World's Toughest Job cover art

World's Toughest Job

World's Toughest Job

Written by: Foreign Policy
Listen for free

About this listen

 The United Nations secretary-general has been said to hold the “most impossible job in the world.” And for just the 10th time in the organization’s history, a new candidate will soon be stepping into that role. Through immersive storytelling and voices from around the globe, World’s Toughest Job explores the challenges facing the next UN leader. Over eight episodes, we’ll examine how the secretary-general might make a difference on issues including economic turbulence, superpower rivalries, artificial intelligence, inequality, and climate change. This is about more than the one person who will step up to lead an organization. It’s an existential moment for the UN, the one place where countries have a voice and a vote. Get it wrong, and we all feel the consequences. Get it right, and it could mark a turning point for the organization … and the world. World's Toughest Job is a co-production of Foreign Policy and the UN Foundation. Politics & Government
Episodes
  • What Kind of Leader Does the UN Need Right Now?

    What Kind of Leader Does the UN Need Right Now?
    Apr 28 2026
    This year, 193 member states will elect a new secretary-general of the United Nations. Over the next eight episodes, we’ll ask how the next secretary-general might actually make a difference on issues from economic turbulence and superpower rivalries to artificial intelligence, inequality, and climate change. But today, we’re starting off with the most basic question: What kind of leader does the UN need right now? Host Jasmin Baoumy is joined by Thant Myint-U, a senior fellow at the UN Foundation; Susana Malcorra, the president and co-founder of GWL Voices; and Mark Malloch-Brown, a former UN deputy secretary-general and administrator of the UN Development Programme. World’s Toughest Job is a co-production of Foreign Policy and the UN Foundation.
    Show More Show Less
    38 mins
  • Coming Soon: World's Toughest Job

    Coming Soon: World's Toughest Job
    Apr 20 2026
    Between now and the end of this year, 193 member states will elect a new secretary-general of the United Nations. This person will oversee a staff of tens of thousands around the world and be asked to manage global emergencies, avert climate disaster, and end wars—all while answering to 193 bosses. What kind of leader does the world need right now? And how should candidates prepare to serve not just governments but 8 billion people? We’ll get into it all on World’s Toughest Job, coming April 28 from Foreign Policy and the UN Foundation.
    Show More Show Less
    2 mins
No reviews yet