dive into the differences between the ‘new’ scramble for Africa and the ‘old’ scramble of Africa, how strong the US influence is and whether it is currently weakening – or not, the economic opportunities offered by foreign investments, and…

Africa, tree, birds

The New Scramble for Africa: Shifting Global Dynamics in 2025

Written by Elisa Garbil – 05.05.2025 The New Scramble for Africa is a term that has gained significant traction in recent years to describe the growing competition among global powers over Africa’s vast resources, strategic locations, and emerging markets. Unlike the colonial-era scramble that saw European powers carving up the continent for territorial domination in…

Episode 222: Rethinking Foreign Aid: Policy, Advocacy and Impact with Michael Sheldrick

This week on The International Risk Podcast, Dominic Bowen is joined by Michael Sheldrick to unpack the far-reaching consequences of global aid cuts and the future of international development. Together, they explore the real-world impact of the proposed USAID reductions, including disruptions to programs like PEPFAR, and the ripple effects on health systems, livelihoods, and vulnerable…

The International Risk Podcast- Global aid

When the Money Stops: Rethinking Development in a Shifting Global Landscape

Author: Camila Mateos Betancourt Foreign aid, long considered a cornerstone of international development and diplomacy, is now undergoing a seismic transformation. In recent months, the global aid landscape has been dramatically reshaped by sweeping budget cuts, the closure of USAID, and a reallocation of funds toward defense spending in major donor countries like the United…

Michael Sheldrick

Michael Sheldrick

Michael Sheldrick is a policy entrepreneur, author and a driving force behind the efforts of Global Citizen to end extreme poverty and build climate resilience. As a Co-Founder and Chief Policy, Impact, and Government Affairs Officer, he has mobilized over $43 billion in support for healthcare, education and climate from governments, businesses, and foundations. Michael is…

Joshua Z. Walker

Joshua Z. Walker

Joshua Z. Walker is the Director of Programs of the Congo Research Group at New York University’s Center on International Cooperation (CIC). He has been working in and researching the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) since 2004. Before joining CIC, he was a research associate at the Wits Institute for Social and Economic Research in Johannesburg, South Africa. He…

Episode 213: The M23 Rebellion and the Future of Eastern Congo: Conflict and Power Struggles with Joshua Z. Walker

This week on The International Risk Podcast, Dominic Bowen sits down with Joshua Z. Walker to analyze the deepening crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) beyond the commonly discussed issue of resource extraction. With the resurgence of the M23 rebellion, the occupation of key territories, and growing concerns over Rwanda’s involvement, the region…

Artistic wooden map of Africa against dark corrugated background.

DRC Crisis: What to know

Author: Camila Mateos Betancourt In a world where tensions evolve across different regions, keeping up with global events can be overwhelming. At The International Risk Podcast, we believe it is crucial to bring attention to issues that may not always dominate news feeds or social media timelines. Explore our episodes on the situation in El…

Bram Verelst

Bram Verelst

Bram Verelst works at the Institute for Security Studies as Senior Researcher on Conflict Prevention, Management and Peacebuilding in the Great Lakes Region. Before joining the ISS, Bram worked as a research fellow at the Department of Conflict and Development Studies, Ghent University, Belgium and as a political analyst for the Belgian Ministry of Defence,…