Global Issues
Setting the standard: An important step on the path to net zero emissions
The release of international standards rarely makes global headlines, but they are an essential backdrop to our everyday lives. Without international standards on postage,…
Australia and Southeast Asia: Driving EV collaboration across borders
“All countries deserve to process their natural resources, all countries deserve to make their people prosperous, and other countries must respect this right.” These words from…
Samoa and the Alliance of Small Islands States show climate security is also about loss and damage
Samoa assumed a leadership role in January this year as chair of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS), the negotiating bloc for small island developing states. Samoa is…
For Indonesia’s haunting past, Jokowi’s resolution is non-judicial
The civilian witness held a pressurised kerosene lamp. He stood just a step back from the edge of the mass grave, two meters deep. Thirty-one men, purported members and companions…
Charting new paths for Antarctic protection despite China’s resistance
Calls to renegotiate the agreements that govern the Antarctic, out of frustration at China’s and Russia’s opposition to establishing new areas for protection, would only put at…
Existential risk is a whole-of-society challenge
Existential risks have been in the news recently. In May, a group of prominent artificial intelligence experts and industry leaders warned that “Mitigating the risk of extinction…
The Quad: Tackling the spider, not cobwebs, in cyberspace
The Quad – the strategic security dialogue between Australia, India, Japan and the United States – is accustomed to dealing with threats to international security, including those…
Paris climate summit: A new global financing pact takes shape
France held the Paris Summit for a New Global Financing Pact last month, and, as with many climate summits, one can be forgiven for being disappointed with the outcome. Despite…
Economic diplomacy: Power shifts with Jakarta
Trading places
It’s now half a century since Australia and Indonesia signed a bilateral investment agreement leading to serial government initiatives mostly on the Australian…
Don’t believe the hype: the many futures of AI
The portrayal of artificial intelligence (AI) in popular culture tends to gravitate towards extremes: either humanity benefits from the riches and efficiencies of ubiquitous…