Cullen Hendrix on climate change, security, and the race for critical minerals (Episode 9)

PIIE Insider LIVE gets even livelier! Host Anjali V. Bhatt is out of the studio and on PIIE's stage with PIIE's newest senior fellow and international trade expert Inu Manak for a special podcast episode with a live audience, hosted in partnership with Young Professionals in Foreign Policy. This wide-ranging conversation discusses the fate of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) and North American economic integration, the role of the US Congress in trade policy, and the future of the multilateral trading system, drawing on Manak's recent appearances at the World Trade Organization's 2026 Public Forum. Manak holds a PhD in government from Georgetown University, an MA in international affairs from American University's School of International Service, and a BA in political science (First Class Honors) from Simon Fraser University.

How have US tariffs affected global supply chains? Are trading patterns between countries really changing? What can we learn from the fine print of trade agreements? Are the US and China really decoupling? PIIE Anthony M. Solomon Senior Fellow Mary E. Lovely dives into these questions and more with host Anjali V. Bhatt in this episode, exploring Lovely's recent research on global supply chains and US "reciprocal" trade agreements. They discuss lessons from past rounds of US tariffs, how global supply chains are reorganizing (or not), and more.

One of PIIE's longest tenured fellows, Jeffrey J. Schott joins Insider LIVE to share the latest in US trade developments. Host Anjali V. Bhatt sits down with Schott to discuss all things trade, from what to watch for in the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) review, to the state of South Korean–US trade relations, to his experience as a US trade negotiator, and more.

Learn how China's economy has evolved in recent years, ranging from its manufacturing exports sector to the massive housing boom and bust and more, with one of PIIE's top China experts, Senior Fellow Tianlei Huang. What can we learn from China's changing consumption and investment patterns? How did the housing market become so important to China's economy and what does its downfall mean moving forward? Huang explains all of this and more to host Anjali V. Bhatt, drawing on research from his forthcoming book, Detox: China's Fiscal Reckoning in the Shadow of the Housing Bust.

Warwick J. McKibbin is one of the world's top experts on global economic modeling. He has projected the outcomes of various US policy changes, including on the economic effects of different tariff levels. McKibbin joins host Anjali V. Bhatt to explain how econometric modeling works and why it is relevant for policymakers today. He also discusses new research on how economic and environmental models can help design pathways to cooperative climate policies and how Australia's economy is weathering these turbulent geopolitical times.