Visions of a Better World

About Visions of a Better World

Visions of a Better World is a podcast series produced and hosted by Global Visions association. The series brings together people to discuss themes, ideas and theories regarding the mission of making the world a better place. Global Visions is a non-profit association based in Helsinki, Finland with the purpose of bringing people and organisations together and developing ideas aimed at building a better world. Follow and learn more: Instagram: globalvisionsry Bluesky: globalvisions.bsky.social TikTok: globalvisionsry Linkedin: Global Visions See our panels on YouTube: GlobalVisionsry More information: www.globalvisions.fi/en

Publisher

Global Visions

Category

news · science

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

19 May 2022

Latest episode

1 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

53 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   1 Oct 2026

   Local Leadership, Global Solidarity and Future Visions: A Conversation with Home Street Home in Kenya

   In this episode, we continue our conversation with Salim Edward and Viola Wallenius, two founding members of Home Street Home. We previously discussed community-led development, healthcare, education and climate action in Makongeni, Kwale County, Kenya. In this second part, we turn to international cooperation, innovation, youth unemployment and future visions for Kenya. Home Street Home is a non-profit organisation registered in Kenya, Finland and Switzerland. Working alongside the local community, it supports children’s and young people’s education, health and wellbeing. Salim Edward is a Kenyan community leader and entrepreneur whose work focuses on financial management, organisational sustainability and community-led development. Viola Wallenius is a Finnish educator, author and director of Home Street Home. Her work focuses on programme development, global education and international partnerships. Both live and work in Makongeni, bringing perspectives grounded in everyday life within the community. Salim and Viola challenge one-dimensional portrayals of Kenya. They describe a country marked not only by serious challenges, but also by resilience, ambition and a strong entrepreneurial culture. We discuss youth unemployment, equal international cooperation and “white saviour” narratives. Social media makes it easy to react to global problems, but reactions do not always lead to meaningful action. Salim and Viola encourage listeners to remain curious, support locally led organisations and commit to causes beyond moments of temporary attention. Looking ahead, Salim and Viola share their vision for the future of Home Street Home. They discuss reducing its dependence on unpredictable donor funding, developing long-term partnerships and expanding income-generating initiatives such as the Ubunifu workshop. Their goal is an increasingly sustainable organisation led by its Kenyan team. They also reflect on Kenya’s future and the importance of creating meaningful opportunities for the country’s educated and ambitious young people. What might people in Europe learn from Kenya? Salim and Viola point to resilience, interdependence and the strength of community relationships. Their experiences of parenthood and life in Makongeni also lead to a wider reflection on safety, basic needs and what it means to live a good life. Learn more and support Home Street Home: Website: https://www.homestreethome.fi (https://www.homestreethome.fi) Instagram: @homestreethomery Hosts: Astrid Aminoff and Max Tallberg About Global Visions: Global Visions is a Helsinki-based non-profit association bringing people and organisations together to develop ideas for a more just, equal and sustainable world. Watch our panel discussions: Explore more on the Global Visions YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSw-xFvVWwTjU0c3iLsPviw) Follow us: Website: https://www.globalvisions.fi/en (https://www.globalvisions.fi/en) Instagram: @globalvisionsry YouTube: GlobalVisionsry Bluesky: https://globalvisions.bsky.social (https://globalvisions.bsky.social) TikTok: @globalvisionsry LinkedIn: Global Visions TAKE OUR TEST: https://visionary.globalvisions.tech (https://visionary.globalvisions.tech) Music licensed from PremiumBeat.

2. 

   27 Aug 2026

   Community-Led Action amid Climate Change and Global Instability: A Conversation with Home Street Home in Kenya

