President Franklin Roosevelt once said ‘no major war has ever been won or lost through lack of money.’ He was wrong. This paper explains why. It argues that as states struggled to finance the immense war efforts required by the two world wars, and to undermine their enemies, money became a crucial weapon. The UK and USA led the way in discovering new methods of using money to do both.

The event will be followed by a drinks reception.

The global refugee regime has shifted under our feet. Over the last forty years, international asylum practices have expanded to include the queer and trans displaced. At least thirty-seven countries now recognize LGBTIQ refugees on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity, with some states providing specialized support. Yet amid this expansion, backlash has intensified against refugee protection as well as the hard-earned rights of LGBTIQ people. In this disquieting context, the protection of LGBTIQ refugees remains partial and exclusionary.

You are warmly invited to the showing of a new documentary film, ‘The Hardest Bridge’, on a real example of post-conflict reconciliation in Britain and Northern Ireland, with discussion led by the film’s subjects Jo Berry and Pat Magee:

'The Hardest Bridge' Tuesday 3 February [Third Week]
7.30pm – 10.00 pm, in the Auditorium, St John’s College.

Where democratic uprisings have gained momentum, some autocracies respond by disseminating propaganda that taunts and mocks their political opponents. Instead of diverting citizens’ attention away from opposition voices, such propaganda directs its rhetoric and public attention toward the anti-regime movement. What is the logic behind it? Dr Yueng proposes a theory of propaganda as provocation. By using provocative propaganda to radicalize protesters in social movements, autocrats can discredit regime opponents and dissuade others from joining forces with the opposition.

Across the world, governments are invoking AI sovereignty as they confront rising geopolitical tension, strategic competition, and deepening technological interdependence. Yet sovereignty, in a globalised AI ecosystem dominated by a small number of firms and nations, may not be the most meaningful lens to apply.