Fall 2026 Events Intern
Sierra Origer is WACA’s Fall 2026 Events Intern. She is currently a senior at the University of Denver pursuing a degree in International Studies and Japanese. Sierra is passionate about international affairs with special interests in food justice, agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa, and Japan studies. She is excited to explore life in DC and learn from the WACA team.
Nicole Tisdale is founder and principal of Advocacy Blueprints LLC, which helps to make government more accessible to everyone through advocacy education, training, and strategy development. She boasts an expansive fifteen-plus year tenure as a national security attorney and Director at The White House – National Security Council, the U.S. Congress’ House Committee on Homeland Security, and numerous positions in civil society and academia. Her policy expertise encompasses crucial areas such as cybersecurity, counterintelligence, emerging threats, foreign malign influence campaigns, and artificial intelligence.
As the lead for the White House’s cybersecurity advocacy efforts before Congress, she led the creation of the $1 billion cybersecurity grant program and passage of the cyber incident reporting law, the most significant cybersecurity laws created in a decade. In Congress, Nicole created and managed more than 96 congressional hearings and passage of 354 bills through the House of Representatives, 80 of which became law.
Nicole is an influential voice and facilitator in global policy negotiations and dialogues. Over her career, Nicole has represented the U.S. in 40 international delegations across 28 countries. In the past three years alone, she has spoken at more than 80 conferences and workshops worldwide. She concurrently serves as senior advisor to several philanthropic CEOs, including Omidyar Network and craig newmark philanthropies and as a public policy consultant to corporations and the Aspen Institute’s digital and cyber program.
She also leads cyber policy initiatives—advocating for cyber equity protections for marginalized communities facing digital threats, and the Cyber Policy Leadership Institute, launching underrepresented groups into cyber policy careers. Her creation and commitment to the Cyber-Impact Policy Framework is evidenced by her writing The Hidden Injustice of Cyberattacks for WIRED Magazine and her creation and teaching “Digital Policy Advocacy for Marginalized Communities” at American University. Nicole believes passionately in civic engagement and the right to advocate, which is highlighted in her book “Right to Petition,” and her early advocacy for both the Mississippi Innocence Project and Mississippi Domestic Violence Legal Clinic.
A proud double alumna and attorney from The University of Mississippi, Nicole hails from Nettleton, MS. Beyond her professional achievements, she is an avid consumer of spy fiction, a frustrated golfer, and a sneakerhead.
Greg Forrest is Vice President of AI Foundations & Commercialization at Lockheed Martin. In this role, he leads the development of robust, scalable AI/ML capabilities and drives business growth through commercialization, strategic partnerships, and market expansion. Greg oversees a portfolio of initiatives, including Lockheed Martin’s AI Factory, Aimlabs, and AI Consulting, which provide critical engineering support and enable frictionless AI solution development and deployment. Greg also serves on the Board of Directors of Astris AI, a Lockheed Martin company.
With over 20 years of experience at Lockheed Martin and Sikorsky Aircraft, Greg has a proven track record of leading cutting-edge R&D, production programs, and corporate artificial intelligence strategy development. His expertise spans engineering & technology, program management, and digital transformation, with a passion for empowering Lockheed Martin to stay at the forefront of innovation in support of national security missions.
Elana DeLozier is a university educator and international political analyst specializing in Yemen, the Gulf States, and nuclear proliferation. She founded The Sage Institute for Foreign Affairs, a non-profit, to make foreign affairs and country expertise more accessible to all. She is the moderator of Gulf/2000, a long-standing expert community dedicated to Gulf, Iran, and Iraq affairs. Over her nearly two-decade career, she has been a senior fellow at a think tank in Washington D.C., where she regularly engaged with senior U.S., UN, and foreign government leaders in the Gulf as well as key stakeholders from all parties in Yemen; a political analyst and educator in the Middle East, including six years in the Gulf and two years in Lebanon; a counterterrorism analyst in New York City; and a senior research assistant at the Brookings Institution. She currently teaches graduate seminars at the University of Virginia and previously at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. She completed her graduate studies at Virginia Tech.
Aviva Rosenthal is the director of the Smithsonian Institution’s Office of Global Affairs. She manages a vast portfolio of strategic partnerships between the Smithsonian and international governments, foundations, NGOs, and other organizations, as well as collaborations with both the U.S. Department of State and the foreign diplomatic corps in Washington. She also oversees global programs, projects, and operational and risk mitigation for the Smithsonian’s engagement across art, history, culture, science, and education in and with over 120 countries.
Rosenthal has more than 25 years of diverse experience in government, business and the non-profit sector. She has traveled to almost 70 countries and has focused on public diplomacy, partnerships, and people-to-people connections in her career.
Before joining the Smithsonian in 2013, Rosenthal served as chief of staff to the Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy at the U.S. Department of State, which oversaw the bureaus that encompassed the United States’ communications with international audiences, cultural programming, academic grants, educational exchanges, social media and international visitor programs. Rosenthal brought to the State Department more than 10 years of experience directing various non-profits focused on promoting civic engagement through traveling exhibits, curriculum development, public relations, use of celebrity and corporate marketing partnerships.
Rosenthal began her career in Washington, D.C., as a special assistant to the President and deputy director of presidential scheduling at the White House.
