The Global Citizen: a podcast by Katoikos.world

Katoikos.world

Welcome to the Earth! The Global Citizen is an interview-based podcast exploring the world’s perspectives on world politics, activism, global governance, art, resistance, and the future of our species. With this show, we aim to shine the spotlight on the people engaged with some of the most fascinating goings-on in our human world, from UN officials to former politicians, from grassroots activists to social justice advocates. We believe that big change comes one small step at a time, so we actively try to provide a platform for the most underrepresented voices of the global community that are bravely taking these steps, in spite of the odds. Published by FOGGS (the Foundation for Global Governance and Sustainability) and the online journal Katoikos.world.

  1. 07/31/2025

    Changing our Minds and Hearts through Arts-based Activism | Helen Gilbert, Péter Kakucska

    🎭 The art of theater dates back to ancient times. We play out stories in order to express and explore our viewpoints, our feelings, our fears, and how we understand the world and perceive its beauty. Performance and theater engage us on a visceral, emotional level, opening us up to the immediacy of the experience while speaking directly to our emotional selves.  🌸 A few months ago, a play called Kyoto was presented on London's West End. The play portrayed the negotiation of the Kyoto Protocol in 1995, one of the most important historical landmarks in climate diplomacy. During the play, there is no conventional separation of audience and stage; the audience is given badges with their country names and placed among the actors, who are playing the diplomats participating in the conference. Everybody is part of the action. The actors bring their explosive energy to the stage, making you feel like you're part of the talks. Intrigue, despair, outrage, hope, fear - all felt from a skin to skin distance. 🎙️ Two special members of that audience, Helen Gilbert and Péter Kakucska, kindly agreed to join me on the podcast to talk about their experience of the play and share their unique perspectives. Helen is a leading scholar on indigenous performance and arts-based activism and Peter is a veteran UN officer with more than 20 years of service in the UNFCCC, the entity organizing the climate negotiations portrayed in the play. Through their stories, we learned about the real people behind these monumental conferences, we discovered the transformative power of indigenous performance, and finally, we explored how performance can be a powerful way of changing people's minds and hearts for the better.   Sponsored and published by: 📰 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠katoikos.world⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📰 🏛️ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠FOGGS ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠🏛️  The opinions expressed in this podcast by the host(s) and/or guest(s) do not in any way represent the official positions of FOGGS, katoikos.world, or any other affiliated organization.

    29 min
  2. Reimagining our Relationship with the Earth: the Eco Principle | Arthur Dahl

    07/17/2025

    Reimagining our Relationship with the Earth: the Eco Principle | Arthur Dahl

    What do the words economy and ecology have in common? What can coral reefs teach us about world governance? What can we do to push for a better future on a healthy planet?   🎙️ In today’s episode of the Global Citizen podcast, we’re joined by Arthur Dahl, president of the International Environment Forum and retired Deputy Assistant Executive Director of UNEP. Arthur’s path has spanned many fields, from studying coral reefs as a biologist, to working extensively with the UN as a consultant on environmental assessment and sustainability.   🌍 Arthur is the author of the 1996 book “The Eco Principle”, a treatise on reevaluating our direction and reorganizing our societies to create a truly sustainable global civilization. The concept of the eco - a self-organizing system of sorts - is used extensively throughout the book in order to explore the shaky relationship between the living planet and our ongoing extractive economic activity.   In this chat, Arthur was kind enough to share his fascinating theory and its frameworks with us. We examined the intersection of economy and ecology, discussed current models of production and trade and their failures, and explored ways of enabling small - but real - change by simplifying our lives, changing our consumption habits, and activating our political instincts.   Sponsored and published by: 📰 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠katoikos.world⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📰 🏛️ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠FOGGS ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠🏛️  The opinions expressed in this podcast by the host(s) and/or guest(s) do not in any way represent the official positions of FOGGS, katoikos.world, or any other affiliated organization.

