The McKay Interview: Recent Episodes
Michael McKay
Michael McKay conducts in depth interviews with decision makers and local leaders.
The McKay Interview was founded on a simple idea: that listeners would tune in regularly to listen to intelligent yet relaxed, English-language conversation between Michael McKay and interesting people who do interesting things.
A variety of prominent and thoughtful people have accepted the invitation and a wide range of topics have been covered.
Insights into the success of managing the most connected airport in the world.
In this episode we discuss:
-The reasons for his new airport's success
-His plans for the future
-How he manages the risks and "unknowns" of such a large and dynamic airport.
My discussion with Professor Dubuis centres around food and nutrition, and vaccine and food security.
In this episode we discuss:
-What functional food is and its place in the diet of a healthy population.
-Whether the poor of the world are badly served by the relatively rich north, which appears to pamper itself.
-What Switzerland needs to do to ensure security of the supply of vaccines in the event of the next pandemic.
Over a career in finance spanning almost 50 years, Clive Thompson watches, among other things, growing levels of government debt, especially in the USA, and worries about it.
In this episode we discuss
-Why growing government debt is a problem, especially for the USA.
-What happens when government debt becomes intolerable.
-As we both live in Switzerland, we spend a little time talking about government debt in this country. And at the end
-Where all this leading. His story is rather sombre!
As André Schneider's mandate comes to an end after 8 years at CEO, he talks openly to me about the airport, air travel and business. We also discuss his achievements and disappointments; and to what extent air travel has returned to pre-Covid levels. In this episode we discuss:-How the airport makes money
-The present day realities of decarbonisation
-The airport's exciting plans for future expansion.
Our topic in this McKay Interview is Tax and Taxation.
We discuss the following points:
We go back to the very beginning and talk about the origins of Tax, and what Tax was used for
-The turbulent history of public consent to pay taxes
-The difference between Avoidance and Evasion; the politics of Taxation
-The Swiss way of Taxation
-Supra-national organizations like the OECD trying to muscle in on levying tax
-AI, robot and the future of Taxation.
He is "at home" on 3 continents, having been born in Madagascar and lived many years in Africa.
He studied in the USA, and has his home in Switzerland.
Stories of his driving experiences to the ends of the Earth, the vehicle he has chosen, the people he has met, and above all his personal motivation, make fascinating listening!
In this episode we discuss:
-A sense of the scale of his planned voyage so that I can understand the true dimensions of what he has set out to do. In which direction did he start to drive? How did he decide? And how long it will take him?
-Why he is doing it? What pushes him to undertake such a massive journey, which takes him away from his family for so long.
-We talk about his experiences of humankind and, in particular, what his global, circumnavigational driving experience has taught him.
-Some of the highs and lows/most-memorable and most unpleasant experiences of his journey.
Twice President of the Swiss Confederation, and thirteen years a Federal Councillor, Adolf Ogi, one of Switzerland's most admired and popular leaders in modern times shares his personal reflections and some of his guiding principles with me.
In this episode we discuss:
-The importance of good leadership, and clear and repeated communication to persuade and understand people.
-One particular experience when he was invited to address European Union heads of states, in which he explains Switzerland to them!
-The United Nations, Kofi Annan, Sport and Peace played an important part in his career as a statesman and he explains why.
My wide-ranging interview with Dr Hughes takes place in the year of the 100th anniversary of the International School of Geneva - ISG (1924-2024).
In this episode we discuss:
-His career journey to one of the top jobs in international education.
-How the ISG/Ecolint started and why.
-What he and his colleagues are teaching their young charges.
-His views on the place of the school, the teacher and the family in the "socialization" of children and young people today.
-The contribution of the ISG/Ecolint to "international" Geneva over the past 100 years.
Professor Julian Lindley-French is Chairman of the Alphen Group in the Netherlands and an expert analyst focussing on security and defence strategy and policy.
In this episode we discuss:
-Is the world is a safer place than in 2014 when I first interviewed him.
-Whether the West is still strong. Also, I put it to him that, perhaps, the West played its good hand badly after the dissolution of the USSR in 1991.
-The ongoing conflict in Gaza
-The terrible but largely unreported conflict in Africa's Sahel.
-The continued tension across the Straight of Taiwan.
Dr Nadia Sikorsky, a Russian/Swiss dual national, is Co-founder and Editor of NashaGazeta.ch, the first Russian-language online newspaper in Switzerland.
In this episode we discuss:
-Given what she writes about, whether it is safe for her to visit Russia
-What mistakes the West made in dealing with the Russia post-Gorbachev
-What it will take for matters to improve for the Russian people.
Just over a year since our last radio conversation, I ask General Hodges
-For his assessment of the progress of the war in Ukraine against Russia's illegal invasion
-How long he thinks the war will continue
-What the West needs to do to support Ukraine better
-The interplay between politics and warfare, especially from the perspective of the USA in a Presidential Election year.
ID Quantique has been a Geneva success story for the past 20 years in the area of quantum and cybersecurity. We talk about current developments and where the future may take us in this exciting area.
