President's Letter: Remembering Bob Fischer; Council of the Month; May KNOW NOW on the Arctic; Council Leadership Meeting Agenda and Reception Speaker; Key Programs at Councils;
Cover to Cover
With Marvin Kalb; WACA's New Flickr Page; Councils in the News + More!
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Dear Council Colleagues, Friends, and Supporters:
For the second month in a row, I have very sad news to share about a dearly departed colleague:
Robert A. Fischer, Executive Director Emeritus of the World Affairs Council of St. Louis, passed away April 29. He was 82. A native of St. Louis, Bob dedicated himself to improving his city and broader community during his career in business, nonprofit service, and philanthropy by advancing cross-cultural awareness and understanding.
Bob was an excellent contributor to the Council network as a member of the WACA National Board of Directors for much of my presidency. When he stepped down last year in order to care for his beloved wife of 59 years, Annabelle, he reminded me: “Having served for 16 years as the WAC St. Louis Executive Director, that is only two years shorter than my 18 years at IBM during my regular business career, the World Affairs Councils has occupied a major segment of my working life and I have enormous respect for what Councils individually and collectively accomplish.”
Under Bob’s remarkable leadership, the Council established the “International Humanitarian of the Year” award to recognize an individual or institution from the St. Louis region that accomplished extraordinary work to favorably impact a global humanitarian crisis. The Council’s Chinese New Year’s Celebration is another popular annual event and an important fundraiser, which I was privileged to participate in four years ago.
When Bob retired as Executive Director, the Mayor of St. Louis declared March 2, 2018, as “Robert A. Fischer Day.” This
video highlights the recollections of colleagues and community partners. To recognize his many contributions to our network as Council leader and Board director, I hereby declare May 2019 “Robert A. Fischer Month.”
As I traveled last week after WACA’s Academic WorldQuest weekend – to attend special NATO-related programs at WAC Greater Hampton Roads and WAC Philadelphia, and to participate in a Boston gathering of New England WAC leaders - I reflected a great deal on my friendship with Bob and what all of our Council leaders and colleagues invest day in and day out over the years. I invite you to contemplate that also, and in so doing let us keep Annabelle, her and Bob’s five children, and their six grandchildren in our thoughts and prayers.
Sincerely,
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Bill Clifford, WACA President and CEO
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Council of the Month - WAC Greater Hampton Roads
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The World Affairs Council of Greater Hampton Roads hosted their traditional
NATO Festival Banquet on April 29 at the conclusion of the
NATO Festival Week in Norfolk, Virginia, NATO's home in North America. The keynote speaker for this 70th anniversary celebration was
U.S. Ambassador to NATO Kay Bailey Hutchison, who addressed the challenges and future direction of the Alliance. Attending with her in the sold-out ballroom were 14 other member-country ambassadors to NATO, the
Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, the
Mayor of Norfolk, NATO and U.S. general and flag officers, and Hampton Roads citizens and students.
Jim Falk, President and CEO of
WAC Dallas/Fort Worth, and a group of 20 Council members also attended.
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Tomorrow: KNOW NOW Explores "After the Arctic Ice Melts"
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Register now for WACA's
KNOW NOW conference call on
Tuesday, May 7, at 2:00-2:30 pm ET, featuring
Hon. Fran Ulmer, Chair of the U.S. Arctic Research Commission. The Arctic has been warming almost twice as quickly as the rest of the planet, and the consequences are global. Join WACA for a conversation with Ulmer and
Alaska WAC CEO
Lise Falskow about the Arctic, climate change, and the intersections of environmental science and policy.
KNOW NOW
on Podcast
KNOW NOW with documentary photographer
Greg Constantine.
Listen as Constantine discussed the challenges and ethical implications of documenting war, atrocity, and statelessness with
WorldOregon's
Tim DuRoche.
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Uzra Zeya to Speak at WACA Council Leadership Meeting Reception
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WACA and the International Relations Council (IRC) are pleased to announce that
Uzra Zeya, CEO and President of
Alliance for Peacebuilding, will speak at the
Friday,
June 14
reception during the semi-annual
Council Leadership and WACA Board Meetings in Kansas City, MO. We are grateful to
IRC Board Director Holly Nielsen, who will host this reception in her home.
Uzra Zeya leads a network of over 100 organizations working in 153 countries to end conflict through peaceful means. Over the course of a distinguished, 27-year diplomatic career, Ms. Zeya championed a more just, peaceful and sustainable world across five continents. As Chargé d’Affaires and Deputy Chief of Mission at U.S. Embassy Paris from 2014 to 2017, she led the U.S. response to three major terror attacks and forged unprecedented cooperation with France in combating terrorism in Africa and the Middle East, countering Russian aggression and malign influence in Europe, and mobilizing global action to confront climate change.
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Working Agenda Now Ready! Council Leadership Meeting in Kansas City
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The World Affairs Councils of America will convene its semi-annual
Council Leadership and WACA Board Meetings in Kansas City, MO on
June 13-15. Thank you to the
International Relations Council for hosting.
