Explore every episode of Crossing Channels
| Pub. Date | Title | Duration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 27 Feb 2022 | Will Levelling Up Work? | 00:30:43 | |
The UK is currently one of the most regionally unequal countries in the developed world. The government's White Paper on Levelling Up sets out 12 “missions” to increase economic opportunities across all regions. | |||
| 08 Mar 2022 | Ukraine invasion: context, consequences and the information war | 00:37:30 | |
This special edition of Crossing Channels was organised in response to the invasion of Ukraine that began in February 2022. It covers how the Ukrainian people, policymakers, and government have responded during the first ten days of the war, its geopolitical context and implications, and the scale of the information war taking place, within both Ukraine and Russia. This episode is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones, and features expert guests Nataliia Shapoval from the Kyiv School of Economics, Horacio Larreguy from the IAST, and Ayse Zarakol from the University of Cambridge. For more information about the conflict, the BBC is running a live webpage with up-to-date coverage of the war here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-europe-60532634 The Kyiv School of Economics has on its website a summary of ways you can support it and Ukraine during the crisis: https://kse.ua/. This includes their lecture marathon to enhance Ukrainian intellectual sovereignty, along with ways to donate and apply political pressure. For more information about the podcast and the work of the institutes, visit our websites at www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk and www.iast.fr/. Tweet us with your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse. Audio production by Steve Hankey. Podcast editing by Annabel Manley More information about our guests:
Ayse Zarakol is a Professor of International Relations at the University of Cambridge. Her research interests are at the intersection of historical sociology and international relations, focussing on East-West relations. She is the author of two books, her first being After Defeat: How the East Learned to Live with the West (2011) which covers the integration of defeated non-Western powers into the international system. Her second, Before the West: The Rise and Fall of Eastern World Orders, which looks at an alternative global history for international relations focussed on (Eur)asia, was released in March 2022. This book is available for purchase here: https://tinyurl.com/2p9xddxp Horacio Larreguy is an Associate Professor of Economics and Political Science at the Instituto Tecnologico Autonomo de Mexico (ITAM), and is currently a visiting researcher at the Toulouse School of Economics and IAST. His research interests are in political accountability and voting behaviour, including the importance of information for political accountability. More recently, he has worked on projects on misinformation and the Covid-19 infodemic. | |||
| 03 Apr 2022 | Is it the government's job to make us happy? | 00:28:22 | |
This podcast looks at why some people think we need policies for happiness and what those might mean. Leading experts discuss how to define and measure happiness, the drivers of happiness in different countries and societies, and what we know about what works and what doesn’t in terms of policy solutions and interventions. This episode is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones, and features experts Anna Alexandrova, Professor in Philosophy of Science at the University of Cambridge and a Fellow of King’s College Cambridge, and Dr Jonathan Stieglitz, Associate Professor of Anthropology at IAST and the University of Toulouse 1 Capitole. Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform. For more information about the podcast and the work of the institutes, visit our websites at www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk and www.iast.fr/. Tweet us with your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse. Audio production by Steve Hankey. Podcast editing by Annabel Manley More information about our guests: Professor Anna Alexandrova Anna Alexandrova is a Professor in Philosophy of Science at the University of Cambridge and a Fellow of King’s College Cambridge. She researches how formal tools such as models and indicators enable scientists to navigate complex phenomena tinged with ethical and political dimensions. Her book A Philosophy for the Science of Wellbeing came out with Oxford University Press in 2017 and won the 2022 Gittler Book Prize of the American Philosophical Association. She previously taught at the University of Missouri St Louis and completed her PhD at the University of California San Diego. She was born and brought up in the southern Russian city of Krasnodar. Dr Jonathan Stieglitz Dr Jonathan Stieglitz is an Associate Professor of Anthropology at IAST and the University of Toulouse 1 Capitole. His main research interest is studying the health and well-being of individuals in small-scale subsistence societies, in part to gain broader insights into how humans may have lived in the past. He is Co-Director of the Tsimane Health and Life History Project, a longitudinal study of the evolution of the human life course; the project began in 2002 and currently focuses on better understanding the development of certain non-communicable diseases among two native South American populations - the Tsimane and Moseten of Bolivia. | |||
| 02 May 2022 | Can democratic political leaders ever meet our expectations? | 00:30:44 | |
This episode looks at what we expect from our leaders, how that's changed over time, and whether democratic leaders are particularly prone to disappointing us. Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform. More about our guests Dr Roberto Foa Roberto Stefan Foa is Assistant Professor in Politics and Public Policy at the University of Cambridge, Co-Director of the Cambridge Centre for the Future of Democracy, and Director of the YouGov-Cambridge Centre for Public Opinion Research. His research examines the quality of government, regimes, and comparative social indicators, and is frequently cited in academic and media debates. Dr Zachery Garfield Zachary Garfield is a Research Fellow at the IAST. He studied as an evolutionary anthropologist with research interests in the evolution of human leadership and the nature of social and political hierarchies across human societies. He is also the co-director of the Omo Valley Research Project which is working to create a large scale dataset from the various ethnolinguistic groups within the Omo Valley region of Ethiopia. | |||
| 30 May 2022 | How might policy steer us towards better decision-making? | 00:30:46 | |
This podcast looks at the psychological quirks of humankind, what effects our bad decisions have on the society we live in, and how policy might best steer us towards better outcomes. Rory Cellan-Jones talks to Dr Bence Bago - Research Fellow at the Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse, and Professor Dame Theresa Marteau – the Director of the Behaviour and Health Research Unit at the University of Cambridge and co-chair of The Lancet Chatham House Commission on improving health post Covid-19. They draw on their research to explore what defines a ‘bad decision’, what causes us to make them, the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on governments’ and citizens’ decision-making, the role of social media in misinformation processing, what we can do to prevent ourselves from making bad decisions, and what governments can do to improve matters. Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform. More about our guests Professor Dame Theresa Marteau is Director of the Behaviour and Health Research Unit at the University of Cambridge. Her research focuses on the development and evaluation of interventions to change behaviour (principally food, tobacco and alcohol consumption) to improve population and planetary health and reduce health inequalities, with a particular focus on targeting non-conscious processes. She co-chairs the Lancet-Chatham House Commission on improving population health post-COVID-19, and participated in the UK government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE), responding to Covid-19. She is also one of the members of the management board of the Bennett Institute for Public Policy. Dr Bence Bago is a research fellow at the IAST, with an academic background in cognitive psychology. His research interests in the interplay between intuitive and analytical processes in human decision-making, including applications in truth discernment when exposed to misinformation. Rory Cellan-Jones was a technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism have seen him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business. He has also written multiple books, including his latest “Always On” which was published in 2021. | |||
| 29 Jun 2022 | What can political leaders learn from history? | 00:30:21 | |
In this episode, Rory Cellan-Jones talks to expert guests Lucy Delap (University of Cambridge) and Victor Gay (IAST) about how lessons from history can inform policymaking today.