In this episode we discuss:
-What is the big picture regarding developments in quantum?
-What are the dangers?
-What, if anything, should we fear about the direction we are travelling?
This is the second part of my radio conversation with Bru Pearce, started at Eastertime 2023. We discuss in greater detail how to repair the badly damaged biosphere. Restore it to life again. And who pays! It is a complex topic.
In this episode we discuss:
-How to repair the badly damaged biosphere
-Who will pay for it
Insights into the evolution of the Geneva Observatory and its long history; what use Astronomy serves; and Geneva's contribution to the science of Astronomy in the larger frame of research worldwide.
In this episode we discuss:
-The significant advances in Astronomy during his career.
-In a world of bewildering acronyms, what do XRIM, GAIA and EUCLID mean?
-I ask Professor Pepe if it is difficult to attract young people to study Astronomy.
General Richards discusses with me matters of war and grand strategy.
In this episode we discuss:
-The war in Ukraine
-His view that Russia has lost the war already, strategically
-Whether NATO wants Ukraine to "win" but does not want Russia to "lose"
-His lament on the dearth of statesmen and the death of "grand strategy".
Avivah and I discuss the implications of living longer and working longer; what it means for pensions, for younger colleagues in the workplace and for families.
We cover the following topic:
-Isn't Longevity just a first-world problem? You might be surprised by Avivah's answer. And how will younger people adjust to having work colleagues around them the age of their grandparents!
A radio conversation about Switzerland's relationship and role at the U.N. especially now that it is a Non-permanent Member of the Security Council.
In this episode we discuss:
-If there is the remotest chance that the Security Council can reform itself.
-We touch on the extent to which the Swiss population takes an interest in the U.N. and whether or not that is important.
-We talk about Swiss neutrality and what it really means these days.
-I ask him about his duties and obligations as head of the host country's delegation to the U.N. in Geneva.
Selma explains, among other things, the changes in shopping retail since the end of Covid lockdown a couple of years ago.
In this episode we discuss:
-What she thinks will be the next big thing around the corner for the retail shopping business
-To what extent do women dress in order to be attractive to men
-What men do when they go into her Etam shops to buy twice a year!
Jared Bibler, an American, arrived in Iceland a few years before the financial meltdown which started in 2008. He worked in the financial services sector and then, when it was all over, the investigator. He tells me his compelling personal story during that extraordinary period.
A radio conversation from a prominent, Conservative MP who has been very close to the centre of British politics in the Tory Party for over ten years.
In this episode we discuss:
-His opinion on whether or not the Conservative Party has run out of steam after 13 years in power
-The strength of opposition to or difficulties for the Conservative Party
-How politicians can regain the lost trust of the electorate
-Why are so many political leaders of questionable character so popular with voters.
In this episode, Professor Matt Goodwin explains what the data show about current changing political and social attitudes in the U.K.
Some of the topics we cover:
-Britain, as viewed from abroad, does not seem to be doing so well these days. Why?
-The immigration debate in Britain seems poisonous. Is the UK still a welcoming place?
-How did the National Health Service come to be elevated to something approaching a national deity?
In this episode, Kirsten Neuschaefer's account of her experiences before and during her remarkable, round-the-world voyage.
We cover some of the following topics:
-Why Kirsten was motivated to make such a huge sea voyage alone.
-How she prepared for her journey. How she navigated?
-Why men seem to dominate the Golden Globe Race?
-Whether she had time for spiritual reflection during 235 days alone at sea. And what she will do next?
Jean-Pierre Roth, a former President of the Swiss National Bank, explains the history and the current situation of this iconic, Swiss military institution in Vatican City.
We discuss many aspects of the Pontifical Swiss Guard including:
-Why they are there, since when have they been guarding the Pope
-What do they actually do and how many constitute the Swiss Guard
-Why the barracks need renovation and how much money is required?
We discuss the key, cybersecurity threats and what the future is likely to look like.
Some of the points we cover:
-What are the key, cybersecurity threats to businesses, organisations and individuals?
-What does "resilience" mean?
-What is your assessment of the role of organised crime as a threat to cybersecurity?
-Should we fear Artificial Intelligence?
In this episode, we talk about the current state of the biosphere and Bru Pearce's Envisionation Biosphere Restoration Plan.
Some of the questions we try to answer:
-What can be done to repair the damage to the biosphere?
-Does man have the capacity to be up to this dauting task?
-What future is there for our grandchildren?
In this episode we have a conversation with the Chief of the Swiss Armed Forces about a variety of topical, relevant and sensitive subjects.
We cover the following:
-What does Swiss "neutrality" mean?
-Has the conflict in Ukraine changed the way that the Swiss Armed Forces strategize about warfare?
-What is the role of women in the Swiss Armed Forces?
-What part do the Swiss Armed Forces play in the social cohesion of Switzerland.
Kinza Win is an experienced, independent advisor on Philanthropy, with many years working at a high level in the wealth management and financial services industry.
