News and views from the Blavatnik School of Government community 
As the presumptive Democratic nominee, Joe Biden is in a strong position to become the 46th President of the United States. Approaching his 78th birthday, he is likely to be a one-term president. Biden’s age has been a major point of contention in the campaign; he has been branded as […]
The devastating 2019–20 Australian bushfire season seems a lifetime ago. With the vast changes we have seen to our daily lives brought on by the spread of COVID-19, it’s hard to believe the bushfire season only officially ended in March. The extent of the Black Summer bushfires – with an […]
As the coronavirus pandemic devastates health systems worldwide, several governments have called for an independent review of the handling of the international response to the emergence of the novel coronavirus. In particular, such a review would examine the role of the World Health Organisation (WHO), the chief global health coordinating […]
Even in ‘normal’ times, there’s nothing ordinary about the pace of innovation at the Blavatnik School. This was a school created to take on some of the biggest public policy challenges of our time, including climate change, inequality, extremism and corruption. So, when the COVID-19 crisis hit, it wasn’t surprising […]
The COVID-19 pandemic poses an unprecedented threat to both public health and the global economy. Only by ditching nationalist rhetoric and policies, and embracing stronger international cooperation, can governments protect the people they claim to represent. The world that emerges from the coronavirus pandemic may be a warring collection of […]
Whether the emergency is the outbreak of a new disease or a climate-related disaster, it is critical for policymakers to ensure adequate resources are available before disaster strikes. Yet the US is often underprepared for high-risk events with a high probability, with irrational decision making and interest group politics leading […]
At the time of writing, COVID-19 is finding new epicentres, with the surrounding confusion and misinformation increasing day by day. There have been pandemics before, but one in the age of social media is a historic first that has thrown up problems that are more than medical. Whatsapp, Facebook and […]
Whenever you ask a member of the Blavatnik School admissions team how they are at this time of year, you can guarantee the answer will be: “Busy!” Since the application deadline for the Master of Public Policy closed, they’ve been working to process well over 700 applications from 99 countries […]