Tweet us with your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse Audio production by Steve Hankey. Podcast editing by Annabel Manley. About our guests and host: Lucy Delap is a Professor in Modern British and Gender History at the University of Cambridge. Her research interests include the history of feminisms in Britain, the US, and the British Empire, and in labour history with a focus on the intersections of gender, class, and disability in the workplace. She is the author of three books, most recently 'Feminisms: a global history' in 2020. She was also the winner of the Royal Historical Society Public History Prize for public debate and policy in 2018. Victor Gay is an Assistant Professor at the Toulouse School of Economics and a Research Fellow at the Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse. His research interests include labour economics and the economics of culture, focussing on the economic history of France. As part of his work on developing data infrastructures based on novel archival material, he is also the Scientific Advisor of the University Data Platform of Toulouse of the PROGEDO data infrastructure. Rory Cellan-Jones is a former technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism have seen him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business. He has also written multiple books, including his latest “Always On” which was published in 2021. | |||
| 02 Oct 2022 | Has digital technology made us better off? | 00:30:35 | |
Rory Cellan-Jones talks to leading economists Diane Coyle, Jacques Crémer and Jean Tirole, about why productivity growth has slowed in spite of immense technological progress and what policy can do about it. This episode is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones (former technology correspondent for the BBC), and features guest experts Professor Diane Coyle (Bennett Institute for Public Policy), Professor Jacques Crémer (Toulouse School of Economics) and Professor Jean Tirole (Toulouse School of Economics – International Advanced Study in Toulouse). Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform: https://pod.fo/e/14406b Season 2 Episode 1 transcript: https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/CC-S2-EP1-transcript.pdf For more information about the podcast and the work of the institutes, visit our websites at https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/ and https://www.iast.fr/. Tweet us with your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse With thanks to: More information about our guests: Professor Diane Coyle is the Bennett Professor of Public Policy at the University of Cambridge. She co-directs the Bennett Institute where she heads the themes of progress and productivity, and researches the digital economy and economic measurement. Diane is also a Director of the Productivity Institute, and a Fellow of the Office for National Statistics. Professor Jacques Crémer received his undergraduate degree from the Ecole Polytechnique in 1971, a SM in Management and a PhD in economics, both from MIT, in 1973 and 1977. He has held appointments at the University of Pennsylvania and the Virginia Polytechnic Institute. His current research interests are the economics of organization, the economics of the Internet and of the software industries, as well as contract theory. Professor Jean Tirole is honorary chairman of the Foundation JJ Laffont-Toulouse School of Economics (TSE), and scientific director of TSE-Partnership. He is also affiliated with MIT, where he holds a visiting position, and the Institut de France. Professor Tirole’s research covers industrial organization, regulation, finance, macroeconomics and banking, and psychology-based economics. Rory Cellan-Jones is a former technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism saw him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business. He has written multiple books, including his latest “Always On” which was published in 2021. | |||
| 30 Oct 2022 | Wellbeing at work - whose job is it to fix it? | 00:31:18 | |
Rory Cellan-Jones and leading experts Gordon Harold, Laura Nurski and Zoe Purcell discuss why mental wellbeing in the workplace is essential, and what policymakers can do to promote a healthy workforce. This episode unpacks the impact of the future of work on mental wellbeing, and its implications for policy. Leading experts discuss the major trends shaping the future of work, how job quality and AI (artificial intelligence) impact wellbeing, and whether it is the job of businesses or governments to promote positive mental health in the workplace. This episode is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones (former technology correspondent for the BBC), and features guest experts Professor Gordon Harold (University of Cambridge), Dr Laura Nurski (Bruegel) and Dr Zoe Purcell (Institute For Advanced Study in Toulouse). Season 2, Episode 2 transcript For more information about the podcast and the work of the institutes, visit our websites at https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/ and https://www.iast.fr/ Tweet us with your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse Audio production by Steve Hankey. Podcast production by Stella Erker. More information about our guests: Professor Gordon Harold is the inaugural Professor of the Psychology of Education and Mental Health at the University of Cambridge. His primary research interests focus on (1) examining the role of family relationship dynamics as a factor underlying differences in child and adolescent mental health outcomes and future life chances, (2) understanding the interplay between genetic factors and family relationship factors and young people's mental health and development, and (3) promoting the implementation and evaluation of evidence-based practice and policy guidelines aimed at enhancing mental health outcomes for young people. Dr Zoe Purcell is a cognitive psychologist interested in reasoning and decision-making. Her research focuses on the factors — in particular, expertise, confidence, and uncertainty — involved in the transition between intuitive and effortful thinking. Alongside this theoretical work, she investigates applied and contemporary questions such as: “How do we reason with and about AI?” and “What are the psychological drivers of innovation?”. Currently, Zoe is working as a post-doc at the University of Toulouse with the Artificial and Natural Intelligence Institute of Toulouse (ANITI) and the Institute of Advanced Studies Toulouse (IAST). Dr Laura Nurski holds a PhD in Industrial Organization, an M.Sc. in Economics and an M.A. in Business Engineering from KU Leuven. Currently, she leads the Future of Work and Inclusive Growth project at the European think tank Bruegel. The project analyses the impact of technology on the nature, quantity and quality of work, welfare systems and inclusive growth. Laura is passionate about data and technology. As a former data scientist in the financial and retail sector, she developed machine learning models and big data analytics.
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| 05 Dec 2022 | How much do people care about inequality? | 00:29:06 | |
Rory Cellan-Jones and leading experts Charlotte Cavaillé, Ailbhe McNabola and Jack Shaw discuss the causes of income and regional inequality, why policymakers should care, and what policy interventions work best to reduce them. This episode is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones (former technology correspondent for the BBC), and features guest experts Professor Charlotte Cavaillé (Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan and IAST), Ailbhe McNabola (Bennett Institute for Public Policy and Power to Change) and Jack Shaw (Bennett Institute for Public Policy). For more information about the podcast and the work of the institutes, visit our websites at https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/ and https://www.iast.fr/. Tweet us with your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse. Relevant links and publications
More information about our guests: Professor Charlotte Cavaillé is a visiting Research Fellow at the IAST and an Assistant Professor at the Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan. Her research examines the dynamics of popular attitudes towards redistributive social policies at a time of rising inequality, high fiscal stress and high levels of immigration. In her forthcoming book, Fair Enough? Support for Redistribution in the Age of Inequality, Charlotte proposes a new framework to explain why, in countries where inequality has increased the most, voters are not asking for more income redistribution. Ailbhe McNabola is an Affiliated Researcher at the Bennett Institute for Public Policy and Director of Policy and Communications at Power to Change, a charitable trust that supports communities to run businesses that reinvest profits into their local area. She is also Co-Chair of the Social Research Association, a membership organisation that promotes excellence in social research, and a CAPE Policy Fellow. Her career has encompassed management consultancy in the financial services and public sectors, and the commissioning and production of research, evaluation and policy analysis reports for a range of UK government bodies. Jack Shaw is an Affiliated Researcher at the Bennett Institute for Public Policy and recently co-authored a report on pride in place with Professor Michael Kenny and Owen Garling, also at the Bennett Institute. His background is in local government and economic development and currently works at the Institute for Public Policy and Research. Rory Cellan-Jones is a former technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism saw him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business | |||
| 13 Dec 2022 | Ukraine war - how can academics apply their expertise? | 00:36:33 | |
Tymofiy Mylovanov, president of the Kyiv School of Economics (KSE), and Nataliia Shapoval, head of KSE Institute, discuss how their research priorities have shifted during the war on Ukraine, how the University has operated throughout these challenging times, and why the higher education system is integral to Ukraine’s future. This episode is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones (former technology correspondent for the BBC), and features guest experts Tymofiy Mylovanov (Kyiv School of Economics) and Nataliia Shapoval (Kyiv School of Economics). Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform: https://pod.fo/e/15661f Season 2 Episode 4 transcript: https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/CC-S2-ep4-transcript.pdf
Audio production by Steve Hankey.
