President's Letter; THURSDAY on KNOW NOW: Global Nuclear Threats; Meet Kansas City's Mayor at the WACA Council Leadership Meeting; Councils' Star Speakers; Japan Rearmed on
Cover to Cover
; Wunderbar Together Grant Program Series; MIT Solve Funding Opportunity; Global Minnesota Is Hiring
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Dear Friends and Colleagues,
This past weekend, I attended my 40th high school reunion and my daughter’s high school graduation ceremony in New England. These moments are filled with great camaraderie, a bittersweet sense of the passing of time, inspirational messages, and conversations about the world, an individual’s place in it, and what we can do collectively to shape it for the better.
The head of my school spoke to an alumni convocation in the chapel of the four core qualities of leadership that infuse the academic, athletic, and special programs, as well as spiritual life on campus. For students and faculty alike, these are: fairness, initiative, dependability, and empathy.
My daughter’s principal praised the Class of 2019 for its inspiration to the wider community “in the way your class has been able to come together to support one another, to care for each other, to respect each other, to protect each other, and to cheer for each other.”
I myself draw great inspiration from students of any age, anywhere, and particularly the young people who engage with World Affairs Councils in many different ways. You can read about a few of them in the “Councils in the News” section towards the bottom of this email, such as Air Academy High School senior
Nidhi Unnikrishnan, who interacted with African dignitaries hosted by the
Colorado Springs WAC, and Terry Parker High School freshman
Salma Soubai, whose documentary on the Iran Hostage Crisis includes an interview with
WAC Jacksonville’s Ambassador Marilyn McAfee. All of these stories are worth reading.
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Meanwhile,
Mateo Young, pictured right, of the University of Texas-Arlington arrived today in Brazil for a month-long study tour during which he will meet with university students, business and government leaders, and others who are making a positive change both locally and globally. Mateo participated in the WACA-Liaison America
Essay & Video Contest and won
Liaison America’s Trent Argo International Scholarship for an immersive experience in culture, language, education, and international affairs in the city of Goiânia, Brazil.
The letters on my daughter’s graduation cap spell it out: “And Now the Adventure Begins!” Let’s stay tuned to our students’ experiences.
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Bill Clifford, WACA President and CEO
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THIS WEEK on KNOW NOW: Global Nuclear Threats -
Register Today!
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Register now for WACA's
KNOW NOW conference call on
Thursday, June 6, at 2:00-2:30 pm ET
, featuring
Joe Cirincione, President of
Ploughshares Fund.
There is a high risk that someone will use, by accident or design, one or more of the 17,000 nuclear weapons in the world today. Many thought such threats ended with the Cold War, but they remain an ongoing nightmare. Join leading U.S. nuclear weapons expert
Joe Cirincione as he discusses the major nuclear threats the world faces today and the debate over the best policies to counter them with
Tennessee WAC President and Founder
Patrick Ryan.
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Register Now!
WACA Council Leadership & Board Meetings
Thursday to Saturday,
June 13-15, 2019
Kansas City, Missouri
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The
International Relations Council (KC), led by Executive Director
Matthew Hughes, has arranged an amazing
AGENDA for the semi-annual
Council Leadership Meetings (
June 13-14)
and
WACA Board Meeting (
June 15)
in Kansas City, MO.
This program is free for Council staff and Board members! Click
here to see the meeting flyer;
check back for updates.
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Key Speakers and Special Guests
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President & Chair Emeritus, People to People Int'l
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President & CEO, Alliance for Peacebuilding
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Director, Midwest Center for Nonprofit Leadership
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Hotel Details:
WACA obtained a special group rate at the
Ambassador Hotel (1111 Grand Blvd., Kansas City, MO 64106).
NOTE: The discounted group rate has expired! You can still book your stay independently.
Optional Tours:
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This Week in the WACA Network
Scroll down to the Council Highlights section for more speaker and topic ideas!
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Richard Fontaine
CEO, Center for a New American Security
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Mireya Solís
Senior Fellow, Brookings Institution
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Rose Tang
Activist and Tiananmen Survivor
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Daniel Russel
Former Asst. Secretary of State, East Asian Affairs
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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.
