Alaska World Affairs Council

A 2010 Senatorial Debate!

2010-11-01T14:11:00.017-08:00

On the 26th of October, the AWAC and Rotary hosted a senatorial debate at the Dena'ina Center between candidates Joe Miller, Lisa Murkowski, and Scott McAdams. In total, 480 people attended the debate, including 105 students who came from APU, AVAIL, Chugiak, Service, South, UAA, and West. It was $23.oo for adults, and free for students thanks to B.P. This debate was moderated by the President of APTI, Steve Lindbeck, and the Executive Director of AWAC, Lise Falskow. To the left are some pictures from the debate.

Lecture and a Discussion!

2009-08-21T23:32:00.002-08:00

Hello AWAC friends!

Here is an upcoming event that may be of interest to you folks. It is hosted by the UAA Bookstore, so go on and check it out!

Gypsy Theaters in the Soviet Union

On September 25, 2009, Professor Brigid O'Keeffe from Brooklyn College will host a lecture and discussion on the history of Gypsy theaters and entertainers in the Soviet Union. The paper is titled, "Pornography or Authenticity? Performing 'Gypsiness' on the Early Soviet Stage, 1921-1939." The event is open to the public and will take place at the UAA Campus Bookstore from 4-6PM.

So, to recap-

What: Lecture and Discussion

Topic: History of Gypsy Theaters in the Soviet Union

Location: UAA Bookstore (campus map)

Date&Time: September 25th, 4-6p.m.

Hope to see you all there!

The World Trade Center of Alaska Presents Mark Begich Monday, June 1!

2009-05-28T12:01:00.001-08:00

The World Trade Center of Alaska in Cooperation with the Alaska World Affairs Council
and the Anchorage Economic Development Corporation,
the Associated General Contractors of Alaska,
the Northern Forum, the Resource Development Council,
and the Alaska State Chamber of Commerce
present
a Major Address by the Honorable Mark Begich

Topic: A Report from the Battlefield:

Progress in the Middle East and Washington

Just back from a week-long tour of Afghanistan and Pakistan, U.S. Senator Mark Begich will provide his perspective on progress in the world's most

dangerous region and give an update on current developments in Washington, D.C. As the first Alaskan on the Senate Armed Services

Committee since 1968, Senator Begich will report on his meetings with top military commanders and some of the thousands of Alaskan soldiers serving in the Middle East. In his first major speech in Alaska since his swearing-in, the Senator also will discuss congressional efforts to address the major issues facing the nation, including the economy, health care and international trade.

Monday, June 1, 2009

Hotel Captain Cook Ballroom

12:00 - 1:30 PM

(doors open at 11:30)

The cost is $45 per seat or $500 for a table of 10.

For more information or to make reservations,
please call the Alaska World Trade Center at 278-7233
or send an email to info@akwtc.org.

Susan Martin on Friday, May 29th

2009-05-27T14:19:00.004-08:00

On Friday, May 29, the Alaska World Affairs Council will feature Susan Martin, of the Institute for the Study of International Migration at Georgetown University, speaking on the topic "US Immigration Policy: Challenges for the Future" as our last event of the 2008-2009 program year!

Susan Martin holds the Donald G. Herzberg Chair in International Migration and serves as the Director of the Institute for the Study of International Migration in the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. Dr. Martin is also Co-Director of the Certificate Program on Refugees and Humanitarian Emergencies. Previously Dr. Martin served as the Executive Director of the U.S. Commission on Immigration Reform, established by legislation to advise Congress and the President on U.S. immigration and refugee policy, and Director of Research and Programs at the Refugee Policy Group.

Her publications include Refugee Women, The Uprooted: Improving Humanitarian Responses to Forced Migration, Beyond the Gateway: Immigrants in a Changing America (ed.), and Managing Migration: The Promise of Cooperation. Dr. Martin earned her MA and Ph.D. in American Studies from the University of Pennsylvania and her BA in History from Douglass College, Rutgers University. She is the President of the International Association for the Study of Forced Migration and serves on the U.S. Comptroller General’s Advisory Board, the Academic Advisory Board of the International Organization for Migration, and the Board of the Advocacy Project.

