New Thinking for a New World - a Tallberg Foundation Podcast

Thirty years after the United Nations first called for global action on climate change, progress remains painfully slow. Year after year, world leaders meet, make promises, and defer real solutions. Why? Because top-down global governance continues to fail in a world divided by power, politics, and inequality. In this episode, Linwood Pendleton, Global Coordinator of the Ocean Knowledge Action Network, argues that it’s time to look elsewhere for answers. Drawing on his work with Indigenous academics, ocean scientists, and local communities around the world, he explains why true progress depends on wisdom from the ground up. Hope, he insists, lies not in endless summits—but in reconnecting with knowledge systems that already know how to live in balance with the planet.

What happens when a failed War on Drugs collides with a War on Terror? President Donald Trump has rebranded drug cartels as terrorist organizations, blowing up “go-fast” boats in the Caribbean, putting a $50 million bounty on Venezuela’s president, and deploying major military force to the region. Is this truly about national security—or the start of a new forever war? Host Alan Stoga explores these questions with Chris Dalby, Director and Founder of World of Crime, and Professor Clionadh Raleigh, President and CEO of ACLED.

Six weeks after Iran and Israel fought a brief but intense 12-day war, a fragile ceasefire holds—but for how long, and at what cost? In this two-part conversation, host Alan Stoga is joined by journalist Francesca Borri, former Iranian diplomat Hossein Mousavian, and Hebrew University lecturer Abraham Silver to unpack what really happened, what it means for the region, and whether peace is possible—or if this was just the first of many wars to come. 👉 This conversation is published in two parts. You are listening to Part One.

Can profit and planet go hand in hand? As public climate financing falls short, attention turns to the private sector. But can businesses do good for the environment while still making a return? Tânia Trindade of SODEFOR, a forestry company managing a million hectares in the Congo River Basin, believes they can. She shares how the company balances sustainability and profit in one of the world’s most vital ecosystems—and why private capital may be essential to the climate fight.

President Trump’s trade war, regulatory overhaul, and fiscal shake-up aim to rewire the U.S. and global economies. Can it work—or backfire? Economist Marco Annunziata, former Chief Economist at GE, joins host Alan Stoga to explore the promises and pitfalls of Trumponomics—and what it might mean for your job, savings, and future.

In 2019, Brazilian scientist Carlos Nobre warned of an approaching Amazon tipping point. Five years later, record droughts and fires suggest that moment may have arrived. Yet Francisco “Pacho” von Hildebrand, who grew up in the Amazon and now leads Gaia Amazonas, still believes the rainforest can be saved—if Indigenous communities are empowered to protect what remains. Listen as Pacho shares why he hasn’t given up hope. What do you think?

Healthcare is personal. Whether it’s a baby in Uganda struggling to breathe or a father in New York contracting MERS after surgery, individual experiences matter more than national statistics. Can innovative technology solve what ails us? Dr. Kristian Olson, a Harvard internist, pediatrician, and global health designer, thinks so. As founder of the Center for Affordable Medical Technology (CAMTech) and a 2024 Tällberg-SNF-Eliasson Global Leadership Prize winner, he’s transforming healthcare in low-income countries through human-centered design. Can smart tech make us healthier? Tune in to explore. This episode was originally published on November 27, 2024.