Are you interested in doing a Master's degree in International Relations at Leiden? Are you starting your degree here in September? Well, join Karin, Tom, and Simon as we discuss our current experiences studying at Leiden! We cover a variety of topics including student life, academics, extracurricular opportunities and housing, as well as relating some of our own stories. 

If you want to hear more from students about studying at Leiden, check out our other podcasts on this topics:
https://soundcloud.com/issa_podcast/studying-international-relations-at-leiden-issa-podcast-16
https://soundcloud.com/issa_podcast/what-you-need-to-know-about-studying-ir-in-fall-2020-issa-podcast-4

Studying International Relations at Leiden in 2021... ISSA Podcast #33

Nasida Ria - Sengketa Teluk

In this episode, Rishi Gulati is in conversation with Dr Patryk Labuda on the topic of Double Standards in International Law. Patryk Labuda  is presently Assistant professor of international law and international relations at the Central European University. Previously, he has been an assistant professor at the University of Amsterdam, and has held positions at the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights, New York University School of Law, the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, University of Zurich, the Polish Academy of Sciences, and Free University of Berlin. The discussion focuses on what the phrase double standards in international law actually means, how double standards are manifested in contemporary practice, how double standards impact the credibility of international law, and what can be done about it.

Double Standards in International Law: Dr Rishi Gulati and and guest Dr. Patryk Labuda

There is an international “gold standard” for investigating suspicious deaths — it’s called the Minnesota Protocol.

Adopted by the United Nations in 1989 and 1991, the Minnesota Protocol outlines best practice for death investigations, particularly when government agents may have done the killing or neglected the duty to investigate.

Forensic investigators have used the Minnesota Protocol to exhume mass graves in Peru (pictured), identify the remains of anti-apartheid activists who disappeared in South Africa, and convict General Efraín Ríos Montt of genocide in Guatemala. 

Today the protocol is being translated into Ukrainian for use by forensic specialists, at the urging of the United Nations’ Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions. The Special Rapporteur is promoting global implementation of the protocol to address human rights violations.

Minnesota lawyers and medical examiners volunteered to draft the protocol in partnership with international experts in the 1980s. The pro bono lawyers’ committee went on to become The Advocates for Human Rights, which relies on more than 800 volunteers. 

A new Human Rights Archive at the University of Minnesota highlights the state’s contributions to the human rights movement and preserves early drafts of the Minnesota Protocol.

KFAI's Michelle Bruch shares the surprising story of the international protocol that carries Minnesota’s name. 

Special thanks to Morris Tidball-Binz, Steve Dorsey, Linnea Anderson, Kris Kiesling, Erik Moore, the United Nations Audiovisual Library and Carrie Booth Walling.

Support for MinneCulture is provided by the Minnesota Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund. 

Sources:

Human Rights Council meeting June 26, 2024: Audio courtesy of the United Nations.

Morris Tiball-Binz, United Nations Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions: May 12, 2025 email and April 25, 2024 United Nations report.

Newsweek On Air July 28 1985, co-anchors David Alpern & Warren Levinson.

Newsweek On Air Aug. 18 1985, co-anchors David Alpern & Warren Levinson, interviewing Dumisani Kumalo.

Newsweek On Air Aug. 28, 1983, anchored by David Alpern and Tom Martin.

The Minnesota Protocol on the investigation of potentially unlawful death (2016). “Minnesota Protocol” web page, United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner.

“Investigating Potentially Unlawful Death under International Law: The 2016 Minnesota Protocol,” published in 2019 by authors Christof Heyns, Stuart Casey-Maslen, Toby Fisher, Sarah Knuckey and Thomas Probert.

The Advocates for Human Rights website: “Peru” and “Advocates Archive: Minnesota Protocol (1991)” dated February 27, 2023.

“Apartheid,” from The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute at Stanford University.

South Africa National Prosecuting Authority progress report on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission prosecutions, June 1, 2022.

University of Minnesota Civios podcast featuring Barbara Frey, Jan. 25, 2017.

Hatun Willakuy, Abbreviated Version of the Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Peru.

White House presidential action on Feb 4, 2025: “Withdrawing the United States from and ending funding to certain United Nations organizations and reviewing United States support to all international organizations.”

“Sí Hubo Genocidio: Anthropologists and the Genocide Trial of Guatemala’s Ríos Montt” by Angela Stuesse, published in American Anthropologist.

Music from Blue Dot Sessions.

Photos courtesy of The Advocates for Human Rights.

How Minnesota shaped international death investigations

In this episode, Rob speaks with Nicholas Burns, the Roy and Barbara Goodman Family Professor of the Practice of Diplomacy and International Relations at Harvard Kennedy School about his time serving as U.S. Ambassador to China and on his perspectives about bilateral efforts to address climate change. 

