Freshed

Today we unpack the past, present and future global education landscape, looking at various international organizations. My guest is Christian Ydesen, Professor in History of Education and Education Policy Analysis at the University of Zurich. He has written extensively on global education governance and will be running an international summer school this July that will unpack the theories, histories, and actors within the global education landscape. You can find more details about the summer school he is organizing at freshedpodcast.com/summerschool. freshedpodcast.com/ydesen/ -- Get in touch! LinkedIn: @FreshEdpodcast Facebook: FreshEd Email: info@freshedpodcast.com

If you find FreshEd a valuable education resource, please consider becoming a member by visiting freshedpodcast.com/support. -- Today we explore some of the big issues teachers are facing around the world, particularly in conflict areas. My guest is David Edwards, the general secretary of Education International, the global federation of teacher unions representing more than 33 million teachers. David is also a board member of FreshEd. https://freshedpodcast.com/edwards-2/ -- Get in touch! LinkedIn: @FreshEdpodcast Facebook: FreshEd Email: info@freshedpodcast.com

If you find FreshEd a valuable education resource, please consider becoming a member by visiting freshedpodcast.com/support. -- Today we explore peace education as a form of global citizenship education in universities in divided settings. My guest, Kevin Kester, travelled to China/Taiwan, Cyprus, Korea, and Somalia/Somaliland to understand if peace as a form of global citizenship can be taught in universities where legacies of war, division, and colonialism remain deeply rooted. Kevin Kester is an Associate Professor of Comparative International Education and Peace/Development Studies at Seoul National University (서울대학교) and director of the Education, Conflict and Peace Lab. His latest article is entitled “Peace education as a form of global citizenship education in universities in divided settings: challenges and prospects” which was published in Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education. freshedpodcast.com/kester/ -- Get in touch! LinkedIn: @FreshEdpodcast Facebook: FreshEd Email: info@f

If you value what we do, now is the time to join at FreshEdPodcast.com. If you represent an organization interested in partnership, please reach out there as well. We’re always looking for new partners. -- To kick off the year, Stefania Giannini joins me to talk about the past, present and future of international education. We discuss the challenges facing the rule-based international order and what that means for education. We unpack the global teacher shortage and the reality of some countries spending more on debt servicing than on education. Stefania Giannini is the Assistant Director-General for Education at UNESCO and served as the Italian Minister of Education, Universities and Research between 2014 and 2016. We spoke just before the International Day of Education on January 24 and focused our conversation on UNESCO’s new report “The Right To Education: Past, Present, and Future Directions”. https://freshedpodcast.com/giannini/ -- Get in touch! LinkedIn: @FreshEdpodcast Facebook: FreshEd Email: inf

FreshEd is on holidays. We'll be back soon with new episodes. -- Today we explore the idea of degrowth. With me is Jason Hickel, an economic anthropologist, author, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts in the United Kingdom. He is a Visiting Senior Fellow at the International Inequalities Institute at the London School of Economics, and Senior Lecturer at Goldsmiths, University of London. He recently published a book entitled Less is More: How Degrowth will Save the World. The book is a must read for anyone who wants to know how we can stop ecological break down and enable human flourishing. freshedpodcast.com/jasonhickel/ -- Get in touch! Twitter: @FreshEdpodcast Facebook: FreshEd Email: info@freshedpodcast.com Support FreshEd: www.freshedpodcast.com/support/

FreshEd is on holidays. We'll be back in February. -- Today we explore aboriginal voices in education research in Australia. Australians will soon vote in a referendum about whether to change their Constitution to allow for the creation of an advisory body made up of First Nations peoples. This body would to provide advice to the Parliament and the government on matters that impact indigenous communities. This is called The Voice. Nikki Moodie is an Associate Professor and Program Director of the Atlantic Fellows for Social Equity at the University of Melbourne. Together with Kevin Lowe, Roselyn Dixon, and Karen Trimmer, she has recently co-edited the volume Assessing the Evidence in Indigenous Education Research: Implications for Policy and Practice. freshedpodcast.com/moodie -- Get in touch! Twitter: @FreshEdpodcast Facebook: FreshEd Email: info@freshedpodcast.com Support FreshEd: www.freshedpodcast.com/donate

FreshEd is on holidays. We'll be back in February. -- Today Fazal Rizvi joins me to talk about his forthcoming book entitled Globalization and Educational Futures. Fazal revisits the rise of the popular discourses of globalization, examines many its discontents, and suggests nonetheless that it is too hasty to imagine its total demise. Fazal Rizvi is Emeritus Professor in Global Studies of Education at the University of Melbourne, and Emeritus Professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Citation: Rizvi, Fazal with Will Brehm, FreshEd, 378, podcast audio, December 2, 2024. https://freshedpodcast.com/378-rizvi/ -- Get in touch! Twitter: @FreshEdpodcast Facebook: FreshEd Email: info@freshedpodcast.com