In this episode we discuss:
-The giving and receiving side of the equation
-The size of the growing Philanthropy sector, the pitfalls, the difference between aid and philanthropy
-Whether sponsorship, as in the case of sports tournaments, is a confusion.
In this episode we discuss climate change and climate science.
Some of the questions we cover:
-What does the current climate science tell us?
-Can't we "unmake" climate change, if man is responsible for making it in the first place?
-Why campaigns about climate change have taken on the mantle of religion in the minds and actions of some?
-The importance of clouds. If humankind won't adapt to climate change, just as we always have done.
In this episode we discuss Ambassador Filipenko's current assessment of the war in Ukraine, just two days before the first anniversary of Russia's illegal invasion.
Some of the topics we cover:
-What the Ambassador has been doing in and around the UN Geneva in the eleven months since we last met.
-Why so many African countries abstain on important vote relevant to Ukraine resolutions at the UN.
-When will the war end? And how?
In this episode our guest provides an assessment of the current state of the Swiss economy and how Switzerland's peculiarities contribute to its consistent success.
Some of the topics we cover:
-Switzerland's success defies the laws of economics just as the flight of the bumble bee defies the laws of physics.
-The great contribution that migrants have made to Switzerland's success.
-Though Switzerland does well, it is not Shangri-La, so how could it do better?
In this episode we discuss the views and opinions of an Iranian woman - now a naturalised Swiss - who was at university in Iran at the time of the fall of the Shah in 1979 and has lived in both countries for many years.
Some of the topics we cover:
-How in your opinion has Iran arrived at where it is today in its long and flourishing history?
-What is it in the governing regime's particular version of Islam that is so anti-female?
-How do mothers bring up their sons? What values do they teach them?
-What values do fathers live by in bringing up their daughters, and their sons?
-What are the chances of success of this current revolution?
Professor Vicky Pryce gives a brilliant overview of the global economy, including the impact of Russia’s illegal war in Ukraine on energy prices, ageing populations in many parts of the world, climate change, inflation, China and India.
Among other things, we discuss the recent mid-term elections in the USA and their implications for the Presidential Election in 2024, the hypothetical prospect of secession of some states from the Union, should Trump or a Trump-like figure win for the Republicans, the ongoing saga of the former President, himself, and the political and social stresses and strains inside the USA today.
We cover some of the following topics:
-The state of the Union
-The possibility of a Trump revival in '24
-Disunity within the Democratic Party.
In this episode we look at the importance of Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) in today's global energy mix. We discuss what LNG actually is, what it is used for, how clean it is, the impact on supply caused by current tensions with Russia, and future energy needs, not only in the West but also in the Far East and elsewhere.
A discussion about men's health particularly, in this month of Movember, with a focus on prostate cancer and the advances in its diagnosis and treatment in recent years.
In this episode we talk about:
-Dr Rochat answers my questions about the genetic and hereditary aspects of prostate cancer
-The effectiveness of the PSA and other diagnostic tests
-The effects of the disease within the family, in particular on wives, life partners, daughters and granddaughters.
General Hodges gives his professional opinion on the prosecution of the war in Ukraine to date and future direction.
In this episode we discuss:
-I ask him about men (and women) and the machines of military conflict.
-General Hodges explains some of the different kinds of weapon systems.
-We also talk about the morale of Russian soldiers as winter approaches
-The threat of tactical nuclear weapons.
In this episode I interview Ambassador Mme. Marie-Thérèse Pictet-Althann. We talk about the Sovereign Military Order of Malta and what she does in and around the UN and International Organizations in Geneva.
In this episode we disucss:
-Its long history
-How it is led
-How it is funded
-How it can be a sovereign state without territory?
Personal reflections on the reign of the late Queen Elizabeth II with four, Commonwealth friends from Canada, India, Jamaica and the U.K.
Some of the questions asked are:
-What did the Queen mean to you?
-Why Canada has not become a republic?
-How is the British monarchy viewed by present-day Jamaicans?
-India's attitude to the British monarchy and the Commonwealth.
The man who blew the whistle on the United Nations' negligence in the face of the genocide in Darfur.
In this episode we discuss:
-Why do some men and women at the top of organizations created to do good sometimes choose to look the other way when wrong is being committed?
-Has the time of consensus-building in terms of human suffering and humanitarian affairs passed?
-Why should ordinary people care about corruption inside a certain UN Organization based in Geneva?
Professor Flueckiger and I discuss Swiss tertiary education, research, innovation and Horizon Europe, Switzerland being excluded from this important EU organisation, at least for the time being.
In this episode we discuss:
-How confident he feels about a successful outcome to getting Switzerland readmitted to Horizon Europe.
The UK's big and current issues at the UN Geneva plus insights into the current status of the UK/EU relationship.
In this episode we discuss:
-Is multilateralism now dead?
-How much of a distraction are the current upheavals at 10 Downing Street?
-Has the illegal invasion of Ukraine by Russia caused the first paradigm shift in international relations since the peace of 1945?