This event is free for Council staff and board members!
The Working Agenda (
subject to change
) is now available! Please see it on our website
here or download a
copy.
WACA has
secured a discounted hotel block at the beautiful
Ambassador Hotel
in downtown Kansas City. Register
here to attend the Meetings.
Click
here to see the meeting flyer for more details and other special opportunities!
Check back periodically for the latest updates.
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This Week in the WACA Network
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Jin Jin
President and CEO
Atlanta International Education Group
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Walter Berbrick
Founding Director, Arctic Studies Group U.S. Naval War College
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Ambassador (ret.) Charles P. Ries
Vice President, Int'l, RAND Corporation
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Nicole Benjamin-Fink
Founder, Conservation Beyond Borders
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WACA's National Speaker Database Needs You!
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We have recently debuted WACA's
Speaker Database 2.0. In this new iteration, we have expanded our list of speakers and made it
easier than ever for you, as Council staff and board members, to engage with it.
We want your speakers! Please submit your speakers through the "
Submit Your Speakers" button on our website.
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You need to have an account through our website in order to view and interact with the database and submit your speakers.
To check if you have an account, please visit your
Council Member page on the WACA website and see if you are listed as a staff or board member. If you are not, you will not be able to interact with the database yet.
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May
Cover to Cover
Features Marvin Kalb's
Enemy of the People
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Cover to Cover
on Podcast
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Secretary James A. Baker, III to Keynote the WACA 2019 Conference
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Secretary James A. Baker, III will deliver the Opening Luncheon Keynote at the
WACA National Conference Ambassadors Luncheon on
Wednesday, November 6. WACA will present its inaugural International Service Award to Secretary Baker, recognizing his outstanding leadership and contributions to advancing cooperation among countries and the international community.
Secretary Baker has served in senior government positions under three U.S. Presidents as the nation's 61st Secretary of State under President George H. W. Bush; the 67th Secretary of the Treasury and White House Chief of Staff under President Ronald Reagan; and also as White House Chief of Staff and Senior Counselor to President Bush. Long active in American presidential politics, Mr. Baker led presidential campaigns for Presidents Ford, Reagan, and Bush over the course of five consecutive presidential elections.
Mr. Baker is presently a senior partner in the law firm of Baker Botts. He is Honorary Chairman of the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy at Rice University and serves on the board of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.
The WACA 2019 National Conference:
Eight Forces Reshaping the Global Economy will be held at the Mayflower Hotel,
November 6-8, 2019, in Washington DC. We will share early bird pricing in the coming days.
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Purchase Your Early Bird Conference Tickets!
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The
2019 Conference website will debut this summer, where you can learn about Conference speakers and the agenda and purchase tickets. Until then, you may send us a check for your tickets using Early Bird prices. Click
here to view ticket pricing and download the purchase form.
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Debuting WACA's New Flickr Page!
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Check out
WACA's new
Flickr page for access to all team and event photos from our
Carlos and Malú Alvarez 2019 Academic WorldQuest National Competition weekend!
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WorldOregon Presents International Speaker Series
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WorldOregon welcomes
Jaha Dukureh to the Portland'5 Newmark Theatre on
Tuesday, May 14, as part of the 2019 International Speaker Series. The Council began its 2019
Welcome to the World International Speaker series last month featuring the
Hon. Julian Castro. Next up are:
Farah Pandith and
Erica Fernandez.
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World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth
Montana World Affairs Council
World Affairs Council of Philadelphia
World Affairs Council of Harrisburg
World Affairs Council of Charlotte
World Affairs Council of Atlanta
Utah Council for Citizen Diplomacy
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Travel the World with WAC Philadelphia
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Travel with Council Leaders - hear them lecture on Travel the World tours from the World Affairs Council of Philadelphia!
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2019 travel schedule includes trips to:
- Michelle Harpenau, Executive Director, World Affairs Council of Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, Springtime in Provence & Burgundy: May 15-23, 2019
- Dr. Carla Thorson, Senior Vice President of Programs, World Affairs, Northern California, Arctic Expedition: June 21 - July 1, 2019
- Dr. Jerry Leach, former WACA President, Journey Through Britain: Sept. 7-20, 2019
- Mimi Gregory, Vice President and Program Chairman, Naples Council on World Affairs, Sicily by Sail: Oct. 10-18, 2019
- Derrick Olsen, President, WorldOregon, Trade Routes of Coastal Iberia: Oct. 13-21, 2019
- Jacqueline Miller, President & CEO, World Affairs Council of Seattle, Passage Along the Danube River: Oct. 12-24, 2019
- Craig Snyder, President & CEO, World Affairs Council of Philadelphia, Exploring Saudi Arabia & Qatar: Nov. 7-17, 2019
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World Affairs Councils of America | 202-833-4557
1200 18th Street NW, Suite 902, Washington, DC 20036
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