Book Club with Jeffrey Sachs

Join world-renowned economist and Columbia University Professor Jeffrey Sachs for lively conversations with the authors of scintillating, inspiring and remarkably important books about history, social justice, and the challenges of building a decent world. Learn more and get involved at bookclubwithjeffreysachs.org. The Book Club with Jeffrey Sachs is brought to you by the SDG Academy, an initiative of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network. Produced by Karena Joslin. Audio editing by Matt Rocker, theme song composed by Matt Rocker, performed by Dave Eggar. A kontentreal production.

Recent Episodes
  • Season 4, Episode 8: Prof. Lauren Benton, They Called it Peace: Worlds of Imperial Violence
    Apr 8, 2025 – 46:17
  • Season 4, Episode 7: Richard Overy, Why War?
    Mar 4, 2025 – 51:34
  • Season 4, Episode 6: Jon Wolfsthal; Federation of American Scientists, Doomsday Clock
    Feb 18, 2025 – 51:26
  • Season 4, Episode 5: Eugene Rogan, The Arabs: A History
    Feb 4, 2025 – 52:39
  • Season 4, Episode 4: Annie Jacobsen, Nuclear War: A Scenario
    Jan 21, 2025 – 52:18
  • Season 4, Episode 3: Prof. Glenn Diesen, The Ukraine War and the Eurasian World Order
    Jan 7, 2025 – 58:54
  • Season 4, Episode 2: Dennis Fritz, Deadly Betrayal: The Truth About Why the United States Invaded Iraq
    Dec 3, 2024 – 52:51
  • Season 4, Episode 1: Aaron Good, American Exception: Empire and the Deep State
    Nov 12, 2024 – 55:13
  • Season 3, Episode 12: Christina Gerhardt, Sea Change: An Atlas of Islands in a Rising Ocean; With Special Guest, Simona Marinescu
    Oct 1, 2024 – 37:34
  • Season 3, Episode 11: Dr. Alfred de Zayas, Building a Just World Order
    Sep 3, 2024 – 56:35
  • Season 3, Episode 10: Jean Dong, Chinese Statecraft in a Changing World
    Aug 6, 2024 – 40:34
  • Season 3, Episode 9: Monika Wiesak, America's Last President: What the World Lost When It Lost John F. Kennedy
    Jul 2, 2024 – 40:22
  • Season 3, Episode 8: James & Tom Risen, The Last Honest Man: the CIA, the FBI, the Mafia, and the Kennedy's - and one Senator's Fight to Save Democracy
    Jun 4, 2024 – 52:20
  • Season 3, Episode 7: Bryan W. Van Norden, Taking Back Philosophy: A Multicultural Manifesto
    May 7, 2024 – 47:22
  • Season 3, Episode 6: Richard E. Rubenstein, Aristotle's Children: How Christians, Muslims, and Jews Rediscovered Ancient Wisdom and Illuminated the Middle Ages
    Apr 2, 2024 – 48:49
  • Season 3, Episode 5: Norman Solomon, War Made Invisible: How America Hides the Human Toll of Its Military Machine
    Mar 5, 2024 – 51:56
  • Season 3, Episode 4: Dr. David Daokui Li, China's World View: Demystifying China to Prevent Global Conflict
    Feb 6, 2024 – 38:04
  • Season 3, Episode 3: Jessica Rawson, Life and Afterlife in Ancient China
    Jan 2, 2024 – 44:21
  • Season 3, Episode 2: Lindsey A. O'Rourke, Covert Regime Change: America's Secret Cold War
    Dec 5, 2023 – 42:22
  • Season 3, Episode 1: John Mearsheimer, How States Think: The Rationality of Foreign Policy
    Nov 7, 2023 – 51:44
  • Season 2, Episode 14: Francisco Rodriguez, The Human Consequences of Economic Sanctions
    Aug 22, 2023 – 47:37
  • Season 2, Episode 13: Richard Layard & Jan-Emmanuel De Neve: Wellbeing, Science and Policy
    Jun 13, 2023 – 48:05
