Can the world avoid a global recession?

Can the World Avoid a Global Recession? | GZERO World with Ian Bremmer

This year, the annual fall meetings of the World Bank and the IMF are all about global economic doom and gloom.

How bad will it get? Are we headed toward a worldwide recession? And who will bear the brunt of the pain?

To get some answers, GZERO World with Ian Bremmer has two very special guests: World Bank President David Malpass and IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva.

Malpass tackles the elephant in the room: whether he's a climate denier. His odds of a global recession? 50/50. But the World Bank chief is more worried about the poorest countries going backwards on their development goals.

For her part, Georgieva explains the three drivers that'll likely trigger a worldwide economic slowdown next year. She also predicts that the coming winter will be bad for Europe — but the next one will be worse.

More from GZERO Media

Protestors shout at counterprotesters at the Women’s March at Freedom Plaza in Washington, D.C., USA, on November 2, 2024.
Candice Tang / SOPA Images via Reuters Connect

Morris Fiorina, a political scientist at Stanford University, tells GZERO that political parties – rather than people – have become more homogeneous and polarized in their positions.

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to reporters aboard Air Force One on his return from a state visit in Britain, September 18, 2025.
REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

While riding on Air Force One Thursday night, US President Donald Trump claimed that some TV networks are “97% against me” and suggested their licences should be revoked.

Police officers disperse protesters during riots in front of the House of Representatives building in Jakarta, Indonesia, on August 30, 2025.
Claudio Pramana/ZUMA Press Wire

Across South and Southeast Asia, something unusual is brewing – with major consequences for the region’s collective foreign policy.