Dear Colleagues and Supporters,

Just as it was energizing to spend time with more than 200 of you in person at the WACA 2021 National Conference last November, I marveled at the engagement at the World Affairs Council of Upstate’s March 29-31 Conference. In speaking formally and informally with the audience members in Greenville and Spartanburg, SC – terrific turnouts and compelling sessions – it was clear how vital our mission remains and the value each and every Council delivers to communities nationwide.

The WACA Board of Directors and National Office staff are keen to capitalize on the momentum of in-person (and virtual) programming as we all emerge from the pandemic. To whit:

  • WACA is pleased to announce the of hiring of Kaela Rider, a middle school social studies teacher in Jacksonville, FL as our Global Education Coordinator. Kaela will attend the Carlos and Malú Alvarez 2022 Academic WorldQuest National Competition in DC and will officially join our staff on June 1. We look forward to Kaela’s connecting with you!

  • Meanwhile, the WACA Board’s Finance Committee has been diligently working on the selection of an investment advisory firm for the Alvarez’s generous $10 million endowment gift for sustaining WACA National Office operations. After thorough sets of interviews with more than a half dozen firms, we have formalized a relationship with Vanguard Institutional Advisory Services that will lead to prudent investment of the endowment in the months ahead.

  • Now, we begin a new phase: Under the guidance of the WACA Board’s Governance Committee and the leadership of IRC Kansas City’s Matthew Hughes, WACA is launching a “Listening Tour” as part of the process for eventually deploying the gift. WACA Board members and key stakeholders will be contacting Council leaders in the next several weeks to ask prepared questions designed to guide WACA in delivering greater value and services to the network.

On behalf of the Board, I want to convey how important your leadership and input is for this process to be successful. Our goal is to present the initial feedback from this Listening Tour for our Board Meeting on June 11.

That meeting will immediately follow Council Leadership meetings June 9-10 in Colorado Springs. I have just signed a contract with The Antler’s, a downtown hotel, and will be sending a reservation link shortly. The Colorado Springs World Affairs Council is assisting with the agenda – and we look forward to seeing many of you in person two months from now in the Rockies!

Warm regards,
Bill Clifford
President and CEO
Evgeny Afineevsky
Oscar-nominated Director
Amb. Kirsten Hillman
Canada's Ambassador to U.S.
Richard Fontaine
CEO of CNAS
Paul Donovan
Chief Economist
UBS Wealth Management
Kevin Rudd
President and CEO, Asia Society
Fmr. Prime Minister of Australia
Amb. (Ret.) Nirupama Rao
Fmr. Indian Ambassador to the U.S., China, and Sri Lanka
The World Affairs Councils of America is pleased to continue our collaboration with the Korea Economic Institute of America on our Engage America: Future of Korea program series. The speaker program focuses on the diplomatic, political, economic, and cultural circumstances on the Korean Peninsula, as well as U.S.-Korea relations.

WACA invites applications for the Future of Korea 2022 from Member Councils, and up to eight will be selected to participate. Through KEI's generous support, WACA will provide $2,000 plus travel expenses to each selected Council. Interested Councils are asked to submit a completed Application Form to Kathleen Euler by the Friday, April 15 deadline.
Global Minnesota will host Amb. Ross Wilson, Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul (January 2020-August 2021), and his wife, Margo Squire, a former Foreign Service Officer, for a special edition of Embassy Row Live! on Wednesday, April 13 at 6:00 PM CT (7:00 PM ET).

Join Margo Squire and Amb. Wilson, former Board Chair of Global Minnesota, as they share experiences from their historic and eventful time in Afghanistan, as well as their thoughts on the social and economic advances that improved the lives of Afghanistan’s people and what it might take for those advances to persist in the current political climate.

WACA is proud to serve as a promotional partner for this Embassy Row Live! event.
Global Minnesota is proud to host Facia Boyenoh Harris from Liberia and Roegchanda Pascoe from South Africa, recipients of the 2022 U.S. Secretary of State’s International Women of Courage Award.
 