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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CFR's Smith on
Japan Rearmed
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Wednesday, June 19
Sheila Smith, Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations
Japan’s U.S.-imposed postwar constitution renounced the use of offensive military force, but, as Smith shows, a nuclear North Korea and an increasingly assertive China have the Japanese rethinking that commitment, and their reliance on United States security. In
Japan Rearmed, Smith argues that Japan is not only responding to increasing threats from North Korean missiles and Chinese maritime activities but also reevaluating its dependence on the United States. No longer convinced that they can rely on Americans to defend Japan, Tokyo’s political leaders are now confronting the possibility that they may need to prepare the nation’s military for war.
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Wunderbar Together: Council Events on the Germany-U.S. Relationship
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WAC Harrisburg Hosts Consul General David Gill
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Columbia WAC Debuts Exhibition:
Stars & Stripes Over the Rhine
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The exhibit (on display now through
Sunday, June 30) highlights the often forgotten history of the U.S. occupation of Germany after World War I and illustrates the multifaceted German-American relationship between 1918-1923.
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Peoria WAC Features H.E. Helga Barth
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MIT Solve Offers $1.5 Million in Funding to 2019 Challenge Team Winners
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MIT Solve's
Community-Driven Innovation Challenge Leadership Group is a marketplace for social impact, and is focused on finding tech entrepreneurs from around the world to tackle global challenges and drive lasting, transformational change. In addition to the Community Driven Innovation track I am part of, there are 3 other challenges focusing on Early Childhood Development, Circular Economy and Healthy Cities.
MIT Solve has more than
$1.5 million in funding available for 2019 Solver teams. The deadline to post a solution is
July 1. Solve judging teams across the four categories will then pick the winning class that will be announced at
Solve event at the UN General Assembly this September. For more information and to submit a solution please visit the
MIT Solve challenges website.
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Global Minnesota Is Hiring!
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Seeking an enthusiastic and detail-oriented Accounting Manager to handle aspects of Global Minnesota’s accounting function, including daily operations, monitoring accounting data, producing timely and accurate financial reports and statements, participating in annual organization-wide financial planning, and advising the executive team on financial matters.
Apply here.
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Purchase Your Early Bird 2019 National 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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World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth
World Affairs (Northern California)
World Affairs Council of Greater Reading
Tennessee World Affairs Council
International Institute of Buffalo
Montana World Affairs Council
World Affairs Council of Charleston
World Affairs Council of Jacksonville
World Affairs Council of Western Michigan
Windham World Affairs Council
Indiana Council on World Affairs
Savannah Council on World Affairs
World Affairs Council of Atlanta
WorldDenver
World Affairs Forum (Stamford)
World Affairs Council of Inland Southern California
World Affairs Council of Charlotte
International Center of the Capital Region
Colorado Springs World Affairs Council
Santa Fe Council on International Relations
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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:
- Dr. Carla Thorson, Senior Vice President of Programs, World Affairs, Northern California, Arctic Expedition: June 21 - July 1, 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
- Ambassador Mark Johnson, former Vice Chair, World Affairs Councils of America, Egypt & the Eternal Nile: January 28-February 11, 2020
- Ambassador Philip Hughes, former President, World Affairs Councils of America, South American Tapestry: February 27-March 15, 2020
- Ambassador Heather Hodges, President and Ambassador in Residence, Cleveland Council on World Affairs, Barcelona: April 18-26, 2020
- Megan Torrey, Chief Executive Officer, World Affairs Council of Hartford, Himalayan Kingdoms: Nepal & Bhutan: April 28-May 12, 2020
- Bill Clifford, President & CEO, World Affairs Councils of America, China, Tibet and the Yangtze: May 9-24, 2020
- Lise Falskow, President & CEO, Alaska World Affairs Council, Scottish Isles and Norwegian Fjords: May 16 – 24, 2020
- Dr. Pamela Zeiser, Education Liaison, World Affairs Council of Jacksonville, Berlin Uncovered: May 24-31, 2020
- Jim Falk, President & CEO, World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth, Arctic Expedition: Voyage Under the Midnight Sun: June 9-19, 2020
- Ljubomir (LJ) Stambuk, President & CEO, World Affairs Council of Charlotte, Sailing Ancient Trade Routes: Helsinki to Copenhagen: June 27-July 9, 2020
- Mimi Gregory, Vice President and Program Chairman, Naples Council on World Affairs, Cruising the Adriatic and Aegean Seas: September 9-17, 2020
- Don Samford, Chairman of the Education Outreach and Program Committees, Peoria Area World Affairs Council, Legendary Turkey: October 2-16, 2020
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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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