2009-05-15T15:58:00.003-08:00

On Friday, May 22nd, the Alaska World Affairs Council will feature Joe Montville,
Director of Toward the Abrahamic Family Reunion and Founder of Preventive Diplomacy at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Joseph Montville is director of Toward the Abrahamic Family Reunion, the Esalen Institute project to promote Muslim-Christian-Jewish reconciliation. He is also Senior Adviser on Interfaith Relations at Washington National Cathedral, and has appointments at American and George Mason Universities. Montville founded the preventive diplomacy program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in 1994 and directed it until 2003. Before that he spent 23 years as a diplomat with posts in the Middle East and North Africa. He also worked in the State Department's Bureaus of Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs and Intelligence and Research, where he was chief of the Near East Division and director of the Office of Global Issues. Montville has held faculty appointments at the Harvard and University of Virginia Medical Schools. He defined the concept of “Track Two,” nonofficial diplomacy. Educated at Lehigh, Harvard, and Columbia Universities, Montville is the editor of Conflict and Peacemaking in Multiethnic Societies (Lexington Books, 1990) and editor (with Vamik Volkan and Demetrios Julius) of The Psychodynamics of International Relationships (Lexington Books, 1990 [vol. I], 1991 [vol. II]).

As always, you can find more information about our programs on our web site, www.alaskaworldaffairs.org.

2009-05-15T15:56:00.002-08:00

On Friday, May 15th, we hosted Dr. Paul Dunscomb, Associate Professor of East Asian History at UAA, who spoke on the topic "Whatever Happened To Japan: The Economic Superpower That Never Was"

Paul Dunscomb is Associate Professor of East Asian History at the University of Alaska Anchorage, and Director of UAA’s Confucius Institute. He has graduate degrees from the State University of New York at Albany and the University of Kansas. He is a specialist in modern Japanese history focusing on the domestic political aspects of the Japanese intervention and occupation of Siberia, 1918-1922. His book manuscript on this topic, the first ever complete narrative of Japan’s Siberian Intervention in English or Japanese, is currently under consideration by the University of Hawaii Press. His work has appeared in the Military Review, the Journal of Japanese Studies, and East-West Connections. He is the recipient of a Fulbright Research Fellowship for study in Japan and co-recipient of a Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad grant to lead a study tour of the Russian Far East. Prof. Dunscomb teaches East Asian Civilization, Modern China, Modern Japan as well as specialty courses in the evolution of the Samurai and the history of the Chinese Communist Party.

Dr. Julian Dierkes

2009-05-06T14:47:00.004-08:00

On Friday, we will feature Dr. Julian Dierkes speaking on the topic "Fewer Children, More Customers? Changes in Japan's Supplementary Education System."

Julian Dierkes is an assistant professor and the Keidanren Chair in Japanese Research at the Institute of Asian Research of the University of British Columbia (UBC) where he teaches Asia Pacific Policy Studies At UBC, Julian serves as the Associate Director of the Centre for Japanese Research and as the Coordinator of the Program on Inner Asia.

His past and on-going research has examined portrayals of the nation in history education in postwar Japan and the Germanys. Julian's current research focuses on Japanese education, specifically on educational reform.

In this context he is investigating the impact of the for-profit nature of Japanese "shadow education" (juku) on the diversity of teaching and learning cultures within Japanese education.

In his research interests on Mongolia he focuses on the mining sector, especially on mining policy and on artisinal mining. Julian received his Ph.D. in sociology from Princeton University after previously studying at the Univ of California at Berkeley, Sophia University and the Free University of Berlin. He came to UBC in 2002 after holding the Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation Fellowship at the University of Cambridge.

The program is at noon on Friday, May 6. Doors open at 11.30. The cost for lunch is $20 for members, $25 for non-members, and $6 for coffee. Students may eat lunch for free thanks to a grant from BP. Please email info@alaskaworldaffairs.org to make reservations!

Herb Meyer: "What's Going On In The World?"

2009-04-29T13:13:00.005-08:00

Herb Meyer is an expert on international events and policies. He is the host and producer of an internationally best selling DVD entitled "The Seige of Western Civilization," which analyzes threats to America's security, economy, and culture. He has served under the Reagan administration in the CIA, and was awarded the U.S. National Intelligence Distinguished Service Medal after his forecast of the Soviet collapse. He is currently working on a book, How to Analyze Information: a Step-by-Step Guide to Life's Most Important Skill

Meyer's many experiences with international intelligence will make for a very exciting, timely speech relevant to the concerns of Alaskans and the world. We look forward to a very interesting program this week! It is also our annual board elections; if you are member in good standing please don't forget to come and vote! There are several incumbents as well as newly applying board members, and you can help us make a difference in the Council. We will see you at the Hilton Chart Room at 11:30 am this Friday, May 1st! Please RSVP to 276-8038 or info@alaskaworldaffairs.org. Lunch program is $20 for members, $25 for nonmembers, and coffee is $6. See you there!

