Everyday Ambassador

On this episode of Everyday Ambassador, host Annelise Riles sits down with Nobel Peace Prize laureate Beatrice Fihn to hear how taking a playful approach to fostering relationships, and building trust, helped pass a nuclear weapons treaty. We also hear how The Police Athletic League of Philadelphia as well as students from Northwestern University use fun to solve problems and work through relationship barriers. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit anneliseriles.substack.com/subscribe

On March 1, 1954, the United States detonated the largest nuclear weapon it ever tested at Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands. The fallout poisoned a Japanese fishing crew, irradiated inhabited atolls, and triggered a diplomatic crisis — one the US resolved by paying $2 million and calling it closed, without ever answering the underlying legal questions.Historian and lawyer Mary X. Mitchell joins Annelise to unpack how this works: the legal technologies that make disputes disappear, what it means to "win" a lawsuit you know you'll lose, and how Marshall Islanders used law as leverage against one of the most asymmetrical power relationships in modern history.Mary's new book Unsettling Sovereignty is published by the University of Chicago Press. Her new article appears in Environmental History.Key timestamps:00:00 — Castle Bravo: what happened on March 1, 195401:07 — The bomb and the fallout: what actually came down on Rongelap03:56 — Evacuation and the Marshall Islands petition to the UN06:59 — Why the Marshall Islands? The strategic trusteeship and Pacific colonialism~10:00 — The Lucky Dragon: Japan's fishing fleet and the diplomatic crisis~14:00 — The ex gratia settlement: $150K offer, $6.7M demand, $2M resolution~17:00 — What the settlement left submerged: the unanswered legal questions~19:00 — How to use this: the dishes insight, and reading the real stakes~22:35 — Losing in court and still winning: Marshall Islander lawsuits as leverage~30:00 — Rights as a form of articulation: Patricia Williams and why courts still matter34:38 — Closing: breaking it down as a methodology This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit anneliseriles.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit anneliseriles.substack.comThank you for tuning into my first monthly AMA!We covered the collapse of the NPT Review Conference and what it means for nuclear security— plus my dispatches from Tokyo, an update on the Nagasaki house, and a full clinic on the listening move in peacemaking, and a preview of next month's peace-making move, Slicing.Join my inner c…

In this episode of Everyday Ambassador, I speak with political scientist Sharon Weiner about one of the most consequential choices in modern governance: the decision to use nuclear weapons. Weiner has worked across the nuclear policy ecosystem—from the White House and Congress to Los Alamos National Laboratory—and has spent decades grappling with a question that first troubled her as a child growing up near U.S. missile fields: why does security rest on the threat of mutual destruction?Weiner’s career has taken her inside the institutions that shape U.S. nuclear strategy. The risks of nuclear weapons, she argues, have always been present; what changes is whether we choose to look at them.That conviction led her to create an unusual research project: a virtual reality simulation called The Nuclear Biscuit. In the experience, participants are sworn in as president and then confronted with an incoming nuclear strike. They have just minutes to decide whether to launch a retaliatory attack before U.S. intercontinental ballistic missiles are destroyed. The simulation is grounded in real-world timelines and force structures. It’s an inspiring example of this month’s theme at Everyday Ambassador: the practical power of imagination in peace-building—and it reveals something striking. Two-thirds of participants choose to launch nuclear weapons, often escalating the conflict, even when warned of uncertainty or potential false alarms. Sharon’s findings challenge the common assumption that nuclear decision-making is purely rational and safeguarded by layers of expertise. In moments of crisis, she explains, people revert to learned language and institutional habits—protecting military assets rather than prioritizing human survival. The problem is not simply technical. It is political, psychological, and democratic. Why, she asks, should one individual possess sole authority to end millions of lives? And why do we treat the current force structure as inevitable when it remains a policy choice?Sharon also shared with me some concrete ideas for how researchers and citizens can make a difference in nuclear security. Nuclear weapons policy is often framed as too complex or too distant for democratic engagement, but Sharon points out that you have a right to have a voice in a set of policies that have such dire possible consequences. * Citizens: Sharon gave us specific questions you can ask your elected representatives, as they make the rounds during campaign season, to question them about their position on the president’s sole authority to launch a strike, or demand oversight of nuclear stockpile modernization costs. * Researchers: Sharon outlined a series of key research questions that remain to be answered, like what shapes public opinion on nuclear policy, or defensive alternatives and international law. Using the power of imagination and virtual reality, Sharon helps us to cut through the bureaucratic abstractions to understand what would really happen in a nuclear crisis. The Nuclear Biscuit project allows people to make up their own minds about the rationality of nuclear policy, and it may lead to changes that make us all a little bit safer.Timestamps00:00 – Growing up near ICBMs and questioning deterrence02:27 – From MIT to Los Alamos: searching for nuclear logic04:25 – The origins of The Nuclear Biscuit VR project08:00 – Becoming president in VR: seven minutes to decide11:37 – Building realism: research, design, and behavioral data14:02 – What participants actually do under pressure18:51 – Alternatives to nuclear deterrence and defensive defense21:19 – Why AI won’t solve the nuclear decision problem23:21 – Fiction, empathy, and the power of simulation25:42 – Sole authority and democratic accountability29:30 – What citizens can ask their representatives32:00 – Research frontiers: social movements, law, and accountability This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit anneliseriles.substack.com/subscribe

