On this episode, Dan is joined by Hank Meijer, author of the book “Arthur Vandenberg: The Man in the Middle of the American Century.” Hank discusses the life and legacy of an unsung hero, Senator Arthur Vandenberg --- the legislative architect of several critical pieces of foreign policy including the Marshall Plan. Vandenberg played an important role in obtaining bipartisan consensus in Congress and first coined the phrase ‘Iron Curtain’. He sacrificed his presidential ambitions to stay in Congress and hold hearings on the Marshall Plan. While unknown to many, Vandenberg was an integral part of the conversations that began to conceptualize a post-war alliance, which eventually led to the formation of the United Nations. Hank Meijer spent over two decades researching Vandenberg’s legacy and wrote the Michigan Senator’s first biography in honor of his public service.

Over the next few decades, much of the rapid population growth in the developing world will be concentrated in megacities and urban centers. This reality, along with rapid technology-driven disruptions, will bring about economic stratification within urban communities while reinforcing the divides and inequalities between urban and rural communities. Without adequate investment and the right structural conditions, this widespread rural-to-urban migration will only foster pools of problems such as pandemics, a greater strain on urban infrastructure, and environmental pollution. In this episode, Jessica Brandt (The Brookings Institution) and Sara Lawrence (RTI International) consider the impact of massive migration and urbanization in securing sustainable and equitable innovation-led economic growth.

This is the fifth and final installment of our five-part series on Rebooting the Innovation Agenda. This series has been produced thanks to the generous support from RTI International.

As science and technology continue to make progress, it raises new questions about the extent to which the existing regulatory environment can deal with the broader impact of new technologies on societies, the kinds of interventions they need to make without impairing the innovation-economy. In this episode, Philip Auerswald (George Mason University) and Jeffrey Alexander (RTI International) consider the inherent tension between the regulators and the innovators in creating an enabling environment and look at the role of ethics guiding in technological advancement.

This is the fourth in a series of five episodes on Rebooting the Innovation Agenda and has been produced thanks to the generous support from RTI International.

The playbook for innovation envisions a role for the private sector, the academic community, and public institutions. Current models of balanced economic development and the norms that create and sustain the innovation ecosystem are fast getting disrupted and transformed by new technological forces. This disruption transcends into the socioeconomic and political realm and is impacting the existing state-society relationship and the social capital that is generated through it. In this episode, Klaus Tilmes (World Bank) and Paul Weisenfeld (RTI International) consider the vital role played by social capital in consolidating the political economy and explore how the ongoing technological revolution creates new opportunities to change the current social contract in order to preserve and strengthen our institutions.

This is the third in a series of five episodes on Rebooting the Innovation Agenda and has been produced thanks to the generous support from RTI International.

The playbook for innovation envisions a role for the private sector, the academic community, and public institutions. Current models of balanced economic development and the norms that create and sustain the innovation ecosystem are fast getting disrupted and transformed by new technological forces. Moreover, this period of technological advancement will likely leave emerging markets struggling as two-thirds of their jobs are estimated to be lost eventually to automation and technological disruption. In this episode, Steve Zausner (Fission Ventures) and Jason Norman (RTI International) consider and discuss the risks posed by the incoming technological disruptions and how the international community can mitigate these risks to foster an innovation-economy.

This is the second in a series of five episodes on Rebooting the Innovation Agenda and has been produced thanks to the generous support from RTI International.

With science, technology, and innovation making rapid progress under the fourth industrial revolution, it is fundamentally altering the relationship between individuals, societies, and the global economy. Moreover, this period of technological advancement will likely leave emerging markets struggling as two-thirds of their jobs are estimated to be lost eventually to automation and technological disruption. In this episode, Susan Lund (McKinsey & Company) and Eric Johnson (RTI International) discuss the need for economies to radically transform their human capital development strategies in order to respond to these incoming disruptions and harness the potential of the fourth industrial revolution.

This is the first in a series of five episodes on Rebooting the Innovation Agenda and has been produced thanks to the generous support from RTI International.

In this episode, Dan is joined by Alec Ross - technology policy expert and author of the bestseller The Industries of the Future. This book explores the technological and economic trends that will shape the next ten years and is targeted towards non-engineers interested in learning about cyber, AI, and big data. Alec served as Senior Advisor for Innovation for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, a role created for him to maximize the potential of technology and innovation in service of America’s diplomatic agenda. In this conversation, Alec and Dan also discuss leapfrog technologies and labor market disruptions, both in the United States and in developing countries. Please listen to full podcast to hear more.

This week, Dan is joined by Romina Bandura, Senior Fellow with the Project on Prosperity and Development and the Project on U.S. Leadership in Development at CSIS. They discuss her new report on the Future of Global Stability: The World of Work in Developing Countries. By 2030, there will be more than 3 billion people under the age of 25 years old. The future of work has recently attracted much attention from a variety of institutions: a simple Google search of the term “future of work” produces more than 2 billion results. Our world of work – both in rich and poor countries – is changing fast. Technology, globalization, environmental changes, and shifting demographics are impacting workplace environments and the types of jobs that will be available in the future. Everyone can relate to these issues since people depend on work for their livelihoods. To hear more from Dan and Romina, check out our report launch event page where you can also find the two volumes of the report and 4 country case studies (Brazil, India, Kazakhstan, and Nigeria).

In this week’s podcast, Dan is joined by Todd Moss, Executive Director of the Energy for Growth Hub. On September 27^th, Todd launched the Energy for Growth Hub, a new global network connecting research and policymakers to build high-energy systems. Todd has spent most of his career at the Center for Global Development, where his work has focused on Africa, energy, and development finance. Todd also previously served as U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary for African Affairs. To hear more from Todd about the future of Africa, listen to our podcast.
 

In this installment of “Building the Future with Dan Runde,” International Labor Organization (ILO) Director-General Guy Ryder discusses how technology is defining what work, careers, and industry will look like in the future. The ILO is at the forefront of ensuring that worker rights are preserved no matter how impactful the fourth industrial revolution is to current global labor markets. But the questions remain, how will those markets change, how will they impact welfare systems, and how do the needs of developing and developed countries differ when it comes to technology? Listen to our podcast and watch our public event to hear more about forging the future of work.