Political Bark

Racism and discrimination are sadly common occurences in France in 2022. Here is an insider conversation on this topic and a snapshot into the life of Algerian born Iskander Ramadan, live from Marseille, France. Tune in!

In this episode of Political Bark I speak with the Egyptian Ambassador to Norway about the Ukraine/Russia War and Egypt's more pragmatic position. 

As I discuss with H.E the Ambassador, right now, in this intense and volatile global climate, it is required that we look for solutions that lead to peace and communication instead of those leading to war. 

In order to get new and refreshing perspectives on solutions t we need to hear from those countries that are acting and positioned more neutrally in this war.

 Egypt is such a country - that has a strategically very interesting position right now; being a neutral actor, thriving on important bilateral agreements and relations with both the Kremlin, Ukraine, the EU and Washington today.

Together we also discuss the detrimental consequences the war is having on third countries, such as those in the Middle East and in North Africa where the price of wheat and other commodities has doubled these last weeks.

Tune in for an interesting and important episode! 

In this week's episode of Political Bark I am speaking with the Hungarian Ambassador to Norway, H.E. Eszter Sandorfi. We are discussing the Hungarian responses to the Ukrainian - Russian war, and the ongoing refugee inflow coming across the border from Ukraine. In only 3 weeks, we see more than 200.000 refugees entering Hungary from Ukraine. This inflow has naturally caused a need for an immediate and elevated effort from both the Hungarian government and its people. In this 'Snapshot from Hungary' - episode we get first hand insights into these responses from the ambassador, whom recently returned from Budapest.

If you are interested in donating to organizations that work at the border and in Hungary right now, please donate to:

Magyar Maltai Szeretetszolgalat - Hungarian Charity Service of the Order of Malta:

IBAN: HU34 11763842 0014881 000 0000

swift: OTPVHUHB

 Tune in!

With the Chairman of the Political Science Youth organization of Bulgaria, Sergey Petrov, Political Bark tackles the topic of the ongoing crisis between Ukraine, Russian and the West. In this conversation we discuss a weakened EU, and a tactical and strategic strong Kremlin. The biggest loser is Ukraine, which since the war in 2014 contines to suffer from a weakened economy and society due to external pressures. Tune in!

Hvordan kan vi hjelpe unge ut av gjengmiljøer og ut av kriminelle miljøer? I denne episoden av Political Bark snakker jeg med Usman Ali (Oslo Kommune) som jobber med ungdomskriminelle hver dag, og som vet veldig mye om gjengmiljøer i Oslo etter ti-års erfaring som Politibetjent der (PB3), som vokst opp på Grorud i en Norsk-Pakistansk familie, og som har jobbet lenge i det offentlige med unge kriminelle. Usman kan alt om verktøyene som vil bidra til å hjelpe unge ut av kriminelle miljøer - da han bruker disse hver da -  og han vet hva samfunnet trenger å gjøre nå. 

 Slik vi diskuterer og kommer frem i denne uformelle samtalen, er det verdi-problemer i det norske samfunnet som gjør at unge blir med i gjenger: De unge lever utenfor 'det normale' og det er ingen som ønsker å ta dem med videre heller, inn i stor-samfunnet. Det at unge marginaliseres og hele bydeler marginaliseres noe skaper utenforskap og negative konsekvenser - slik som gjengkriminalitet. Unge søker seg til gjenger fordi de føler mening, spenning og trygghet der. Og så lenge storsamfunnet ikke kan bidra med stabilitet, glede og motivasjon, vil unge forsette å bli med i gjenger og søke ut kriminelle miljøer. Når familien ikke kan ta vare på sine unge, er det samfunnet som skal gjøre det, men når samfunnet ikke ønsker det heller, så blir gjengen en ideell løsning. 

Hvordan kan vi så hjelpe de unge? 

-Vet at vi erkjenner at vi ikke kan tilsidesette hele bydeler og hele minoritetsgrupper, kun fordi de ikke ligner oss selv - i storsamfunnet - det hjelper ikke å pøse millioner inn i fotballbaner og fritdsklubber på østkanten hvis viljen og respekten ikke er der: Når vi erkjenner at våre minoriteter også er 'som oss' vil problemet forsvinnet, gradvis. Ikke fall for at disse unge som ser annerledes ut enn oss ikke er som oss - de trenger å bli sett, hørt og verdsatt.

Are you curious about the future of the EU?

Then you should listen in to this conversation with Politicking me Off (Kaniskh, University of Mumbai), as we discuss potential scenarios for the future of the EU, and the ongoing crisis between Brussels/Von Der Leyen and Poland - Hungary.

As all political issues are, this is also a highly complicated and conflictual one that needs  a great deal of attention and care right now. We both hope for a smooth solution to the crisis, and an EU where member states and their sovereignty remains respected, while states enjoy taking part in an economic and social union also. We discuss the role of the USA and Russia in today's crisis, and try to come to a (ambitious) agreement on what the EU might look like in year 2100. 

Welcome to a new episode of Political Bark !

In this episode of Political Bark I speak with writer and presenter Sandra Gathmann (Al Jazeera) about her life, career and perspectives on journalism in 2021. This conversation is a relaxed, informal and friendly chat that I hope you enjoyed listening to it as much as I did recording it! 

