The Eddy The Eddy

The Eddy

The Eddy is an independent programme made in Johannesburg. It takes its name from THAT eddy, the temporary refuge from a raging river: a place to catch your breath and get your bearings.
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Rooted in South Africa. Connected to the world. The Eddy will bring you short series of conversations about the burning issues of our time, with leaders and doers at the coalface. No performative outrage. Just context, history and ideas on how to fortify our society and civic lives.
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For people who got the news and still ask: but why? so what?
Also for people who didn't get the news.
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Created and hosted by Charmeela Bhagowat, a South African journalist. Series arrive when they’re ready. Subscribe and you’ll know.
Monthly English South Africa News · Society & Culture
3 Episodes

Fear, trust and the South African Flinch. What divides us? What binds us?

Clinical psychologist Professor Emeritus Gillian Eagle joins host Charmeela Bhagowat to examine how inequality, crime, trauma and political disillusionment shape trust and belonging in South Africa. She discusses how ongoing threat can harden prejudice, what helps people build social connection, and why hope may mean resisting negativity while creating small…
8 Nov 1 hr 02 min

Who says you belong?

This episode centres on the question of belonging in South Africa - who is seen as fully human, who is pushed to the edges, and how law, memory, and power shape that reality. Nomzamo Zondo, human rights lawyer and executive director of the Socioeconomic Rights Institute, draws on housing, migration,…
26 Oct 1 hr 02 min

Kumbaya won't cut it. Why South Africa needs better, not less conflict.

Charmeela Bhagowat speaks with conflict resolution practitioner and author Andre Vlok about why South Africa keeps repeating cycles of anger, distrust, and violence. In this episode, Andre argues that violence and social breakdown are symptoms, not root causes. The conversation moves from gender-based violence and urban conflict to leadership, identity,…
25 Oct 1 hr 02 min