Follow us on Twitter! AKWorld.

Patrick Yack's presentation

2009-04-20T12:58:00.002-08:00

Last Friday, the World Affairs Council welcomed over 80 people for a program by Patrick Yack. We were back in the newly renovated Chart Room on the top floor of the Hilton, our usual spot. The last few months have given the room a new shine, and we were glad to be back. Patrick Yack, Atwood Chair of Journalism at UAA, was our speaker. He's held many prestigous journalism and editor positions around the country, and reported from around the globe. Yack's main point was the ever-changing journalism industry and the quality of news that comes from the many media systems we have today.

"The 24-hour news turnaround has become the 24-second."

With the prevalence of at-your-fingertips news sources such as Google Alerts and Twitter, there isn't time for journalists to draft stories. The goal for new and emerging journalists, Yack said, is to have them be as versatile and efficient as possible, and adept at all the different sources of journalism.
While these new forms of news are not necessarily bad, they do run soem risks. Anyone can sign up to write a blog, and there is no way to check soemone's credibility on the Internet. Yack stressed the importance of using legitimate new sources to gain information.
Yack's speech was quick and to the point, allowing lots of time for question-and-answer with the audience. Questions crossed a wide number of topics relating to foreign journalism, the internet news sources, and more. We enjoyed Yack's knowledge on this timely and relevant issue, as all our lives are changing because of it.

Join us this week for Dr. Joseph Ha, Vice President for International Business and Government Relations for Nike Corporation. His speech topic is "Points of Conflict and Cooperation between the United States and China."

--Chloe Miller

Patrick Yack "The Collapse of Foreign Journalism in the American Press"

2009-04-14T12:46:00.003-08:00

Patrick Yack speaks this Friday on a both national and interntaional issue-- the fall of foreign journalism in American newspapers and other media. With the journalism industry changing in so many ways, making way for the internet and such, this is a timely issue that is sure to be an interesting lecture.
Yack is the Atwood Chair of Journalism at the University of Alaska, Anchorage. He has held many high journalism positions such as DC Bureau Chief of the Denver Post, National Editor of the Atlanta Constitution, and more. He has worked in South Korea, the Soviet Union, and Honduras, and has a great interest in foreign policy. He is an advocate of open governemnt and First Amendment rights.
Join us for Yack's presentation, this Friday, April 17 beginning at 11:30 a.m. Lunch is at the Hilton Hotel, $25 for nonmembers, $20 for members, and $6 for coffee. Students are free with a valid student id. Hope to see you there!
--Chloe Miller

Afghan Panel Presentation

2009-04-10T12:14:00.006-08:00

Last Friday’s speech was a panel of four service men who have served time in Afghanistan over the last several years. COL Daly, Lt. John M. Romspert, Sergeant Major Patrick Meegan, and Master Sergeant Scott I. Anderson shared with us their insight of their overseas duty. For biographies of our panel, please see alaskaworldaffairs.org.
The program began with a slideshow of pictures by COL Daly. The pictures ranged from combat images, maps, landscapes, portraits, and humanity-building projects currently in Afghanistan. COL Daly shared not only his experience from a military standpoint, but also his cultural experiences in Afghanistan. The panel of four then participated in a very dynamic and engaging question and answer session. Though time did manage to get away from us and there were many questions still floating around the audience, we learned a lot about the four men’s different experiences. Common interests were the language barriers they experienced and the political situation in Afghanistan right now.
The presentation was an interesting and relevant topic to today’s events. We thank our panel for their wonderfully engaging perspective!

---Chloe Miller

Marshall Goldman Detained in Seattle by Redoubt's Ash; Diddy Hitchens Saves the Day

2009-04-01T12:19:00.003-08:00

Redoubt’s ash cloud has created several inconveniences for Anchorage residents. One major disappointment of last week’s weather was flight service, and AWAC was not spared the annoyance. Highly anticipated Russia expert Marshall Goldman traveled all the way to Seattle only to get stuck there, receiving delay after delay until he had to cancel his Friday speech in Anchorage. Many of us were disappointed that he couldn’t make it, but fortunately the day was saved by Diddy Hitchens, PhD.

Diddy Hitchens is a professor Emerita of Political Science and International Relations at the University of Alaska Anchorage. She received notice that Marshall Goldman might not make it on Thursday afternoon, and spent the next 18 hours impressively preparing herself to stand in his place. As a fan who has read Goldman’s books and used them in her classes, Ms. Hitchens was a great candidate for the topic. She had not, however, read Goldman’s most recent book, Petrostate: Putin, Power, and the New Russia. Therefore, she took it upon herself to read his book and summarize his main stance on Russia’s energy politics on Thursday night, in preparation for her Friday speech.

