Just World Podcasts is an innovative podcast series on international affairs. In October 2025, we launched a new series titled "Gaza & the World." This series of public conversations hosted by Just World Ed president Helena Cobban explores the many intersections of the continuing Gaza crisis and the current deep shifts in the global balance. JWP is run by the non-profit foundation Just World Educational .
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The Iran crisis #24: Jeffrey Sachs on the impact of the war on the global economy, global governnce
On June 5, JWE president Helena Cobban sat down with the renowned economist and UN advisor Prof. Jeffrey Sachs to assess the impact of the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran, and the long-running Israeli genocide in Gaza on global governance and the global economy. In this convo Sachs was forthright in his denunciation of the stupidity of the Trump-Netanyahu decision to launch the war against Iran. He…
The Iran Crisis #23: Elijah Magnier on the impact of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran at Week 13
On May 29, JWE president Helena Cobban sat down with the strategic analyst Elijah Magnier to assess the impact of the first 13 weeks of the (still somewhat ongoing) U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. Early on in this Just World Ed project, Magnier had been both the first and the fourth contributor to this this project, both just before and just after the U.S. and Israel launched their assault on Iran on…
The Iran Crisis #22: Dr. Yingnan ("Chris") Yi on China's role, regionally and globally
On May 20, JWE president Helena Cobban sat down with Dr. Yingnan ("Chris") Yi , a Research Fellow at the Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies at Renmin University in Beijing, to discuss the role that China has played and can play in finding a speedy, lasting, and equitable end to the U.S.-Iran war. This conversation came just a few days after the end of Pres. Trump's trip to Beijing where he…
The Iran Crisis #21: Mahdi Mohebirad on International Law, Sanctions, and Citizen Activism
On May 12, JWE president Helena Cobban sat down with Mahdi Mohabirad , a tehran-based scholar of international law and the Director of the Organization for defending Victims of Violence. In this convo, Mohebirad and Cobban discussed (among other topics): The extent of the impact of the United States' long-running sanctions on Iranian people and society The ways in which Iran can have recourse to…
The Iran Crisis #20: John Ross on China's role-- and the geopolitical and geo-economic salience of this war
On May 9, JWE president Helena Cobban sat down with John Ross , who's a Senior Fellow with the Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies, Renmin University of China. That, at a point midway between the May 6 visit of Iranian FM Abbas Araghchi to Beijing and the upcoming visit there by U.S. President Trump, who'll be holding an important summit there with Pres. Xi Jinping on May 13 or 14. In this…
The Iran Crisis #19: Maryam Jamshidi on international law regarding Hormuz, and prospects for peace
On May 7, JWE president Helena Cobban sat down with Maryam Jamshidi, Assistant Professor of Law in the law school at the University of Colorado, and a Non-resident Fellow of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft. In this convo, Jamshidi and Cobban discussed (among other topics): The many details of what international maritime law has to say about the rights Iran may enjoy over the Strait…
The Iran Crisis #18: Ray McGovern on Araghchi in Russia, U.S. & Israeli naval piracy, and more
On May 1, JWE president Helena Cobban sat down with the former CIA analyst Ray McGovern , who was one of the founders of the antiwar organization Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS). During his career in the CIA, McGovern was a very expert analyst of Soviet (and Russian) affairs. In the early 1980s he was responsible for giving the U.S. president his daily intel briefing. In this…
The Iran Crisis #17: Richard Falk on his Meeting with Khomeini, International Law & More
In this episode of the Iran Crisis series, Helena Cobban sat down with Professor Richard Falk , international law scholar and JWE board member, for a wide-ranging conversation that spanned nearly five decades of history. Recorded on April 29, the discussion moved from a remarkable personal meeting he had with Ayatollah Khomeini in January 1979 to the crisis of international law and the nuclear…
The Iran Crisis #16: Helena Cobban on Hormuz and 5,000 Years of Strategic Power
In this special presentation for Just World Educational's Iran Crisis series , Helena Cobban , the president of Just World Ed, delivered a pre-recorded talk for the Mount Diablo Peace and Justice Center conference in Orinda, California, on April 25th. Unable to attend in person and having to record her remarks more than 24 hours before they would be delivered, she chose to take a long historical…
The Iran Crisis #15: Dr. Moeed Pirzada on Pakistan's role and fears of renewed conflict
On the evening of April 23, JWE president Helena Cobban sat down with Dr. Moeed Pirzada, a prominent Pakistani journalist based in Washington, D.C. and founder-editor of Global Village Space magazine. Together they examined the rapidly shifting situation around the U.S.-Iran conflict, Pakistan's role as a mediator, and the broader geopolitical realignments taking place across West Asia and beyond.…
