How do we move past an increasingly polarised world to create a common identity? Or are we doomed to always draw lines between US...and THEM?

Back on the podcast is special guest Nik de Ynchausti.

Music: Homestead, by Kai Engel

Boomers, Gen-Xers, Gen Y, Millennials, Gen Z...each generation had its share of challenges, but it can be argued that none more so than today's children. Health crises, wars, violence, environmental catastrophes, and above all global warming - they're in line to inherit a world with an expiry date.
On this episode, we speak to Bhanu Bhatnagar from Save the Children International. Why aren't the Grown-Ups doing more for the world's children?

It's the 21st century and women in positions of power are still a rarity in many places. Even the country feted as the most powerful in the world has yet to see a female president. We talk gender and politics with a female (minority) senator from an Asian country overrun with macho, populist leaders and strongmen.

SPECIAL GUEST: Philippine senator Risa Hontiveros

News clips from : Euronews, ABS-CBN, Vice

Music by Scott Holmes

The ins and outs of the Southeast Asian meth trade. Who are the key players? What's politics got to do with it? And how successful is the so-called "war on drugs"?

We speak with journalist Patrick Winn, author of "Hello Shadowlands: Inside the Meth Fiefdoms, Rebel Hideouts and Bomb-Scarred Party Towns of Southeast Asia."

Visit us on: www.patreon.com/aboutthatthepodcast

Twitter: @margaortigas

A former journalist from a country that no longer exists talks to us about oppressive regimes, freedom of the press, and the changing face of democracy.
.
Neven Andjelic left his native Sarajevo when the communist republic of Yugoslavia was splintering. He sought asylum in the UK and is now a leading lecturer on International Relations and Human Rights. I catch him in Croatia.

Newsclip from Radio Free Europe
Music: "Paper Lanterns in the Dusk" by springtide

With special guest, Nik de Ynchausti.
Why are autocrats & the far right rewriting the past? How powerful a tool is social media in this exercise? In the democratized world of information, are we seeing the demise of "objective facts"? And yes, we talk about the Marcoses and their creative view of Philippine history.

EPISODE MUSIC: "Over Midnight" by Lobo Loco.

A brief look at life in Manila, one of the longest lockdowned cities in the world. We talk staying sane, Viber ecosystems, cloud kitchens, social participation during distancing - and the glaring social divide.
With special guests, media executive Tanya Yuson and chef Karla Mendoza.

Please do pardon the audio quality. Recorded over the internet.

Music is courtesy of Purple Planet.

So who else is glad to see the back of 2018? It wasn't the easiest of times... but the beginning of a new year is always the perfect reason for a fresh slate. (Phew!)

Last December, we took a trip to the Yukon. To say it was inspirational would be an understatement. There's something about the starkness of frost that is invigorating. I felt the same rejuvenation a few years prior on a visit to Mongolia in the dead of winter. It was like rediscovering magic.

Nature holds all the universe's secrets - after snow, comes the Spring. The cycle of life and all that.

This is the story of our trip to the Yukon in Northern Canada, the people we met... the choices they made... the way they live. I revisit it often because it has a way of uplifting my spirits. Hopefully, this recording - in some small way - can do the same for you.

Find a comfy spot, shut your eyes, and let a cup of hot cocoa cool beside you as you listen...

Here's to the wonder of a new year.

Here's to new beginnings.

With all my best wishes.

P.S. - if you'd like to read the full article from the Yukon, you can find it on this link: https://www.i-migrant.com/stories/stargazing/

If there's anything that many of our guests have echoed it's that legacies are built one small step at a time.

In this final episode, a leading personality on Philippine English-language radio talks us through her pioneering journey: how a summer job that wasn't going too well became the career of a lifetime.
Plus - the sorrows and surprises along the way.

How DELAMAR unintentionally managed to speak for a generation... and take it all in stride.

Are you feeling overwhelmed by the world and struggling to keep up with everything you need to do? Or do you sometimes find yourself feeling "blah" about things? Maybe you're in the middle of a big life change and aren't sure how to get everything sorted just so...?

It has been said that change is the only constant in life -- and yet it is the one thing that many of us fear the most. In this episode, we speak to professional life strategist Randi Levin who wants us all to live our best moments every day.

She also shares with our listeners a 52-week self-guided challenge from her website:

How to Balance Your Life:
https://randilevincoaching.com/balance/