Embassy Row Live! Armenia; WACA Climate Week Recordings; Several Councils Are Hiring; WACA's Engage America Series; Council Highlights; and more!

Embassy Row Live! Armenia's Ambassador to the U.S.

Armenian Ambassador Varuzhan Nersesyan will address key topics in Armenian current affairs and international relations in conversation with WorldBoston and WACA on Wednesday, May 5, at 3:00-4:00 PM ET for Embassy Row Live! Armenia has been in U.S. news recently because of President Biden's recent labelling of the killing of 1.5 million Armenians by the Ottoman Empire between 1915-23 as genocide. Other important subjects may include regional tensions with Azerbaijan and the role of Russia, COVID recovery, upcoming June parliamentary elections, and relations with the U.S. and Turkey.

The WorldAffairs podcast, brought to you by World Affairs in San Francisco, is your guide to a changing world. Sound-rich stories and in-depth interviews give you the tools and context to navigate across borders and ideologies. Hosts Ray Suarez, Teresa Cotsirilos, and Council CEO Philip Yun help you make sense of a changing world, one story at a time.

The podcast comes out every Monday. Check out today's: Facing Our Climate Future. Check out last week's: 20 Years in Afghanistan: What's Next?.

The next WACA Best Practices Session will take place Thursday, May 13, at 3:00 PM ET and will expand on April's conversation of diversity, equity, and inclusion by looking at diversity in programming and young professionals. Whereas last month's discussion focused on internal best practices, this session will center on an external lens - how to diversify programming and audiences.

Speakers will include Valerin Lopez DeFrank, Business Manager at the World Affairs Council of Atlanta, and Katie Ferman, Senior Program Officer, International Visitors at the Cleveland Council on World Affairs, with more details to be announced soon.

Make sure to mark your calendars for Thursday, May 13, at 3:00 PM ET.

Note: Registration is open to Council staff and boards. More than one person per Council may attend.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion - Recording and Materials

Member Councils can access last week's WACA Best Practices Session: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion recording and materials by visiting the WACA Members Resources webpage and selecting the "Best Practices Meetings" square. Many thanks to WACA Board Member Derrick Olsen and his team at WorldOregon.

WACA's Engage America Speaker Series

Join us as we welcome Barron Segar, President and CEO of World Food Program USA; Amanda Hoey, CEO of the Oregon Wheat Growers Commission/Oregon Wheat Growers League; Jeremy Everett, founder and executive director of the Baylor Collaborative on Hunger and Poverty for a rich and engaging discussion about global and domestic food insecurity and Oregon’s contributions to aid, hunger-relief, and the global food supply.

Cover to Cover: The Water Defenders

WACA's April Cover to Cover webinar on Wednesday, April 28 featured co-authors Robin Broad, Professor of International Development at American University, and John Cavanagh, Executive Director of the Institute for Policy Studies. The Water Defenders tells the inspirational story of an El Salvadorian community that took on an int'l mining corporation at seemingly insurmountable odds and won not one but two historic victories.

Did you miss last week's WACA Climate Week 2021? Watch the recordings and subscribe to WACA's Climate Week YouTube playlist.

"California's Future Power Grid:

"The Impact of Climate Innovation on the Road to Net Zero"

"Advocating for Climate Change"

The Carlos and Malú Alvarez 2020-2021 Academic WorldQuest National Competition was held virtually on April 17, 2021. More than 400 students competed as part of 105 teams representing 38 Councils across the U.S. Thank you to all participating Councils - we can't wait to do it again next year!

(1) Plano West Senior High School (Team 2)

(2) Allen High School

(3) Rampart High School

The WACA Nominating Committee, chaired by Derrick Olsen, President of WorldOregon, is pleased to present the nominees listed below for election to the WACA National Board of Directors. Board terms will commence July 1, 2021, which marks the start of our fiscal year (a Board term is three years).

Please respond by email vote to Laura Duncan at [email protected] no later than Friday, May 28.

During this most challenging pandemic year, WACA has benefitted from exceptional National Board leadership. Early in the current fiscal year, the smooth transition to a new chairman, Glenn Creamer, senior managing director emeritus at Providence Equity, was guided by our outgoing chairman, Ambassador Roman Popadiuk, the Executive Committee, and all Directors. Glenn, the Board, and the National Office led by President and CEO Bill Clifford always welcome your ideas and feedback.

We are grateful for the service of the above mentioned National Board directors. All former Board Members are eligible to be renominated after a one-year hiatus. 

Is your Council hiring? Reach out to Laura Duncan at [email protected] to include your job posting in WACA's newsletter and on WACA's Employment at Member Councils webpage.

Columbus Council on World Affairs is hiring a Communications Manager. Learn more on their website.

International Relations Council (Kansas City) is hiring a Global Education Coordinator. Learn more on their website.

Vermont Council on World Affairs is hiring for two positions: External Affairs Manager and Americorps VISTA. Learn more on their website.

Monday 5/3 

World Affairs Council of Atlanta hosts Brad Raffensperger, Georgia Secretary of State, for “Secretary Raffensperger & the New Georgia Voting Law.” 

World Affairs Council of Seattle hosts author Nicole Perlroth to discuss her book This is How They Tell Me the World Ends. 

