Global Development Interrupted Podcast
The People, the Work, and What Was Lost When America Stepped Back
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We Are the Work
Keisha Effiom sat at her dining room table in Rwanda, read the email about USAID’s final mission, and started writing. The result is a memoir — and this conversation.Keisha, former USAID Mission…
S2E9 From USAID to the Ballot Box
Three former USAID officers. Three Maryland races. One mission: keep serving. In this episode of Global Development Interrupted, host Leah Petit sits down with Alicia Contreras-Donello, running for…
S2E9 From Learning to Leadership: What USAID Made Possible
A career spent investing in global education didn’t just build schools. It built futures.In this episode, former USAID Foreign Service Officer and Education Specialist Siena Fleischer shares what it…
S2E8 Unleashed: Reimagining Global Conservation After the USAID Shutdown
What do malaria rates, indigenous forests in Peru, and elephant tusk trafficking have in common? They’re all part of what USAID’s conservation work actually looked like. And what we’ve lost. Cynthia…
S2E7 Bearing Witness
What does it feel like to edit the word "equality" out of a US government document? To watch global development programs you believed in disappear overnight? Kelli Rogers knows. A global development…
S2E6 Forced Into Hope
She was a new mom, weeks postpartum, when she got fired. No warning. No plan. Just a career she’d spent 18 years building — gone.Kathleen Borgueta wasn’t supposed to become a founder. She was…
S2E5 Once More Into the Breach
He was in the room when it happened.Alex Natsios sat next to his father, Andrew Natsios — former USAID Administrator, war veteran, conservative Republican — for four and a half hours as members of…
S2E4 Food Security Is Global Security
What does food security really have to do with global stability and everyday life?In this episode, I’m joined by Marian Ostertag, a former USAID Foreign Service Officer who spent her career working…
S2E3 Inside USAID’s Dismantling: A Deputy Director’s Account of the Lifesaving Memo That Changed Everything
In this powerful conversation, Ramona Godbole, former Deputy Director of Policy Planning and Programs at USAID’s Global Health Bureau, takes us inside the chaotic dismantling of America’s global…
From the American People: What We Lost When USAID Was Dismantled
JP, a third-generation Joseph Paul from “the other Dallas” (Pennsylvania), spent over a decade working on USAID projects across Africa and beyond—from Nigeria to Bangladesh, South Africa to Tanzania.…
S2E1 When Diplomacy, Development, and Defense Worked Together
In the Season Two premiere of Global Development Interrupted, host Leah Petit is joined by Chris Wurst, a former Foreign Service Officer with the U.S. Department of State and the creator and host of…
S1E11 “It’s Not Over Yet.”
In our last episode, Ben Eveslage described what happened when U.S. global assistance suddenly stopped. Programs froze, but local partners kept showing up. Community organizations, peer educators,…
Holding the Line: The People Keeping HIV Care Alive
As we close out our focus on World AIDS Day, we talk with Ben Eveslage about a path that starts in suburban Michigan and extends across Ghana, Iraq, East Africa, and beyond, and the photography…
Ending HIV Takes More Than Treatment
In last week’s episode, Eric Smith shared how USAID’s Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility worked to build an agency where people felt seen, valued, and included. That…
S1E8 Who Gets to Represent America: Inside USAID’s Push to Reflect the Full Country
Before USAID was dismantled, one small office was trying to bring the full breadth of America into public service. Eric Smith grew up in Massachusetts with Catholic values, conservative media, and a…
Pandemics Don’t Stop at Borders: Why Global Health Security Still Matters
In 2014, Ebola reached U.S. shores—a wake-up call that pandemics anywhere can threaten communities everywhere. In response, the United States with other countries and international organizations…
S1E6 Building Back Better: Dr. George Siberry on the Global Fight Against HIV
Dr. George Siberry, former Chief Medical Officer in USAID’s Office of HIV/AIDS, has spent his career at the heart of the global fight against HIV. A pediatrician by training, George began his journey…
Migration Is a Symptom, Not the Problem
Migration begins long before someone reaches a border — in the loss of stability, opportunity, and trust that makes it impossible to stay.For decades, USAID helped address those root causes by…
An American Public Servant: From Small-Town Government to Global Democracy
What does it mean to lead with service, not fear?In this episode, former USAID Democracy and Governance Director Jeremy Williamee shares how investing in local governments and community stability…
Interrupted Innovation: What Happens When Aid Stops Mid-Rollout
When USAID was dismantled, Ashley Vij was mid-call planning the rollout of one of the most promising HIV prevention tools in decades — Lenacapavir, a twice-yearly injection that could revolutionize…
Frequently Asked Questions
Global Development Interrupted Podcast has published 23 episodes since August 2025, covering topics in Documentary, News.
Global Development Interrupted Podcast is currently highly active with new episodes every 2 weeks. Average episode length is 31m.
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