Latest Podcasts - Island Talks

Figure It – Episode 9: Mustafa Besim unpacks Turkey’s economic protocol with the Turkish Cypriots (10/6/2022)

In this episode of Figure It, Sapienta Economics Director Fiona Mullen talks to Dr Mustafa Besim, Professor of Economics at Eastern Mediterranean University and Dean of the Faculty of Business and Economics, about the economy of northern Cyprus, in particular the latest economic and financial protocol worth around 240 million euro signed between the Turkish Cypriot administration and Turkey. What are the protocol’s strengths, what are its weaknesses and what should be the priority for Turkish Cypriot economic policy?

Sesta – Episode 5: On The Crescent Moon Fox with Metin Murat (24/5/2022)

Sesta-embracing the colours of culture! In this fifth episode of Sesta, Meltem Burak talks to Dr Metin Murat who is the author of the recently published novel The Crescent Moon Fox. Throughout the podcast, Metin elaborates on his compassionate, heart-breaking, brutal and humorous debut novel which is a gesture towards peace, and towards the Turkish-speaking community of Cyprus. He explains how literature, among the other forms of arts and culture, manages to unite people who disagree with each other, and serves as an instrument which helps people show their fears and their suffering. The Crescent Moon Fox`s book launch and signing…

Nicosia Uncut – Episode 39: RoC elections – three candidates of the establishment (16/5/2022)

Artwork by George Gavriel

Legacy of Anastasiades seems to be dominating the political scene in Cyprus in the coming term as well. Early favorites of the Presidential race, DISY's Neophytou, currently independent Christodoules and AKEL's potential candidate Mavroyiannis have been the aces of Anastasiades' team during his rule. In this episode of Nicosia Uncut, Andromachi Sophocleous and Kemal Baykallı shed a critical light on the system that fails to generate strong alternative candidates backed by the leading political parties in Cyprus. The latest meltdown of institutions and the system in the Turkish Cypriot political was also discussed.

Nicosia Uncut – Episode 38: Turkey firms its grip on Turkish Cypriot politics (3/5/2022)

UBP leader Dr. Faiz Sucuoğlu

In this episode of Nicosia Uncut Andromachi Sophocleous and Kemal Baykallı discuss how Turkey is firming its grip in the Turkish Cypriot politics as the right-wing coalition of UBP leader Dr Faiz Sucuoğlu collapses yet again due to his apparent fall-out with cabinet members supported by Turkey's AKP leadership. True, this is not the first time Turkey is interfering in the Turkish Cypriot politics but the extend in which Turkey's AKP leadership is involved in deciding the cabinet names is rather new. In the Greek Cypriot politics, opposition AKEL is still trying to decide on its candidate as the…

Garip Zamanlar – Bölüm 29: Mutlu olmayanı dövüyorlarmış (2/5/2022)

Johnny Depp'i madara eden bu hayat bize neler yapmaz! Garip Zamanlar'ın bayram özel sayısında Evren İnançoğlu, Kemal Baykallı ve Sertaç Sonan; Johnny Depp-Amber Heard davası üzerinden toksik erilliği, mutlu olma dayatması üzerinden toksik olumlamayı ve Çin rejiminin eleştirel yazıları görünmez bir dijital mürekkep gibi ortadan kaldırmasını konuştular. Heidegger, Sartre, Arendt, Kierkegaard bu haftaki düşün hayatımızın konuklarıydı. Distopyalar, ütopyalar, Bill Gates, Musk'ın Twitter'i satın alması derken program bitti.