World Affairs Council of Central Illinois hosts professor Susan Stokes, University of Chicago, for “Why Protest.” 

World Affairs Council of San Antonio hosts a panel of experts for “Iraq: From Occupation to Partnership.” 

WorldBoston hosts Catherine Mann, Global Chief Economist, Citibank, for “The End of Globalization.” 

World Affairs Council of Atlanta hosts Bea Perez, Senior Vice President and Global Chief Communications at Coca-Cola, for “Coca-Cola Invests in Female Entrepreneurs.” 

Tennessee World Affairs Council hosts professor Mark Katz, George Mason University, for “Global Dialogue | Russia & Iran.” 

World Affairs Council of Western Massachusetts hosts Peter Abbott, British Consul General to New England, for “UK CG Peter Abbott on Global Britain and the UK-U.S. Special Relationship.” 

World Affairs Council of Maine hosts professor Charles Norchi, University of Maine, for “The Coldest War: Toward a Return to Great Power Competition in the Arctic?” 

Cleveland Council on World Affairs hosts Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley, Former U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Malta, and Robert S. Ford, Senior Fellow at the Middle East Institute, for “10 Years of War in Syria.” 

World Affairs Council of Western Michigan hosts Joseph Comartin, Consulate General of Canada to Detroit, and Maryscott Greenwood, CEO of the Canadian American Business Council, for “Canada, U.S., and Michigan: Mapping the Business Landscape.” 

Utah Council of Citizen Diplomacy hosts Charles Person, one of two living Freedom Riders, and author Richard Rooker to discuss his book Buses Are a Comin': A Freedom Rider's Journey. 

World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth hosts Susannah Jacob, former speechwriter to President Barack Obama, to discuss her book The Secret Life of the White House. 

Baltimore Council on Foreign Affairs hosts Charles Kupchan, Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, for “Future U.S. Global Engagement, Where, When, and Why?” 

World Affairs Council of Greater Houston hosts Andrea Kendall-Taylor, fmr. Deputy National Intelligence Officer at the NIC & CIA senior analyst, for “Russia & Putin’s Threat to the Global Order & How the West Can Push Back.” 

World Affairs Council of Connecticut hosts Roy Kamphausen, President of the National Bureau of Asian Research, for “China and the U.S. Across Strategic Domains.” 

Columbia World Affairs Council hosts Marvin Kalb, a non-resident senior fellow with the Foreign Policy Program at Brookings, to discuss his book Assignment Russia: Becoming a Foreign Correspondent in the Crucible of the Cold War. 

World Affairs Council of Seattle hosts author Nicole Perlroth to discuss her book This is How They Tell Me the World Ends.  

Los Angeles World Affairs Council & Town Hall hosts a panel of experts for “A Conversation with Robert Reffkin: A Special Mother’s Day Tribute to Mothers and Mentors.” 

World Affairs (Northern California) hosts a panel of experts for “Should the U.S. Vaccinate Mexico?” 

Utah Council for Citizen Diplomacy hosts Judith Goldstein, Founder & CEO of Humanity in Action, for “Racism & the Rise of Nationalism.”  

International Relations Council (Kansas City) hosts Connie Belciug, Executive Director of Children's Emergency Relief International (CERI), for “Global Child Protection.” 

Tennessee World Affairs Council hosts professor Ji Young Choi, Ohio Wesleyan University, for “Global Supply Chains and National Security.” 

Santa Fe Council on International Relations hosts Todd Greentree, fmr. U.S. Foreign Service Officer, and Vicki Huddleston, fmr. Ambassador to Mail and Madagascar,  for “Afghanistan: Forever War?” 

Los Angeles World Affairs Council & Town Hall hosts Leo Wolinsky, Director of CalMatters, and Ron Brownstein, Senior Editor of The Atlantic, to discuss Brownstein's new book Rock Me on the Water. 

World Affairs Council of Orange Country hosts Jack Devine, fmr. Deputy Director of the CIA’s operations outside the U.S., and Jonathan Ward, internationally recognized expert on Chinese global strategy, for “Russia and China: Preparing America for Our Greatest Strategic Challenge.” 

World Affairs Council of St. Louis hosts George Zsidisin, Director of the Supply Chain Risk and Resilience Research Institute, University of Missouri—St. Louis, for “Global Supply Chains and National Security.” 

World Affairs Council of Charlotte hosts Rodney Murray, Managing Principal at DHG, and Tom Tollerton, Managing Director at DHG, for “Protecting Your Company and Yourself Against Global Cyber Attacks.” 

World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth hosts Michael Pompeo, 70th U.S. Secretary of State, for “Members Only Livestream.” 

Alaska World Affairs Council hosts Alonzo Fulgham, Executive Vice President Defense/Homeland for VIATEQ Corporation of McLean, for “The Value of Water: Investing in Water Infrastructure for Climate Adaption.” 

World Affairs Council of Hilton Head hosts Mathew J. Burrows, Director of the Atlantic Council’s Foresight, Strategy, and Risks Initiative in the Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, for “Russia and China: Benign Friendship or Malignant Gamechanger?” 

World Affairs Council of Greater Houston hosts Bruce Fulin, Vice President of Crude Oil Business Development at Argus Media, for “Houston’s Vital Role in the Global Commodities World.” 

Global Minnesota hosts “Urban Expedition Virtual: Laos.”