Rosenthal graduated with a degree in international relations from the University of California, Davis, and spent a year studying at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, Israel. She serves on the board of ICOM-US and the advisory board of Global Ties U.S. and is a founding member of the Cultural Diplomacy Leadership Council at the Meridian International Center.
AJ Jones II is the Executive Vice President, Chief Strategic and Corporate Communications Officer at Monumental Sports and Entertainment (MSE) reporting to the Chairman and CEO. In this role, he oversees the development, execution and amplification of MSE’s brand and corporate narratives; corporate stakeholder engagement strategies; and the advancement of MSE’s corporate growth initiatives and implementation of its business objectives across the company’s media-entertainment and sports ecosystem including: National Basketball Association (NBA), National Hockey League (NHL), Women’s National Basketball Association (WBNA), professional esports gaming, Capital One Arena and other entertainment venues, and the MNMT media which is distributed on linear television and over-the-top (OTT) platforms. He also oversees all consumer, fan, employee, media-entertainment, and brand-experience communications, as well as corporate marketing, financial communications and investor relations.
Jones was named to the newly created position from Starbucks Coffee Company (NASDAQ: SBUX), where he served in multiple leadership roles, including Executive Vice President and Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, and Executive Vice President and Chief Communications and Public Affairs Officer. In those roles, Jones led the company’s global communications, partner (employee) communications and social media platforms, corporate and investor communications, brand-product communications and experiences, Starbucks Entertainment, global government affairs, Social Impact, and Starbucks Foundation teams worldwide. He also played a pivotal role in Starbucks’ global growth by fostering public-private partnerships to spearhead economic development. Additionally, Jones served as lead executive for the company’s Board of Directors Environmental, Partner, and Community Impact Committee, was an executive sponsor of the Armed Forces Partner Network, and was a governing member of the Global Brand Council.
Before joining Starbucks, he was the Chief Corporate Affairs & Communications Officer for Vanda Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: VNDA), a global biopharmaceutical company. Prior to this position, Jones served as a C-suite executive at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation – one of the largest philanthropic foundations in the world. He has also held senior executive roles at Fortune 500 companies, top-ranked consulting agencies, and government institutions.
Jones has worked internationally in Hong Kong, South Africa, Germany, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Nigeria, Switzerland and has extensive business development experience in emerging markets and in Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. He is actively involved in the Washington Economic Club, Executive Leadership Council, World Fifty Group, Lagrant Foundation, Blue Star Families and is an Executive Member of the Forbes Communications Council and Fast Company Executive Board member.
Ryan Crocker is a member of the Afghanistan War Commission, established by Congress to examine the key decisions made over two decades of engagement in Afghanistan and to develop recommendations and lessons learned. He is a Nonresident Senior Fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and holds the Distinguished Chair in Diplomacy and Security at RAND. Previous academic appointments have included Diplomat in Residence at Princeton University, inaugural Kissinger Fellow at Yale University, the James Schlesinger Distinguished Visiting Professor at the University of Virginia, and Texas A&M where he was Dean of the Bush School of Government.
He was a career Foreign Service Officer who served six times as an American Ambassador: Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Syria, Kuwait, and Lebanon. He serves on the Board of Advisors of No One Left Behind, an NGO dedicated to ensuring that America keeps its promises to Afghans and Iraqis who risked their lives to support us. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, in 2009.
Other recent awards include the West Point Association of Graduates Thayer Award in 2020 and the inaugural Bancroft Award, presented by the Naval Academy in 2016. Also in 2016, he was named an Honorary Fellow of the Literary and Historical Society at University College, Dublin where he was presented the annual James Joyce Award. He is an Honorary Marine.
Nilo Tabrizy is an Iran Correspondent for Reuters, where she covers Iran using open-source reporting methods. Previously, she was a Visual Forensics Reporter at the Washington Post, a video journalist at the New York Times, covering Iran, race and policing, and abortion access, and at Vice News covering drug policy and harm reduction. She is a winner of the Emmy Award for Outstanding Investigative Journalism: Long Form (2026), a Front Page Award for Online Investigative Reporting (2022), the POY 79 Award of Excellence (2021), the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Award (2016), a finalist for the 2025 Anthony Shadid Award for Journalism Ethics, and an Emmy nominee. Her first book was long listed for the National Book Award in Nonfiction (2025) in the US and the George Orwell Prize in Political Writing (2026) in the UK. Nilo received her M.S. in Journalism from Columbia University and her B.A. in Political Science and French from the University of British Columbia.
The Honorable Mark W. Menezes is President and Chief Executive Officer of the United States Energy Association. Through its membership, USEA represents 150 members across the U.S. energy sector from the largest Fortune 500 companies to small energy consulting firms.
In his role, Mr. Menezes represents the broad interests of the U.S. energy industry and interacts with domestic and international leaders to advance knowledge and seek partnerships to develop and enhance energy infrastructure worldwide.
The Honorable Mark W. Menezes is a nationally recognized energy attorney. As the former Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy, former senior executive with two major energy companies, and former Congressional Committee Chief Counsel, he’s a strategic advisor to Wall Street, businesses, and policymakers.
Mark W. Menezes is the founder of Global Sustainable Energy Advisors LLC, a strategic advisory firm to energy, technology and defense organizations. Mr. Menezes is an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown Law School teaching courses on energy law, policy, and climate change.
