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Harvard Center for International Development

Harvard Center for International Development

Harvard Center for International Development 190 Episodes Apr 30, 2026

The Harvard Center for International Development (CID) is a university-wide center based at the Harvard Kennedy School that addresses pressing global development problems such as unequal access to education and healthcare, environmental degradation, and financial constraints. CID conducts research, builds capacity through teaching, and convenes talent to advance ideas for a thriving world. The podcast features discussions on international development challenges and solutions, leveraging academic expertise and practitioner experience through collaborative in-country partnerships.

Episodes

Women, Peace, and Power: Lessons from Africa's Frontlines
Women, Peace, and Power: Lessons from Africa's Frontlines Apr 30, 2026 00:41:37 Guest: Binta Diop, Former Special Envoy on Women, Peace and Security, African Union Host: Sumedha Tanwar, MPP Candidate, Harvard Kennedy School This episode of the CID Voices Road to GEM podcast examines the role of women in conflict resolution and peacebuilding across Africa. The conversation traces how women from the Mano River region, Burundi, and the DRC pushed their way into peace processes
Rethinking Development Finance: Impact, Leverage, and the Private Capital Push
Rethinking Development Finance: Impact, Leverage, and the Private Capital Push Apr 16, 2026 00:30:28 This episode of CID Voices explores how development finance institutions have evolved from counter-cyclical lenders during the financial crisis into impact-driven investors operating under mounting fiscal scrutiny. The conversation moves through the tensions shaping DFIs today: the push toward private capital mobilization and what it means for additionality, the segregation of capital pools across
State Capacity in a Shifting International Development Landscape
State Capacity in a Shifting International Development Landscape Apr 7, 2026 00:40:17 In this CID Voices Road to GEM26 podcast episode, Harvard Kennedy School student Carissa Tridina speaks with Professor Chatib Basri, former Finance Minister of Indonesia and current visiting scholar at CID, about the structural shifts reshaping development and financing today. As global aid shrinks and countries’ debt burdens rise, governments face tighter fiscal space and more complex political t
Supply Chains to State Capacity: Building the Next Manufacturing Hubs
Supply Chains to State Capacity: Building the Next Manufacturing Hubs Mar 25, 2026 00:21:55 In this episode CID Voices Road to GEM26 podcast, Harvard Kennedy School student Stuti Goyal speaks with Vishnu Venugopalan, an Indian Administrative Service officer and Practitioner in Residence at the Harvard Center for International Development. Anchored in CID’s research theme of Trade, Growth, and Regional Economics, the conversation explores how countries position themselves within shifting
Culture, Institutions, and the Future of Multilateralism
Culture, Institutions, and the Future of Multilateralism Mar 16, 2026 00:34:45 In this episode of the CID Voices Road to GEM26 podcast, Harvard Kennedy School student, and CID podcast producer, Ritul Madhukar speaks with Michael Croft, UNESCO’s Representative to Mozambique, whose career has spanned crisis and transition contexts in Libya, Nepal and Vietnam. Anchored in CID’s research theme of Culture, Institutions, and History, the conversation explores what it takes to b
Bridging the Digital Divide: AI, Equity, and Global Development
Bridging the Digital Divide: AI, Equity, and Global Development May 14, 2025 00:23:30 In the final episode of Road to GEM, Harvard Kennedy School MPP candidate Slavina Ancheva speaks with Dr. Flavio du Pin Calmon, Associate Professor at Harvard SEAS, about the intersection of artificial intelligence, equity, and global development. Together, they explore how AI technologies can both bridge and deepen digital divides — especially in low-resource and underserved regions. Dr. Calmon
Algorithms and Inequality: Who Wins in the Age of AI?
Algorithms and Inequality: Who Wins in the Age of AI? May 7, 2025 00:50:53 In this episode of Road to GEM, Harvard Kennedy School’s Dr. Aarushi Jain speaks with Dr. Bhaskar Chakravorti, Dean of Global Business at Tufts University’s Fletcher School and Founding Director of Digital Planet, about the uneven global spread of artificial intelligence. While AI holds promise for breakthroughs in healthcare, agriculture, education, and governance, Dr. Chakravorti sounds a note
AI, Education, and Equity: Innovation at a Crossroads
AI, Education, and Equity: Innovation at a Crossroads Apr 28, 2025 00:40:42 In this episode of the Road to GEM podcast, host Felicity Powell joins a panel of international development and education experts to explore how artificial intelligence could transform education and promote equity. As foreign aid declines and humanitarian challenges grow, the discussion highlights why education remains essential to global equity and revisits past technology initiatives to consider
The Future of Hunger - AI and the Fight Against Food Insecurity
The Future of Hunger - AI and the Fight Against Food Insecurity Apr 23, 2025 00:41:37 In this episode of Road to GEM, Harvard PhD Student and CID Affiliate Jasmin Higo speaks with Jean-Martin Bauer, Director of Food Security and Nutrition Analysis at the World Food Programme, about how AI is shaping the global response to hunger. With over 700 million people facing chronic food insecurity—and food crises driven by conflict, climate change, and economic instability—this conversation
How Can AI Help Build Greener, More Inclusive Cities?
How Can AI Help Build Greener, More Inclusive Cities? Apr 16, 2025 00:45:54 In this episode of Road to GEM, we explore the transformative role of artificial intelligence in urban planning and climate resilience. Jennifer Hotsko and Betty Chemier from UNDP’s Accelerator Lab in Panama join host Giovanna Lia Toledo, Master in Urban Planning candidate at the Harvard Graduate School of Design, to share real-world projects where AI is being used to visualize climate risks, enga
AI for Good? Navigating Innovation, Participation, and Impact in Humanitarian Work
AI for Good? Navigating Innovation, Participation, and Impact in Humanitarian Work Apr 9, 2025 00:40:57 Artificial Intelligence is transforming humanitarian aid—but what does responsible, community-centered innovation really look like? In this episode we explore how AI is being applied across CARE’s work in humanitarian and development contexts, from real-time needs assessment to amplifying women’s voices during crises. Emily Janoch, with nearly two decades of experience in systems design and evide
Africa’s Emerging AI Tech Landscape: Success, Challenges, and Path Forward
Africa’s Emerging AI Tech Landscape: Success, Challenges, and Path Forward Mar 30, 2025 00:52:13 How is AI reshaping Africa's tech landscape? In this episode, Marcelle N. Momha explores this question with Dr. Barbara Glover (African Union Development Agency-NEPAD) and Dr. William Wasswa (Mbarara University of Science and Technology). They discuss the role of AI in tackling African challenges, highlighting projects like Microsoft's investments and AI-driven healthcare innovations. Discover how

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