  • Season 2, Episode 12: Bruce Cumings, The Korean War: A History
    May 23, 2023 – 41:09
  • Season 2, Episode 11: Kim Stanley Robinson, The Ministry for the Future
    Mar 10, 2023 – 46:52
  • Season 2, Episode 10: Chris Coyne: In Search of Monsters to Destroy: The Folly of American Empire and the Paths to Peace
    Feb 1, 2023 – 53:45
  • Season 2, Episode 9: Glenn Denning, Universal Food Security: How to End Hunger While Protecting the Planet
    Jan 3, 2023 – 49:54
  • Season 2, Episode 8: Orlando Figes: The Story of Russia
    Nov 29, 2022 – 45:25
  • Season 2, Episode 7: SPECIAL EDITION: The COVID-19 Lancet Commission Report
    Sep 15, 2022 – 46:42
  • Season 2, Episode 6: Christopher Blattman, Why We Fight: The Roots of War and the Paths to Peace
    Jun 7, 2022 – 44:38
  • Season 2, Episode 5: Anil Seth, Being You: A New Science of Consciousness
    May 3, 2022 – 01:04:59
  • Season 2, Episode 4: Peter H. Lindert, Making Social Spending Work
    Apr 5, 2022 – 46:03
  • Season 2, Episode 3: Casey Michel: American Kleptocracy
    Mar 1, 2022 – 54:25
  • Season 2, Episode 2: Heather Cox Richardson: How the South Won the Civil War
    Feb 1, 2022 – 48:58
  • Season 2, Episode 1: Keisha Blain, Until I Am Free: Fannie Lou Hamer's Enduring Message to America
    Jan 4, 2022 – 55:45
  • Episode 10: Corey Robin, The Reactionary Mind: Conservatism from Edmund Burke to Donald Trump
    Dec 7, 2021 – 41:36
  • Episode 9: Eric Foner, The Second Founding
    Nov 2, 2021 – 53:15
  • Episode 8: Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, Not “a Nation of Immigrants”
    Oct 5, 2021 – 44:40
  • Episode 7: Rick Perlstein, Reaganland, America's Right Turn 1976-1980
    Sep 7, 2021 – 46:23
  • Episode 6: Patricia Sullivan, Justice Rising
    Aug 3, 2021 – 45:48
  • Episode 5: Robert Lustig, Metabolical
    Jul 6, 2021 – 47:27
  • Episode 4: Mariana Mazzucato, Mission Economy
    Jun 1, 2021 – 41:26
  • Episode 3: Rashid Khalidi, The Hundred Years' War on Palestine
    May 4, 2021 – 46:28
  • Episode 2: Richard Rothstein, The Color of Law
    Apr 6, 2021 – 40:56
  • Episode 1: Martin J. Sherwin, Gambling with Armageddon
    Mar 1, 2021 – 40:05
Recent Reviews
  • Alfred W K
    Book suggestion
    Michael Hudson-Superimperialism : the empire is falling and as others is engaged in more extreme versions of the policies that enriched/ destroys it.
  • Barry Eisler
    Insightful, Engaging, Unsentimental
    I’ve followed Professor Sachs for years but for whatever reason only recently discovered his book club. I just listened to the first episode—a discussion with Jon Wolfsthal of the Federation of American Scientists—about how America can step away from nuclear madness. The conversation is sobering and tracks with Annie Jacobsen’s excellent Nuclear War: A Scenario, but it’s surprisingly hopeful, as well. Highly recommended and I’m now looking forward to going back to the interviews I’ve missed.
  • Aim33J0e
    A must must must listen
    Just listen. Dr Sachs’ is a masterful interviewer. He provides a space for his guests to discuss and provide a rich understanding of the topics of their work.
  • Katy1678543
    Superb
    Every person should listen to this podcast. It’s so incredibly enlightening. So hilarious that Sharon Stone says that Americans are not educated. Perhaps, Hollywood is not educated.