As we near the end of 2025, it’s time to take stock of the year. What were the big events this year and how might they impact the field of comparative education? What new ideas emerged? And where is our field headed in 2026? Continuing this FreshEd tradition, Susan Robertson and Mario Novelli join me for the last episode of the year. Mario Novelli is professor in the political economy of education at the University of Sussex. Susan Robertson is a professor of education at Wolfson College at the University of Cambridge as well as at the University of Manchester. They co-edit the journal Globalisation, Societies and Education. freshedpodcast.com/2025inreview -- Get in touch! Twitter: @FreshEdpodcast Facebook: FreshEd Email: info@freshedpodcast.com

Today we unpack the Chinese term minjian and conceptualize it for the field of comparative education. My guest is Baiwen Peng. Baiwen Peng is a doctoral student in the College of Education and Human Development at the University of Minnesota. His new article is “Minjian: exploring education ‘among the people’ in China,” which was published in Comparative Education. freshedpodcast.com/peng/ -- Get in touch! Twitter: @FreshEdpodcast Facebook: FreshEd Email: info@freshedpodcast.com

Today we unpack the education experiences of students from the former Soviet Union who have migrated to Canada. My guests are Sarfaroz Niyozov, Stephen Bahry and Max Antony-Newman. For the past few years, they have been working on a research project that has explored the experiences of the high school children with post-Soviet backgrounds in the Greater Toronto Area. The research project strives to improve the education experiences of this under-researched, often misunderstood group of Canadian youth, their parents, and communities who come from the countries of the former Soviet Union. Sarfaroz Niyozov is an Associate Professor in Curriculum, Teaching and Learning at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto, where Stephen Bahry is a sessional lecturer. Max Antony-Newman is a lecturer in education at the university of Glasgow. Various articles from their research project will soon published. You can follow the link to their project website to find them. -- freshedpodcast.c

Before we start today’s show, I’d like to welcome our newest FreshEd Members, Amy Stambach and Tian Renxiang. Thank you for your support. If you think FreshEd is a valuable educational resource and want to join our growing community, sign up at FreshEdpodcast.com. -- Today we unpack education alternatives to reimagine education for just futures. My guests are Frank Adamson and Carol Anne Spreen. Frank Adamson is associate professor of education leadership and policy studies at California State University, Sacramento. Carol Anne Spreen is a professor of international education at New York University. They were on the co-editorial team of the NORRAG Special Issue entitled “Education for Societal Transformation: Alternatives for a Just Future” and members of The Alternative Project, which I should mention I was a part of at its inception. -- freshedpodcast.com/adamson-spreen/ -- Get in touch! Twitter: @FreshEdpodcast Facebook: FreshEd Email: info@freshedpodcast.com

Today we explore the production of global learning metrics inside the UNESCO Institute for Statistics. My guest is Clara Fontdevila, a British Academy Postdoctoral Fellow at the School of Education at the University of Glasgow. Clara’s newest article is entitled “The politics of good enough data. Developments, dilemmas, and deadlocks in the production of global learning metrics,” which was published in the International Journal of Educational Development. Today’s episode was recorded in front of a live audience at the School of Education at the University of Glasgow. Thanks to Matthew Thomas for organizing the event. Citation: Fontdevila, Clara, interview with Will Brehm, FreshEd, 318, podcast audio, April 24, 2023.https://freshedpodcast.com/fontdevila/ -- Get in touch! Twitter: @FreshEdpodcast Facebook: FreshEd Email: info@freshedpodcast.com Support FreshEd: www.freshedpodcast.com/donate

Thanks for listening to FreshEd. It’s rewarding to produce for the thousands of listeners around the world. But it takes a lot of work to make regular episodes. What sustains our effort are voluntary memberships from paying supporters. If you are enjoying FreshEd and would like to join our membership community, please sign up at www.freshedpodcast.com. -- Today we take stock of climate education, its past and its future. With me are Christina Kwauk and Radhika Iyengar, who have recently co-edited the book, Curriculum and Learning for Climate Action: Toward an SDG 4.7 Roadmap for Systems Change. They argue that COP26 has been disappointing in terms of education and climate action, and encourage everyone to focus on local action and change. Christina Kwauk is the Research Director at Unbounded Associates and a non-resident fellow at the Brookings Institute. Radhika Iyengar is Director of Education at the Center for Sustainable Development, Earth Institute, Columbia University. Citation: Kwauk, Christina, and