After such a stressful night, we were all very pleased with Ms. Hitchens’s delivery of a beautiful, polished summary of Goldman’s book. She demonstrated great knowledge of Goldman’s opinions as well as Russia history and politics. She answered many questions that were perhaps more suited to the author of the book, but she answered them quite satisfactorily. All in all, it was a great presentation and we give our greatest thanks to Diddy Hitchens for saving the day on such short notice!

--Chloe Miller

Marshall Goldman: "Putin, Power, and the New Russia"

2009-03-23T13:41:00.004-08:00

Marshall I. Goldman is a Professor of Russian Economics at Wellesley College and Senior Scholar at the David Center for Russian Studies at Harvard University. He obtained his degree in Russian studies in 1952 from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. He joined Wellesley staff in 1958 and has since met with and advised Mikhail Gorbachev, Vladimir Putin, George Bush, and George W. Bush. He is an expert on Russian economy as well as high-technology economics, and the author of Petrostate: Putin, Power, and the New Russia.

His speech this Friday of the same title examines many of the driving forces behind Russia’s political power in relation to their oil economy. As the world’s largest producer of petroleum, Russia has recently overtaken all privately owned oil fields and turned ownership over to the government. This has stabilized the Russian economy and centralized power in Moscow, an effort that has given them the upper hand in many international dealings. Join us this Friday at the Anchorage Hilton as Goldman examines the fluctuating oil economy in Russia and its effects on worldwide politics.

Marshall Goldman speaks this Friday, March 27 at the Anchorage Hilton Hotel. Doors at 11:30 a.m., lunch begins at 12 pm. Lunch is $20 for members, $25 for nonmembers; coffee is $6. Please RSVP to info@alasakworldaffairs.org or 276-8038. Goldman's book Petrostate will be available for purchase for $27.95.

--Chloe Miller

Lobsang Nyandak, Dalai Lama's Representative to the U.S.

2009-03-17T14:37:00.004-08:00

Lobsang Nyandak

Kalon Lobsang Nyandak is the Representative of The Dalai Lama to the Americas. He is also the former Tibetan Minister of Finance and Health. He worked as the Founding Executive Director of the Tibetan Center for Human Rights and Democracy, a member of the Tibetan parliament, Tibetan Youth Congress and the National Democratic Party of Tibet. He has held his current position since September 2008, and works with the Office of Tibet in New York.

Bringing his knowledge of the nation of Tibet and the current situation with China’s occupation, Mr. Nyandak will be speaking on “A Future Prospect for Tibet” this Friday, March 20th, at the Hilton Hotel at 12 p.m. He will also be speaking in Juneau on Wednesday, March 18. We hope you come to take this opportunity to hear an amazing speaker and learn more about the people of Tibet and current and future political situation in their country.

Mr. Nyandak is an advocate of recognizing Tibet as a “de facto colony of China.” He is also helping to encourage the release of political prisoners, stating that more than a thousand Tibetans are being “arbitrarily detained by China.” Over 70% of these prisoners are Tibetan nuns and monks. Working to resolve differences with China and help these prisoners gain freedom is part of Nyandak’s goal as he shares his knowledge with the United States.

If you are interested in Mr. Nyandak’s presentation, please RSVP to Alaska World Affairs Council at 276-8038 or info@alaskaworldaffairs.org Lunch is $20 for members, $25 for non-members, and coffee is $6.

--Chloe Miller

Nick Lawson

2009-03-13T10:43:00.001-08:00

Doctors without borders, also known as Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is an international humanitarian organization founded by doctors and journalists in France in 1971. Today DWB is responsible for providing clinical aid to over 60 countries, those threatened by war, violence or poverty. The organization itself bases its actions on being ethical and objective and impartial. The true idea behind DWB is supporting and helping people, not necessarily governments or any political objective. Still that doesn't mean they are politically inactive or impotent, far from it. In 1985 they publicly objected to the Ethiopian government moving thousands of individuals, most recently DWB was adamant in calling for the international community to recognize the atrocities happening in Darfur.

In the end, DWB is continually working to provide high quality health care to the third world through its 27,000 members. The idea that only those with money should be treated is ludicrous, and goes against everything which doctors should stand for. In the end, it really is about the patient. If only others would remember what the Hippocratic Oath actually says....