He is a former Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy, confirmed by the US Senate in a bipartisan vote of 79-16. As Deputy Secretary, he served as the Chief Operating Officer over an agency with 120,000 employees and contractors, a $34 billion budget, and management responsibilities of the 17 national labs, the nation’s nuclear weapons programs, and its environmental cleanup obligations from the Manhattan Project. Prior to being confirmed as Deputy Secretary, Mr. Menezes served as Under Secretary of Energy, receiving confirmation of the US Senate by voice vote. As Under Secretary, he was responsible for directing transformative energy progress and technology development through coordinated policy and budget planning, management, and innovation.
Prior to his federal executive branch service, Mr. Menezes was an executive at Berkshire Hathaway Energy after practicing law as a partner at Hunton & Williams LLP for ten years, heading its Energy and Infrastructure practice group. In his federal legislative branch service, Mr. Menezes was Chief Counsel, Energy and Environment, to the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce during which he oversaw the passage of the historic Energy Policy Act of 2005. Mr. Menezes has also held positions within the energy sector. Before his service with the House Energy & Commerce Committee, he was Vice President with Central and South West Corporation and upon its merger with American Electric Power, served as Vice President and Associate General Counsel for federal and state legislative and regulatory affairs.
For his service to the Department of Energy, Mr. Menezes was awarded its highest honor, the Secretary of Energy’s James R. Schlesinger Award. For his Congressional service, he was named in National Journal’s “Hill 100”—top Congressional staff for his work on both energy and environmental matters. He has testified numerous times before Congress, is a frequent speaker and lecturer before associations and civic groups, including legal education seminars where he has been called on to address the nation’s energy and environmental policies, utility restructuring, telecommunications, ethics, merger and acquisition practices, and regulatory and legislative processes. He has co-authored numerous articles, a practice manual published by West Publishing Company, and has been a contributor to network and cable TV broadcasts and quoted in the New York Times, Law360, Oil and Gas Journal, Politico, and other publications. He’s been listed in Best Lawyers in America 2013–2016, Corporate Counsel’s Top Lawyers 2006–2011, Washington Post’s Top Lawyers 2008–2016, and DC Super Lawyers 2012–2016.
Mr. Menezes is a graduate of Louisiana State University receiving both his undergraduate and juris doctor degrees. He is licensed to practice in D.C., Texas and Louisiana, and is a member of the U.S. Supreme Court Bar. Before being sworn in as the Under Secretary of Energy, he was a charter member Louisiana State University’s Energy Law Center, and was a member of the Board of Directors of the Congressional Chorus & American Youth Chorus, serving as its President for two years.
Sherri Goodman is a national security, energy and climate security leader, independent board director, and former senior defense official. She is the author of Threat Multiplier: Climate, Military Leadership, and the Fight for Global Security (Island Press, 2024), the story of the US military’s experience on the front lines of a changing frontier for energy and climate resilience.
Sherri Goodman serves as the Secretary General of the International Military Council on Climate and Security, which represents more than 40 military and national security organizations addressing the security risks of a changing climate. She is a Distinguished Fellow at the Atlantic Council and a Senior Associate at the Harvard Arctic Initiative. She was a senior fellow at the Wilson Center’s Environmental Change and Security Program and Polar Institute. She is a frequent public speaker and is credited with educating a generation of US military and government officials about the nexus between climate change and national security, coining the term “threat multiplier,” and fundamentally reshaping the national discourse on the topic.
Goodman is the founding board chair of the Council on Strategic Risks and Advisory Board Member of the Center for Climate & Security. She serves on the boards of the Atlantic Council and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. She is a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations, where she served as chair of the advisory board for the Council’s report on Governing Solar Geoengineering and on the Arctic Task Force. Goodman served as co-chair of the Commission on Nuclear Energy and American Leadership.
Goodman is the former president and CEO of the Consortium for Ocean Leadership. She served as senior vice president and general counsel of CNA from 2001 to 2014. She is the founder and executive director of the CNA Military Advisory Board, whose landmark reports include National Security and the Threat of Climate Change (2007) and Advanced Energy and US National Security (2017).
Goodman served as the first Deputy Undersecretary of Defense (Environmental Security) from 1993 to 2001, where she was responsible for environmental issues, energy, safety, and occupational health for the DOD. She established the first environmental, safety, and health performance metrics for the Department and led its energy, environmental, and natural resource conservation programs. Overseeing the President’s plan for revitalizing base closure communities, she ensured that 80 percent of base closure property became available for transfer and reuse. She led the Arctic Military Environmental Cooperation program, which developed a container for storage of spent nuclear fuel for liquid waste from Russian nuclear submarines.
Goodman served on the staff of the Senate Armed Services Committee, where she was responsible for oversight of the Department of Energy’s nuclear weapons complex, including research and development of nuclear materials and national labs as well as environmental cleanup and management. She has practiced law at Goodwin Procter as both a litigator and environmental attorney and has worked at RAND Corporation and SAIC.
She has received numerous honors and awards, including a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Environmental Peacebuilding Association in 2024, an honorary doctorate from Amherst College in 2018, the Department of Defense Distinguished Service Award in 1998 and 2001, the Gold Medal Award from the National Defense Industrial Organization in 1996, and the Environmental Protection Agency’s Climate Change Award in 2000.
Goodman is the author of The Neutron Bomb Controversy: A Case Study in Alliance Politics (Praeger, 1983) and has written dozens of reports and articles on a broad range of climate, energy, environmental, and national security matters. She appears regularly on major news media and is an a regular public speaker at universities, research organizations, and corporations. She holds degrees from Harvard Law School, Harvard Kennedy School, and Amherst College.
