What the Year Ahead Holds for the World’s Most Persistent Crises

What the Year Ahead Holds for the World’s Most Persistent Crises
President Donald Trump takes the stage at the Turning Point USA Student Action Summit in West Palm Beach, Florida, Dec. 21, 2019 (AP photo by Andrew Harnik).

The most serious problems facing the world have been making headlines for years or even decades now, from climate change to nuclear proliferation. They defy easy solutions, and like it or not, they’ll still be hanging around in 2020. Will this finally be the year that things start to turn around? Or will the world just keep kicking the apocalypse can down the road? And what about other issues that have been pushed to the forefront as a result of Donald Trump’s chaotic presidency, like trade wars that threaten the global economy?

For this week’s interview on Trend Lines, WPR’s Elliot Waldman discusses these questions with Stewart Patrick, the James H. Binger senior fellow in global governance and director of the International Institutions and Global Governance Program at the Council on Foreign Relations. He also writes a weekly column for WPR that appears every Monday.

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Relevant Articles on WPR:
The Three Global Crises the World Faces in 2020
Why U.N. Climate Talks in Madrid Were a Massive Failure
Trump Wants a ‘Big Deal’ on Arms Control, Even If It Sinks the New START Treaty
Is Trump About to Bring Down the WTO?
Geoengineering Is Inevitable in the Face of Climate Change. But at What Cost?

Trend Lines is produced and edited by Peter Dörrie, a freelance journalist and analyst focusing on security and resource politics in Africa. You can follow him on Twitter at @peterdoerrie.

To send feedback or questions, email us at podcast@worldpoliticsreview.com.

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