National Update March 2006
Document Actions
WACA National Update
Monthly Newsletter of the World Affairs Council System
March 2006
In this issue...
Fourth Academic WorldQuest This Weekend
New Foreign Policy 500
Philadelpia and Asilomar
Leadership Mission to Taiwan
Featuring a Council: Grand Rapids' Great Decisions
NewsNotes
On April 1, 200 high school students from across the council system will compete in the fourth national Academic WorldQuest competition. This year the competition will be held at L'Enfant Plaza Hotel in Washington, DC.
The Academic WorldQuest weekend consists of more than the competition on Saturday afternoon. On Friday night the teams will get a chance to meet each other during a dinner and mixer followed by a night tour of downtown Washington.
On Saturday morning, participants will hear from David Sadoff of the White House about working in international careers. After the competition students will get a chance to relax with a pizza dinner followed by a trip to see the
Capitol Steps.
If you have any questions about this year's event, contact Melissa Lawrence
at melissa@worldaffairscouncils.org.
The 2006 edition of Foreign Policy 500 is printed and will soon be sent out to the council system.
Foreign Policy 500 identifies the most influential 500 people in US foreign policy. The people included vary from government officials to those working in NGOs to those working in International Organizations.
It will be available on the national website in the passworded section as of March 30.
The book is intended to engage foreign policy leaders in council activities.
Council Conferences: Asilomar and Philadelphia
On May 1, the Philadelphia council will host a conference on ISLAM AND THE WEST in honor of Prof. Bernard Lewis. Up for discussion will be how the United States can work with representatives of the Islamic world through diplomacy, citizen exchange, and commercial relations.
Speakers include Henry Kissinger, Sen. Joe Biden, Francis Fukuyama, Fouad Ajami, and Judy Woodruff. The conference is sponsored by the Pew Charitable Trusts and Glenmede.
For more information, see the Philadelphia website at http://www.wacphila.org/programs/conferences.html.
Commemorating 60 years, the San Francisco councils's Asilomar Conference on the Monterey Peninsula will be on May 5-7 and will examine GLOBAL CHANGE: THE BALANCE OF POWER 2020. The focus will be on what the geopolitical landscape will look like in 2020 and where the United States fits. The speakers will include Michael Mandelbaum, Amb. J. Stapleton Roy, David Sanger, and Bates Gill.
For more information, see the San Francisco website at http://www.itsyourworld.org/general/asilomar2006_new2.php
Taiwan will again be hosting a WACA delegation in April. This is our fourth mission to Taiwan. All trips have been hosted by TECRO.
Our Vice Chairman Maria Zammit will lead the trip and be accompanied by Cheryl Fisher of San Diego, C. Matthew Fox of Indianapolis, Ward Fredericks of Palm Springs, William W. Galvin III of Stamford, Mimi Chapin Gregory of Naples, Robert M. Harris of Atlanta, Hans L. Kuster of Providence, Fredrick H. Lawson of Monterey Bay, and Larry Taylor of St. Louis.
Great Decisions in Grand Rapids
One of the best Great Decisions programs in the country, the Grand Rapids council hosts a speaker series Monday nights in February and March. The events follow up a showing of the series on Sunday mornings on a local PBS station.
The events are hosted as a partnership with six area colleges - Aquinas, Calvin, Davenport, Grand Rapids Community, Grand Valley State, and Western Michigan. Each college has a Great Decisions class. Students of the colleges are given free admission.
The average attendance is approximately 250 people. The most popular program was their first on Civil Liberties.
* Reminder: If you pay your council dues by March 31, you receive a 10% discount.
* South Asia in Transition will be available in April. For more information see the Atlanta council website at http://www.scis.org.
* Tunisia Trip Reports will be mailed out with Foreign Policy 500 in early April.
* WACA President Jerry Leach just returned from a trip to Saudi Arabia as a guest of the Saudi government and sponsored by the National Council on US-Arab Relations. If you are interested in speaker or program ideas on Saudi Arabia contact Jerry at ncwao@aol.com or at 202-833-4557.
* Congratulations to WACA Research and Communications Director Brent Hessel and his wife Barbara on the birth of their son Fuller Michael.
"You can observe a lot by just watching."
- Yogi Berra -
World Affairs Councils of America
1800 K Street, Suite 1014
Washington, DC 20006
P. 202-833-4557
F. 202-833-4555
www.worldaffairscouncils.org
Summer Teacher Workshop on Persia