Dan Basse is an acknowledged expert economist on grains, softs and food supply; and he is also a farmer.
In this episode we discuss:
-We discuss the current status of grain crops and global supply
-Crop yields
-The effects of the war in Ukraine
-China's importance in both the demand and supply of grain
-Climate change.
A sequel to my "McKay Interview" with David Willey in 2013 about prominent issues in the Vatican. We pick up our conversation from 9 years ago and talk about many things, including:
-David Willey's Italian grandparents, the present crises in the Vatican
-The difference that the first ever Jesuit Pope has made
-The state of Pope Francis’s health
-The speculative prospect of three Popes in the Vatican at the same time, as Pope Emeritus Benedict lives, a mere 500 metres away, almost on the Pontiff’s doorstep,
An overview of the current state of the Swiss economy and Swiss business.
In this episode we discuss:
-The recurring problem of a strong, safe-haven currency, namely the Swiss Franc
-The increasing cost of living in Switzerland
-The present impasse between Switzerland and the European Union.
In this episode we discuss Covid19: where it came from, what the current status of the pandemic is, and what the future holds.
In this episode we cover the following topics:
Debora MacKenzie tells me her views on Wuhan and the way the Chinese handled the outbreak. We also talk about the so-called "Swedish" model; and many other things relating to Covid19 and pandemics in general.
In this epsiode, General Sir Richard Shirreff, talks about the war in Ukraine.
We cover the following topics:
-Who is wining the war in Ukraine
-Why writers like Clausewitz and Sun Tzu are still relevant and the risk of war between nuclear powers
In this epsiode Martin Chungong talks about the GESDA Science Diplomacy Week Open Forum and his role as Geneva Coalition co-Chair.
We cover the following topics:
-What is GESDA?
-Why the coupling of Science and Diplomacy?
-Who is involved?
-And how will objectives be achieved?
How the air travel sector in general, and London City Airport in particular, are performing post-pandemic?
In this episode we discuss:
- I ask Robert if things are really getting better in the air travel industry;
- What has been his experience of the decarbonisation of aviation, and the net zero debate;
- How he gets on with this neighbours, as London City is almost in the heart of London;
- The arithmetic and trading process of buying aviation fuel as prices as gone up so much, recently.
The future of computing, AI, regulation and many other data-related topics from an industry leader with more than 20 years of experience at Google.
In this episode we discuss:
- If the Model T Ford of 1908 was the most influential car of the 20th century, compare the automobile timeline with the data and IT timelines: where is Google now on the comparable timeline of the 21st century?
- Do you have a dystopian view of the future regarding Big Data? Or are you optimistic?
A conversation about the importance of communes in the vibrant, bottom-up democracy of Switzerland.
Some of my questions are:
- Why do we have two "parties" or "groups" during elections in such a small community?
- How do you deal with wealthy and important persons of families who might be tempted to use their influence to get there way?
- How "international" is Founex?
Ambassador Filipenko explains how her work at the UN & International Organizations, as well as other institutions in "international" Geneva, underpin her country's fight against the illegal invasion.
Some of my questions are:
- How do you assess the current situation on Ukraine, as we speak, on the 29th March?
- What can you say about the 17% Russian speakers in your country? What are they thinking and saying?
- Had they, as is claimed by some, been treated badly by Ukrainians, prior to the invasion?
We discussion Austria's history, how Austria's sees it future, multilateralism, Austria and United Nations Geneva, Human Rights, Austria's special neutrality and Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine.
This internationally renowned scientist, highly regarded for his work on bacterial meningitis, discusses his experiences in medical research, the vital significance of vaccines and immunization in public health.
In this episode we discuss:
- What is the biology of a killer, bacterial infection?
- Why do we really need vaccines? Are there alternatives?
- What does it take to make a vaccine?
- How to deal with the "Me versus Us" argument?
Discussion of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, scenarios of how the conflict will end, the role that Switzerland and international Geneva could play, and the meaning of Swiss neutrality in a crisis conflict of this nature.
In this episode we discuss:
- What is the history of GCSP?
- Can it play a role in this current crisis?
- What does Swiss neutrality mean in such present circumstances?
Insights into Leadership and Kindness as paths to success in organisations. What is the emotional source code? Why is kindness in organisations both effective and important? Why are so many successful achievers in pain? And can we really take "influencers" seriously? These are just a few of the topics we discuss.
Ambassador Yvette Stevens of Sierra Leone talks about Africa, Engineering, Women and Energy.
The leader of SWISS International Air Lines in the French-speaking part of Switzerland talks about his company, the state of business coming out of the pandemic and how he manages regulation.
Ben Hodges answers questions about strategy and the balance of power in today’s geo-political world.
Some of the points we covered during the interview:
- Four months to the day after the Taliban swept into Kabul, and in the wake of the US/Allied Forces withdrawal from Afghanistan – and as you know, some call it a humiliating defeat - how would you characterise what happened? And in light of that how reliable is the United States as the leader, militarily speaking, of the free world?
