The Sage Institute.
The Sage Institute.
Gain a foothold in understanding a country.
The series premieres in late fall 2026.
The Sage Institute is launching an interview series built to give viewers and listeners a genuine foothold in understanding countries at a deeper level. Each conversation draws out the knowledge that specialists, practitioners, and locals carry but rarely set down in writing.
Our web series offers four types of conversations, each with a distinct lens on a country:
With country experts
Conversations that get at the underlying logic of a country and the mental models that explain its underpinnings.
Sample episode
Decoding Sudan
with a Sudan country specialist and member of the Sage Expert Community
With practitioners
Conversations with diplomats, journalists, or other on-the-ground practitioners sharing what they learned from working in or on a country.
Sample episode
Reflections on Qatar
with a former ambassador
With local actors
Conversations with influential local actors, offering insight into how different groups within a country understand their own politics, priorities, and goals.
Sample episode
Inside Kuwait’s Reform Movement
with a former member of Kuwait’s parliament
Private discussion with public report
Cross-country conversations among Sage Expert Community members, surfacing patterns and lessons that are globally relevant and captured in a public report.
Sample episode
Why Wars Don’t End
with experts on Sudan, Yemen, and Ukraine