President's Letter (corrected
link
); June WACA National Board Meeting; Star Speakers at Councils; Council of the Month; June
Cover to Cover
; Columbus Council and WACA Partner on June 25 Program; Watch WACA's Keynote Program With USIP President Lindborg, plus more Council News and Highlights!
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Dear Colleagues, Supporters, and Friends:
If I could ask for a moment of silence for George Floyd….
The scenes and conversations we have experienced – via television, social media, and in person – in the week since Mr. Floyd’s horrific murder at the hands of four Minneapolis police officers, one of whom has been charged, have been by turns heart-rending, disturbing, confusing, and at times inspiring.
America’s crisis of racial injustice, layered on top of and intertwined with the global pandemic and economic crises, begs for leadership at the national level.
I can’t help but think of President Trump’s jarring
inaugural address, whose tone and America First policy prescriptions contrasted sharply with those of his modern predecessors from both parties.
“This American carnage stops right here and stops right now,” he proclaimed, with Presidents Carter, Clinton, Bush (43), Obama, and Chief Justice Roberts looking on.
Elaborating grievances domestic and foreign, he then said: “A new national pride will stir our souls, lift our sights, and heal our divisions.”
In WACA’s
February 2017 newsletter, I concluded: “Question: is it plausible that America's greatness today will devolve into carnage if the experiences and [executive] orders like we have seen over the last 10 days multiply in the weeks and months ahead?”
This president today on a conference call with governors called them “weak” in the face of largely peaceful protests and exhorted them to “dominate” the protestors by deploying the state’s force. Just six weeks ago, this president was encouraging protesters of a different sort, some who brandished arms as they marched toward state capitols, with all-caps tweets: “LIBERATE MINNESOTA,” “LIBERATE MICHIGAN,” and “LIBERATE VIRGINIA.”
And we can be guided by wise people of vast experience, such as
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, whose weekend
op-ed in the Los Angeles Times, offered this trenchant observation:
"
I don't want to see stores looted or even buildings burn. But African-Americans have been living in a burning building for many years, choking on the smoke as the flames burn closer and closer. Racism in America is like dust in the air. It seems invisible –
even if you're choking on it - until you let the sun in. Then you see it everywhere."
World Affairs Councils have a role to play. We can help clear the air. As public conveners, we can help defuse and clarify an angry, tense, or confused situation by frank discussion. We must act intentionally. I urge everyone to peruse this
Bridgespan Group resource, which provides a wealth of information that goes beyond its important theme of racial equity and the COVID-19 pandemic.
It is long past time to come to grips with centuries of American history and see it for what it is. American primacy in the world has become tarnished for many reasons.
Adversaries will seek advantage, and the best way to position ourselves is to get our house in order. But it shouldn’t take great power competition to motivate us. Racial justice must be a top domestic and international priority for its own sake – are we going to
Do the Right Thing?
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Bill Clifford
President and CEO
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Spring WACA National Board Meeting -
June 11
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Announcing: Council CEOs Zoom hosted by
Bill Clifford on
Thursday, June 4, at 2:00 PM ET, to discuss reopening strategies, programming updates, CxC Ideas Summit survey results, and more. This call will be helpful for the upcoming WACA National Board Meeting.
*Zoom details and a registration link will be provided to Council executives tomorrow.
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Star Speakers This Week on Councils' Virtual Programming
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Amb. (ret.) Frank Wisner, former U.S. Ambassador to India
Roxane Farmanfarmaian, Dir.
University of Cambridge
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Tamanna Salikuddin
Director, South Asia Programs
U.S. Institute of Peace
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Philip Yun
President and CEO
World Affairs
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Amb. (ret.) Thomas Pickering
Former U.S. Ambassador to Russia, El Salvador, and the UN
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Congressman Adam Schiff
U.S. Congressman (D-CA)
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Nisha Blackwell
Founder and CEO
Knotzland Bowties Co.
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*Scroll down to the Council Highlights section to view all programs from Councils this week!