Tymofiy Mylovanov is the President of Kyiv School of Economics, Associate Professor at the University of Pittsburgh and former Minister of Economic Development, Trade and Agriculture of Ukraine. He received his M.A. in Economics from KSE and earned his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Wisconsin Madison. Tymofiy’s research interests cover such areas as theory of games and contracts, and institutional design. His articles on these topics have been published in the leading international academic magazines, including Econometrica, American Economic Review, the Review of Economic Studies. @Mylovanov @kse_ua Nataliia Shapoval is the Vice President for Policy Research and Director of the Center of Excellence in Procurement at the Kyiv School of Economics in Ukraine. She worked on policy research projects on public health’s cost and resource allocation, and on youth unemployment in Ukraine and Europe. She is also a member of the Editorial Board of Vox Ukraine, and a contributor to the Ukraine reform monitoring project of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. @Nataliia_Shapo @KSE_Institute Rory Cellan-Jones is a former technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism saw him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business. He has written multiple books, including his latest “Always On” wh | |||
| 20 Jan 2023 | Why are stories important for society? | 00:31:46 | |
Rory Cellan-Jones and leading experts Sarah Dillon and Manvir Singh discuss the value of stories, the possible dangers of endorsing stories and the need for narrative evidence to inform decision-making. This episode unpacks the value of stories to understand the past and inform current policy debates. Leading experts from the University of Cambridge and the Institute for Advanced Studies in Toulouse discuss the origin of stories, the status of storytellers, and the crucial need to listen to stories to improve policymaking. This episode is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones (former technology correspondent for the BBC) and features guest experts Sarah Dillon (University of Cambridge) and Manvir Singh (Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse). Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform For more information about the podcast and the work of the institutes, visit our websites at bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk and iast.fr Tweet us with your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse Audio production by Steve Hankey About our guests Sarah Dillon is Professor of Literature and the Public Humanities in the Faculty of English at the University of Cambridge. She is a scholar of contemporary literature, film and philosophy, with a research focus on the epistemic function and value of stories, on interdisciplinarity, and on the engaged humanities. She is the co-author of “Storylistening: Narrative Evidence and Public Reasoning”. Sarah is also a member of the Bennett Institute Management Board. @profsarahdillon Manvir Singh is a cognitive and evolutionary anthropologist at the Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse. His research asks why human societies everywhere give rise to practices and beliefs with striking similarities, with a focus on behaviours such as music, story, shamanism, and punitive justice. His toolkit combines ethnographic research, psychological experiments, and the analysis of cross-cultural databases. He received a PhD from the Department of Human Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University in 2020. @mnvrsngh Rory Cellan-Jones is a former technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism saw him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business. He has written multiple books, including his latest “Always On” which was published in 2021. @ruskin147 | |||
| 05 Feb 2023 | Is technology changing our behaviour? | 00:30:02 | |
Rory Cellan-Jones and leading experts Maria Kleshnina, Daniel Nettle and Amy Orben discuss the drivers of cooperation and how online and offline environments are impacting human behaviour. This podcast unpacks the facilitators and inhibitors of cooperative behaviours to tackle wicked problems and the impact of our environment on cooperation. Our guests from the University of Cambridge, Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse, and École Normale Supérieure-PSL, explore how megatrends, such as digitalisation and inequality, impact cooperation and the policy levers needed to achieve positive societal change. This episode is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones (former technology correspondent for the BBC), and features Maria Kleshnina (IAST), Daniel Nettle (L'École normale supérieure - PSL) and Amy Orben (University of Cambridge). Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform For more information about the podcast and the work of the institutes, visit our websites at https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/ and https://www.iast.fr/ Tweet us with your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse. Audio production by Steve Hankey Dr Maria Kleshnina is a postdoctoral research fellow at the IAST. Her research focuses on behavioural aspects in evolutionary game theory. She is interested in the evolution of behavioural strategies and learning, especially, in the presence of inequality. Before joining IAST, she was a member of the research group of Krishnendu Chatterjee at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria and a visiting researcher in the Behavioral Economics group at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Vienna. Professor Daniel Nettle is a researcher in the Evolution and Social Cognition team at the École Normale Supérieure-PSL, Professor of Behavioural Science at Newcastle University and a member of the scientific committee at the IAST. His research focuses on a number of different topics relating to behaviour, cognition, society and health. Dr Amy Orben is a Programme Leader Track Scientist at the MRC (Medical Research Council) Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, University of Cambridge and a Research Fellow at Emmanuel College, University of Cambridge. She leads the Digital Mental Health programme at the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit. Amy’s research uses large-scale data to examine how digital technologies affect adolescent psychological wellbeing and mental health. @OrbenAmy | |||
| 05 Mar 2023 | Should children have the right to vote? | 00:32:24 | |
Prof David Runciman and Prof Karine Van der Straeten talk to Rory Cellan-Jones about extending voting rights to school-aged children. This episode unpacks the main objections against lowering the legal voting age, the merits of extending democratic rights to children, and how children's voices might be better represented in electoral processes. Leading experts explore how the enfranchisement of children could revitalise our democracy and inject a fresh set of perspectives. This episode is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones (former technology correspondent for the BBC), and features guest experts Karine Van der Straeten (IAST) and David Runciman (University of Cambridge). For more information about the podcast and the work of the institutes, visit our websites at bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk and iast.fr Tweet us with your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse
Further reading:
About our guests: Rory Cellan-Jones is a former technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism saw him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business. He has written multiple books, including his latest “Always On” which was published in 2021. @ruskin147 David Runciman is Professor of Politics in the Department of Politics and International Studies, University of Cambridge. His research covers the history of modern political thought, with a particular focus on the history of democracy; theories of the state and political representation; the role of technology in democratic politics; generational and educational divides in contemporary politics. David created the Centre for the Future of Democracy as part of the Bennett Institute for Public Policy where his work focuses on democracy for children and young people. He co-hosted the weekly politics podcast Talking Politics, and was made a fellow of the British Academy in 2018, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 2021. Professor Karine Van der Straeten is a senior researcher at the CNRS (the French National Center for Scientific Research), a member of the Toulouse School of Economics and of the Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse. Her research, which is at the intersection of economics and political science, focuses mostly on collective decision making in democracy. Recent topics include: institutions and corruption, citizen information and the quality of public decision-making, public opinion measurement, inequality and redistribution. | |||
| 03 Apr 2023 | Are emerging technologies more hype than reality? | 00:36:43 | |
Leading experts, Sam Gilbert Bennett Institute), César Hidalgo (IAST) and Jeni Tennison (Bennett Institute) talk to podcast host Rory Cellan-Jones (former technology correspondent for the BBC) about the latest developments of emerging forms of technologies, their opportunities and harms, and what policymakers can do to mitigate the associated risks. This episode unpacks the most recent advancements of generative artificial intelligence and the metaverse, their policy implications, and the role of policymaking and legislation in this sphere. Our guests highlight the need for deliberative and participatory governance structures to facilitate the development and use of new technologies. For more information about the Crossing Channels podcast series and the work of the institutes, visit our websites at www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk and www.iast.fr
More about our guests: Rory Cellan-Jones is a former technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism saw him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business. He has written multiple books, including his latest, Always On, which was published in 2021. @ruskin147 Sam Gilbert is an entrepreneur and an Affiliated Researcher at the Bennett Institute, working at the intersection of politics and technology. He is the author of the book Good Data and recent policy briefs on the Online Safety Bill, and Crypto, Web3 and the Metaverse. @samgilb César Hidalgo leads the Center for Collective Learning at the Artificial and Natural Intelligence Institute (ANITI) of the University of Toulouse. He is an Associate Member at IAST, Toulouse School of Economics, an Honorary Professor at the University of Manchester, a Visiting Professor at Harvard's School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, and a founder of Datawheel. César is author of Why Information Grows (Basic Books, 2015), The Atlas of Economic Complexity (MIT Press, 2014), and How Humans Judge Machines (MIT Press, 2021). @cesifoti Jeni Tennison OBE is the founder and Executive Director of Connected by data, an initiative that aims to put community at the heart of data narratives, practices and policies. Jeni is also the co-chair of the Data Governance Working Group at the Global Partnership on AI, and undertakes work as an Affiliated Researcher at the Bennett Institute for Public Policy and a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellow. @JeniT | |||
| 01 May 2023 | Are countries becoming harder to govern? | 00:33:42 | |
Rory Cellan-Jones talks to Michael Kenny, Louis Baktash, and Mathieu Carpentier about the governance challenges in France and the United Kingdom, the impact of recent political protests, and whether devolution might be the answer to address these challenges. This episode is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones (former technology correspondent for the BBC), and features experts Michael Kenny (Bennett Institute for Public Policy, Cambridge), Louis Baktash (Bennett Institute for Public Policy, Cambridge), and Mathieu Carpentier (Toulouse Capitole University). Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform For more information about the podcast and the work of the institutes, visit our websites at https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/ and https://www.iast.fr/. Tweet us with your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse. Production:
Relevant links:
More information about our guests: Rory Cellan-Jones is a former technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism saw him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business. He has written multiple books, including his latest “Always On” which was published in 2021. @ruskin147 Michael Kenny is Professor of Public Policy, and the Inaugural Director of the Bennett Institute for Public Policy at the University of Cambridge where he leads the Institute’s place and public policy programme. His research includes leading projects on left-behind communities, social infrastructure and devolution, and the future of the UK constitution. His forthcoming book, Fractured Union: Politics, Sovereignty, and the Fight to Save the UK is published by Hurst (2023). @michaelkenny_ Louis Baktash is pursuing a PhD in Public Policy at the Department of Politics and International Studies at the University of Cambridge. His research interests include French and British regional policies, left-behind areas, territorial politics and electoral geography. Louis graduated from Sciences Po Paris with a degree in Social Sciences and from Paris-Sorbonne University with a degree in History. He then completed a Master’s degree in Public Affairs from Sciences Po Paris and a Master’s degree in Management from HEC Paris. | |||
| 02 Jun 2023 | What is the future of religion? | 00:35:05 | |
Rory Cellan-Jones talks to Iza Hussin and Paul Seabright about recent trends in world religions, the interplay between politics and religion, and the economics of religion. This episode unpacks the widespread belief that religion is in decline, and explores why this view is mistaken. Leading experts discuss the intersection between religion and politics, the rivlary within and between religons, and how wider socioeconomic trends are both impacted by and impacting religious movements. This episode is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones (former technology correspondent for the BBC), and features guest experts Iza Hussin (University of Cambridge) and Paul Seabright (IAST). Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform Season 2 Episode 10 transcript Audio production by Steve Hankey Associate production by Stella Erker Visuals by Tiffany Naylor More information about our guests: Iza Hussin is Associate Professor of Asian Politics at the University of Cambridge and Mohamed Noah Fellow at Pembroke College. Her research and teaching are in the areas of comparative politics, Islam and Muslim politics, law and society and religion and politics. Her recent book, The Politics of Islamic Law: Local Elites, Colonial Authority and the Making of the Muslim State (University of Chicago Press 2016), explored the construction of Islamic law in colonial India, Malaya and Egypt. She is Editor of the Cambridge University Press series Asian Connections, and a member of the Editorial Boards of the Social Science Research Council's The Immanent Frame, and of the University of London's SOAS Indonesia and the Malay World. She holds a PhD from the University of Washington, an MA from Georgetown University and an AM and AB from Harvard University.