Héctor Cárdenas is president of the Mexican Council on Foreign Relations (COMEXI), president and CEO of the Ergo Group, and professor of practice in public policy at the University of California, Berkeley’s Goldman School of Public Policy, where he directs the master in public affairs program. With more than thirty years of experience in public policy, international affairs, and institutional reform, he has led major governance and modernization initiatives across Canada, Mexico, Panama, and the United States. His work focuses on strengthening public institutions through regulatory reform, digital transformation, process redesign, and the strategic use of technology. In Mexico, Cárdenas has played a significant role in justice sector reform, labor system modernization, and large-scale administrative transformation, including projects that have improved transparency, efficiency, and access to public services nationwide. In Canada, he has advised multiple provincial governments on regulatory modernization, digital regulatory registries, and institutional performance frameworks aimed at enhancing competitiveness and public accountability. In Panama, he has supported justice and financial integrity reforms, contributing to institutional strengthening efforts with international impact. A frequent speaker at global policy forums and a published commentator on North American integration and geopolitical strategy, Cárdenas is committed to advancing democratic governance and building bridges between academia, government, and the private sector. Cárdenas holds a BA in international relations from El Colegio de México and PhD and MPP degrees from the Goldman School of Public Policy, as well as an MPA degree from France’s École Nationale d’Administration.
Columnist covering foreign affairs
Education: Harvard College; Kings College, Cambridge
David Ignatius writes a twice-a-week foreign affairs column for The Washington Post. Ignatius has written 12 spy novels: “Phantom Orbit” (2024), “The Paladin” (2020), “The Quantum Spy,” (2017), “The Director,” (2014), “Bloodmoney” (2011), “The Increment” (2009), “Body of Lies” (2007), “The Sun King” (1999), “A Firing Offense” (1997), “The Bank of Fear” (1994), “SIRO” (1991), and “Agents of Innocence” (1987). “Body of Lies” was made into a 2008 film starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe.
Ignatius joined The Post in 1986 as editor of its Sunday Outlook section. In 1990 he became foreign editor, and in 1993, assistant managing editor for business news. He began writing his column in 1998 and continued even during a three-year stint as executive editor of the International Herald Tribune in Paris. Earlier in his career, Ignatius was a reporter for The Wall Street Journal, covering at various times the steel industry, the Departments of State and Justice, the CIA, the Senate and the Middle East.
Ignatius grew up in Washington, D.C. and studied Social Studies at Harvard College and economics at Kings College, Cambridge. He lives in Washington with his wife and has three daughters.
Honors and Awards: 2018 Finalist team, Pulitzer Prize for Public Service; 2018 George Polk Award; 2010 Urbino International Press Award; 2013 Overseas Press Club Award for Foreign Affairs Commentary; Lifetime Achievement Award, International Committee for Foreign Journalists; Legion D’Honneur awarded by the French government; 2004 Edward Weintal Prize; 2000 Gerald Loeb Award for Commentary.
Mahnaz Khan is the Vice President of Policy for Critical Supply Chains at Silverado Policy Accelerator, where she leads the critical minerals portfolio. She specializes in developing innovative trade policy frameworks and analyzing geopolitical policy strategies for critical minerals. Prior to joining Silverado in 2024, she spent 14 years as a career civil servant in trade policy at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, the U.S. International Trade Commission, and the Department of Commerce. She also serves as a Non-resident Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council’s GeoTech Center.
Pianist and U.S. Arts Envoy Pauline Yang began her piano studies at the age of five and won her first international competition at the age of seven in Washington, DC. At the age of eleven, she made both her Philadelphia Orchestra debut as well as her solo recital debut at Carnegie Hall and entered The Juilliard School, where she won both the Pre-College’s concerto and scholarship competitions in her first year.
She has since studied in Vancouver, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, and throughout Europe. Her concert career has taken her throughout North and South America, Europe, Africa, and Asia. Highlights include performances at the Casals Festival in Puerto Rico, at the Franz Liszt Academy’s Grand Concert Hall in Hungary, and at the Professional Training Workshop on the Chamber Music of Brahms with Leon Fleisher, Pamela Frank, and Yo-Yo Ma at Carnegie Hall.
Ms. Yang, who was named a Steinway Top Teacher, served on the faculty of Toby and Itzhak Perlman’s Perlman Music Program for nearly ten years in New York, Florida, and Israel. She has also served as a Volunteer Artist at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and Massachusetts General Hospital.
During her undergraduate studies at the University of Southern California, she was a double-major in piano performance and political science, graduating Phi Beta Kappa, magna cum laude, and as a Renaissance Scholar and was named one of Glamour Magazine’s Top Ten College Women of the Year. Ms. Yang received a master’s degree in piano performance from USC as well as a master’s degree in international relations from The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University where she wrote her thesis entitled “Musical Magic: The Roles of Music at the White House and at State Dinners.” She has interned for U.S. Representative Rush Holt (NJ-12th) on Capitol Hill, Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Hillary Rodham Clinton.