    42 min
  3. #31 - ROMALAND - Art as a Vehicle of Change | Avraam Goutzeloudis & Eleni Tsetsekou

    05/17/2025

    #31 - ROMALAND - Art as a Vehicle of Change | Avraam Goutzeloudis & Eleni Tsetsekou

    The Roma people have been living in the European continent for centuries. Yet, they still face rampant discrimination, racism, significantly fewer opportunities for integration, and more often than not, a background of poverty and exclusion. Still, their contribution to the European cultural tapestry is as enormous as it is neglected and unacknowledged.  In this episode, we had the pleasure of talking with Avraam Goutzeloudis, actor in the “Romáland” performance, a theatrical journey across Greece's contemporary history through the perspective of Roma people, and Eleni Tsetsekou, head of the Roma and Travellers division of the Council of Europe. In our chat we explored subjects such as what it’s like to grow up Roma in contemporary Greece, the relationship of the Roma culture with modern European society, the systemic obstacles faced by Roma people in their rocky and tumultuous life paths, as well as the transformative power of art - especially theatre - to change hearts and minds, raise awareness, and connect people through the power of empathy and the transmission of lived, personal experience.  Sponsored and published by: 📰 ⁠⁠⁠⁠katoikos.world⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📰 🏛️ ⁠⁠⁠⁠FOGGS ⁠⁠⁠⁠🏛️  The opinions expressed in this podcast by the host(s) and/or guest(s) do not in any way represent the official positions of FOGGS, katoikos.world, or any other affiliated organization.

    28 min
  4. CHANGE MAKERS #6 - « El ajedrez me salvó la vida » – la lucha de una periodista colombiana contra la impunidad | Claudia Julieta Duque

    03/26/2025

    CHANGE MAKERS #6 - « El ajedrez me salvó la vida » – la lucha de una periodista colombiana contra la impunidad | Claudia Julieta Duque

    🎤 En este episodio, entrevistamos a Claudia Julieta Duque, una connotada y valiente periodista y defensora de derechos humanos de Colombia. 🕵️‍♀️ Claudia Julieta lleva una larga y distinguida trayectoria de investigar y escribir sobre varios casos sensibles. En esta entrevista, nos enfocamos en uno de los más emblemáticos y de mayor impacto -- su investigación del asesinato del periodista, humorista y activista por la paz, Jaime Garzón, en 1999. La investigación impulsada por Claudia Julieta en un contexto de amenazas de muerte contra ella y su hija, llevó directa e indirectamente a cambios institucionales muy significativos en Colombia. Sponsored and published by: 📰 ⁠⁠⁠⁠katoikos.world⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📰 🏛️ ⁠⁠⁠⁠FOGGS ⁠⁠⁠⁠🏛️  The opinions expressed in this podcast by the host(s) and/or guest(s) do not in any way represent the official positions of FOGGS, katoikos.world, or any other affiliated organization.

    52 min
  5. #29 - Giving a voice to the people of Myanmar | Joah McGee

    03/05/2025

    #29 - Giving a voice to the people of Myanmar | Joah McGee

    In this episode, we spoke with Joah, host of the Insight Myanmar podcast and founder of Better Burma, a humanitarian organization supporting the people of Myanmar under military rule. Joah shared how his first visit to Myanmar in 2003 as a Vipassana meditator sparked his passion for the country’s spiritual traditions, inspiring him to create Insight Myanmar, a platform for Burmese monks, meditators, and activists. Originally focused on Buddhism, Insight Myanmar expanded after the 2021 coup to amplify stories of resistance and hope. We also listened to excerpts from his podcast, offering intimate glimpses into life under dictatorship—marked by fear but also resilience and hope. Joah highlighted how storytelling fosters connection, turning his podcast into a vital space for unheard voices and global solidarity. We invite you to tune in to hear Joah’s story for yourselves and to discover more about the wonderful work he does in support of our Burmese brothers and sisters.  Sponsored and published by: 📰 ⁠⁠⁠katoikos.world⁠⁠⁠ 📰 🏛️ ⁠⁠⁠FOGGS ⁠⁠⁠🏛️  The opinions expressed in this podcast by the host(s) and/or guest(s) do not in any way represent the official positions of FOGGS, katoikos.world, or any other affiliated organization.