Todays speaker is Nick Lawson, current Director of Director of Field Human Resources for Doctors Without Borders. This man began work in 1997 as logistical and administrative expert in southern Sudan during a civil war. During his time with DWB he has held 11 other positions and supported everything from wars to natural disasters. Prior to joining the DWB organization, Mr. Lawson worked in a variety of other fields in both Australia and internationally.

Representative from India YES program

2009-03-10T14:28:00.003-08:00

YES (Youth Exchange and Study) Program is an innovative high school exchange program funded by the U.S. Department of State's Burearu of Educational and Cultural Affairs. The program has been described as follows: "This public diplomacy initiative builds bridges of international understanding, especially between Americans and people in countries with significant Muslim populations."

There are currently YES students in Alaska, and AFS Alaska (the foreign exchange program) expects to sponsor three students in the upcoming school year. The students may be coming from: Egypt, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Mozambique, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Thailand or Turkey.

A representative of the YES program from India will be visiting Anchorage March 23, 24, 25 and is available to talk with anyone who is interested in learning about this program, hosting students and working to foster international cultural understanding.

Please let me know if anyone is interested in meeting or discussing the YES program.
Thank you,

Nancy Wainwright
AFS Alaska
volunteer Support Coordinator
345-7666

Come find out more about the program Doctors Without Borders on Friday March 13th

2009-03-02T10:58:00.004-09:00

Have you ever wanted to know more about the program Doctors Without Borders? Come to the Alaska World Affairs Council program on Friday the 13th of March to hear:

Nick Lawson, Director of Field Human Resources, Doctors Without Borders/ Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)

Nick will be speaking about - “Managing an Emergency: Behind the Scenes at Doctors Without Borders”

Friday, March 13th, 2009 – Hilton Hotel
Doors open at 11:30 a.m. - Program begins at 12:00 p.m.

For Reservations
Please RSVP by Wednesday, March 11th to the Alaska World Affairs Council
by telephone 276-8038 or by email to info@alaskaworldaffairs.org .
Lunch Program $20 for Members - $25 for Non-Members - $6 for Coffee

Nicholas Lawson, Director of Field Human Resources for MSF-USA, began working for the organization in 1997 as logistical and administrative expert in an MSF project in southern Sudan, during that country’s brutal civil war. Since then he has held 11 other positions within the organization, which have taken him to humanitarian hotspots like Afghanistan, Burundi, East Timor, and Malawi. Over his years of experience with the organization, he has risen through the organizational ranks from logistician, to field coordinator, logistical coordinator, and finally head of mission. Nick’s extensive field experience prepared him for the headquarter role of Recruitment Officer for Field Human Resources at MSF-Australia in Sydney. Today, he continues to use these skills to lead the New York-based human resources team that recruits and places American in MSF projects.

Prior to joining MSF in January 1997, Nick worked in the finance, construction, education, and hospitality industries, both in Australia and internationally. He studied Anthropology at the University of Western Australia.

For more information about Doctors Without Borders, please visit http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/

-Lise Falskow

Links to CSPAN recordings of some National Conference Presentations

2009-03-02T10:48:00.003-09:00

I'm back in Anchorage. 70 degrees and SoCal beaches/hiking in Malibu Canyon yesterday. Jet travel is an amazing thing...

Several members of the Alaska World Affairs Council attended the National Conference 19-20 Feb 2009 in Washington DC. CSPAN-2 taped four of the presentations from the conference, the topics and URLs to access the videos are below:

Sheikha Lubna al Qasimi, UAE Minister of Foreign Trade - http://www.c-span.org/Watch/watch.aspx?MediaId=HP-A-15680

David Stafford, Northrop Grumman - The Economic Impact of Climate Change - http://www.c-span.org/Watch/watch.aspx?MediaId=HP-A-15631

Dr. Charles MacCormack, Save the Children - The Global Food Crisis - http://www.c-span.org/Watch/watch.aspx?MediaId=HP-A-15632

Jagdish Bhagwati, author of In Defense of Globalization - Trade in the Obama Era - http://www.c-span.org/Watch/watch.aspx?MediaId=HP-A-15633

-Keith

General Carrol H. Chandler

2009-01-08T22:04:00.005-09:00

January 9th, 2009
This week the Alaska World Affairs Counsel presents General Carrol H. Chandler, presenting "An Airman's Perspective: Executing Air, Space and Cyber Power To Fly, Fight and Win in the Pacific". This should provide interesting insights into the military persepective on conflicts in the Pacific. General Chandler is presently the current Commander, Pacific Air Forces.
The general graduated in 1974 from the United States Air Force Academy and has commanded a numbered air force, two fighter wings, a support group and a fighter squadron. Previous to his current assignment as Commander of PACAF, Gen. Chandler completed two tours at the Pentagon, as well as two tours at Headquarters Pacific Air Forces. Some of the generals experience in the Pacific was gained in his prior command. Prior to assuming his current position the general served as Commander of Alaska Command (ALCOM), Alaskan North American Aerospace Defense Command Region, 11th Air Force and Joint Task Force - Alaska which has its headquarters at Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska.