Read a transcript of the podcast: https://www.belfercenter.org/sites/default/files/2025-06/nick-burns-podcast-transcript-june-2025.pdf.

Photo credit: Grace DuVal/Harvard University

Nicholas Burns on his time as U.S. Ambassador to China and on efforts to address climate change.

In a world increasingly defined by protracted crises and mass displacement, the urgent need to protect the safety, dignity and rights of vulnerable populations has never been more pressing. This year’s Red Cross Oration will tackle the challenges faced by individuals displaced by violence, the protection of human dignity under extreme circumstances, and the evolving role of global institutions in ensuring that these crises are met with meaningful solutions.

Hear from two globally recognised experts who are at the forefront of the fight to protect vulnerable populations in conflict. With experience in the courtroom, on the ground in crisis zones, and at the policy table, they will explore the complex challenges of safeguarding human dignity and holding perpetrators accountable in times of war.

Safeguarding the Vulnerable in Conflict

For the rest of the summer Mark Leonard will be breaking from the usual World in 30 Minutes format to talk about how the global order is being challenged. This week, he is joined by Edward Luttwak, a political scientist who has published works on grand strategy, military history, and international relations.

Bookshelf:
Edward Luttwak, Coup d'État: A Practical Handbook
Thomas Piketty, Capital in the Twenty-First Century

The End of the World #2: Interview with Edward Luttwak

Susan Thornton was Acting Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs at the Department of State during the first 18 months of the Trump administration. Prior to her departure, Thornton led East Asia policy-making amid crises with North Korea, escalating trade tensions with China, and a generally deteriorating environment in the United States for international economic and diplomatic engagement. She was the architect of the diplomatic pressure campaign on the North Korean regime, structured the administration’s initial approach to China, and developed the administration’s trademark Indo-Pacific Strategy.

In previous leadership roles in Washington, Thornton worked on China and Korea policy, including stabilizing relations with Taiwan, the U.S.-China Cyber Agreement, the Paris Climate Accord and led a successful negotiation in Pyongyang for monitoring of the Agreed Framework on denuclearization.

In her 18 years of overseas postings in Central Asia, Russia, the Caucasus and China, Thornton’s leadership furthered U.S. interests and influence and maintained programs and mission morale in a host of difficult operating environments. Prior to joining the Foreign Service, she was among the first State Department Fascell Fellows and served from 1989–90 at the U.S. Consulate in Leningrad. She was also a researcher at the Foreign Policy Institute from 1987–91.

Thornton received her M.A. in International Relations and Soviet Studies from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in 1991 and earned an M.S. in National Strategy and Resource Management at the National Defense University’s Eisenhower School in 2010. Thornton received her B.A. from Bowdoin College in Economics and Russian in 1985, and taught in international secondary schools in Brussels, London, and Chile. She speaks Russian, Mandarin Chinese and French, is a member of numerous professional associations and is on the Board of Trustees for the Eurasia Foundation.

The Charles Neuhauser Memorial Lecture is an annual lecture at the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies, Harvard University.

Read and download the transcript for this event on our website: https://fairbank.fas.harvard.edu/events/neuhauser-lecture-featuring-susan-thornton-can-we-live-with-china-a-roadmap-for-co-evolution/

Can We Live with China? 2019 Neuhauser Memorial Lecture with Susan Thornton

Today's show is a special one. You know, "special". Crendor manages to drive Jesse nuts with his talk about hippo candy, while at the same time creating an entire new character "Mc Rough". Then the boys talk about the future of football, and it's amazing. Also, what does your desk say about you? Besides the fact that you're lazy. All this and more!
Related Link: http://www.trbimg.com/img-5106759e/turbine/sfl-ducttaping-gluing-20130125-001/384/384x240

Cox N' Crendor Beta: Thursday, January 31st 2013

Dr. Paul Craig Roberts discusses the CIA and globalist "Color Revolution" and military coup being unleashed against President Trump and Washington itself. He also discusses the extreme privatization of the economy which will lead to mass homelessness and poverty and gives his thoughts on the Military-Industrial-Complex and prospect for war with China, Russia, and Iran.