She is honored to serve as a U.S. Arts Envoy for the U.S. Department of State and has done public diplomacy programming for U.S. Missions in Japan, Ethiopia, Portugal, Taiwan, Nigeria, Palau, Bulgaria, and Belgium where she performed on behalf of the U.S. Mission to NATO in what became the first-ever solo concert at NATO Headquarters in Brussels. Since then, she is also frequently invited as a guest speaker to present a talk titled “From Carnegie Hall to NATO: The Life of a U.S. Arts Envoy,” most recently at Stellenbosch University in South Africa. Ms. Yang was the commencement speaker for The Tianjin Juilliard School’s Pre-College 2025 Commencement Ceremony in Tianjin, China.
She is a member of the Public Diplomacy Council of America (PDCA) as well as a recipient of the Taiwan Gold Card which was awarded by the Taiwanese Ministry of Culture for her achievements in the field of arts and culture.
Zachary Moss is a senior at UNC Asheville majoring in atmospheric science with minors in mathematics and philosophy. He is a Gilman Scholar and recently studied abroad at the University of Melbourne in Australia, where he deepened his engagement with international affairs. Zachary plans to pursue graduate study in meteorology and aspires to serve as a diplomatic bridge between the scientific community and policymakers.
Zaina Riaz Naru is a senior at the University of New Mexico, majoring in International Studies with a minor in Political Science. She serves as President of the Pakistani Student Association, Community Engagement Officer at Global Ties ABQ, and works at UNM’s Global Education Office. She is also a Research Fellow at the Global and National Security Policy Institute, focusing on conflict and mediation. Her interests center on humanitarian policy, international organizations, and global security.
Vivienne Hill is a sophomore at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, where she is majoring in Political Science. She has been engaged in youth-led civic initiatives across Hawaiʻi, including the Hawaiʻi State Youth Commission, the Hawaiʻi Youth Food Council, and the Climate Future Forum. Vivienne is passionate about social justice, Asia-Pacific affairs, and empowering young people to shape public policy.
Tsion Kebede is an honors junior at the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management, studying International Business and Marketing. She has interned with Global Minnesota and started a student organization that connects students with diverse entrepreneurial leaders, bringing global perspectives to her community. Passionate about creating meaningful impact, Tsion aspires to pursue a career in international affairs to expand access to opportunities for people worldwide.
Sophia Mucci is a senior at the College of Charleston’s Honors College, double-majoring in French and Francophone Studies and Environmental Geosciences. With experience at the U.S. Navy and National Geographic Society, she leverages geospatial data for storytelling and decision-making. After graduation, she plans to pursue a career in international policy or consulting – using her diverse skillset to drive global change.
Romina Philips is a sophomore at Pepperdine University pursuing a degree in International Studies with a minor in Economics. Having grown up in Hong Kong, her global upbringing sparked a passion for international affairs. She has organized youth summits, debates, and participated in Pepperdine’s D.C. program. Romina aims to pursue a career in international affairs that combines rigorous policy thinking with meaningful real-world impact.
Roberto Carmona immigrated to the United States from Cuba in 2020 and learned English in a span of 1 year. His passion for international relations and diplomacy was sparked after competing in the 2022 Academic WorldQuest Competition, a journey that later led him to intern with the World Affairs Council of Miami in 2025. Now a first-year student at Harvard College, Roberto is pursuing a joint concentration in Government and History, with the goal of becoming a key contributor to the future of democratization in his home country.
Olufemi (Femi) Omotayo is a senior at Southern Methodist University, majoring in Political Science and History. Raised in Lagos, Nigeria, and McKinney, Texas, she has been actively involved on campus as Co-President of the African Student Association, DEI Director and African American Senator in the Student Senate, and Student Programming Coordinator of Kathy Crow Commons. Her academic and professional interests focus on international affairs, U.S.–Africa relations, and community advocacy.
Olivia Robach, a senior at Grand Valley State University, studies Political Science, International Relations, and Business Fundamentals. Dedicated to leadership and service, she is involved in the Student Senate, Pi Sigma Alpha, Omicron Delta Kappa, the Students Leaving A Mark Club, and holds multiple campus roles that support student success. Beyond academics, she is a Peer Success Coach, volunteers at the Legal Assistance Center, and works as a Resident Assistant.
Myka is a first-generation Political Science senior at the University of Kentucky, passionate about leveraging policy and community engagement to empower marginalized communities. Her experience spans international relations research, refugee support, and leadership in
cross-cultural initiatives. She is dedicated to bridging divides and translating research into action for lasting social impact.
Morgan Gray is a sophomore with a double major in International Studies and Psychology with a concentration in International Development at Spelman College from Houston, Texas. She is passionate about international human rights, and she recently interned with the World Affairs Council of Greater Houston over the summer as an education associate. Morgan hopes to attend law school and pursue a career in international human rights law, using her experiences to advocate for equity around the world.
Mia Tschan is an undergraduate sophomore at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in the Honors College majoring in political science and minoring in Brookings Public Policy and Global Entrepreneurship. Currently, Mia is working both as the chief copy editor at The Scarlet & Gray and interning at the Legal Aid Center of Southern Nevada as an Engelstad Scholar. She is also working as a student researcher for Brookings Mountain West and the Lincy Institute, which led to her receiving both the Outstanding Undergraduate in Cannabis Research award and the 2025 Rebel of the Year award.
Md Mostain Billah (Fahim) is an international student from Bangladesh studying Business Management at Springfield College in Massachusetts. He is preparing for graduate school with a focus on international relations and national security. He aspires to work for the Bangladeshi government and contribute to the nation’s growth through diplomacy and public service.