  • KateLaChaussee
    China - Jean Dong
    This podcast is annoying to listen to at times, especially when there’s a female author as guest. Jeffrey Sachs talks way too much! Mansplaining. Talking over guest. Ask more questions & let your guest talk more. I noticed this in one other podcast with female guest too. You let the males talk more, talking over the females. The author is the expert on the subject matter, not you.
  • markjill316
    The place to get accurate and nuanced information that the propaganda networks hide.
    Jeffrey Sach’s interviews are eye-opening and insightful, offering a fuller view of today’s geopolitical problems. The information provided is historical facts that are conveniently left out of the conversation in the mainstream media. If every US citizen and resident listened to these podcasts, we may be able to avoid being involved in more disastrous, unnecessary wars and massacres.
  • Grundoon62
    So smart yet so gullible
    You can not possibly be so smart and really believe that J-6 was an insurrection. Turn that big brain loose on at all we know now about the deep state manipulation of events that day and the corrupt congressional committee that works furiously to cover it up. J-6 was a Fed Op - so call it a ‘Fed-surrection.’ Here’s a clue: Republicans don’t show up to an insurrection without their guns. Conservatives are the constitution lovers. Your side are the dictator loving street thugs. George Floyd and Summer of Love riots are how the progressives roll - those are insurrections. Using a corrupt judicial system to wage law fare against your political enemies is insurrection. A never ending stream of hoaxes by our intelligence agencies designed to bring down our duly elected president is insurrection. Opening the border to floods of inverted military age men to destabilize our society is insurrection. So smart yet so clueless.
  • megmaggio88
    China’s World View / China Scholar Biases
    Important to note the Marxist dialectic pedagogical paradigm that skews Mainland scholarship , even with the best of intentions. Namely, excess emphasis on “them vs us”; “East vs West” and a related unwillingness to publicly expose (share) China’s weaknesses. As some one who has lived in China for over 30 years as corporate lawyer , writer, and small business owner, the day-to-day problems are rarely discussed. Here you go: China’s borders are porous, with multiple challenges with all of its neighbors. This is China’s main preoccupation. Secondly, annual and chronic environmental disasters many of its own making . Third, rising inflation with insufficient economic tools to stem inflation’s growth . China’s ancient history is often used as a diversion to mask present day problems. China’s post 1949 education system is less than ideal; this comment is also a taboo and not subject to open debate and not easily changed. But easily evidenced by the “tsunami” level of Mainland Chinese studying abroad.
  • Calimsk
    Get to the heart of important issues
    Priceless resource. No nonsense discussion of core issues shaping our world.
  • Bruks
    Absolutely fascinating and extremely relevant discussions 5/5
    One of the best podcasts out there. Sachs is a great source himself, so he knows who best to talk to and on what subjects.
  • NYParent
    A collection of priceless conversations
    For a small investment of time Jeff Sachs gives us a beautiful conversation with the author of a valuable book each episode. Enriching, edifying and deeply human.
  • Walksintraffic
    True nonpartisan
    This takes a hard look on issues that really matter. Things overlooked by mainstream media. It’s exposes a harsh reality that need to face, and to try and change.
  • teenyu
    Insightful and human
    This is a great podcast to hear a smart and human take on how we can think through the worlds toughest problems.
  • KGSN
    Excellent and intelligent
    I have learned so much from this intellectually stimulating podcast. Sachs is a superb interviewer, and his choice of books is outstanding!
  • Beckett00
    Thank you for this podcast
    Great podcast from one of the best and most compassionate economists.
  • RampnukieDoug
    I’m one episode in, and two thumbs up!
    Im really enjoying this podcast! If you’re a listener of Sam Harris, Tim Ferris or the like, give this a listen! Good stuff👍🏼
  • Ahimsa2013
    Thank you!
    ESSENTIAL LISTENING.
  • Fentonflash
    Wow
    I learned so much about a time I lived through but wasn’t privy to the inside politics. Ver insightful. I wish your podcast was longer.
  • RevRogerJ
    Excellent!
    Just what you want in.a.podcast - intelligent conversation between knowledgeable and articulate voices.
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