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| 28 Sep 2023 | How big a problem is short-termism in government? | 00:28:08 | |
In this first episode of series 3, Rory Cellan-Jones talks to Dr Anne Degrave, Prof Dennis Grube and Halima Khan about the drivers of short-termism in government, the interplay between voter preferences and policy change, and the mechanisms needed to embed longer-term decision-making. This episode is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones (former technology correspondent for the BBC), and features guest experts Dr Anne Degrave (IAST), Prof Dennis Grube (Bennett Institute) and Halima Khan (Bennett Institute). Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform For more information about the Crossing Channels podcast and the work of the institutes, visit our websites at https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/ and https://www.iast.fr/ Tweet us with your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse. Audio production by Steve Hankey Associate production by Stella Erker Visuals by Tiffany Naylor More about our host and guests: Rory Cellan-Jones was a technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism have seen him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business. He has also written multiple books, including his latest “Always On” which was published in 2021. @ruskin147 Anne Degrave is a postdoctoral research fellow at the Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse. She studies comparative politics, historical political economy and state formation. Her work investigates the implications of state formation for citizens and their relations with the state and elites, using quantitative analyses of historical data. Dennis C. Grube is Professor of Politics and Public Policy at the University of Cambridge, and research lead in political decision-making at the Bennett Institute for Public Policy. His research explores institutional memory as an aid to better decision-making, decision-making structures in government, and expertise and the politics of evidence-based policymaking. Halima Khan is an independent adviser on public service innovation and an affiliated researcher at the Bennett Institute for Public Policy. Her interests are in approaches to public service innovation which incorporate the insights of citizens and frontline staff, and which build social capital and wellbeing. @halima_khan1 | |||
| 12 Nov 2023 | The world’s problems are interdisciplinary – why is academic research so siloed? | 00:33:07 | |
Rory Cellan-Jones (host) talks to Ingela Alger (IAST) and Flavio Toxvaerd (University of Cambridge) about the drivers of research silos, the merits of conducting interdisciplinary research and how to overcome disciplinary divides. This episode takes a look at why academic research is trapped in research silos. Ingela Alger and Flavio Toxvaerd engage in a thoughtful discussion with Rory Cellan-Jones, to shed light on the challenges faced in conducting interdisciplinary research. They emphasize the significant benefits that interdisciplinarity can bring and share insight into how to foster interdisciplinary research culture for improved results. Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform For more information about the podcast and the work of the institutes, visit our websites at https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/ and https://www.iast.fr/ Tweet us with your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse. With thanks to:
Rory Cellan-Jones was a technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism have seen him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business. He has also written multiple books, including his latest “Always On” which was published in 2021. @ruskin147 Ingela Alger is a CNRS Senior Scientist (DR) in Economics, and the current Director of the Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse (IAST) as well as the Chair of the Department in Social and Behavioral Sciences. Her research, which has been published in international peer-reviewed journals such as the American Economic Review, Econometrica, and PNAS, focuses on the evolutionary foundations of human preferences, when these are transmitted from generation to generation and are subject to selection. @ingelaalger Flavio Toxvaerd is a Professor of Economics and Public Policy at the Faculty of Economics, University of Cambridge, a Fellow of Clare College and an Affiliated Researcher with the Bennett Institute for Public Policy. He serves as UKRI Policy Fellow in Competition and Productivity Economics with the Competition and Markets Authority. His research and teaching interests are in microeconomics and game theory with applications, including industrial organisation, competition policy and economic epidemiology. @toxvaerd1
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| 02 Dec 2023 | Can technology rescue ailing health services? | 00:35:11 | |
Rory Cellan-Jones talks to Angelique Acquatella, Shan Morgan and Jennifer Dixon about the current status of digital technology adoption in healthcare services, why digital adoption is so slow, and the opportunities for medtech, individuals and the wider economy. In this episode, experts unpack the barriers and facilitators of digital healthcare. Rory, Angelique, Shan and Jennifer explore the impact of med tech on inequalities, and offer solutions to mitigate risks of digital exclusion in healthcare. Provided healthcare systems focus on long-term priorities and agenda, the speakers highlight that technologies could enhance the quality and effectiveness of care. This episode is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones (former technology correspondent for the BBC), and features guest experts Angelique Acquatella (TSE), Shan Morgan (Bennett Institute), Jennifer Dixon (Health Foundation). Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform For more information about the podcast and the work of the institutes, visit our websites at https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/ and https://www.iast.fr/. Tweet us with your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse. With thanks to: Associate production by Stella Erker Visuals by Tiffany Naylor More information about our host and guests: Rory Cellan-Jones was a technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism have seen him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business. He has also written multiple books, including “Always On” (2021) and his latest “Ruskin Park: Sylvia, Me and the BBC” which was published in 2023. @ruskin147 Professor Angelique Acquatella is an Assistant Professor at the Toulouse School of Economics. Her research studies the optimal design of health care policy, with two main substantive areas: public health insurance systems and pharmaceutical payment policy. Angelique’s work falls at the intersection of health economics and public finance, combining methods from optimal tax theory with traditional cost-effectiveness analysis in health economics. . @angieacquatella Dr Jennifer Dixon CBE joined the Health Foundation as Chief Executive in October 2013. Jennifer was Chief Executive of the Nuffield Trust from 2008 to 2013. Prior to this, she was Director of Policy at The King’s Fund and policy advisor to the Chief Executive of the NHS between 1998 and 2000. Jennifer was appointed as a non-executive board member of the UK Health Security Agency in April 2022. @JenniferTHF
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| 01 Jan 2024 | How can universal basic infrastructure support growth? | 00:28:51 | |
Rory Cellan-Jones talks to Jean-Paul Azam, Diane Coyle and Andy Westwood about the potential of universal basic income to tackle regional inequalities, boost economic growth in ‘left behind’ and growing places, and rebuild democracy. This episode unpacks why current policies are failing to tackle regional inequalities and how a universal basic infrastructure might boost productivity across all places. Leading experts examine the value of infrastructure in different country contexts and how different levels of various departments and government could work together to deliver a universal basic infrastructure in all places. Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform For more information about the podcast and the work of the institutes, visit our websites at www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk and www.iast.fr With thanks to: Relevant links:
Rory Cellan-Jones was a technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism have seen him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business. His latest book is “Ruskin Park: Sylvia, Me and the BBC”. @ruskin147 Jean-Paul Azam is a professor of economics Emeritus at the Toulouse School of Economics, University of Toulouse and a member of IAST. After publishing mainly on the macroeconomics of Africa, he has focused since the mid-1990s on explaining violent conflict and its prevention, with application to foreign aid, civil war, and transnational terrorism. Diane Coyle is the Bennett Professor of Public Policy at the University of Cambridge. Diane co-directs the Bennett Institute where she heads research under the themes of progress and productivity. Her latest book is ‘Cogs and Monsters: What Economics Is, and What It Should Be‘ on how economics needs to change to keep pace with the twenty-first century and the digital economy. @DianeCoyle1859 Andy Westwood is Professor of Government Practice at the University of Manchester and a Director of the ESRC funded Productivity Institute. He has worked as an expert adviser to the EU, OECD and IMF, as well as a specialist adviser to the Select Committees on Economic Affai | |||
| 04 Feb 2024 | Can economic growth and sustainability coexist? | 00:36:50 | |
Rory Cellan-Jones talks to Matthew Agarwala, Stefan Lamp and Alessio Terzi about the trade-off between economic growth and environmental protection, the policies and legislations needed to achieve green growth, and the challenges associated with implementing such measures. This episode unpacks the possibility of green growth. Leading experts discuss the unsustainability of current growth paths, the need for a new economic model and measures of wealth, and the types of policies needed to deliver both economic growth and environmental protection. This episode is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones (former technology correspondent for the BBC), and features experts Matthew Agarwala (Bennett Institute), Stefan Lamp (TSE) and Alessio Terzi (Bennett Institute). For more information about the podcast and the work of the institutes, visit: https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/ and https://www.iast.fr/. Tweet us your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse.
