Stop the Next Pandemic: Conservation as Public Health Policy

The legacy of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic leaves behind an urgent question: How do we prevent history from repeating itself? Far from a doomsday conjecture, our shared history with pathogens shows that outbreaks will happen again. Soon. But to forestall the next pandemic, we must first understand how outbreaks begin.   “Zoonosis”— a disease that can … Read more

Wisconsin Is a Microcosm of America’s Democratic Decline

On Election Day this April, Wisconsin Assembly Republican Speaker Robin Vos told reporters they were “incredibly safe to go out.” Sporting a pin that read “election observer,” he spoke with conviction, yet his surgical mask, rubber gloves, and protective smock rendered his assurances a bit ironic. The disconnect between Vos’ calm demeanor and his dystopian … Read more

The Political Economy of Australia’s Wildfires

Australian Parliament building in aftermath of wildfire. This past summer, Australia experienced one of the most devastating fire seasons on record. Over a period of 80 days, forty-six million acres of bushland were razed (an area larger than Portugal), an estimated one billion animals were lost, including endangered species, and 2,500 homes were destroyed. Tragically, … Read more

Beating the Odds: How ASEAN Helped Southeast Asia Succeed

Kishore Mahbubani, former Singaporean Ambassador to the United Nations, once declared, “When ASEAN [the Association of Southeast Asian Nations] was born on the 8th of August 1967, it was destined to fail.” After all, Southeast Asia was, and continues to be, one of the most diverse regions in the world, hosting four major religions, 800 … Read more

A Call to Arms

“Because you did change the world. You did. And that’s why I leave this stage tonight even more optimistic than when we started. Because I know our work has helped so many Americans; it has inspired so many Americans.” With these words, President Obama reminded the American people that they are the ones who wield … Read more

A Fake America: Cultural Fragmentation and Polarization

In his 1796 farewell address, President George Washington cautioned against the “baneful effects of the spirit of party,” warning that hyper-partisanship would lead to “permanent despotism.” This past Tuesday, departing President Barack Obama echoed his predecessor’s words of warning, emphasizing that the founders “knew that democracy does require a basic sense of solidarity—the idea that … Read more

Self-Censorship: The Hidden Gag Order

Self-Censorship: The Hidden Gag Order

Instead of sinking into fearful paralysis after the machine gun murder of seven of its employees, Paris-based Charlie Hebdo printed another issue just a week after the attack. Its pages defiantly contain more of the material that supposedly motivated the killings: provocative drawings of the prophet Mohammed. Contrast the magazine’s decision with the behavior of … Read more