Today we explore foundational learning in low and middle income countries. My guest is Michelle Kaffenberger. Michelle Kaffenberger is the Director of evidence translation at the What Works Hub for Global Education the University of Oxford. I Spoke with her on the sidelines of the Development and Education Conference (DevEd) held in Melbourne, Australia last week. https://freshedpodcast.com/kaffenberger/ -- Get in touch! Twitter: @FreshEdpodcast Facebook: FreshEd Email: info@freshedpodcast.com

Today we dive into the field of education in emergencies, highlighting its entanglements with colonialism, empire, and racial capitalism. My guest is Jess Oddy. Jess Oddy is a researcher at the university of Bristol and has worked in various capacities in the field of education in emergencies. Her new article is “Retelling education in emergencies through the black radical tradition: on racial capitalism critical race theory and fugitivity,” which was published in Globalisation, Societies and Education. Citation: Oddy, Jess with Will Brehm, FreshEd, 344, podcast audio, March 4, 2024. https://freshedpodcast.com/oddy/ -- Get in touch! Twitter: @FreshEdpodcast Facebook: FreshEd Email: info@freshedpodcast.com

Ten years ago, on October 26, 2015, something special began in Japan. While working at the University of Tokyo, I launched the first episode of the FreshEd podcast, marking the start of what would become a cornerstone of conversations in comparative and international education. Over the past decade, FreshEd has grown into a global platform – far larger than I ever imaged -- connecting listeners interested in education, equity, and social change. We’ve made over 400 episodes in that time. We’ve counted 200 universities that use our content and we have listeners, like you, in over 180 countries. To celebrate our anniversary, we held a live event at Tohoku University in Sendai, Japan as part of the 2025 International Education Development Forum. I’ve like to thank Dr. Jing Liu for co-organizing this event. Joining me on stage were Professors Iveta Silova and Yuto Kitamura, who are both board members of FreshEd. In our conversation, we take you behind the scenes of FreshEd’s development and reflect on what t

Today we unpack the trend of micro-credentials in universities. My guest is Leesa Wheelahan who connects micro-credentials to the gig economy and discusses their implications for higher education credentials and qualifications. Leesa Wheelahan is professor emerita at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto. She is also an honorary research fellow at the Department of Education at the University of Oxford and a Honorary Senior Fellow in the Centre for the Study of Higher Education at the University of Melbourne. She’s recently co-written with Gavin Moodie two articles: Gig Qualifications for the Gig Economy: Micro-credentials and the hungry mile and Revisiting Credentialism – Why qualifications matter: A theoretical exploration. https://freshedpodcast.com/leesa-wheelahan/ -- Get in touch! Twitter: @FreshEdpodcast Facebook: FreshEd Email: info@freshedpodcast.com

Today we explore the financialization of early childhood education and what it means for the welfare state. My guest is Ben Spies-Butcher. Ben Spies Butcher is an Associate Professor in the School of Communication, Society and Culture at Macquarie University. His latest book Politics, Inequality and the Australian Welfare State after Liberalisation. freshedpodcast.com/spies-butcher -- Get in touch! Twitter: @FreshEdpodcast Facebook: FreshEd Email: info@freshedpodcast.com

FreshEd is celebrating its 10th birthday on October 18 and you're invited! Sign up here: https://freshedpodcast.com/10years/ -- Today we explore scholarly podcasting: what it is and why it matters. With me is Ian M. Cook, who has recently published the book Scholarly Podcasting: Why, What, How? Ian M. Cook is Editor and Chief at Allegra Lab. He is an anthropologist whose work focus includes urban India, scholarly podcasting, open education, and environmental (in)justice. Correction: In the episode, we say we will play a clip from Vincent Racaniello but the clip played is actually from Michael Bossetta.

Today we explore tax cuts as a form of government expenditure and what that means for social inequality, politics, and government services. My guest is Melinda Cooper. Melinda Cooper is a professor in the School of Sociology in the Colelge of Arts & Social Sciences at the Australian National University. Her newest book is Counterrevolution: Extravagance and Austerity in Public Finance (Zone Books/Princeton University Press, 2024) . I spoke with Melinda in front of a live audience at the Manning Clark House in Canberra for the second part of an event called Taxing Times. I’d like to thank Claire Manning and Luciana Todd for organizing and hosting this event. freshedpodcast.com/cooper -- Get in touch! Twitter: @FreshEdpodcast Facebook: FreshEd Email: info@freshedpodcast.com