Established in 2007, the annual U.S. Secretary of State’s International Women of Courage Award honors women around the globe who have exemplified exceptional courage and leadership in advocating for human rights, women’s equality, and social progress, often at great personal risk. This is the only U.S. Department of State award that pays tribute to emerging women leaders worldwide. Join Global Minnesota as they host these two brave women for a virtual social and roundtable Friday, April 15 at 11:00 AM CT/12:00 PM ET!
Celebrating its 22nd season, WorldOregon’s International Speaker Series puts you virtually in the room with the global leaders, visionaries, and inspiring voices that are changing our world. This year’s series, presented exclusively online, features four of the globe’s brightest, boldest thinkers and advocates discussing race and social justice, sovereign rights, confronting aggression, and resilience and humanity in the face of crisis. 

Register and tune in to hear from Soledad O'Brien (April 20), Rebecca Nagle (May 10), Fiona Hill (May 26), and Lynsey Addario (June 7).
In his latest book, Dismantling Global White Privilege: Equity for a Post-Western World, Chandran Nair takes a comprehensive look at the destructive influence of global White privilege.

Nair examines its impact on geopolitics, the reframing of world history, international business practices, and soft-power spheres like entertainment, news media, sports, and fashion.

Joyce Davis, Executive Director of WAC Harrisburg, will moderate this program about creating a new space for discourse on worldwide racial equality.

Register now and join the conversation on Thursday, April 21 from 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM ET.
In partnership with WACA, WorldQuest Weekly is produced by the Tennessee World Affairs Council, which offers customized subscriptions to the quiz for Council members. Most of the questions are drawn from both WACA's Weekly World News Update, and a curated news Twitter feed (@TNWAC). Contact pat@tnwac.org or visit tnwac.org/quiz for details.

Due to technical difficulties, winners will be announced next week.
WorldOregon seeks to hire a Program Officer, International Visitor Program. Learn more.
World Affairs Council of Jacksonville seeks to hire a Director of Operations and Administration. Learn more.
International Institute of Buffalo seeks to hire an Executive Assistant. Learn more.
Monday 4/11

Los Angeles World Affairs Council & Town Hall hosts Evgeny Afineevsky, Oscar and Emmy-nominated director, for “The Ukrainian People’s Fight for Freedom - Past, Present, and Future”

World Affairs Council of the Mid-Hudson Valley presents “Great Decisions: Climate Change” (In person)

Tuesday 4/12

World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth hosts Richard Fontaine, CEO of the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), for "The U.S. and the World: Where Are We Heading in 2022?" (In person)

World Affairs Council of Sonoma County hosts Keith McCormick, career U.S. diplomat, for “War and Beyond: How Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine Will Reshape the World Order” 

World Affairs Council of Seattle hosts Amb. Kirsten Hillman, Canada's Ambassador to the U.S., for "Reviewing the Canada-U.S. Relationship"

International Relations Council (Kansas City) hosts Gary Espinas, Regional Program Lead for Europe with the Institute for Security Governance at Defense Security Cooperation Agency, for “What's Happening in Ukraine?”

World Affairs Council of Atlanta hosts Dov Wilker, Regional Director of American Jewish Committee, for “Young Americans Combating Antisemitism” (In person)

World Boston hosts Olivia Seltzer, founder of The Cramm, for “Cramm This Book: So You Know WTF Is Going On in the World Today”

Southeast Connecticut World Affairs Council hosts Marci Shore, Professor at Yale University, for “The War in Ukraine” 

Utah Council for Citizen Diplomacy hosts Mahmoud Chouki, Moroccan musician, for "Using Music to Bridge Cultural Divides"

Columbia World Affairs Council presents “Happy Hour and Reception for French Students” (In person)

Wednesday 4/13

World Affairs Council of Connecticut hosts Paul Donovan, Chief Economist of UBS Wealth Management, for "The Global Economy"