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WACA is pleased to announce
WorldDenver as June Council of the Month!
The Council debuted its brand new logo and website redesign
today, June 1, and we congratulate them for this fantastic rebranding. Under the leadership of Executive Director
John Krieger, WorldDenver carries out its mission to strengthen and expand the community of engaged global citizens and organizations in Colorado through education, cross-cultural exchange, and personal interaction with international leaders, professionals, and students.
Stay tuned throughout the month of June for weekly highlights from WorldDenver!
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Columbus Council and WACA Partner on June 25 Program
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After the success of the
CxC: Amplified
Putting the World Back Together Ideas Summit last month, WACA is delighted to amplify the voices of Councils around the country.
To view CxC Summit recordings including the
Summit highlights video package
, check out WACA's
YouTube page here.
(We will be adding more session videos as we receive them from Councils.)
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June
Cover to Cover
: Mira Rapp-Hooper on America's Alliances
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Mira Rapp-Hooper reveals the remarkable success of America’s unprecedented system of alliances developed during the Cold War. Today, China and Russia seek to break America’s alliances through conflict and non-military erosion. Meanwhile, U.S. politicians and voters are increasingly skeptical of alliances’ costs and benefits and believe we may be better off without them. But what if the alliance system is a victim of its own quiet success? Rapp-Hooper argues that America’s national security requires alliances that deter and defend against military and non-military conflict alike.
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Cover to Cover and KNOW NOW on Podcast
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Watch WACA's Keynote Program With USIP President Lindborg
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In light of the current pandemic and the unfortunate but necessary cancelation of the
Carlos and Malú Alvarez 2020 Academic WorldQuest National Competition
, Nancy addressed the students and teachers along with the national audience. She explored the unprecedented threats the coronavirus poses to fragile states and the important opportunities the pandemic offers to help fragile states recover better, as well as questions from the live audience. In case you missed it,
watch now
!
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WACA 2020
Engage America
Grant Awardees!
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Monday 6/1
Tuesday 6/2
World Affairs (Northern California) hosts
Ambassador (ret.) Samantha Power, Anna Lindh Professor of the Practice of Global Leadership and Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School, for “
The Education of an Idealist.”
World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth hosts
Ambassador (ret.) Frank Wisner, former U.S. Ambassador to Zambia, Egypt, the Philippines, and India, and
Roxane Farmanfarmaian, Director of International Studies and Global Politics at the University of Cambridge, for “
Iran, the U.S., and the COVID-19 Crisis.”
Montana World Affairs Council hosts
Alice Thomas, Executive Director of the Central Asia Institute, for “
Connect Montana.”
International Relations Council (Kansas City) hosts
Tamanna Salikuddin, Director of South Asia Programs at the United States Institute of Peace, for “
Conflict and Competition in South Asia.”
World Affairs Council of Atlanta hosts
J. Stephen Morrison, Senior Vice President & Director of the Gobal Health Policy Center at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, for “
COVID-19 Part II: What’s Next?”
Wednesday 6/3
Montana World Affairs Council hosts Board Member
Mary LaPorte and Executive Director
Ana Luise Ahern, EcoViva, for “
Connect Montana.”
WorldBoston hosts
John Gans, Director of Communications and Research at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perry World House Global Policy Center, for “
White House Warriors.”
World Affairs Council of New Hampshire hosts scholar and researcher
Martin Nekola for “
Heart of Europe.”
World Affairs Council of Greater Reading hosts political historian
Randall Fegley, Penn State Berks College, for “
Red Sea Security.”
Thursday 6/4
World Affairs Council of Charlotte hosts
Ambassador (ret.) Thomas Pickering, former U.S. Ambassador to Russia, India, Israel, El Salvador, Nigeria, Jordan, and the UN, and
Esfandyar
Batmanghelidj, Founder and Publisher of Bourse & Bazaar, for “
Oil, Sanctions, and COVID-19: What’s Next for the U.S. and Iran?”