Ko’u Hopkins is from Pleasant Plains, Illinois, and is passionate about environmental protection and human rights. Committed to building a more just and sustainable world, Ko’u draws inspiration from global lessons of peace and strives to make a positive impact on people of all backgrounds. Ko’u’s mission is to foster a better future where everyone can thrive.
Kate Blondia is a senior at Loyola University Chicago, majoring in Global Studies and Advocacy and Social Change. Originally from a rural town near Traverse City, Michigan, she has had a passion for learning about people across borders and cultures and building community through these differences. She has pursued cross-cultural engagement through a Rotary Youth Exchange to Sweden, volunteer work in Paris during a gap year, and her current work alongside the refugee community in Chicago.
Isabella Bishop is a first-generation college student with a passion for humanitarian aid and human rights. Her academic interests center on the global targeting and abandonment of civilian protection norms. Outside the classroom, she enjoys reading and hiking in New England.
Ellie Payne is a junior at Purdue University, double-majoring in Natural Resources & Environmental Science and Global Studies, with minors in Sustainable Food & Farming Systems and Political Science. Originally from Noblesville, Indiana, she has lived in Colorado and Maine as a member of the Conservation Corps. She enjoys leading backpacking trips, watercolor painting, and traveling. Ellie’s career interests lie at the intersection of human rights and peace studies, and she plans to join the Peace Corps before pursuing a career in international law.
Danielle Schmitz is a fourth-year student at the University of Denver, majoring in International Affairs and Political Science with a concentration in International Peace and Security. She currently works for Senator Hickenlooper, and on campus, she is president of the Alexander Hamilton Society, a Daniels and Hornbeck Scholar, and a FRC National Security Scholar. A Daniels and Hornbeck Scholar and a FRC National Security Scholar, Danielle also works as a research assistant on projects related to conflict resolution and immigration law. She is passionate about foreign policy, national security, and peacebuilding, and plans to pursue a career in public service.
Audrey DuBois is a Senior at Clemson University studying Language and International Health with
an emphasis in Spanish. As a Clemson student, she enjoys furthering her studies in global health
policy, volunteers with Every Campus a Refuge, and is an active member of the Clemson American
Red Cross Club, which she founded on her campus in 2023. In her free time, Audrey enjoys studying
French and Portuguese, hiking, reading, and cooking new recipes for her friends!
Arushay Awan is a senior at Bradley University majoring in Political Science with minors in Criminology and Legal Studies. She previously interned with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, serves as Chairperson for Campus Safety and Community Relations in Bradley’s Student Senate, and is a member of Epsilon Sigma Alpha sorority. Passionate about law, policy, and international affairs, Arushay enjoys volunteering, travel journaling, and engaging in campus leadership and advocacy initiatives.
Amor Toland is a senior at California State University, San Bernardino, pursuing a B.A. in History with a concentration in Race and Ethnicity. As a first-generation Mexican and African American student, she has balanced full-time coursework with multiple jobs while remaining dedicated to her academic success. She aims to become a civil rights attorney, using the law to address systemic inequality and advocate for marginalized communities. She is committed to transforming my education, resilience, and lived experiences into meaningful service and lasting impact.
Alessandra Bados Hernandez is an international student from Honduras pursuing a double major in Political Science and Hispanic Studies, along with a Certificate in International Organizations and Diplomacy at Virginia Wesleyan University. Her academic path includes hands-on experiences in diplomacy, community service, and cultural exchange, including participation in Model United Nations and an internship with the World Affairs Council of Hampton Roads. She aspires to a career in legal advocacy focused on immigration law or, alternatively, in language education, where she can continue fostering cross-cultural understanding through Spanish instruction.
Adalberto Gonzalez is a junior at Texas A&M International University majoring in Political Science. His binational upbringing in Monterrey, Mexico, and Laredo, Texas, fuels his passion for governance and diplomacy. As the incoming Student Government Association President, he works to transform diverse perspectives into meaningful community and campus initiatives. Adalberto plans to pursue a degree in international law and is eager to explore the future of global affairs and justice with his fellow scholars.
Abigail Faucher is a senior at Flagler College in St. Augustine, Florida, completing her bachelor’s degree in just three years. She is majoring in History with a minor in Political Science and plans to pursue a career in Human Rights Law after obtaining her J.D. degree. While based in St. Augustine, she has gained valuable experience through opportunities with the World Affairs Council of Jacksonville and a local law firm.
Aarushi Dedhiya is a freshman at Yale University, majoring in Economics and Political Science. She previously served as a student representative on the Pennsylvania Board of Education, representing 1.8 million K–12 students and shaping education policies statewide. Aarushi is passionate about health policy and advocacy, and as the 2024–2025 National President of Students Against Destructive Decisions, she has designed projects to promote healthy lifestyles and mobilize communities across the country.
This session highlights the critical role of engaging high school students in global education to cultivate open-minded community members, foster the next generation of international leaders, and increase cultural awareness. Niki Shisido from the Pacific and Asian Affairs Council, alongside Veronica Ruhe from the Cleveland Council on World Affairs, will share their respective education-level programs and discuss the measurable impacts these initiatives have had on students and the broader community. The session underscores the long-term benefits of instilling cultural understanding and leadership skills early in a student’s educational journey, preparing them for a more interconnected and cooperative global future.
