Economics & Beyond with Rob Johnson

Camilla Toulmin on African Development

Camilla Toulmin, former director and associate of the International Institute for Environment and Development, talks to Rob about the role of civil society and education in African development.

Alan Light: The Changing Youth Culture of Music

Alan Light, veteran music journalist and host of “In The Light” on SiriusXM, talks to Rob Johnson about the social and political role of music and its relationship to youth culture over time. Light and Rob discuss how the silo-ization of music subcultures has faded in the streaming era, and how social media influencers are challenging musicians for the central place in youth culture.

Nelson Barbosa: How the Pandemic Shook Faith in the Market

Nelson Barbosa—Professor at the Getúlio Vargas Foundation in São Paulo, former Finance Minister of Brazil, and member of INET’s Global Commission on Economic Transformation—talks to Rob Johnson about how faith in the free market is eroding under the COVID-19 pandemic, and how the crisis will impact globalization.

Folashade Soule-Kohndou: Africa in a Pandemic World

Folashade Soule, Senior Research Associate at the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford, talks to Rob Johnson about Africa’s relationships with the United States and China in light of the pandemic.

Ed Pavlic: The Social Challenge of Physical Distancing

Rob Johnson talks to poet and scholar Ed Pavlic about how the pandemic's physical distancing requirement forces us to reassess all of our relationships and how racism and inequality intensify the pandemic's effects.

Cornel West: Sing A Song of Love and Faith in a Pandemic

Philosopher, author, and activist Dr. Cornel West talks to Rob about what the Christian concept of love can offer during a pandemic. They also discuss financialization, militarization, and the commodification of religion.

Ashley Monet & Brandon Dixon: Artistic Healing and the Future of Detroit

Actors, activists, and co-founders of the WeAre Foundation, Ashley Monet and Brandon Dixon, talk to Rob Johnson about how Detroit can once again become an engine of American culture, ingenuity, and progress.

Benjamin Grant: Envisioning the Pandemic and the Planet

Rob talks to Benjamin Grant, the founder of Overview, a company that utilizes satellite and aerial photography to study the impact of humanity on the planet and how the planet affects humanity. They discuss the ways that the pandemic is affecting Earth as a whole—from CO2 emissions to water quality—and how humanity can work together as a global commons.

Naomi Klein & Avi Lewis: A High-Tech Coronavirus Dystopia – Technology and Surveillance Meet the Shock Doctrine

Rob talks to activist and author Naomi Klein and to documentarian Avi Lewis about how the pandemic has spurred the “shock doctrine”: the sudden imposition of neoliberalism and austerity in response to a crisis. They also discuss the possibilities of a new international solidarity around a global Green New Deal.

Dani Rodrik: The Future of Developing Countries and Globalization After the Pandemic

Harvard Kennedy School economist Dani Rodrik talks to Rob about the importance of putting debt payments by developing countries on hold in the face of the pandemic. They also discuss the state of globalization and the US-China relationship.