- The front cover story of The Economist this week is “What will America fight for?” How would you answer that newspaper’s question?
- Is the USA treaty-bound to defend Taiwan? How would that be done? What scenarios do military people examine?
A radio conversation with best-selling author, travel writer, chocolate-lover and Englishman in Bern.
Some of the questions we covered during the interview:
- Why is Switzerland successful? By all logic, with all its diversity, it shouldn’t be a success story. But it is? What is your theory?
- You are a good example of “integration”. Please tell me how you see the efforts the Swiss make toward social cohesion. Have you had good and not so good experiences?
- You live in Bern. Give me some examples of your observations of the differences – even tensions - between town and country in this varied country. I know from my observations, having lived here even longer than you, that this is real, particularly at times of local and national votes.
François Carrard answers my questions about why the Tokyo Olympics took place in the teeth of a global pandemic; Ideals versus Money - has Pierre de Coubertin’s vision, as founder of the Modern Olympics in 1896, been trashed by Mammon?; and what the true meaning of sport is.
Some of the questions we covered during the interview:
- Do new sports like beach volleyball, skateboarding, “breaking” (breakdancing) and BMX bicycling have a place in the Modern Olympiad along with traditional sports like athletics, swimming, gymnastics, even fencing.
- Where will all this adaptation end. And does it really matter to the good health of young people and the wholesomeness of sport.
- A question on the Paralympics and in particular a focus on prosthetic devices (think “blade runner”). Prosthetic devices are so advanced that some amputee track athletes are achieving times that make competition with able-bodied/non-disabled athletes feasible (Oscar Pistorius from South Africa comes to mind from a few years ago), but is running on a prosthesis the same as running on two natural legs? Indeed, does your legal and sporting mind offer any “good” arguments for allowing the inclusion of Paralympians in Olympic competition?
Current prospects for UK international trade, especially with Switzerland. Physical attacks on British Members of Parliament. Declining standards of public behaviour in Britain towards MPs. The low esteem in which the political classes are held by British voters.
An in depth view of how the airports sector has been affected by the pandemic and a view from the top of future challenges.
Here are some of the questions I put to my guest:
-What are the things that look large – very large - in your sights that need to be fixed for business to return to normal…or almost normal?
-There is much talk that the pandemic has changed many things fundamentally. That things will never be the same again. How do you see that?
-What has changed irrecovably in your industry? Explain why it will be prohibitive to change it back to how it was?
-And how you and your colleagues around Europe will adjust to the “new reality”.
Amanda Ellis talks to me about Leadership, Sustainability, Greta Thunberg and Youth, Climate Change and many other topics.
The President of the GESDA Foundation, former Chairman & CEO of Nestlé S.A., gives his experienced perspective on a range of issues including GESDA's unique contribution, public/private partnerships, "international" Geneva and water.
Dr Cynthia Cherrey and Professor Mike Hardy on leadership. What are the different types of Leadership? Technology changing the nature of Leadership. Populism and Leadership.
"John", a Swiss expatriate with over 25 years' experience in aviation, charter, air ambulance, airline, corporate and humanitarian operations. Very recently evacuated from Kabul and speaking on condition of anonymity. A frank, personal opinion on the current situation in Afghanistan from a seasoned, humanitarian operative.
Dr David Chikvaidze's reflections on international affairs and some of the big political leaders that he has worked with and observed during his long, diplomatic career.
Dr. Carol Graham is a well-published authority on happiness, well-being and its converse, Ill-being. The nuances and intricacies of the subject are more complex than you would think!
Riel Miller answers many of my questions about the effectiveness of Futures Literacy, including on climate change, racism and the oppression of women.
An ambassadorial overview of the state of bilateral relations between the United Kingdom and the Swiss Confederation.
An update on Covid-19 and the pandemic from one of the world's leading infectious disease epidemiologists almost exactly one year after our first interview.
A conversation with Corinne Momal-Vanian, who worked and travelled with Kofi Annan when he was U.N. Secretary-General, about why he was and still is so revered; and the important work of his eponymous Foundation.
Departing Director of GSCP and recently appointed appointed Swiss Ambassador to the Islamic Republic of Iran discusses Swiss values, Swiss neutrality and the delicate balance of the use of "soft power".
After six years in Geneva - an unusually long time - Ambassador Braithwaite shares with me his views on the UK and world trade vis-à-vis the WTO, the practicalities of ethics in government foreign policy, climate change, the Commonwealth and the meaning of Global Britain.
The Hon. Kent Brown served as a career diplomat for almost thirty years, all over the world for the U.S. Department of State. In this interview, he gives his insights and personal opinion about America today as I ask him whether the American Dream is now out of reach for a growing number of people and what President Joe Biden needs to do now and by 2024.
Topics covered in this episode:
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The end of the Trump era and the beginning of Biden’s
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Why the turmoil and rancour across the land, that culminated in the defeat of Trump on the 4th November last year.
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Why so many millions of Americans believe last November’s election was “stolen”, to use the word of the man who lost?
