This Week | TNWAC

TNWAC This Week

June 17, 2021

Dear Members and Friends:

It has been a watershed week for the Biden Administration and U.S. foreign policy. The whirlwind agenda of summits with allies and adversaries have advanced the White House goals of: ensuring stability through leadership in international organizations like the G-7 and NATO, restoring confidence in American behavior and resolutely pushing back against a continually belligerent Russia under Vladimir Putin.

We look forward to sharing insights, perspectives and analysis of specialists in the coming weeks and months through our virtual programs and online content.

This week we have a long list of programs being offered around the World Affairs Councils of America network. Today you can talk with WACA President Bill Clifford in a foreign policy “mashup,” tackling a variety of current global issues. Also join the conversation hosted by WAC Charlotte, featuring General David Petraeus, on the questions surrounding America’s withdrawal from Afghanistan.

And this MUST SEE. If you missed the live stream of our Global Dialogue on Tuesday with Rick Steves, put that on your to-do list. It was a terrific program with Amanda Knarr of TNWAC’s Board moderating an important conversation about travel and knowing the world. Check it out, details below.

Wishes for a safe and prosperous week ahead.

Sincerely,

Patrick W. Ryan
Founding President, TNWAC

Thank you for your support of global affairs awareness and education!

MARK THE CALENDAR

A CONVERSATION WITH RICK STEVES

Travel authority Rick Steves talked with TNWAC Board Member Amanda Knarr Tuesday evening in a terrific conversation about: the impact of Covid-19 on international travel; prospects for post-pandemic travel; how travel affects people and their fears and ideas about the world; experiences and favorites of a legendary traveler and the value of travel and World Affairs Councils toward knowing the world. This is a MUST SEE program and you can watch it on our YouTube.com/TNWAC channel [here] or listen on our Podcast, wherever you get your Pods and on SoundCloud.com/TNWAC. [More]

AFGHANISTAN WITHDRAWAL | GEN. DAVID PETRAEUS

Last month, President Biden announced that the US would be withdrawing all troops from Afghanistan by September 11, 2021. Biden’s decision comes after an administration review of US options in Afghanistan, where peace talks have failed to advance and the Taliban remains a potent force despite two decades of efforts to defeat the militants and establish stable, democratic governance. The war has cost trillions of dollars in addition to the lives of more than 2,000 US service members. At least 100,000 Afghan civilians have been injured or killed. However, Washington is strongly divided on whether the withdrawal was the right decision. Join the World Affairs Council of Charlotte as we host General (ret.) David Petraeus, Director of the KKR Institute and former Commander of CENTCOM, ISAF, and Director of the CIA on Thursday, June 17, 2021. In collaboration with World Affairs Council of Charlotte. [Details/Register]

COMPETING FOR THE FUTURE

Your World Affairs Council is pleased to be a partner with the Connecticut World Affairs Council in offering the 2021 Global Security Forum: Competing for the Future, coming to you on October 1-2, 2021. At this forum generals, experts, and foreign leaders will convene to address the most critical global security issues of today and the opportunities of tomorrow. Look forward to details on this tremendous program and mark your calendar to participate. Learn more about the GSF HERE.

YOU SHOULD SPONSOR THESE PROGRAMS

We invite businesses, organizations and individuals to sponsor these events. It is through your support that we are able to bring quality global affairs programs to the community. Your sponsorship also highlights your commitment to education and global affairs awareness in the community. For information about sponsoring other programs and series of events contact Patrick Ryan, TNWAC President @ 931-261-2353, [email protected]

THIS WEEK AROUND THE NETWORK OF WORLD AFFAIRS COUNCILS

CHECK BELOW FOR DETAILS ON THESE PROGRAMS

Thursday 6/17

World Affairs Council of Pittsburgh hosts co-authors Amb. (ret.) John Limbert and Amb. (ret.) Marc Grossman to discuss their book in “How Does a Story Come to Life? Writing Believers: Love and Death in Tehran.”

World Affairs Council of Greater Houston hosts The Honorable Robert Gates, fmr. Secretary of Defense, for “Secretary Robert Gates: Exercise of Power.” (Simulcast)

World Affairs Council of Rhode Island hosts Professor Emerita Meredith Small, Cornell University, to discuss her latest book in “The Role of Venice in Creating Major Modern Inventions.”

Los Angeles World Affairs Councils & Town Hall hosts Professor Emeritus Abe Lowenthal, USC, and Robert Abernethy, Chairmen of American Standard Development, for “Latin America’s Changing International Role – A Conversation with Abe Lowenthal.”

World Affairs Council of Sonoma County hosts Professor Severin Borenstein, UC Berkeley, for “Climate Change… Designing Electricity Rates for an Equitable Energy Transition.”

World Affairs Council of St. Louis hosts Professor Jean-Germain Gros, University of Missouri-St. Louis, for “China’s Role in Africa.”

Friday 6/18

International Relations Council (Kansas City) hosts Kate Bartel, Assistant Language Teacher for JET Programme, for “Teaching English Abroad: Japan.”

Thank you for your support of global affairs awareness and education!

THANKS TO THE WORLD AFFAIRS COUNCILS OF AMERICA FOR COORDINATION OF WEEKLY PROGRAMS FROM AROUND THE NETWORK

THANKS TO OUR PARTNERS IN GLOBAL AFFAIRS AWARENESS AND EDUCATION OUTREACH

THE MISSION of the nonprofit, nonpartisan Tennessee World Affairs Council is to promote international awareness, understanding and connections to enhance the region’s global stature and to prepare Tennesseans to thrive in our increasingly complex and connected world.

THE VISION of the Tennessee World Affairs Council is a well-informed community that thinks critically about the world and the impact of global events.