Hey Friends,This month, we’re exploring friendship as a tool for rebuilding democracy and peace. So I’m dusting off something from our archives—an episode I recorded before Everyday Ambassador existed as a Substack. A lot of you have never heard it, and honestly? It might be one of the most practical conversations I’ve ever had about what friendship actually requires.In this episode, I sit down with two remarkable people: Richard Haass, the former Special Envoy to Northern Ireland, talks about the Good Friday Agreement—and how personal relationships between former adversaries changed the course of history. He shares the risks people took, the trust they built when it would have been easier to stay apart.Lois Anderson, my longtime friend and Executive Director of Oregon Right to Life, talks about our own friendship—and what we have learned from each other despite having very different political perspectives.The conversation is a masterclass in what it takes and why it matters.If you’re thinking about your own relationships across divides right now, this one’s for you.Listen above. Shout out to Toby Susan Goldbach who has recruited three friends to the Everyday Ambassador community! Thank you so much Toby! I am so grateful for all your support.Did you know you can earn an opportunity to join the Everyday Ambassador Salons at no cost when ten of your friends subscribe? All you have to do is to click on the share button below or forward or restack a post. Substack will credit you for those subscriptions.So if this interview lands for you, share it with your friends. And thank you for all you do! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit anneliseriles.substack.com/subscribe