2008-12-10T17:07:00.008-09:00

Last Friday, as I assume everyone remembers we had David Shorr of The Stanley Foundation speaking. The topic, of course, dealt with foreign policy and the role that the US should fill in the international community. I wholeheartedly agree with Mr. Shorrs' call for a new and more relevant approach to internation events, both economic and military. It seems that as a nation we seem to be stuck in the age of "might makes right" and the voice of the international community doesn't seem to be a concern.

"The real crisis we face is not one of capitalism or American decline, but of globalization itself. As the problems spill over borders, the demand for common action has gone up. But the institutions and mechanisms to make it happen are in decline."
-David Shorr

With growing globalization the world really is becoming a much smaller place, one where states much come to a consensus on many actions before following through. That's not to say that goverments shouldn't be allowed to govern themselves, simply that any action with far reaching repercussions extending outside of the state should at least to some degree be influenced by those being effected. I would love to hear anyone's opinions on the US and our future role with the globalization of the world!

Next Friday at 11:30 am the doors open at the Anchorage Hilton to our speaker Dr. Karin von Hippel who will be discussing the "Root Causes of Terrorism". Dr. von Kippel is the codirector of the CSIS Post-Conflict Reconstruction Project and senior fellow with the CSIS International Security Program. Some of her more recent works include The terrorist exception: a response to Roger Scruton, A Counterradicalization Strategy for a New U.S. Administration, and Five Steps For Defeating Terrorism

Please excuse my brevity this week ladies and gentlemen, it is finals week and I have my final round of exams tomorrow. I hope to see you there this Friday!

John Darnall

Speakers for December

2008-11-17T14:30:00.009-09:00

David Shorr
Program Officer in Policy Analysis and Dialogue at the Stanley Foundation
"Uncharted Waters -- Steering US Foreign Policy Through Turbulent Times"

Biography:

David Shorr is a program officer in Policy Analysis and Dialogue at the Stanley Foundation, currently focusing on national security strategy and the US role in the world. He is coeditor of Bridging the Foreign Policy Divide (Routledge), which collects the results of one of the foundation’s projects. From 1986-2000, Shorr worked in Washington on a range of subjects including arms control, humanitarian crisis response, conflict resolution, and human rights. Over those years, he was an advocate with Human Rights First, Refugees International, Search for Common Ground, British American Security Information Council, Arms Control Association, and Physicians for Social Responsibility. Shorr is a contributor to the foreign policy blog Democracy Arsenal. He has published essays in the journals Survival, Policy Review, Connecticut Journal of International Law, and Helsinki Monitor as well as opinion pieces in the New York Times, Christian Science Monitor, Des Moines Register, The Globalist, Cedar Rapids Gazette, Iowa City Press-Citizen, Philadelphia Inquirer, Newsday, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and Houston Post.

Shorr received his B.A. from Brown University and masters in public administration from Harvard's Kennedy School of Government. He is also associate lecturer at the University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point, where he teaches US foreign policy. A lifelong fan of pop music, Shorr has played guest DJ twice on NPR’s World Café with his themed “Top 5” song sets.

Dr. Karin von Hippel

Co-Director of the CSIS Post Conflict Reconstruction Projectand Senior Fellow with the CSIS Inter'national Security Program

"Root Causes of Terrorism"

Biography:

Karin von Hippel is co-director of the CSIS Post-Conflict Reconstruction Project and senior fellow with the CSIS International Security Program. Previously, she was a senior research fellow at the Centre for Defense Studies, King’s College London, and spent several years working for the United Nations and the European Union in Somalia and Kosovo.

In 2004 and 2005, she participated in two major studies for the UN—one on UN peacekeeping and the second on the UN humanitarian system. Also in 2004, she was part of a small team funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development to investigate the development potential of Somali remittances. In 2002, she advised the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development on the role of development cooperation in discovering the root causes of terrorism. Since then, she has participated in numerous conferences and working groups on the subject in Africa, Europe, and North America. She also directed a project on European counterterrorist reforms funded by the MacArthur Foundation and edited the volume Europe Confronts Terrorism (Palgrave Macmillan, 2005).