Garip Zamanlar – Bölüm 28: Artık herşey mümkün, distopyada sınır yok! (17/4/2022)

İngiltere’de Boris, Amerika’da Donald, Fransa’da Marie, Oscar’larda Will, apokaliptik salgında corona. İçinden geçtiğimiz garip zamanlarda herşey mümkün. Evren İnançoğlu, Kemal Baykallı ve Sertaç Sonan, ana akım sinamanın zirvesinde atılan tokadı, pandeminin ortasında partileyen İngiltere Başbakanı Boris Johnson’un aldığı cezayı, Putin’i haklı gören aklı karışmışları, babasını partiden atan aşırı sağcı Marie Le Pen’in çıkışını, ünlü düşünür Heidegger ve ünlü besteci Wagner’in nazilerle olan bağlarını, sinemada vampirlerin ve zombilerin tarihçesini ve binlerce insann ilgisine mazhar olan akademik zombi çalıştayının akibetini konuştular. Menüde ise Lurucina zivaniyası vardı.

Nicosia Uncut – Episode 37: Discussing effectiveness of the UN in Cyprus with Dr.Alexandra Novosseloff (15/4/2022)

In this episode of Nicosia Uncut, Andromachi Sophocleous and Kemal Baykallı host Dr.Alexandra Novosseloff, the author of the EPON report titled "Assessing the Effectiveness of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force (UNFICYP) and the Office of the Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Cyprus (OSASG)". What does the report entail? What kind of work does the UN do behind the scenes to prevent crisis to occur? What are the relations between the conflict-prevention and peacemaking in the Cypriot context? How does the "fear of recognition" affect the work of the UN?

Decode Cyprus – Episode 4: North – economic crisis deepens. Is there light at the end of the tunnel ? (11/4/2022)

As the economic crisis deepens in northern Cyprus, Turkish Cypriots hit the streets once more. Pandemic, devaluation of the Turkish lira and war in Ukraine hit the Turkish Cypriot economy which has long been suffering from the structural problems of their economy. Evaluating the recent situation, journalists Esra Aygın and Lefteris Adilinis compare the recent protests with the pro-solution rallies of the past. Why do Turkish Cypriots fail see the link between the solution of the Cyprus problem and the solution to the economic crisis? What do the opposition parties say? What needs to be done?

Sesta – Episode 4: Constructing a culture of peace with Buffer Fringe: An interview with Ellada Evangelou (8/4/2022)

Sesta-embracing the colours of culture! In this fourth episode of Sesta, Meltem Burak talks to Dr Ellada Evangelou who is the Executive and Artistic Director of the Buffer Fringe Performing Arts Festival since 2019. Throughout the podcast, Ellada elaborates on the relationship between arts, culture and conflict transformation, and the role of Buffer Fringe in multifaceted peacebuilding. She explains how Buffer Fringe helps communities co-create and re-imagine the future in an inclusive way against the dominant, exclusionist, nationalist and patriarchal narratives in Cyprus. Buffer Fringe is currently looking for Cyprus-based or internationally based Cypriot artists to join the Festival which will run from 7 October to 9 October. If you have any creative ideas, you can apply to the Festival until 24 April from the link. More about the Buffer Fringe Performing Arts Festival on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/BufferFringe/ – Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bufferfringe/

Garip Zamanlar – Bölüm 27: Garip Zamanlar noir edition (17/3/2022)

Son Batman filminin etkisiyle mi nedir, bu bölüm Garip Zamanlar tarihinin en "noir" bölümü oldu. Karamsar ve ağdalı başladık ama viski tadımı sayesinde keyifli bitirdik. Napolyon'dan Birinci Dünya Harbi'ne kadar geçen umutlu zamanlar, tarihin sonuna geldiğine inanılan naif zamanlar, bilimden medyaya herşeyin doğruluğunu sorguladığımız şüpheli zamanlar, Rusya'nın Ukrayna'ya saldırmasıyla hatırlanacak günümüz zamanları ve nihayetinde içinde bulunduğumuz garip zamanlar bu bölümde! Evren İnançoğlu, Kemal Baykallı ve Sertaç Sonan, Garip Zamanlar podcastının 27'inci bölümünü soğuk ve baharı özlediğimiz bir Mart ayında çektiler. Neyse ki Glen Turner Single Malt - Port Cask Finish imdada yetişti.