For the first time in nuclear history, 7 of 9 nuclear-armed states have authoritarian leaders. Meanwhile, Democrats and Republicans agree: we must build more nuclear weapons. A veteran policy insider and an international law professor ask the uncomfortable questions—How did we get here? Why is the nuclear priesthood silent? And what can everyday citizens do when democracy itself is under threat? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit anneliseriles.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Frank von Hippel—physicist, diplomat, policy-maker, architect of disarmament treaties, and co-founder of Princeton’s Program on Science and Global Security. One of the most influential voices in the history of nuclear arms control, von Hippel worked hand-in-hand with Soviet scientists to reduce the nuclear arsenals of both countries. He’s sounding the alarm about the state of nuclear diplomacy today. Von Hippel explains what’s at stake when policymaking loses its scientific foundation—and how to rebuild.Von Hippel reflects on a career spent navigating the space between scientific expertise and geopolitical brinkmanship: from citizen-driven movements that helped shift U.S. nuclear posture in the 1980s, to negotiating with Gorbachev, to the ongoing dangers posed by nuclear modernization and renewed great-power rivalry. Von Hippel shows us not only how policy changes happen, but how fragile progress can be.The conversation touches on the great questions of today’s nuclear landscape. What does deterrence theory assume about human behavior? How do weapons labs think about nuclear testing? Why has China altered its long-held posture of nuclear minimalism? And what does it mean to rebuild a knowledge-based policy system in an era of deep political polarization?Von Hippel also discusses the vulnerabilities of civilian nuclear power systems, lessons from Fukushima, and the long, troubled legacy of plutonium reprocessing—an issue that continues to shape global nuclear security debates far beyond the weapons complex.This episode is a reminder that experts, citizens, and institutions all play a role in reducing nuclear dangers. Progress has never been inevitable—but neither is backsliding. As von Hippel notes, periods of cynicism and misinformation have historically been followed by stronger public engagement and reform. The task now is to stay engaged long enough for that next turn.Don’t miss an episode! Subscribe now to get perspectives and analysis on peace, security and disarmament you won’t find elsewhere, plus bonus interviews like the one below. Timestamps00:00 – The return of Cold War–era tensions and the shrinking space for science-based policymaking02:18 – Indiscriminate deregulation and the challenge for the next generation of scientist-advocates05:22 – Star Wars, ballistic missile defense, and how scientists reshaped U.S.–Soviet perceptions of nuclear war09:54 – Behind the scenes: von Hippel’s advisory role with Gorbachev and the push for a nuclear test moratorium13:39 – The road to the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty and why testing still matters today16:40 – Deterrence theory, risks of accidental war, and whether nuclear weapons are truly necessary for stability20:57 – China’s evolving nuclear posture and the complexities of three-way deterrence25:55 – No-first-use policy debates and how U.S. allies shape American nuclear doctrine27:46 – Civilian nuclear power: Fukushima lessons, regulatory capture, and spent-fuel vulnerabilities33:35 – Plutonium reprocessing, proliferation risks, and the political economy of nuclear wasteBonus Content for All Subscribers: Frank von Hippel on Family Legacy, the Manhattan Project, and Becoming a Citizen-ScientistIn this extended conversation, von Hippel shares a personal account of his grandfather’s role in the Manhattan Project—and how earlier experience with chemical weapons shaped his views on the moral obligations of scientists. He reflects on his own path from particle physics to public policy during the Vietnam War, and the rise of student-driven scientific activism that helped reshape congressional and executive science advising. These stories offer a rare, intimate look at how individual scientists navigate the responsibilities that come with knowledge and influence. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit anneliseriles.substack.com/subscribe

Dear Friends,Are you one of kind? Seeking to connect with brilliant, engaged people around the world for inspiration, new ideas, and a whole-hearted approach to issues like the economy and trade, disarmament and borders, or the impact of AI and digital platforms? Join us at Everyday Ambassador Salons! Every first Friday of the month, we’re building a “cohort that thinks otherwise” and having fun doing it…Off-the-record conversation with thought leaders about the state of the world outside the silos and beyond the usual political divides. It’s an intellectual shot in the arm to keep you going all month.Hope you can join us!AnnelisePS: Bring a friend and get a 20% discount on membership! Use this code: https://anneliseriles.substack.com/3e18d318More info here: This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit anneliseriles.substack.com/subscribe

Annelise Riles speaks with Brazilian scholar Fernando Brancoli about the October 2025 police raid in Rio de Janeiro’s favelas—the deadliest in Brazil’s history. Brancoli explains how global arms markets, political dynamics, and historical inequalities have blurred the lines between policing and warfare. They explore how local and global struggles for peace are increasingly intertwined. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit anneliseriles.substack.com/subscribe

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit anneliseriles.substack.com/subscribe

On the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Mayor Shiro Suzuki joins Everyday Ambassador to share his personal story as the son of Hibakusha and his mission to create a world without nuclear weapons. He discusses the work of Mayors for Peace, the power of cultural connection, and why even the smallest steps toward peace matter. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit anneliseriles.substack.com/subscribe

Journalist and NewsGuard Executive Editor Jim Warren joins Everyday Ambassador to explain how misinformation spreads online—and what’s being done to stop it. From fake health cures to AI-generated propaganda, Jim shares what NewsGuard’s team of reporters has uncovered across thousands of websites, podcasts, and social media posts. He also discusses the challenges of media literacy and what schools, journalists, and citizens can do to better evaluate the information they consume.To learn more about how you can access NewsGuard’s browser extension or use it in your classroom, visit newsguardtech.com. You can also check out their Substack newsletter, Reality Check, for weekly updates on the state of online information. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit anneliseriles.substack.com/subscribe