The World Affairs Council of Western Michigan (WACWM) empowers the people and organizations of West Michigan to engage thoughtfully with the world. WACWM does this with the help of 50 regional businesses, 11 colleges and universities, and many community partners. Together, we seek to provide programming that is credible, objective, relevant, civil, and compelling. To change the world, we believe, one must first know the world. You can learn more about what we do at www.worldmichigan.org.
World Affairs Council of Western Michigan
1700 Fulton Street East
Grand Rapids, MI 49506
616-776-1721
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Michael Van Denend, Executive Director, Email
Erica Kubik, Director of Programming, Email
Dixie Anderson, Executive Director Emeritus, Email
September 23 | The U.S. and China: Where Do We Go From Here?
While many believe the bilateral relationship between the U.S. and China is “too big to fail," it has been in a free downward spiral from President Donald Trump to President Joe Biden. The challenges facing the world, including ongoing pandemic mitigation and its economic fallout, climate change, nuclear proliferation, global security, and much more demand the world’s two largest economies to work together. Neither side has found a way to coexist peacefully and competitively.
What does this mean to the business communities on both sides of the ocean? How will it impact global peace and prosperity? Join us for a conversation with Dr. Yawei Liu, Senior Advisor on China at the Carter Center. He’ll discuss this consequential relationship from both the U.S. and Chinese perspective and what can be done to stabilize and improve it.
Dr. Yawei Liu is the senior advisor for China at The Carter Center and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He is also the associate director of the China Research Center in Atlanta and an adjunct professor of Political Science at Emory University.
September 27 | The Afghanistan Withdrawal
The complexity of foreign affairs is on display as President Biden withdraws troops from Afghanistan after twenty years of war. What is the context for the rapid takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban? What next steps can our military and diplomatic corps take to protect U.S. interests and global human rights? What lessons can we learn from the two decades in the country to make our foreign policy more effective in the future?
Taking us on a deep dive into the region will be Adam Weinstein, a research fellow at the Quincy Institute and former Marine deployed to Afghanistan in 2012. He will provide a non-partisan assessment of the current situation as well as offer his perspective on the future of American foreign policy.
Join us for this important conversation.
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