   In this episode, we reconnect with Salim Edward and Viola Wallenius, two founding members of Home Street Home, to discuss community-led development, healthcare, education and climate action in Makongeni, Kwale County, Kenya. Home Street Home is a non-profit organisation registered in Kenya, Finland and Switzerland. Working alongside the local community, it supports children’s and young people’s education, health and wellbeing. Salim Edward is a Kenyan community leader and entrepreneur whose work focuses on financial management, organisational sustainability and community-led development. Viola Wallenius is a Finnish educator, author and director of Home Street Home. Her work focuses on programme development, global education and international partnerships. Both live and work in Makongeni, bringing perspectives grounded in everyday life within the community. Salim and Viola discuss Home Street Home’s recent achievements, including expanded maternal healthcare, free ultrasound examinations and workshops for expectant mothers. They also describe inclusive early-childhood education, support for children with disabilities, vocational training and social enterprises that strengthen local livelihoods and the organisation’s long-term sustainability. We also explore an EU-funded global education project connecting students in Kenya and Finland. Through school visits, workshops and the Together–Yhdessä event in Pori, young people exchange perspectives on sustainable development, global responsibility and locally relevant solutions to shared challenges. The conversation examines how rising living costs, changes in international development funding and pressure on healthcare services are affecting food security, education and access to essential services in rural Kenya—particularly for women, children and economically vulnerable families. Salim and Viola also discuss how drought, unpredictable rainfall, warming coastal waters and declining fish stocks affect farming, fishing and household incomes. Community-led responses include mangrove restoration, solar energy, recycling, waste management and sustainable sources of income. Finally, we hear about Home Street Home’s new solar-powered clean-water system. Designed to treat saline and contaminated groundwater, it aims to provide safe drinking water for the organisation’s healthcare centre and the wider Makongeni community. This episode shows how local leadership, international partnerships and community knowledge can build resilience and hope amid global change. Learn more and support Home Street Home: Website: https://www.homestreethome.fi (https://www.homestreethome.fi/) Instagram: @homestreethomry Hosts: Astrid Aminoff and Max Tallberg About Global Visions: Global Visions is a Helsinki-based non-profit association bringing people and organisations together to develop ideas for a more just, equal and sustainable world. Watch our panel discussions: Explore more on the Global Visions YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSw-xFvVWwTjU0c3iLsPviw) Follow us: Website: https://www.globalvisions.fi/en (https://www.globalvisions.fi/en) Instagram: @globalvisionsry Bluesky: https://globalvisions.bsky.social (https://globalvisions.bsky.social/) TikTok: @globalvisionsry LinkedIn: Global Visions YouTube: GlobalVisionsry TAKE OUR TEST: https://visionary.globalvisions.tech (https://visionary.globalvisions.tech/) Music licensed from PremiumBeat.

3. 

   30 Jul 2026

   Deweaponizing Interdependence and the Future of Global Cooperation (Part 2: The Solution – Toward a Global Clearing Union)

   What if trade wars, sanctions, debt crises, and geopolitical rivalry are not merely political failures, but symptoms of deeper flaws in the architecture of the global economy? In this two-part episode of the Visions of a Better World Podcast, Max Tallberg and Astrid Aminoff are joined by Professor Heikki Patomäki and Dr. Konsta Kotilainen both contributors to Deweaponizing Interdependence: Bringing the Idea of International Clearing Union into the Twenty-First Century (available open access) (https://www.bloomsbury.com/au/deweaponizing-interdependence-9781350574809/), to discuss the book’s central arguments and their relevance in today’s increasingly fragmented world economy. The conversation explores how the current international monetary system contributes to global instability, geopolitical tensions, and economic inequalities. In the first episode, the guests discuss the weaponization of economic interdependence, the limits of monetary hegemony, and why the absence of adequate global monetary institutions may itself be generating conflict. In the second episode, the focus shifts to solutions and the idea of a Global Clearing Union: an international institution that would facilitate trade and financial exchanges through a shared accounting system, helping to reduce global imbalances while encouraging cooperation between both debtor and surplus countries. Inspired by John Maynard Keynes’s original proposal, the discussion considers whether such reforms could contribute to a more stable, democratic, and equitable global order, and what they could mean for the future of humanity and global cooperation. Heikki Patomäki (https://patomaki.fi/en/) is Professor of World Politics and Global Political Economy at the University of Helsinki and one of Finland’s leading scholars of global political economy, democracy, and global governance. His work explores international relations, economics, philosophy, peace studies, and futures thinking, with a particular focus on democratic transformation at the global level. He has held professorships and visiting positions at institutions including Nottingham Trent University, RMIT University in Melbourne, and the University of Cambridge. Konsta Kotilainen (https://researchportal.helsinki.fi/en/persons/konsta-kotilainen/)is a postdoctoral researcher in world politics and global political economy at the University of Helsinki whose work explores global governance, monetary theory, economics, and philosophy. His doctoral dissertation on monetary sovereignty and macroeconomic policy autonomy received an international PhD Thesis Prize from the University of Pavia. He is currently writing a book on supranational currency arrangements funded by the Kone Foundation and is also a researcher in the University of Helsinki’s Fragile Frontier (SPACE) project on space governance, resilience, and geopolitical change.. Suggested Resources Global Justice Report 2026 (https://globaljusticeproject.wid.world/www-site/uploads/2026/06/GlobalJusticeReport_WebsiteVersion.pdf) Critical Realism & Peace Studies - Keynote Prof. Heikki Patomäki (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBsje0J7sJo) Our Common Future: World System Scenarios for the 21st Century (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxLYTkT8gbc) Follow: @globalvisionsry (Instagram, Facebook, TikTok) GlobalVisionsry (YouTube & Linkedin) More information: www.globalvisions.fi/en Our music is licensed from premium beat.

Who has been a guest on Visions of a Better World

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Antti Kauppinen
• Simo Kyllönen
• Senja Laakso
• Bonn Judge
• Anja Nygren

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Spotify

5.0 / 5

1 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 19 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

14

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

60

Contact Visions of a Better World

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

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