*Support/Donate to Geopolitics & Empire:
SubscribeStar https://www.subscribestar.com/geopolitics
PayPal https://www.paypal.me/geopolitics
Bitcoin http://geopoliticsandempire.com/bitcoin-donate

Show Notes
The Future of the United States of America: Light after Darkness http://plata.com.mx/enUS/More/393?idioma=2
Mike Whitney: Treason https://www.unz.com/mwhitney/treason
Former JAG Officer Richard Black Warns of a Potential Military Coup https://larouchepac.com/20200907/former-jag-officer-richard-black-warns-potential-military-coup
The War on Populism: The Final Act https://consentfactory.org/2020/09/20/the-war-on-populism-the-final-act
Blueprint for Overthrow: Transition Integrity Project https://www.democratsagainstunagenda21.com/the-way-we-see-itour-blog/blueprint-for-overthrow-transition-integrity-project
Revolution 2020 https://americanmind.org/essays/revolution-2020
The Coming Coup? https://americanmind.org/essays/the-coming-coup
Are the Corona-Lockdowns An Election 2020 Ransom Note? https://www.realclearmarkets.com/articles/2020/09/15/are_the_corona-lockdowns_an_election_2020_ransom_note_577391.html

Websites
http://www.paulcraigroberts.org

About Paul Craig Roberts
Paul Craig Roberts has had careers in scholarship and academia, journalism, public service, and business. He is chairman of The Institute for Political Economy.

Dr. Roberts has held numerous academic appointments including the William E. Simon Chair in Political Economy in the Center for Strategic and International Studies. He has contributed chapters to numerous books and has published many articles in journals of scholarship. He has testified before committees of Congress on 30 occasions.

Dr. Roberts was associate editor and columnist for The Wall Street Journal and columnist for Business Week and the Scripps Howard News Service. He was a nationally syndicated columnist for Creators Syndicate in Los Angeles. In 1992 he received the Warren Brookes Award for Excellence in Journalism. In 1993 the Forbes Media Guide ranked him as one of the top seven journalists in the United States.

President Reagan appointed Dr. Roberts Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Economic Policy and he was confirmed in office by the U.S. Senate. From 1975 to 1978, Dr. Roberts served on the congressional staff where he drafted the Kemp-Roth bill and played a leading role in developing bipartisan support for a supply-side economic policy. After leaving the Treasury, he served as a consultant to the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Dr. Roberts was awarded the Treasury Department’s Meritorious Service Award for “his outstanding contributions to the formulation of United States economic policy.”

In 1987 the French government recognized him as “the artisan of a renewal in economic science and policy after half a century of state interventionism” and inducted him into the Legion of Honor.

He is listed in Who’s Who in America and Who’s Who in the World.

*Podcast intro music is from the song "The Queens Jig" by "Musicke & Mirth" from their album "Music for Two Lyra Viols": http://musicke-mirth.de/en/recordings.html (available on iTunes or Amazon)

Paul Craig Roberts: Color Revolution & Coup Against Trump & The Constitution #160

The University of East Anglia (UEA) Law School is a highly respected and innovative law school located in Norwich, England. Established in 1977, the Law School has a rich history of providing high-quality legal education to students from around the world.

https://www.uea.ac.uk/web/about/law-school/research/research-blog

The Geopolitics & Empire Podcast conducts interviews with prominent international experts on a wide-range of topics.

Past guests have included diplomats, government officials, whistleblowers, soldiers, spies, economists, academics, scientists, wealthy investors, dissidents, journalists, and musicians.

The broadcast seeks to gain insight from guests who come from the left, right, and beyond. It should go without saying that the host does not always agree with beliefs espoused by podcast invitees, but maintains an open mind, and believes it important to respectfully listen to a multitude of voices and let listeners come to their own conclusions.

*Music used in podcast intro is from the song "The Queens Jig" by "Musicke & Mirth" from their album "Music for Two Lyra Viols": http://musicke-mirth.de/en/recordings.html (available on iTunes or Amazon)

MinneCulture is KFAI’s award-winning audio storytelling program. We produce audio documentaries exploring Minnesota’s art, culture, and history — stories about musical sensations, small town heroes, cultural icons, local lore, and everything in between.

Weekly podcast on the events, policies and ideas that will shape the world.

World in 30 minutes is curated by Mark Leonard, Director of the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), and features top-level speakers from across the EU and beyond to debate and discuss Europe’s role in the world. It was awarded “Best podcasts on EU politics” by PolicyLab in 2019.

Member of the EuroPod network.

The Fairbank Center is a world-leading center on China at Harvard University. Listen to interviews on our "Harvard on China" podcast, recordings from our public events, and audio from our archives.

Environmental Insights: Conversations on policy and practice from the Harvard Environmental Economics Program.  

PHOTO: by Gustavo Quepón on Unsplash

Ideas, debate and discussion - for and from Tasmania. Our vibrant and informative public talks and forums are now available as podcasts.

International Insights is a podcast brought to you by students of the MA International Relations masters programme at Leiden University. The podcast is published by the International Studies Student Association (ISSA). We're committed to providing quality, student-created content covering topics within the scope of our studies; world politics, foreign affairs, global history, and diplomacy.

Follow us on Instagram: @leiden_ISSA

Popular tracks tagged #international relations