Showing 1 - 10 of 20
How to give expert advice in transformational times
Oped, Robert Lempert, Published on 11/11/2025
» I am a policy analyst. My job is to provide expert information to decision makers and the public to help improve public policy. This job, always hard, has become harder.
Authoritarians' brave new cities
Oped, Robert Muggah & Carlo Ratti, Published on 23/09/2025
» Few policy ideas are as radical -- or as misleadingly packaged -- as "freedom cities". Championed by Silicon Valley's techno-libertarian elite and recently embraced by right-wing politicians like Donald Trump, the idea is to create digitally powered, master-planned enclaves of deregulated innovation.
Is AI a curse or a blessing for education?
Oped, Matthew Robert Ferguson, Published on 17/08/2024
» My collegiate rowing coach at the University of Western Ontario was an eccentric West German named Dr Volker Nolte, a stocky and imposing figure who was only funny when he didn't mean to be. He was a biomechanics wizard, obsessing over the countervailing forces of the rower and shell, currents and winds, blades and water. In the early 80s, as part of his doctoral research, he designed a sliding rigger that moved along the hull of the boat on slides in tandem with the rower, which, when compared to a fixed rigger, effectively doubled the force and propulsion of every stroke. It made second-tier rowers competitive with the best in the world.
Ozone layer recovery offers hope
Oped, Robert Redford & Xiye Bastida, Published on 30/04/2024
» There was a time, not so long ago, when the depletion of Earth's ozone layer seemed like an insurmountable challenge. Decades of using harmful chemicals, such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), had threatened to cause irreparable damage to our planet. Without swift action, we faced the risk of climate destabilisation, ecosystem collapse, and the breakdown of our food system. Consequences that were once almost unthinkable became painfully real.
Loss and Damage Fund's potential
Oped, Monique Barbut & Robert R Filipp, Published on 02/02/2024
» In the vein of We Are the World, the 1985 hit that sold more than 20 million copies globally, the song Lasting Legacy was released at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) in Dubai. The official charity anthem features 13 artists from around the world singing about unity, cooperation, and climate action.
Navigating the risks of AI will require a team effort
Oped, Robert Muggah, Gabriella Seiler & Gordon LaForge, Published on 11/03/2023
» Recent months may well be remembered as the moment when predictive artificial intelligence went mainstream. While prediction algorithms have been in use for decades, the release of applications such as OpenAI's ChatGPT3 -- and its rapid integration with Microsoft's Bing search engine -- may have unleashed the floodgates when it comes to user-friendly AI.
Teacher's role in a world with ChatGPT
Oped, Matthew Robert Ferguson, Published on 08/03/2023
» Fundamentally, I see my role as an educator as to find creative ways to nurture the development and resilience of the human brain. Yes, I teach subjects, and there's content knowledge that I impart to my students. But at its root, pedagogy is about the process of teaching and learning, and not about filling an empty vessel.
World cities and the climate-data collection gap
Oped, Robert Muggah & Carlo Ratti, Published on 21/01/2022
» With cities facing disastrous climate stresses and shocks in the coming years, one would think they would be rushing to implement mitigation and adaptation strategies. Yet most urban residents are only dimly aware of the risks, because their cities' mayors, managers, and councils are not collecting or analysing the right kinds of information.
Can Europe avert a war between US and China?
Oped, Robert Williams & Moritz Rudolf, Published on 06/01/2022
» European countries are currently divided over whether to join US President Joe Biden's diplomatic boycott of the upcoming Winter Olympics in Beijing. The episode underscores yet again that when it comes to dealing with China, Europe and the United States truly are an ocean apart.
US and EU “CHIPS Acts”: Wrong Solution to Phantom China Tech Threat
Robert Lewis, Published on 30/12/2021
» US and EU authorities have called the current semiconductor supply chain crisis a major national and economic security risk, citing a “dangerous” over-dependence on Asian foundries to source state-of-the-art chips.