Relevant links
More information about our host and guests: Rory Cellan-Jones was a technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism have seen him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business. @ruskin147 Dr Matthew Agarwala is an economist interested in measuring and delivering sustainability, wellbeing, and productivity. He leads the Bennett Institute’s Wealth Economy project, which seeks to transform economic measurement to better reflect sustainability, inequality, and human wellbeing. @MatthewAgarwala Dr Stefan Lamp is a Research Fellow at the Toulouse School of Economics. His research focuses mainly on the ongoing energy transition from a fossil-fuel economy towards renewable energy sources. | |||
| 01 Mar 2024 | Why are women disadvantaged in the workplace? | 00:31:27 | |
This episode asks why are women disadvantaged in the workplace? Experts explore why women are underrepresented in certain professions. Why is the motherhood wage gap so persistent? How does flexible work impact women's careers? And what does policy need to do to reduce gender inequalities in the workplace? Podcast host, Rory Cellan-Jones (former technology correspondent for the BBC), discusses these issues with leading academics Emmanuelle Auriol (IAST), Nina Jörden (Bennett Institute for Public Policy) and Francesca Barigozzi (University of Bologna). For more information about the podcast and the work of the institutes, visit our websites at https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/ and https://www.iast.fr/. Tweet us with your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse.
More information about our host and guests: Rory Cellan-Jones was a technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism have seen him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business. He has also written multiple books, including “Always On” (2021) and “Ruskin Park: Sylvia, Me and the BBC” (2023). Emmanuelle Auriol is a full professor at Toulouse School of Economics. Her work, which combines theoretical and empirical approaches, focuses on industrial organization and development economics. She is the author of two award-winning books and a fellow of different scientific societies. Francesca Barigozzi is a Professor of Economics at the Department of Economics of the University of Bologna. She is an applied microtheorist and her fields of research include family economics, public economics, information economics, health economics, and behavioral economics. She holds a PhD in Economics from Toulouse School of Economics. Nina Jörden is a research associate at the Bennett Institute for Public Policy and a member of The Productivity Institute. Her work focuses on questions about the future of work in the public and private sectors.
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| 31 Mar 2024 | Can governments regulate AI without stifling innovation? | 00:34:21 | |
In this episode, Rory Cellan-Jones (former technology correspondent for the BBC) chats with Verity Harding (Bennett Institute for Public Policy), Gina Neff (Minderoo Centre for Technology and Democracy), and Lawrence Rothenberg (IAST and University of Rochester), about artificial intelligence (AI) and the fine balance between innovation and regulation. Together, they explore what makes 'good' regulation and the crucial role of global collaboration in shaping the future of AI. They share the latest developments of AI regulation in the UK, US and EU, emphasising the need for effective regulation to address the risks of AI. They also discuss what regulators can learn from past tech revolutions, like in vitro fertilisation, and highlight the critical importance of collaboration to ensure AI improves people's living and working conditions.
More information about our host and guests: Rory Cellan-Jones was a technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism have seen him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business. He has also written multiple books, including “Always On” (2021) and his latest Ruskin Park: Sylvia, Me and the BBC which was published in 2023. | |||
| 06 May 2024 | What's the point of a protest? | 00:23:07 | |
In this episode, Rory Cellan-Jones discusses with Dr Lauren Wilcox, Dr Felix Dwinger, and Dr Giacomo Lemoli why the world is protesting so much, how protesting has changed over time, and what impact protest movements are having on policymaking. Delving into the surge of protests across democratic and autocratic regimes, they examine why people are taking to the streets. They draw on insights from historic protests to explore the factors that contribute to the success of protest movements and progressive social change. This episode is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones (former technology correspondent for the BBC), and features guest experts Lauren Wilcox (University of Cambridge), Felix Dwinger (IAST) and Giacomo Lemoli (IAST). Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform For more information about the podcast and the work of the institutes, visit our websites at https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/ and https://www.iast.fr/. Tweet us with your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse. With thanks to:
More information about our host and guests: Rory Cellan-Jones was a technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism have seen him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business. He has also written multiple books, including “Always On” (2021) and his latest “Ruskin Park: Sylvia, Me and the BBC” which was published in 2023. @ruskin147 Dr Felix Dwinger is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Institute of Advanced Study in Toulouse. His research focuses on autocratic politics and democratic backsliding using game theory and causal inference from observational data. He holds a PhD from the Department of Political Science at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden. While pursuing his PhD, he was a Visiting Assistant Researcher at Yale and a Guest Doctoral Researcher at the University of Konstanz, Germany. @DwingerFelix Dr Giacomo Lemoli is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse. He holds a PhD in Politics from New York University and a MSc in Economic and Social Sciences from Bocconi University. His research studies the construction and change of group identities, and their implications for political competition, mobilization, and development in contemporary societies. He is particularly interested in how political elites and mass media shape the salience of ethnic and linguistic boundaries, and in how collective memories affect behavior. He uses econometric tools for causal inference on contemporary and archival data, as well as original surveys. His research has been funded by UNU-WIDER and the Institute for Humane Studies. @giacomolem Dr Lauren Wilcox is Associate Professor in Gender Studies, Director of the University of Cambridge Centre for Gender Studies, and a fellow of Selwyn College, Cambridge. Lauren researches political violence, subjectivity, and embodiment from the perspective of feminist and queer theory. Lauren’s first major work, ‘Bodies of Violence: Theorizing Embodied Subjects in International Relations’, addresses a deep irony in war/security studies: that while war is actually inflicte | |||
| 03 Jun 2024 | Who pays the price of colonialism today? | 00:30:06 | |
In this episode, Rory Cellan-Jones discusses the enduring legacies of colonialism on global economic inequalities, the climate crisis, and the digital space with experts Dr Stephanie Diepeveen and Prof Jordanna Matlon. Experts, Dr Stephanie Diepeveen and Prof Jordanna Matlon share tangible examples and critical insights into a nuanced understanding of how colonial legacies continue to shape global power relations. They debate actionable perspectives on how policymakers can address these challenges and the ongoing effects of colonialism. This episode is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones (former technology correspondent for the BBC), and features guest experts Dr Stephanie Diepeveen (Bennett Institute for Public Policy) and Prof Jordanna Matlon (IAST).