Felecia leads Utah Global Diplomacy as the President & CEO with more than twenty years of experience in government and nonprofit management and leadership and is fiercely dedicated to helping nonprofits make good business decisions using data-driven evidence. Her prior work history includes the Refugee Services Office with the Department of Workforce Services, Utah Refugee Coalition, and Wasatch Community Gardens.
She currently offers her guidance on the following advisory committees: Global Ties U.S. Member Committee, U.S. Global Leadership Coalition Utah Committee, World Trade Center Utah Global Committee, the University of Utah’s Master of International Affairs and Global Enterprise Committee, the Salt Lake City Rotary Club International Committee, and the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce International Committee.
She has a Bachelor’s degree in Anthropology and a Master’s degree in Public Administration both from the University of Utah. She also recently graduated from the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business program. Felecia has extensive experience in oral history and storytelling, and she believes through capturing stories, we can create a sense of self, explore the world, organize and pass knowledge on to others, and create a shared humanity. If you want Felecia to nerd out, ask her about nonprofit management, data collection, music, gardening, and outdoor adventuring in Utah.
Session: Engaging Diaspora Communities
Eric Green is a nonresident scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. In 2023, Mr. Green completed a 32-year career in the U.S. Foreign Service, in which he achieved the rank of Minister-Counselor. From 2021-23 he served as Special Assistant to President Biden and Senior Director for Russia and Central Asia in the National Security Council, where he helped design and execute U.S. policy before and during the war in Ukraine.
During his career in the Foreign Service, Green served in several leadership positions, including as the Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. embassies in Poland and Iceland and Principal Officer in Adana, Turkey. He served twice in Moscow and once in Kyiv and worked for five years on the Northern Ireland Peace Process in both Belfast and Washington.
In Washington, his assignments included Associate Dean at the Foreign Service Institute and senior positions in the bureaus of European Affairs, International Organizations, International Narcotics and Law Enforcement, as well as on the Secretary of State’s Policy Planning Staff.
Mr. Green holds a B.A. from Grinnell College and an M.A. in International Relations from Yale University.
Session: 1918 Dinner (Invite only / Contact ebernstine@worldaffairscouncils.org for more information)
Liz Schrayer serves as President & CEO of the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition (USGLC), a broad based coalition of over 500 businesses and NGOs that advocates for strong U.S. global leadership through development and diplomacy. Under her leadership, the USGLC has grown to a nationwide network of advocates in all 50 states and boasts a bipartisan Advisory Council which includes virtually every living former Secretary of State, and a National Security Advisory Council consisting of nearly 200 retired three and four-star generals and admirals.
Ms. Schrayer currently serves on the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation’s Development Advisory Council, USAID’s Advisory Committee on Voluntary Foreign Aid (ACFVA), as well as several advisory boards and committees for the University of Michigan, including the Ford School of Public Policy. She is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
Session: Americans and the World
Dr. Gabriel Scheinmann is the Executive Director of The Alexander Hamilton Society.
Session: Americans and the World
With unwavering technical prowess, unique compositional and improvisational sensibilities, and a deep musical connection, Grammy nominees Max ZT and Priya Darshini offer an intimate, and reflective musical experience that inspires listeners on a lush, uplifting, and thought-provoking journey.
With roots in both Hindustani and Carnatic classical music, coupled with her unique and diverse life experiences, Darshini creates an imaginative and fascinating new sound. Her unconventional compositions, and ability to fluidly move between musical styles, makes for a powerful listening experience, and have become a part of her distinct musical identity.
In 2020, Priya released her debut album, Periphery (Chesky Records), and was consequently nominated for Best New Age Album at the 63rd Annual GRAMMY® Awards.
Lauded as the “Jimi Hendrix of Hammered Dulcimer” by NPR, and “A Force of nature,” Max ZT is an innovator of the hammered dulcimer. Taking his roots from Irish and American folk music, Max looked East and crafted his own unique path for the instrument, and his music. With years of travels to Senegal, where he studied with the Cissoko griot family, and India, where he received the prestigious AIIS grant to study under the late great santoor master Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, Max ZT is a true pioneer of the craft. In 2024, with his band, House of Waters, Max ZT was nominated for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album at the 66th Annual GRAMMY® Awards for his album On Becoming (GroundUP Music).
These two dynamic musicians have searched around the world, and after finding each other, offer a one-of-a-kind experience. Priya Darshini and Max ZT create a unique and seamless style that highlights their vast and worldly musical relationship while offering a contemplative and reflective experience to their audiences.
Chidi Blyden is an accomplished executive leader and former U.S. foreign policy advisor, with over two decades of transformative experience spanning national security, defense, economic development, and international policy. As the Principal of Culturally Bound, she develops actionable strategies to address Africa’s complex challenges and unlock its potential by leveraging the African Diaspora. Her extensive government service includes significant roles in both the Biden-Harris and Obama administrations. Notably, as Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), she managed the agency’s daily operations and chaired the Investment Management Committee, overseeing a $1 billion annual investment portfolio and an $8 billion active program portfolio.
Her expertise also extended to advising the House Armed Services Committee on African nations and Western Hemisphere defense and security priorities. A socio-cultural expert, Ms. Blyden’s work emphasizes the cultural underpinnings of policy and community-driven security. As the first Africa Director at the Center for Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC), she developed and implemented culture-specific training for the Nigerian Armed Forces to minimize civilian harm during the Boko Haram crisis.
