Our Insights
Featured Insights Selected by Our Experts
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The Return of the Koh Ker Ganesha
with Brad Gordon, Channy Set, and Nguon Chhay Song | Hosted by Deborah Lehr
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CES, Digital Trade, and the Future of Tech Supply Chains
with Ed Brytzwa | Hosted by Jake E. Jennings
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Iran, The Days After: The Succession
By the Basilinna team
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Why China Is Pushing Trade Facilitation Despite a Record Surplus
By Leigh Wedell and Ruihan Huang
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Mexico Now America’s Top Trading Partner as USMCA Review Looms
By Abel Hibert, Senior Fellow
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Nature as National Asset: How the Middle East Is Turning Biodiversity into Economic Opportunity
By Basilinna Deborah Lehr, Chair and CEO.
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China Economic Stimulus Tracker
A comprehensive timeline of announcements and policy actions implemented by the Chinese government to stimulate economic activity.
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From the Middle Kingdom to the Saudi Kingdom: Opportunities Abound
By Yasser Elnaggar, Chair of the Middle East and Africa
Explore all of our Insights, Interviews, Commentary, and More
Tourism and Biodiversity: Unlocking Value in the MENA Green Economy
By the Basilinna team
Tourism is already central to economies across the region, but its long-term value depends on protecting the natural assets that give destinations their identity.
The Next AI Era: Technology, Regulation, and Geopolitics
By John Mulligan, Executive Director
On a recent video call conducted almost entirely in a language I don’t speak, I gave myself a challenge: could I build a real-time translator using AI before the call ended? With only partial comprehension and a handful of tools, I improvised a solution by combining open-source software and NVIDIA’s CUDA libraries, the company’s parallel computing platform that powers most advanced AI systems.
Tech and Trade Strategic Insights: Beyond the Headlines
September 16, 2025 | Jake E. Jennings, Chair of Technology and Trade
Antitrust as trade policy response: China's preliminary finding that NVIDIA violated competition rules by adhering to U.S. export controls highlights how multinationals face conflicting legal demands across jurisdictions.
The Latchford Network and Following the Trail of Loot
September 10, 2025 | Hosted by Deborah Lehr, Chair and CEO
Deborah welcomes back Tess Davis, Executive Director of The Antiquities Coalition, to discuss the story of Douglas Latchford, a notorious antiquities trafficker, and why his story is central to understanding the global illicit antiquities trade. The conversation explores Latchford’s background, how he built a vast smuggling network over a 50-year criminal career, and the devastating impact of his actions on Cambodia’s cultural heritage.
From Blueprint to Reality: China Builds a Free Trade Island for Its Next Ambitious Opening Experiment
By Michael Wu, Senior Vice President and Ruihan Huang, Director
In December 2025, China will formally implement the independent customs operation of Hainan Free Trade Port (FTP) (also referred to as “customs closure”), marking a turning point from policy planning to institutional execution.
Nature as National Asset: How the Middle East Is Turning Biodiversity into Economic Opportunity
September 5, 2025 | Deborah Lehr, Chair and CEO
For decades, the Middle East’s biodiversity was overlooked—not because it lacked value, but because that value was not fully recognized. Today, countries across the region are reframing nature as a strategic national asset.
Pollinators of the Night: How Bats Sustain Ecosystems, Agriculture, and Tequila
September 9, 2025 | Chynna Hawes, Senior Vice President
In the U.S., bats are perhaps better known for their pest control services. In one night, a single bat can eat thousands of crop-damaging insects, reducing the need for chemical pesticides, lowering costs for farmers, and at the same time, supporting the health of other pollinators.
Cutting Subsidies, Boosting Consumption
August 18, 2025 | Gracie Sun, Chair of Asia-Pacific
In July 2025, China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) set new provincial renewable energy targets. Since 2018, China has been building a provincial-level green electricity quota system, requiring provinces to consume a portion of renewable energy in their energy mix.
What Is The Promise of AI?
August 18, 2025 | Hosted by Jake E. Jennings, Chair of Technology and Trade
In episode six of our Tholos Talks series that unpacks the defining economic challenges of the 21st century — Coffee, Trade, and Tech — Jake is joined by Kendra Schaefer, Partner and Head of Tech Policy Research at Trivium China, and Basilinna Senior Fellow for a deep dive into the rapidly evolving world of AI, digital trade policy, and China’s position in the global tech race.
China’s Safeguarding of Cultural Heritage Signals Its Global Ambition
August 14, 2025 | Deborah Lehr, Chair and CEO
China is making its cultural heritage protection a national priority – and a pillar of its global identity. As one of the world’s fastest-growing art markets, China has taken steps in recent years to better safeguard its cultural heritage, both at home and abroad.