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And if time allows, other domestic topics and foreign affairs.
Michael McKay is going to talk to guests over the next few weeks on how the world sees America - through the eyes of Americans who have an experience of life outside the United States.
In the second programme, Michael talks to John, who was for 8 years Global Chairman of Republicans Abroad – the official arm of the Republican Party abroad - stepping down at the time of George W. Bush’s Inauguration in 2001.
Michael McKay is going to talk to guests over the next few weeks on how the world sees America - through the eyes of Americans who have an experience of life outside the United States.
In the first programme, Michael speaks to Geneva based US political scientist Dr Daniel Warner.
My Guest today is Michael Møller, known to many of you listening as the Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva up until a year or so ago.
Well, you cannot keep a good and energetic man down! And he has re-emerged as one of the principal leaders of this new organisation that I mentioned which is called the Geneva Science and Diplomacy Anticipator Foundation. Quite a mouthful to say. And so, for short, they call themselves GESDA.
We are going to hear from Michael Møller himself why this organisation has been formed and what it is doing that will make a difference.
Here were some of the questions that we covered:
- Science and Diplomacy? There is obviously a gap in the market or else the Governments of Geneva and the Swiss Confederation would not be putting public money into GESDA. Yet my first question is an obvious one. There are already about 700 – 800 NGOs in Geneva. Why another one? Why this particular “marriage”, I mean Science and Diplomacy?
- What does this one do that is not already being done by other NGOs in Geneva?
- What has your organisation set its sights on to achieve? GESDA is new. It did not exist before. So, I imagine someone – or a number of like-minded people – saw a need that by satisfying it would benefit Geneva, Switzerland and the wider world. Please explain the vision that created the idea that you have turned into a reality.
- Explain why this selected list of priorities and issues that you have just told me about stands out to such a compelling extent that they were/are top of your list. Or was there a lot of competition to get on that list? I mean, did you have to discard many?
- Can we go through GESDA’s priorities so that you can explain them to me more fully?
My topic this time is Privacy. And by that I mean how states, governments, corporations, organisations, businesses and we ourselves as individuals, view things like privacy, secrecy, the characteristic or human quality of being discreet; whether or not we have a right to Privacy; or whether or not that depends on the law of the land, societal and cultural norms or international standards of behaviour.
My Guest is Ron Rock, Co-founder and CEO of Microshare®, Philadelphia, USA. He will help me unravel some of the many complexities, and even inconsistencies in where we find ourselves today, such as the Internet of Things, and the use of personal data to improve security and mitigate risk, especially in these times of pandemic.
Monday 21st December 2020, via Zoom.
Dr David Hawley is the Director-General of the International School of Geneva and Antonia Molnar is a Year 12 Student at the La Châtaigneraie Campus. We talk about international Education.
A very special guest for the final McKay Interview of this extraordinary year – one we are probably all glad to see the back of – the Swiss Ambassador to the United Kingdom, or to give him his official title in the UK, the Ambassador from the Swiss Confederation to the Court of St. James's, His Excellency Mr Alexandre Fasel.
On this week's McKay Interview, Michael talks to the Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva, Tatiana Valovaya.
She discusses the future of the UN in Geneva, how the pandemic is affecting the work of the UN and conflicts around the world.
This week Michael McKay speaks to Lorenzo Stoll, Director-General of SWISS International Airlines for the Suisse Romande.
The pandemic has meant major disruptions to airlines around the world due to travel bans - but how is the industry adapting and what is its future?
Michael McKay speaks with Professor Jovan Kurbalija. He is prominent in many important circles in Geneva, in Switzerland and internationally.
He is the Founding Director of DiploFoundation and the Head of the Geneva Internet Platform.
Professor Kurbalija is a former diplomat, and has a professional and academic background in international law, diplomacy, and information technology. He has been a pioneer in the field of cyber diplomacy since 1992, when he established the Unit for Information Technology and Diplomacy at the Mediterranean Academy of Diplomatic Studies in Malta.
And apart from his day job in Geneva as Head of the DiploFoundation, the Geneva Internet Platform , he lectures on e-diplomacy and Internet governance in academic and training institutions in many countries, including Austria (Diplomatic Academy of Vienna), Belgium (College of Europe), Switzerland (University of St. Gallen), Malta (University of Malta) and the United States (University of Southern California).
Michael's guest is Karel Leeflang. His bread and butter is in leading large-scale transformations, both as a corporate executive and advisor.
And in describing what he does, jargon words and phrases like “global organizational efficiency” and “effectiveness programs” and “ productivity improvement solutions” feature prominently. He has his own firm called StrategyPod, focusing on advisory, analytics and digital solutions.
He has also worked for Barclays Bank, Cadbury Schweppes and Unilever. And he has consulted across a wide range of business sectors.
On this week's McKay Interview:
As we are based in Geneva, we are well aware of its long-standing multilateral reputation and its unrivalled position as the city of peace, negotiation and reconciliation.