World Affairs Council of Greater Houston hosts William Hurd, former Republican Congressman and CIA Officer, for "American Reboot: An Idealist's Guide to Getting Things Done" (In person)

WorldDenver hosts Hanne Dalmut, Senior Director of Partnerships at Concordia, for "The Importance of Maintaining a Global Perspective as a Young Professional" (In person) 

Global Minnesota hosts Amb. (Ret.) Ross Wilson, former U.S. Chargé d’Affaires to Afghanistan, and Margo Squire, former diplomat at the U.S State Department, for “Service in Afghanistan"

World Affairs Council of Tennessee hosts Amb. (Ret.) John Kornblum, Senior Advisor at CSIS, and Liana Fix, Programme Director at Körber-Stiftung IP, for "The War in Ukraine: How Will This End?"

WorldOregon hosts Rizwana Hasan, attorney and environmentalist from Bangladesh, for “International Women of Courage: A Journey of Justice” 

WorldOregon hosts Gary Gerstle, Professor at University of Cambridge, for “The Rise and Fall of the Neoliberal Order: America & the World in the Free Market Era”

World Affairs Council of Greater Reading hosts Laura López Calonge, Visiting Instructor at Albright College, for “​​The Immigration Crisis in Europe: The Case of Spain”

World Affairs Council of Philadelphia hosts Kevin Rudd, President and CEO of Asia Society Policy Institute and former Prime Minister of Australia, for “The Dangers of a Catastrophic Conflict between the US and China”

World Affairs Council Upstate hosts Akan Malici, Professor at Furman University, for “America’s Fiasco in Afghanistan and Beyond” (In person)

International Relations Council (Kansas City) hosts a panel of experts for “Fulbrighters Speak: How A Year Abroad Changed Their Lives”

Montana World Affairs Council hosts a panel of experts for “19th Annual International Conference on Central & Southwest Asia”

Santa Fe Council on International Relations presents “Global Citizen Summit 2022”

International Affairs Forum (Traverse City) presents “Ukraine Relief Fundraiser” (In person)

Thursday 4/14

World Affairs Council of Orange County hosts Amb. (Ret.) Nirupama Rao, former Indian Ambassador to China, Sri Lanka and the U.S., for “Fractured Himalaya: Understanding India-China Bilateral Relations”

World Affairs Council of Greater Houston hosts Richard Fontaine, CEO of the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), for "Russia's War With Ukraine: Has Putin Forever Changed the Post-Cold War Order?" (In person)

World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth hosts William Hurd, former Republican Congressman and CIA Officer, for “American Reboot: An Idealist’s Guide to Getting Big Things Done” (In person)

San Diego World Affairs Council hosts Corinne Goria, Professor of Political Science at USD, for “Sewn Together: Global Storytelling for Social Justice”

International Relations Council (Kansas City) hosts Judy Ancel, President of the Board of Directors of The Cross Border Network for Justice and Solidarity, for “News & Views: Honduras” 

World Affairs Council of Harrisburg hosts Evan Ellis, Research Professor at the U.S. Army War College Strategic Studies Institute, for “Great Decisions: Drug Policy in Latin America”

World Affairs Council of Hilton Head presents “Book Club: The Perfect Weapon: War, Sabotage and Fear in the Cyber Age” (In person)

Indiana Council on World Affairs presents “Happy Hour” (In person)

Montana World Affairs Council presents “Trivia at Imagine Nation Brewery” (In person)

Friday 4/15

Global Minnesota hosts Facia Boyenoh Harris and Roegchanda Pascoe, recipients of the 2022 U.S. Secretary of State’s International Women of Courage Award, for “International Women of Courage Virtual Roundtable” 

WorldOregon hosts a panel of experts for “Interrupting Violence: From the Holocaust to Modern Hate Groups”

World Affairs Council of Harrisburg presents “Iftar Dinner” (In person)