Current urbanization rates will lead to an increased concentration of people and economic activities in megacities, offering both opportunities and dangers for sustainability. Future development strategies should focus on achieving low-carbon urban growth. At the same time, cities need to take a more active role in seeking inter-urban cooperation.

While governments quarrel over closed borders, unaccompanied children that migrate to Europe in hope of a better life are often detained in inadequate conditions facing life threatening dangers, missing critical months of schooling and undergoing hardship that no person should endure, let alone a child. There is a need for harmonization of protection standards at the European level and a total abolition of the practice of detaining unaccompanied migrant children.

In this episode we have Alina Bill-Weilandt and Delia Roling who share their thoughts on climate displacement and why there is currently a gap in international law when it comes to recognizing the protection needs of those displaced by the effects of climate change.

The European Union’s reaction to the so-called “refugee crisis“ has mainly included intensified externalization of migration controls. This approach is counterproductive because it exacerbates vulnerabilities, strengthens transnational criminal networks and blocks political capital for sustainable solutions. A new approach to European migration policy is urgently needed.

After three years of Western sanctions against Russia over the Ukraine crisis, both a tightening and a relief of the “smart” punitive measures can make the arguably bad situation even worse.

China and the IMF have had a rocky relationship ever since the Fund’s founding in 1945. Despite the IMF’s recent efforts to better reflect China’s growing economic power within its organizational structure, the future of the two entities remains uncertain. This can be explained by conflicting interests on fiscal policy, the ambiguous behavior of the Chinese economic regime, and the failure of the IMF to fully adapt to the shifting weights of the world economy.