In neutral Switzerland, Geneva has no military credentials. Just the opposite - being home of the Disarmament Talks since the early 1930s, the United Nations and its predecessor the League of Nations, which rose out of the ashes of the Great War. It is important to look square on at the security issues that confront the world in 2020 and beyond.
Michael talks to the head of the world’s oldest security think tank.
His guest is Dr Karin von Hippel - Director-General of the Royal United Services Institute, known by its acronym, RUSI.
Two years ago in Paris, I recorded a roundtable McKay Interview with people whose fingers were very much on the Parisienne pulse. Very recently, in this year of Covid19, I have done something similar in Geneva, a city struggling to get back on its feet after the lockdown/confinement.
My Guests, to discuss a wide range of relevant and very hard issues in Geneva’s hotel and hospitality industry, are:
Daniel Grangier, Proprietor of Le Milan, in whose restaurant the “Interview” was recorded.
Adrien Genier, CEO of Geneva Tourism & Congress
Thierry Lavalley, General Manager of The Fairmont Grand Hotel Geneva & President of the Geneva Hotel Association.
Vincent Subilia, Director-General, Geneva Chamber of Commerce, Industry & Services (CCIG)
The Interview examined their assessment of the current situation; how the short to medium term future looks in their opinion; the changing nature of work; the impact of working from home; Geneva’s dependence on frontalier workers; and the role of government in these difficult economic and commercial times.
This week Michael McKay speaks to Professor Bill Durodie - chair of Risk and Security in International Relations at the University of Bath in the UK.
As Michael discovers, there's a lot more to risk than you may think.
On the return of the McKay Interview after the summer break - no matter where you were on the 4th August, you must surely have been aware of the huge explosion in Beirut. According to Lebanon’s team at the United Nations, the explosion was like 15 years of war in 15 seconds, comparing its impact to the devastation from the country's civil war that lasted from 1975 to 1990.
We all know that Lebanon has been living through some of its toughest times in recent history following the October 17th Uprisings, the severe economic crisis that the country is going through, Covid-19 and, as if all that were not enough, the epic explosion.
It cost the lives of nearly 200 people, 7000 wounded and over 300,000 left homeless. Bear in mind listeners that Geneva’s population is 500,000! Just to give you a sense of comparison.
Michael McKay's guest today is Nabil Canaan, a Lebanese-Swiss, who describes himself as a cultural producer, multi-media filmmaker, development consultant and brand marketing professional.
This week, Michael is talking to Bill McCormish. He will be well-known to many of you. Whether you are Genevois, Christian, Protestant or just from the UK, you will probably know, or know of, the Rev. Dr William (Bill) McComish. He is wise and ubiquitous and always a pleasure to be with. And he has been in Geneva a long time.
He was born in the United Kingdom, in Northern Ireland to be precise; and started his Ministry as a pastor in Ireland in 1974. Very early on, he was involved in interfaith dialogue in Northern Ireland. That would have been in the time of what is euphemistically called “The Troubles”.
He arrived in Switzerland in the 1980s where he earned his DD (Doctor of Divinity) in Theology. He then became the Dean of the Cathedral of St. Pierre Geneva. An important position in this the city of Jean Calvin and world home of Protestantism. Dr McComish retired a few years ago.
He is a visiting professor of the History of Religions at the University of Oxford. His experience in inter-confessional dialogue and mediation brought him to act in conflict regions in Africa and Asia, namely in Indonesia.
Among the many books he has written, he is co-author of the Geneva Spiritual Appeal.
Michael McKay's guest is Professor Didier Pittet. He is an infectious diseases expert of global reputation and the director of the Infection Control Programme and WHO Collaborating Centre on Patient Safety at the University Hospital of Geneva, known locally as the HUG.
For the past 15 years, he has also been the External Lead of the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Patient Safety Challenge "Clean Care is Safer Care" and African Partnerships for Patient Safety.
Jo Hemmings is Michael's guest this week. She is a celebrated Behavioural Psychologist and a registered member of the British Psychological Society and the Association of Clinical Psychologists, specialising in media and celebrity analysis, as well as a being a dating and relationship coach and, on top of that, a TV and radio personality.
Jo is the Consultant Psychologist on ITV’s Good Morning Britain and This Morning, two British TV shows, as well as the BBC, Channel 4, C5 and Sky News. She also helps behind the scenes, in the contestant selection process, by giving psychological advice and assessment to reality TV producers and contestants.
She talks today about how society, politicians and countries are reacting to the pandemic.
On this week's McKay Interview, Michael speaks to Professor Simon Heffer from the University of Buckingham in the UK on the media's role in covering the Covid-19 crises.
Michael's guest this week is the Secretary-General of the world’s largest police organization, Dr Jürgen Stock, of INTERPOL, or to give it its full name, the International Criminal Police Organisation. It is based in Lyon, France.
Dr Stock has been Secretary General since 2014, and is now serving his second term. Prior to that he was Vice-President of the German Federal Criminal Police. He has a had a 40 year, distinguished career in law enforcement; and is also Honorary Professor for Law and Criminology, in the Faculty of Law, University of Giessen, in Germany.