Tweet us with your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse.
Rory Cellan-Jones was a technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism have seen him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business. He has also written multiple books, including “Always On” (2021) and his latest “Ruskin Park: Sylvia, Me and the BBC” which was published in 2023. @ruskin147 Stephanie Diepeveen is a Senior Research Associate at the University of Cambridge and a Senior Research Fellow (Digital) in the Politics and Governance Team at ODI (formerly the Overseas Development Institute). With an interdisciplinary background in politics, digital media and monitoring and evaluation, her research is focused on how digital technologies and the use of data transform democratic politics, inclusion and inequalities. Stephanie’s work brings a global perspective, having explored the nature and effects of digitalisation across diverse political and linguistic contexts, including around pressing issues of mis/disinformation, algorithmic bias and harmful content. Her book Searching for a New Kenya: Politics and Social Media on the Streets of Mombasa (CUP, 2021) looks in-depth into the politics and possibilities of discussion in the streets and online. @sdiep Jordanna Matlon is an urban sociologist interested in questions of race and belonging in Africa and the African diaspor. She looks at the ways “Blackness” operates as a signifier, intersects with gender norms, manifests in popular culture, and illuminates our understanding of political economy. Her multiple award-winning book, A Man among Other Men: The Crisis of Black Masculinity in Racial Capitalism (Cornell University Press) investigates the relationship between masculinity, coloniality, and work in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. Her new book, Blackness as Being: Black Survival in the Age of Climate Catastrophe (under contract, Polity Press), bridges literatures on surplus populations, climate change, and racial capitalism to theorize the possibilities and precariousness of species survival in the anthropocene. | |||
| 30 Jun 2024 | Should there be a compulsory retirement age for society's leaders? | 00:39:28 | |
In this episode, Rory Cellan-Jones discusses with Diane Coyle, Ruth Mace, and Paul Seabright the impact of age on leadership, the consequences of having older leaders for society, and the case for implementing a compulsory retirement age. Our experts discuss the tradeoff between experience, expertise, skill and judgement as society’s leaders age. They draw on evolutionary and current examples to evaluate the case for implementing a compulsory retirement age for leaders. Finally, they consider alternative mechanisms - such as reducing voting ages, term limits and cognitive testing - to improve democratic responsiveness. This episode is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones (former technology correspondent for the BBC), and features guest experts Professor Dame Diane Coyle (Bennett Institute for Public Policy), Professor Ruth Mace (UCL/IAST) and Professor Paul Seabright (IAST). Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform For more information about the podcast and the work of the institutes, visit our websites at https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/ and https://www.iast.fr/. With thanks to:
More information about our host and guests: Rory Cellan-Jones was a technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism have seen him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business. He has also written multiple books, including “Always On” (2021) and his latest “Ruskin Park: Sylvia, Me and the BBC” which was published in 2023. @ruskin147 Diane Coyle is the Bennett Professor of Public Policy at the University of Cambridge. Diane co-directs the Bennett Institute where she heads research under the themes of progress and productivity. Diane is also a Director of the Productivity Institute, a Fellow of the Office for National Statistics, an expert adviser to the National Infrastructure Commission, and Senior Independent Member of the ESRC Council. Diane was awarded a DBE in the King’s Birthday Honours List 2023 for her invaluable contributions to economic policy and practice, as well as her unwavering commitment to public service. @DianeCoyle1859 Ruth Mace is Professor of Evolutionary Anthropology at University College London (UCL) and a long-term visitor at the Institute of Advanced Study at Toulouse (IAST). She trained as an evolutionary biologist at the University of Oxford, and then moved into evolutionary anthropology. Her research has covered a wide range of questions in human life history evolution and behavioural and cultural evolution. She is a Fellow of the British Academy, and founding Editor-in-Chief of the journal Evolutionary Human Sciences. @tavitonst Paul Seabright is a professor of economics at the Toulouse School of Economics. He was Director from 2012 to 2021 of the Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse. Paul did his undergraduate and doctoral studies at the University of Oxford, where he was a Fellow of All Souls College. Paul’s current research lies in three ar | |||
| 07 Oct 2024 | Does prison work? | 00:28:41 | |
To kickstart Season Four of Crossing Channels, Richard Westcott (Cambridge University Health Partners and the Cambridge Biomedical Campus) talks to Prof Alison Liebling (University of Cambridge), Prof Nicola Padfield (University of Cambridge) and Prof Arnaud Philippe (University of Bristol, former IAST fellow) about the growing prison population, the prison experience, and the most effective ways to rehabilitate ex-offenders. For more information about the Crossing Channels podcast series and the work of the Bennett Institute and IAST (Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse) visit our websites at https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/ and https://www.iast.fr/. Follow us on Linkedin, Bluesky and X. With thanks to:
Richard Westcott is an award-winning journalist who spent 27 years at the BBC as a correspondent/producer/presenter covering global stories for the flagship Six and Ten o’clock TV news as well as the Today programme. Last year, Richard left the corporation and he is now the communications director for Cambridge University Health Partners and the Cambridge Biomedical Campus, both organisations that are working to support life sciences and healthcare across the city. @BBCwestcott Alison Liebling is Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice at the University of Cambridge and the Director of the Institute of Criminology’s Prisons Research Centre. She has carried out research on life in prison for over 30 years. She has written multiple books and is currently completing one on ‘Moral rules, social science and forms of order in prison’. She was made a member of the British Academy in 2018. @AlisonLiebling Nicola Padfield KC (Hon) is Emeritus Professor of Criminal and Penal Justice at the Law Faculty, University of Cambridge, where she has worked for more than 30 years. She has a broad research lens, engaged in both ‘hard’ law and in socio-legal-criminological research. She is a leading European expert on sentencing law, including the law and practice of release from (and recall to) prison. A barrister by training, she has published widely on criminal law, sentencing and criminal justice. Arnaud Philippe is an Associate Professor at the School of Economics of the University of Bristol. He studies the criminal justice system to better understand the determinants of criminal behaviour, how judicial decisions are made, and the consequences of sanctions on individuals. He is currently an associate researcher at the French Penitentiary Administration, where he explores the effect of carceral experience on recidivism. @ArnaudPhilipp | |||
| 03 Nov 2024 | What is happening to young people’s mental health? | 00:26:56 | |
In this episode, Richard Westcott talks to Gordon Harold, Anna Moore, and Olympia Campbell. about the growing rates of mental health issues among young people. They discuss the key determinants and the most effective ways to support young people's mental health. Our experts examine whether mental health among young people is truly worsening or if we're simply getting better at identifying it. They unpack the key factors shaping mental health today, delve into the role of the digital world, and discuss how policies can evolve to expand support and access to services for young people. This episode is hosted by Richard Westcott (Cambridge University Health Partners and the Cambridge Biomedical Campus), and features experts Prof Gordon Harold (University of Cambridge), Dr Anna Moore (University of Cambridge) and Dr Olympia Campbell (IAST).