She was a member of Project Unicorn, a counterterrorism police advisory panel in London. Additional publications include Democracy by Force (Cambridge, 2000), which was short-listed for the Westminster Medal in Military History; "Report on Integrated Missions: Practical Perspectives and Recommendations" (UN ECHA Core Group, 2005); "Counter Radicalization Development Assistance" (Danish Institute for International Studies, 2006); "Blurring of Mandates in Somalia" in Humanitarian Diplomacy: Practitioners and Their Craft (UN University Press, 2007); and "A Counterradicalization Strategy for a New U.S. Administration" in The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social July 2008. She received her Ph.D. in international relations from the London School of Economics, her M.St. from Oxford University, and her B.A. from Yale University.

Speakers for November

2008-11-07T15:48:00.006-09:00

November 14th, 2008

Qubad Talabani
Son of the President of Iraq
Kurdistan Regional Government's Representative to the United States
"The Other Iraq"

Biography:

Qubad Talabani serves as the Representative of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to the United States.
In that capacity, Mr. Talabani works closely with the U.S. Government, the media and research institutions providing critical analysis and up-to-date information about the situation in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region.
In the aftermath of Operation Iraqi Freedom in spring 2003, he served for one year as a Senior Foreign Relations officer for the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) (a leading Kurdish political party in Iraq), operating mainly out of Baghdad and Suleimani. In that position, he worked closely with the U.S-led Coalition Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance (ORHA), and was the PUK’s top liaison to the Coalition after it became the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA). In addition, while in Iraq, Mr. Talabani was a key PUK negotiator during the drafting of the Transitional Administrative Law (TAL), Iraq’s first post-Saddam constitution.
During the period 2001 - 2003, Mr. Talabani served first as a Special Assistant to the then PUK Representative in Washington and then later he served as the Deputy PUK Representative in Washington D.C.
Mr. Talabani is frequently interviewed by the popular press and other publications. He has appeared numerous times to discuss Kurdish and Iraqi issues on major television networks including: CNN, BBC, FOX News, and other American and international networks.
Mr. Talabani’s family has been involved in Kurdish politics for decades. His father, Jalal Talabani, is the President of the Republic of Iraq and Secretary General of the PUK.
Mr. Talabani studied in London and holds a B.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering.
He lives with his wife Sherri Kraham in Washington, D.C.

Speakers for October 2008

2008-11-07T14:42:00.011-09:00

Friday, October 10th, 2008

Nadia Hijab

Senior Fellow at Institute for Palestine Studies
"Palestinian-Israeli Peace, an Agenda for the Next President"

Biography:

Nadia Hijab, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Palestine Studies. The Institute is an independent non-profit research organization whose flagship Journal of Palestine Studies, co-published with the University of California Press, is a leading resource on the Arab-Israeli conflict.
Hijab is a frequent commentator on the media, including BBC World, and has appeared on the Lehrer Newshour. She is a regular public speaker and was recently the 2007 George F. Kennan co-panelist at the Wisconsin Institute for World Affairs. Hijabs first book, Womanpower: The Arab debate on women at work (1988) was published by Cambridge University Press. She co-authored Citizens Apart: A Portrait of Palestinians in Israel (I. B. Tauris 1990).
She was Editor-in-Chief of the London-based Middle East magazine before moving to New York in 1989 to join the United Nations, where she served as a senior development officer. She resigned from the UN in 2000 to establish her own consulting business on human rights, human development, and gender, Development Analysis and Communication Services. She is a past president of the Association of Arab American University Graduates.

Friday, October 17th, 2008

Dr. Michael Papazian
Chair, Department of Religion and Philosophy at Berry College
"After Nine Decades: The Enduring Legacy of the Armenian Genocide"

Biography:

Michael Papazian is associate professor of philosophy and chair of the Department of Religion and Philosophy at Berry College. He has taught at Berry since 1998 and has also served as the director of Berry's Honors Program. He teaches the general education philosophy courses as well as several upper-level courses: Ancient and Medieval Philosophy, Modern Philosophy, Philosophy of Law, Symbolic Logic. He also teaches one religion course: New Testament Greek.
He received his bachelor's degree in 1987 from the Johns Hopkins University. He then got his master's degree in philosophy from the University of Virginia after completing a thesis on mathematical and modal realism. He went on to complete his Ph.D. in philosophy at Virginia in 1995 with a dissertation on the role of truth and intuition in rationality. In addition to his study of contemporary metaphysics and philosophical logic, he also pursued his interest in ancient philosophy at Virginia. In order to research the early Armenian translations of and commentaries on Greek philosophical texts, he studied the classical Armenian language at Oxford University. He received a Master of Studies degree in classical Armenian from Oxford in 1995.
Dr. Papazian has completed three books concerned with Armenian studies. His translation of the medieval theologian Eghishe's commentary on Genesis has been published by the Matenadaran Library of Ancient Manuscripts in 2004. A book on the history of Armenian Christianity as well as a translation of an eighth century Armenian commentary on the Gospels are in press. Dr. Papazian has also published numerous journal articles and given presentations on a range of topics including Stoic logic and metaphysics, the medieval Aristotelian commentary tradition, the medieval Armenian biblical commentary tradition, the morality of war, terrorism, and the theology of sin and redemption.

Friday, October 24th, 2008

A Panel Discussion
"Future of Korea"

Panelists are:

Embassy Rep: Chang-Hyun Yoon
First Secretary, Economic Section
Embassy of the Republic of Korea

Biography:

Chang-Hyun Yoon has been working in the Embassy of the Republic of Korea since February 2008. Before he came to this position, he worked in the Office of Korea-U.S Free Trade Agreement in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade of the Republic of Korea. He also worked in the Asia-Pacific Trade Division, the Economic Cooperation Division, the Trade and Investment Promotion Division of the Ministry. Chang-Hyun Yoon earned Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from the Korea University in 1998 and Master’s Degree in International Relations from the School of International Relations and Pacific Studies, University of California in 2004.

State Department Rep: Sherri Holliday-Sklar
Republic of Korea Unit Chief
U.S. Department of State
Biography:

Sherri Holliday-Sklar began working on the Korea Desk in the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs at the State Department in July 2008. Before coming to the Korea Desk she was Political/Economic Section Chief at the U.S. Consulate in Toronto. She has also served as Political Section Chief in Baku, Azerbaijan; Political Officer/Vice-Consul in Singapore; and General Services Officer in Sofia, Bulgaria. At the State Department in Washington, she has worked as Senior Benelux Officer, Pacific Islands Desk Officer, and Export Control Action Officer. She speaks Azerbaijani and Bulgarian. Sherri Holliday-Sklar earned Bachelor of Arts degrees in History and Political Science from the University of Kansas in 1985 and a Master of Arts degree in Public Affairs from the University of Minnesota in 1988. She also completed a Command and Staff College course of post-graduate study at the Naval War College in 2002.

Charles L. (Jack) Pritchard
Biography:

Charles L. (Jack) Pritchard is the President of the Korea Economic Institute (KEI) in Washington. Prior to joining KEI, he was a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington, DC from September 2003 until February 2006. At Brookings, he focused on U.S. policy toward North Korea as well as the evolving nature of the United States-Japan foreign and security relationship. Ambassador Pritchard served as ambassador and special envoy for negotiations to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and United States representative to the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization in the administration of President George W. Bush from April 2001 until September 2003. Previously, he served as Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs and Senior Director for Asian Affairs in the administration of President William J. Clinton. During the Clinton administration, Ambassador Pritchard was also the Director of Asian Affairs in the National Security Council and deputy chief negotiator for the Four Party Peace Talks, which aimed at reducing the tensions on the Korean Peninsula. Ambassador Pritchard is a former United States Army officer and attaché in Tokyo, Japan. He received a B.A. in political science from Mercer University, Macon, Georgia; an M.A. in international studies from the University of Hawaii; and a diploma from the Japanese National Institute for Defense Studies in Tokyo.

Friday, October 31st, 2008

Dr. Jim Murphy
Rasmuson Chair of Economics at University of Alaska Anchorage
"Natural Resource Management in the Developing World"

Biography:

Dr. James Murphy succeeds Nobel laureate Vernon Smith as the second Rasmuson Chair of Economics at the University of Alaska Anchorage. Dr. Murphy’s research focuses on the use of experimental methods to address environmental policy and natural resource management issues. His recent research includes:
+ A multi-year project conducting field experiments in Colombia to understand how rural communities manage small-scale natural resources
+An NSF-funded project to study subsistence harvests in Alaska and Far East Russia,
+A project funded by the USEPA to investigate issues related to enforcement of and compliance with environmental regulations
+Design of water markets in California
+A series of studies to investigate biases in non-market valuation techniques