Los Angeles World Affairs Council & Town Hall hosts
Congressman Adam Schiff (D-CA) for a
livestream event.
Montana World Affairs Council hosts
Lenka Beranova, Founder and Executive Director of Seeds for Dreams dba PLAYFWD, for “
Connect Montana.”
WorldOregon hosts
Francisco Palmieri, Senior Fellow at the Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, for “
COVID-19 & Latin America.”
Friday 6/5
World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth hosts
Jia Lynn Yang, Deputy National Editor for the New York Times, for “
On Immigration.”
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World Affairs Councils of America
World Affairs Council of Atlanta
Los Angeles World Affairs Council & Town Hall
World Affairs Council of Greater Reading
World Affairs Council of Dallas Fort/Worth
Upstate International
Savannah Council on World Affairs
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The World Affairs Councils of America is an independent, nonpartisan organization dedicated to engaging the public and leading global voices to better understand the world, America’s international role, and the policy choices that impact our daily lives and our future.
Your generous contributions will strengthen our capacity to support the World Affairs Council Network through educational and civic initiatives - any amount helps.
Your donation goes to:
- Academic WorldQuest Endowment
- Our flagship youth education program. We are 23% away from achieving our $1M goal!
- New Horizons Councils Fund
- Any monies donated to this fund are set aside only for World Affairs Councils' use
- New Horizons General Operations
- Help support WACA carry out its educational mission with initiatives such as the National Conference, Cover to Cover and KNOW NOW monthly conference calls, the Engage America Speaker Series, and general office operations
You can give in one of several ways:
- Pay with your credit card via the donation buttons at the bottom of this page
- Mail a check to the WACA National Office (1010 Vermont Avenue NW, Suite 516, Washington, DC 20005)
- Make a gift of appreciated stock
- Request a distribution from your Donor Advised Fund
- Check with your employer to see if they will match your gift!
With the passing of the CARES Act, most individual taxpayers will become eligible for significant tax benefits for charitable contributions made this year. Two of these benefits will be:
- A $300 Above-the-Line Charitable deduction, meaning that individuals who do not itemize their deductions will be eligible to claim up to $300 of charitable deductions in 2020, on top of the standard deduction
- Modified Limitations on Cash Charitable Contributions - for 2020, the 60% AGI limitation on cash contributions to 501(c)(3) organizations, such as WACA, is suspended
Click on the categories below to make a donation and view more information about the benefits of your contribution. We thank you for your support!
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Access Council Virtual Programming via WACA's Members-Only Portal
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WACA is busy preparing a number of additional resources for the Members-Only section! WACA strives to provide Councils with easy access to tools, guidelines, events, and more that add value to our Members both personally and professionally, to our Councils' overall operations, and to the Network as a whole. This is a top priority for the National Office, especially during the COVID-19 crisis.
That is why we've added two resource sections dedicated to COVID-19 related information and digital programming available to the public by Councils.
The goal is to make the Members-Only section a one-stop shop for all Council needs. However, these sections are only as good as the information contained within, so we are calling on all Councils to please submit any documentation per the categories below, or any other information helpful to the Network.
The Members-Only section is a private benefit for our Council Members. Please contact
Rachel Pastor at
rpastor@worldaffairscouncils.org for login details and account creation.
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COVID-19 Updates & Tracker
Health & Wellness
Educator Resources
- Ohio Council for the Social Studies Resource Document -- Bill Hilt, President/CEO, WAC Northwest Ohio
- To help alleviate some of concerns with distance learning and explaining the current health crisis, the list is a compilation of K-12 Social Studies lessons, activities, and resources. It also has guidelines for explaining COVID-19 to young people.
- Zoom CEO announcement of free platforms for K-12 schools
WACA Updates: Messages from President and CEO Bill Clifford
*To view Council Member Resources on the WACA website, you must be a Council leader, staff, or board member and have an account
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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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1010 Vermont Avenue NW, Suite 516, Washington, DC 20005
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