    48 min
  6. CHANGE MAKERS #5 - Cuando se transformó el sistema electoral mexicano | José Woldenberg

    02/12/2025

    CHANGE MAKERS #5 - Cuando se transformó el sistema electoral mexicano | José Woldenberg

    This is a special episode in Spanish. Please stay tuned for the English version, coming soon! En este episodio, conversamos con José Woldenberg, connotado politólogo mexicano que desempeñó un papel clave en la transición democrática de su país como uno de los primeros consejeros ciudadanos del Instituto Federal Electoral – el IFE – y luego como Consejero Presidente del IFE durante los años 1996 a 2003. José nos cuenta sobre su experiencia de construir y hacer funcionar una institución electoral autónoma e independiente, y de ahí, organizar elecciones transparentes, legítimas e imparciales por primera vez en la historia de México. Lo que escuchamos de esa experiencia nos pareció de gran relevancia actual, ya que el día de hoy, estamos viendo cómo el cuestionamiento del papel de los órganos de administración de elecciones está alimentando una erosión de confianza en la democracia en varias partes del mundo. En el mismo México, ha venido causando mucha polémica unas propuestas de reformas significativas al Instituto Nacional Electoral impulsadas por el actual gobierno. Justo en tiempos como estos, nos parece bueno conocer y aprender de un esfuerzo colectivo monumental y a la vez gradual y minucioso que llevó a México a la democracia contra todo pronóstico. Sponsored and published by: 📰 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠katoikos.world⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📰 🏛️ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠FOGGS ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠🏛️  The opinions expressed in this podcast by the host(s) and/or guest(s) do not in any way represent the official positions of FOGGS, katoikos.world, or any other affiliated organization.

    1h 19m
  7. CHANGE MAKERS #4 - The first woman at the helm of UNICEF | Carol Bellamy

    01/27/2025

    CHANGE MAKERS #4 - The first woman at the helm of UNICEF | Carol Bellamy

    In this episode, we spoke to Carol Bellamy, former Executive Director of UNICEF. Carol spoke to us with admirable candor about her experience of leading UNICEF at a pivotal time in the organization. In particular, what was it like to try to broaden the focus of the organization toward fully embracing the all-encompassing vision of the Convention on the Rights of the Child? How did she deal with the management challenges of running an organization with over 10,000 people working all over the world? What do you do when you are faced with serious wrongdoing by your own staff? And what did these experiences tell her about her own strengths and weaknesses as a leader? Thanks for tuning in, and we hope you enjoy the conversation as much as we did! Sponsored and published by: 📰 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠katoikos.world⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📰 🏛️ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠FOGGS ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠🏛️  The opinions expressed in this podcast by the host(s) and/or guest(s) do not in any way represent the official positions of FOGGS, katoikos.world, or any other affiliated organization.

    40 min
  8. CHANGE MAKERS #3 - The diplomatic challenge of recognizing the state of Palestine | Fernando Carrera

    01/09/2025

    CHANGE MAKERS #3 - The diplomatic challenge of recognizing the state of Palestine | Fernando Carrera

    In the 2nd part of our interview, Fernando Carrera shared with us how he navigated the treacherous geopolitics of recognising the State of Palestine as minister of foreign affairs of Guatemala. Fernando recounted a tricky encounter with the Jewish American Committee during Guatemala's push for the recognition of Palestine, a tense diplomatic showdown with Netanyahu himself, how Israel publicly reacted to the move in the wake of the announcement, and much more. You can listen to part 1 of this discussion by following this link. Sponsored and published by: 📰 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠katoikos.world⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📰 🏛️ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠FOGGS ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠🏛️  The opinions expressed in this podcast by the host(s) and/or guest(s) do not in any way represent the official positions of FOGGS, katoikos.world, or any other affiliated organization.

    37 min
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About

Welcome to the Earth! The Global Citizen is an interview-based podcast exploring the world’s perspectives on world politics, activism, global governance, art, resistance, and the future of our species. With this show, we aim to shine the spotlight on the people engaged with some of the most fascinating goings-on in our human world, from UN officials to former politicians, from grassroots activists to social justice advocates. We believe that big change comes one small step at a time, so we actively try to provide a platform for the most underrepresented voices of the global community that are bravely taking these steps, in spite of the odds. Published by FOGGS (the Foundation for Global Governance and Sustainability) and the online journal Katoikos.world.

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