The Covid-19 pandemic is the worst in 100 years. Apart from the great tragedies inflicted upon many, many families all over the world, it has thrown up a number of conundrums. Puzzles like the scientific, the medical, the spiritual, the economic and many others.
Today, the 2nd June 2020, Michael is looking at COVID-19 through the prism of Economics.
Michael's guest is Professor Emerita Victoria Curzon-Price. She was for many years Professor of Economics at the University of Geneva and also at the European Institute at that same university. Her areas of interest include international trade, economic integration, institutional competition and political economy. Previously she was president of the Mont Pelerin Society . And she once, just over ten years ago, even dipped her toe into the world of politics by being elected deputy to the Canton of Geneva's Parliament.
Michael's guest is a brilliant and very thoughtful member of the Geneva Centre for Security Policy faculty who has made a study of global risk and resilience. In fact, that is his title. He has been on the McKay interview before – two years ago - to explain what he does. But this visit is different.
Dr Jean-Marc Rickli is a Swiss and I am delighted that he is able to join me again, though this time on Zoom.
On this week's McKay Interview, Michael speaks to Dr David Heymann, one of the most prominent, contemporary, epidemiologists in the world.
He also knows Geneva well, having spent 22 years at the World Health Organization on secondment from the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, in Washington, D.C. He now works in London.
Michael McKay's guest this week is Pierre Ruetschi who has many years of experience in the field of journalism, especially in “international” Geneva, where he was for many years the Editor-in-Chief of Geneva’s own newspaper, the Tribune de Genève. Nowadays, he is the Director of the Geneva Press Club; and still writes for various journals and appears regularly on radio and television.
Many European countries are now lifting lockdowns. The economic impact of the pandemic has been huge - and is still going on.
The Director-General of the Geneva based International Labour Organisation, Guy Ryder, spoke to Michael McKay about jobs, business and the ongoing crises which will be with us for sometime to come.
Michael's guest this week is a distinguished academic and scientist with more than half a century’s experience of his discipline behind him. Today is the 30th April 2020 and Dr. Charles Jefford, Professor Emeritus of Organic Chemistry at the University of Geneva, is at the other end of a Zoom microphone and screen because we are still in COVID-19 lockdown mode and cannot meet face to face.
Professor Jefford is a graduate of the Universities of Oxford and Princeton as well as Visiting Professor at the Universities of Strasbourg, Marseille, Princeton, and in Japan, the Universities of Kyushu and Ryukyus.
This is the second in the mini-series, recorded on the 22nd April, and devoted to a broader and fuller understanding of the COVID-19 Coronavirus pandemic which has beset us all for the past few months.
Michael McKay speaks to someone with hard and proven experience in another country that had been affected quite seriously by the SARS epidemic some 17 years ago. Mario Possamai, who, by profession, is a forensic investigator, and author. And was Senior Adviser for 4 years for Occupational Health & Safety and Pandemic Planning on the Canada’s SARS Commission. That was the judicial inquiry into the outbreak of SARS in 2003. It was styled as the first major epidemic of the 21st century and, ominously, a dress rehearsal for the COVID-19 pandemic. Mario was the Commission’s chief investigator into death and illness among health care workers, who comprised about half of all SARS victims in Canada.
In this new COVID-19 series of McKay Interviews, Michael will be asking different experts their views on the pandemic and how it will develop - and ultimately defeated. This week, Michael is speaking to Bob Bishop. He has been on the show before. He is the Founder & President of the International Centre for Earth Simulation Foundation, ICES, and a former Chairman & CEO of Silicon Graphics, Inc., once a Fortune 500 company but now absorbed by Hewlett Packard Enterprise. Bob holds degrees in Mathematical Physics from the University of Adelaide and New York University, and is a Doctor of Science from the University of Queensland.
In 2006, he was awarded the NASA Distinguished Public Service Medal for his role in building simulation facilities that helped NASA’s space shuttle fleet return-to-flight after the 2003 Columbia disaster.
Dame Stephanie "Steve" Shirley CH, British information technology pioneer, businesswoman and philanthropist. 30th July 2018.
Mary Robinson, former President of the Republic of Ireland; former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights; and Founder of The Mary Robinson Foundation – Climate Justice. 27th October 2017.
Sir Peter Marshall KCMG CVO, Veteran British Diplomat and formerly UK Ambassador & Permanent Representative to the United Nations Office at Geneva. 2nd August 2017.
Konji Sebati, the Republic of South Africa’s former Ambassador to Switzerland & Liechtenstein, the Holy See, France, UNESCO and the OECD. This interview is the first in a mini-series of six based loosely on Winston Churchill’s “A History of the English-speaking Peoples”.
Ivan Pictet - on the modern significance of the 200th anniversary of La Restauration genevoise 1814 – 2014 and Geneva joining the Swiss Confederation
Baroness Ariane de Rothschild, Vice-Chairwoman of Edmond de Rothschild Group. 19th February 2014.