Photo credit: AJ EN

Welcome to a new episode of Political Bark

In this episode I interview Halvard Wideroe, a political scientists and engineer. We discuss the 'small' topic of the world moving from a 'unipolar setting' to a 'multipolar world order'. We have all seen the cold relationship between China, Russia and the US/West. We are actually in the middle of somewhat of a propaganda war between the two poles. What we are seeing is in my opinion a shift from a world order, to another one. This means that power dynamics, alliances, and the economy is shifting, replacing a model which we have followed since the end of the cold war and up until today. What we have seen from 1945 to 1991 might be a resemblance of what is to come, according to some scholars, and in this episode of Political Bark we attempt to predict how, and why. Tune in!

Links to relevant scholars speaking on the subject:

-The future of the liberal world order by John Ikenberry and John Mearsheimer

-Caspian Report: Decline of Russia's Putin

-The retreat of Western Liberalism:  Peter Zeihan

-Life after the end of the world: Peter Zeihan

Are you curious about local events in Russia in 2021? Check out this recent episode that Political Bark has done with an expert in the field: Jakub Godzmirski. 

I ask Jakub about Russia's place in the world: In terms of the high north (Arctic), the USA, Norway, as a force to be reckoned with, and as a main producer of crude oil and gas. What happens when we switch to more renewable energy forms and our dependency (EU) on Russia lessens? Which role will Russia play in the world the next decade? An important one according to Godzmirski. However, as Political Bark points out, driving a zero sum game with neighbors and distant allies (or enemies) is not the smartest way to behave internationally.

Last but not least, who is Navalny? Why is Navalny important? Why is he a disruptor?

PS: TECHNICAL ISSUE -  Sorry for bad sound quality.

Tune in !

In this week's episode of Political Bark, I speak with Ambassador Hesham Youssef (United States Institute of Peace).

Right now, Israeli led attacks have started again at holy sites in Palestine, only hours after a much sought after peace agreement between Palestine and Israel was negotiated. The continuous cycle of violence that erupts every few months, and years, needs to end: The US needs to orchestrate the road that will led to the end, and to the creation of a two state solution. 

This episode bases itself on a recent publication by Ambassador Youssef (found here https://www.usip.org/publications/2021/05/10-steps-washington-can-take-after-de-escalation-war-gaza) and is an informal, and important discussion, including a Q&A from Political Bark's listeners on  the ongoing war. 

Read more about Ambassador Youssef here: https://www.usip.org/people/ambassador-hesham-youssef

Tune in!

Political Bark is thankful for this informing conversation with Ambassador Amr Ramadan as we hear new thoughts on China and international relations  (trade-relations, political, economic and cultural), about the Covid19 situation in Egypt, Egyptian-Norwegian relations, as well as on ethnicity and race in Egypt - with reference to the ongoing protests in the US (#black lives matter). Note that after the episode is over, we have added a top of the charts Egyptian summer song, 3 Daqat - Abu Ft. Yousra ثلاث دقات - أبو و يسرا for a little introduction to summer in Egypt, enjoy!

Political Bark is very excited to speak with Anita Khron Traaseth in this weeks episode about "Change".

Anita is a member of the European Innovation Council Advisory Board (EIC) and former CEO of Innovation Norway and HP Norway. She is a business manager and writer, and started her career as a traineed for IBM in 1996. She has received several awards for her work there, and is a big name both in business and in Norwegian society. In 2014 she published the book "God Nok for De Svina" (Good enough for those pigs): A leaders thoughts on courage, vunerabiilty, and cedibility. 

She also has her own podcast, with the same name, to be found here: https://podtail.com/no/podcast/godt-nok-for-de-svina-en-mentorpodkast/

With Anita, we speak about change, how to effectively manage and tackle change, as well as how different people (especially men and women) react to change. We also touch upon the importance of good leadership when it comes to driving an organization through big change, where Anita draws upon her experience from Innovation Norway and HP.

(picture: Tore Sætre)

In this week's episode of Political Bark we discuss the personality trait grit and body pressure.  We look at what grit is, where it might come from and how it affects our ability to succeed. Moreover, what negative traits might come with grit when it is applied to the world of sports and body-pressure. We raise the question of whether we are training to be gritty or skinny? To help us answer these questions, we speak with Cecilia Brækhus, world renown boxer and only female boxer to hold all five world championship titles simultaneously. Photo: Terje Bendiksby

In this episode of Political Bark, we discuss the debate culture in Norway. We look at a major survey conducted by the Norwegian Media Authority (medietilsynet) in 2019 on "critical media understanding" which concludes that 7 out 10 Norwegians have never participated in debates in media channels, be it on facebook or in the press.  We also delve into what characterizes the Norwegian debate culture, and what consequences this might have. To help us shed light on this topic with talk with novelist, Ole Asbjørn Ness who has a background in economics, philosophy and takes an active part in Norwegian public discourse. He reflects on how Norway's a consensus-driven culture, "Jante-loven", and generational differences might play into our debate culture - and what consequences this might have.

Photo credit: Niklas Lello

In this episode of Political Bark, we analyze the possible positive consequences of the corona pandemic and ask Riiber Knudsen about the tech environment and tech eco-system in Norway: where is it at today, what model does it belong to, and will it experience growth in a time of crisis? We are especially interested in analyzing the Norwegian tech environment compared to that of established start up nations, such as the US and Israel.

This first episode of Political Bark was created in the midst of the Corona pandemic. It features Sophie Matlary and Professor Haaland Matlary, (Political science, University of Oslo) as she answers questions about the pandemic and different international organizations but also nation states´reactions. 

Some of the questions that are covered in the episode: 

In what way is the world working together, or separate, in fighting the pandemic? What are different nations doing, where do they cooperate, and what is the role of the EU? Is this a common effort, requiring that we put aside political and historical differences? what can we predict after the pandemic? will we all act unified in order new pandemics?

#EU #Russia #China #Coronapandemic