With thanks to:
More information about our host and guests: Richard Westcott is an award-winning journalist who spent 27 years at the BBC as a correspondent/producer/presenter covering global stories for the flagship Six and Ten o’clock TV news as well as the Today programme. In 2023, Richard left the corporation and is now the communications director for Cambridge University Health Partners and the Cambridge Biomedical Campus, both organisations that are working to support life sciences and healthcare across the city. @BBCwestcott Gordon Harold is the inaugural Professor of the Psychology of Education and Mental Health at the University of Cambridge. His research focuses on three areas: the impact of family dynamics on child and adolescent mental health, the interaction between genetic and family factors, and the promotion of evidence-based practices to enhance youth mental health outcomes. He serves on several advisory groups, including the UKRI-ESRC’s Data and Infrastructure Expert Advisory Group and the Department for Work and Pensions Science Advisory Committee. Anna Moore is a UKRI Future Leaders Fellow, Assistant Professor in Child Psychiatry and Medical Informatics in the Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge and Clinical Consultant in Paediatric Psychological Medicine. Dr. Moore’s group, Timely, is developing a new preventative approach for managing children’s mental health problems. To make this possible, the Timely team is building the infrastructure and systems required to enable rapid digital innovation and implementation in paediatrics. Olympia Campbell is a Research Fellow at the IAST. She received a PhD from University College London in 2023 prior to joining. Her research focuses on elucidating the ecological and demographic correlates and causes of gender-biased outcomes, with a particular focus on the role of marriage practices, such as cousin marriage. Her work is interdisciplinary in nature, drawing from global health, genetics, evolutionary biology, and anthropology. @OLKCampbell | |||
| 02 Dec 2024 | Is the world becoming less democratic? | 00:30:27 | |
In this episode, Richard Westcott (Cambridge University Health Partners and the Cambridge Biomedical Campus) talks to David Runciman (University of Cambridge), Kristin Michelitch (IAST) and Ahmed Mohamed (IAST) about the decline in democracy indexes worldwide, the cultural, technological, and institutional factors driving these trends, and whether they can be reversed. Our experts explore the meaning of democracy and the reasons behind the decline of democracy indexes. They examine the impact of technology, media, culture, and religion on reshaping politics and shaping the future of democratic systems. Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform For more information about the Crossing Channels podcast series and the work of the Bennett Institute and IAST visit our websites at https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/ and https://www.iast.fr/. Follow us on Linkedin, Bluesky and X. With thanks to:
More information about our host and guests: Richard Westcott is an award-winning journalist who spent 27 years at the BBC as a correspondent/producer/presenter covering global stories for the flagship Six and Ten o’clock TV news and the Today programme. In 2023, Richard left the corporation and is now the communications director for Cambridge University Health Partners and the Cambridge Biomedical Campus, both organisations that are working to support life sciences and healthcare across the city. @BBCwestcott Kristin Michelitch is an Associate Professor of Political Science in the Social and Behavioral Sciences Department at the Toulouse School of Economics and Quantitative Social Sciences (TSE), and a member of the Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse (IAST), France. Her research investigates sources of, and solutions to, intergroup tensions and poorly functioning democratic processes in contexts where government institutions are not adequately safeguarding democracy and delivering vital public services. @KGMichelitch Ahmed Ezzeldin Mohamed is an Assistant Professor of Political Science. Previously, he was a postdoctoral research scholar at the Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law (CDDRL) at Stanford University. =Ahmed's primary research focuses on the role of religion in the political and economic development of less democratic societies, with a special focus on the Middle East and the Muslim World. | |||
| 06 Jan 2025 | How are data and algorithms impacting our lives? | 00:30:55 | |
Hear Richard Westcott (Cambridge University Health Partners and the Cambridge Biomedical Campus) talk to Gina Neff (Cambridge University), Jeni Tennison (Connected by Data), and Jean-François Bonnefon (IAST) about how data and algorithms are shaping our lives. They explore how these technologies impact work, public services, and decision-making, and raise questions about ethics, fairness, and governance. Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform Season 4 Episode 4 transcript For more information about the Crossing Channels podcast series and the work of the Bennett Institute and IAST visit our websites at https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/ and https://www.iast.fr/. Follow us on Linkedin, Bluesky and X. With thanks to:
More information about our podcast host and guests Richard Westcott is an award-winning journalist who spent 27 years at the BBC as a correspondent/producer/presenter covering global stories for the flagship Six and Ten o’clock TV news as well as the Today programme. In 2023, Richard left the corporation and is now the communications director for Cambridge University Health Partners and the Cambridge Biomedical Campus, both organisations that are working to support life sciences and healthcare across the city. @BBCwestcott Jean-François Bonnefon, CNRS senior research director, is a cognitive psychologist whose work spans computer science, psychology, and economics, reflected in his more than 100 publications. Renowned for his expertise in moral preferences and decision-making, he is particularly recognised for his contributions to the ethics of advanced artificial intelligence, especially in autonomous driving. In 2024, he was appointed Director of the Social and Behavioral Sciences Department (SBS) at TSE and the Institute of Advanced Studies in Toulouse (IAST). He is affiliated with TSE, IAST, the Toulouse School of Management, and the Artificial and Natural Intelligence Toulouse Institute (ANITI). Gina Neff is Professor of Responsible AI at Queen Mary University London and Executive Director of the Minderoo Centre for Technology & Democracy at the University of Cambridge. She is the Deputy Chief Executive Officer for UKRI Responsible AI UK (RAi) and Associate Director of the ESRC Digital Good Network. Her award-winning research focuses on how digital information is changing our work and everyday lives. Her books include Venture Labor (MIT Press 2012), Self-Tracking (MIT Press 2016) and Human-Centered Data Science (MIT Press 2022). Jeni Tennison is an Affiliated Researcher at the Bennett Institute for Public Policy, and the founder of Connected by Data. She is a Senior Fellow at the Centre for International Governance Innovation, an adjunct Professor at Southampton’s Web Science Institute, a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellow, and a co-chair of GPAI’s Data Governance Working Group. She sits on the Boards of Creative Commons and the Information Law and Policy Centre. | |||
| 12 Feb 2025 | How can green finance drive the clean transition? | 00:25:31 | |
In this episode of Crossing Channels, Richard Westcott is joined by Dimitri Zenghelis, Ulrich Hege, and Mathias Reynaert to explore how green finance can support the clean transition. They discuss the shifting role of financial markets, the balance between public and private investment, and the policies needed to drive long-term change. Their lively discussion breaks down the economic opportunities of the transition, the impact of regulation on industries like automotive and energy, and the financial and political challenges that come with moving to a low-carbon economy. They also explore why policy credibility and stability are key to unlocking investment and ensuring a fair and effective transition. This episode is hosted by Richard Westcott (Cambridge University Health Partners and the Cambridge Biomedical Campus), and features experts Ulrich Hege (IAST), Mathias Reynaert (IAST) and Dimitri Zenghelis (Bennett Institute for Public Policy). Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform For more information about the Crossing Channels podcast series and the work of the Bennett Institute and IAST visit our websites at https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/ and https://www.iast.fr/. Follow us on Linkedin, Bluesky and X. With thanks to:
More information about our host and guests: Richard Westcott is an award-winning journalist who spent 27 years at the BBC as a correspondent/producer/presenter covering global stories for the flagship Six and Ten o’clock TV news as well as the Today programme. Last year, Richard left the corporation and he is now the communications director for Cambridge University Health Partners and the Cambridge Biomedical Campus, both organisations that are working to support life sciences and healthcare across the city. @BBCwestcott Mathias Reynaert is a Professor of Economics at the Toulouse School of Economics. His fields of interest are empirical industrial organization and environmental economics. His research received recognitions such as the 2015 Paul Geroski and YEEA Prize, the 2022 Edmond Malinvaud Prize, an ERC starting grant (2023-2028), and a 2023 nomination for best young economist in France. He is a research affiliate at the CEPR and an editorial board member at the Review of Economic Studies. Dimitri Zenghelis is Special Advisor to the Bennett Institute, University of Cambridge and a Senior Visiting Fellow at the Grantham Research Institute, London School of Economics. He is also a Partner at Independent Economics. He headed the Stern Review Team at the Office of Climate Change and was a lead author on the Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change. Previously he was Head of Economic Forecasting at HM Treasury. @DimitriZ | |||
| 03 Mar 2025 | Can Europe ever catch up to the US in technology? | 00:31:26 | |
