Global Issues
Commentary
Why Xi will shelter behind the great wall of secrecy
Beijing will oppose an international investigation into the pandemic because accountability would put the one-party system in the dock. Originally published in the Australian…
The Nth Room case and modern slavery in the digital space
“He already had my face, my voice, my personal information. I was afraid that he would threaten me with that information if I said I would quit.”
Even as Covid-19 dominates the…
Australia needs a comprehensive plan for Covid-19 in the Pacific
Of all the regions in the world, the twin health and economic crises caused by the Covid-19 pandemic have the potential to hit the Pacific the hardest.
Pacific Island nations…
The vanishing hegemon
Has the corona crisis already changed the world? Many people certainly seem to think so. From doomsday prognoses of a collapse into a bio-authoritarian dystopia to cheerful…
Flattening the economy costs lives, livelihoods and freedoms, too
Confronted by the coronavirus pandemic as a “black swan” event, most countries have chosen the hard suppression strategy with variably stringent lockdown measures. This is based…
COVIDcast Episode 7: The cost to the international economy
In this episode of COVIDcast, Roland Rajah sat down with the Institute’s Director of Research Alex Oliver to discuss the impact of the coronavirus on the global economy. Roland is…
New Zealand: Life under lockdown and the view of outside
Where are we in the fourth week of lockdown in New Zealand?
The borders are sealed. As I was writing this, the Flight Radar 24 app had only two domestic flights taking place…
Podcasts
COVIDcast Episode 7: COVID-19 and the International Economy
COVIDcast is a Lowy Institute pop-up podcast for anyone interested in understanding the effect of coronavirus on global politics. In Episode 7, Roland Rajah sits down with…
International Covid cooperation: Lessons from HIV/AIDS
Since it was first identified in the early 1980s, HIV/AIDS has infected an estimated 78 million people and killed 35 million. Although there have been significant advances in…
How much is too much? Covid loans for the Pacific
There is a growing recognition that Australia will need to do a lot to help the Pacific get through the Covid-19 pandemic. Like everywhere, big sums of money are needed. The…