In this episode, Richard Westcott talks to Diane Coyle, Jacques Crémer, and Paul Seabright about Europe’s position in competing with the US in technology. They explore the factors shaping Europe’s place in the global tech race—how data, policy, investment, competition and culture influence its potential to compete with the US. Our experts unpack the challenges and opportunities for Europe’s tech ecosystem. They consider whether Europe should aim to catch up with the US or focus on carving out its own path, questioning what success in innovation really looks like. Along the way, they discuss the role of data, risk-taking, the challenges of scaling up new ideas, and the structural and policy changes needed to support innovation in Europe. This episode is hosted by Richard Westcott (Cambridge University Health Partners and the Cambridge Biomedical Campus), and features experts Diane Coyle (Bennett Institute for Public Policy, University of Cambridge), Jacques Crémer (IAST), Paul Seabright (IAST) Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform For more information about the Crossing Channels podcast series and the work of the Bennett Institute and IAST visit our websites at https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/ and https://www.iast.fr/. Follow us on Linkedin, Bluesky and X. With thanks to:
More information about our host and guests: Podcast host Podcast guests Jacques Crémer is Professor at the Toulouse School of Economics. He is a Fellow of the Econometric Society and of the European Economic Association. He has been the first director of the Digital Center since 2015. In 2018-2019, as a Special Adviser to European Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, he co-authored the report “Competition Policy for the Digital Era”. Jacques has done fundamental work on planning theory, auctions, incentive t | |||
| 07 Apr 2025 | How can we make food that is good for health, societies, the planet and the economy? | 00:29:04 | |
Richard Westcott talks to Jonathan Stieglitz, IAST and Martin White, University of Cambridge, about the global health challenges related to diet and nutrition, the roles of public health policies, cultural practices, and lifestyle changes, while creating sustainable food systems that ensure access to healthy food for all and maintain economic viability. How do we address global health challenges, particularly in relation to diet and nutrition? What role do public health policies, cultural practices and lifestyle changes play in shaping our food choices? How can we create food systems that ensure everyone has access to healthy and sustainable food while maintaining economic viability? To explore these issues, Richard Westcott talks to Prof Martin White, Professor of population health research from the University of Cambridge, and Prof Jonathan Stieglitz, IAST Scientific Director. Listen to this episode on your preferred podcast platform For more information about the Crossing Channels podcast series and the work of the Bennett Institute and IAST visit our websites at https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/ and https://www.iast.fr/. Follow us on Linkedin, Bluesky and X. With thanks to:
More information about our host and guests: Richard Westcott is an award-winning journalist who spent 27 years at the BBC as a correspondent/producer/presenter covering global stories for the flagship Six and Ten o’clock TV news as well as the Today programme. His last role was as a science correspondent covering the covid outbreak, but prior to that he was the transport correspondent reporting on new technologies such as driverless cars, major accidents and large infrastructure projects. Last year, Richard left the corporation and he is now the communications director for Cambridge University Health Partners and the Cambridge Biomedical Campus, both organisations that are working to support life sciences and healthcare across the city. @BBCwestcott Prof Jonathan Stieglitz is an anthropologist specializing in human health and aging. He studies how evolved human biology interacts with variability in the environment to influence well-being over the life course. Since 2004 he has worked with indigenous Tsimane forager-farmers of the Bolivian Amazon, studying how environmental transition (for example, changes in infectious exposures, physical activity levels, or consumption of processed foods) influences diverse health indicators. He co-directs the Tsimane Health and Life History Project. Prof Martin White is an interdisciplinary scientist who leads research on food systems and public health, and has a particular interest in evaluation of population interventions to improve diet and health. He led the NIHR funded evaluation of the Soft Drinks Industry Levy and currently leads two UKRI interdisciplinary consortia on food system transformation (https://www.mandala-consortium.org/ and https://www.salientfoodtrials.uk). He was a visiting fellow at the Bennett Institute for Public Policy in 2020-22 and is a regular contributor to Cambridge University’s Centre for Science and Policy (CSaP) Policy Fellows programme for civil servants. | |||
| 24 Oct 2021 | Launching Crossing Channels | 00:04:50 | |
Crossing Channels is the new podcast series produced by the Bennett Institute for Public Policy and Institute for Advanced Study to give interdisciplinary answers to today’s big questions. Experts from both research centres will discuss different approaches to explore complex challenges and offer policy solutions. Subscribe to the Crossing Channels podcast feed, download each episode at the start of the month,, download each episode at the start of the month, tweet us your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse, and read more about our research at bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk and iast.fr. This episode is produced by Steve Hankey (audio) & Annabel Manley. | |||
| 31 Oct 2021 | Why has it become so hard to run government? The role of civil servants and decision-making in society today. | 00:30:46 | |
This episode tackles the issue of running government in the modern age. These include how the public perceptions of the government have changed, why there are so many civil service reforms, and what governments learn during crises. This episode is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones, and features expert guests Dennis Grube, Mohamed Saleh, and Catherine Haddon. For more information about the podcast and the work of the institutes, visit our websites at www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk, and www.iast.fr/. Tweet us with your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse. Audio production by Steve Hankey More information about our guests: Dennis Grube has been a researcher on Politics and Public Policy at the University since 2016, and was previously an Associate Professor and Principal Research Fellow with the Institute for the Study of Social Change at the University of Tasmania. His research interests are around political decision-making, the role of civil servants in that and how that then passes through to institutional memory. Mohamed Saleh is a Professor of Economics at the Toulouse School of Economics, and a member of the IAST. His research interests are in economic history, and the economic history of the Middle East and North Africa in particular. Catherine Haddon is the resident historian at the Institute for Government. Catherine also leads the Institute's work on changes of government, ministers and the workings of the constitution, and heads the Institute's professional development programme of ministers and opposition parties. | |||
| 29 Nov 2021 | What is nature's role in the economy? | 00:29:49 | |
Why have economists ignored nature for so long - and now they have discovered it, are they measuring it correctly? This episode tackles the issue of incorporating nature into economic measurements. These include whether there is still a trade-off between economic growth and the environment, what is still missing from economic measures, and how to get academics and policymakers to work together. This episode is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones, and features expert guests Dr Matthew Agarwala and Dr Cristina Peñasco from the Bennett Institute for Public Policy, and Nicolas Treich, from the Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse. For more information about the podcast and the work of the institutes, visit our websites at www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk and www.iast.fr/. Tweet us with your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse. Audio production by Steve Hankey. More about our guests:
Nicolas Treich is a research associate at Toulouse School of Economics and INRAE (French National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and the Environment). His work focuses on decision theory, environmental economics, and, more recently, on animal welfare. | |||
| 02 Jan 2022 | Can artificial intelligence be ethical? | 00:29:19 | |
Hope versus fear in artificial intelligence Tweet us your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse. Audio production by Steve Hankey.
Professor Diane Coyle is the Bennett Professor of Public Policy at the University of Cambridge. She co-directs the Bennett Institute for Public Policy where she heads research under the themes of progress and productivity. Diane is also a Director of The Productivity Institute, a Fellow of the Office for National Statistics, an expert adviser to the National Infrastructure Commission, and Senior Independent Member of the ESRC Council. Her research interests cover economic statistics, the digital economy, competition policy and digital markets, and the economics of new technologies. Rory Cellan- Jones (host) is a former technology correspondent for the BBC. His 40 years in journalism saw him take a particular interest in the impact of the internet and digital technology on society and business. He has written multiple books, including his latest “Always On” which was published in 2021. | |||
| 28 Jan 2022 | Broadband before bridges: can digital technologies leapfrog the obstacles to development? | 00:23:20 | |
This episode discusses the potential of digital technologies to change infrastructure priorities in developing countries. Experts from the Bennett Institute for Public Policy, Cambridge, and the Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse (IAST) consider what counts as infrastructure, whether ‘leapfrogging’ is a useful term, emerging digital divides, and the impact of foreign (particularly American and Chinese) tech giants in this space. This fourth episode in the Crossing Channels podcast series is hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones, and features guest experts Dr Stephanie Diepeveen (Bennett Institute), Professor Stéphane Straub (IAST), and Dr Rehema Msulwa (Bennett Institute). The Crossing Channels podcast series is produced by the Bennett Institute for Public Policy and IAST. Tweet us with your thoughts at @BennettInst and @IASToulouse #CrossingChannels Audio production by Steve Hankey. Podcast editing by Annabel Manley More about our guests:
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