Beyond her governmental and consulting roles, Ms. Blyden is deeply committed to mentoring and advocating for women and young leaders. She contributes to academia, as a regular lecturer at institutions such as Harvard University and Texas A&M University School of Public Service and previously as an adjunct faculty member at Georgetown University. She serves on the Board of Directors for the Sitar Arts Center and has held various roles in various organizations such as the Board and Leadership Council Member for Memunatu Magazine, a magazine empowering young women in the African diaspora and the Leadership Council for Women in National Security (LCWINS) and Women of Color Advancing Peace and Security (WCAPS).
Ambassador Brian A. Nichols brings more than 35 years of leadership in international relations, crisis management, and economic development across Latin America, Africa, and Asia. As Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, he shaped U.S. policy across the region, overseeing substantial foreign assistance and operational budgets while advancing initiatives to promote trade, sustainable development, and democratic governance. Amb. Nichols currently serves on the boards of First Quantum Minerals, a global mining company, and the Pan American Development Foundation, an OAS-affiliated nonprofit focused on human development in Latin America and the Caribbean. Previously, he served as U.S. Ambassador to Zimbabwe and Peru, as well as in multiple senior diplomatic roles in Washington and abroad. He is widely recognized for championing economic growth, forging strategic public-private partnerships, and strengthening legal and regulatory frameworks to support international investment.
Amb. Nichols holds a B.A. in Political Science from Tufts University and has received numerous honors for his distinguished service to U.S. foreign policy.
Across the world, women continue to struggle to achieve basic human rights and gender equality. They are facing challenges in different contexts such as education, reproductive health, participation in politics, employment opportunities and gender-based violence. While each country presents unique challenges and opportunities, there are common themes that international organizations like the United Nations have recognized and urged nations to commit to addressing. More needs to be done to help women achieve true gender equality and fundamental human rights and help their countries benefit from the impact of their full participation in society. This session will explore the collective experiences of women in Afghanistan, Iran, and Rwanda. The situation of women in these three countries reflects a complex interplay of cultural, political and social factors that influence their rights and everyday lives. In addition, the session will consider specific steps the international community can take to advance the critical cause of gender equality as women continue to fight for their rights and strive for a more equitable future.
Moderator: Laura Rawlings
Panelists: Nina Ansary, Ambassador Mathilde Mukantabana, Manizha Wafeq
Enoh T. Ebong is the Director of the U.S. Trade and Development Agency. Nominated by President Biden and unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Ms. Ebong leads USTDA in its efforts to develop sustainable infrastructure in emerging economies, while also supporting U.S. jobs through exports.
Ms. Ebong previously served as USTDA’s Deputy Director/Chief Operating Officer and as General Counsel. Before joining USTDA, she practiced business and finance law and held leadership positions in the nonprofit sector.
In March 2023, President Biden appointed Ms. Ebong to serve on the Board of Trustees of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. Ms. Ebong earned her JD from the University of Michigan Law School and an MA in History from The University of Edinburgh, Scotland.
Session: The U.S.-China Economic Tug-of-War
Suzanne Maloney is the vice president and director of the Foreign Policy program at the Brookings Institution, where her research focuses on Iran and Persian Gulf energy. Prior to being named vice president and director, she served as the deputy director of Foreign Policy for five years. At Brookings, she is a leading voice on U.S. policy toward Iran and the broader Middle East, testifying before Congress, briefing policymakers, and engaging with government, non-profit organizations and corporations. Maloney also serves on the External Research Council for the National Intelligence Council and is a frequent commentator in national and international media.
Session: Breakfast Briefing
Dr. Satu Limaye is Vice President of the East-West Center and the Director of the East-West Center in Washington & Research Program. He created and directs the Asia Matters for America initiative and is the founding editor of the Asia Pacific Bulletin. He is also a Senior Advisor at CNA Corp (Center for Naval Analyses). He is a graduate of Georgetown University and received his doctorate from Oxford University (Magdalen College) where he was a George C. Marshall Scholar. He has also been a Henry R. Luce Scholar (Henry Luce Foundation) and Abe Fellow (Japan Foundation, Social Science Research Council, & American Council of Learned Societies). He publishes and speaks widely on Indo-Pacific regional issues and supports various U.S. government, foundation, fellowship, and professional organizations. He recently served on the Center for New American Security (CNAS) Task Force on the US-Philippines Alliance, United States Institute of Peace (USIP) Senior Study Group on the North Pacific, Project 2049 Study Group on the US-Australia Alliance, and Global Taiwan Institute-Taiwan Asia Exchange Foundation project on Taiwan’s New Southbound Policy. He serves on the Korea Economic Institute (KEI) Advisory Council, editorial board of East Asian Policy (East Asia Institute, National University of Singapore), regional editor of Global Asia (East Asia Foundation, ROK), and International Editorial Advisory Board, Asian Politics & Policy.
Session: The U.S.-China Economic Tug-of-War
Bob Woodward is an associate editor at The Washington Post, where he has worked for more than 50 years. He has shared in two Pulitzer Prizes, one for his Watergate coverage and the other for coverage of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. He has authored 23 bestselling books, 16 of which have been #1 New York Times bestsellers, covering every president from Nixon to Biden.
Joanna Pineda is CEO and Chief Troublemaker of Matrix Group International, Inc., a digital agency that works primarily with associations and nonprofits to help them increase membership and generate revenue. They do it by identifying each client’s most important customer and member journeys and then making them amazing. Their portfolio is web, mobile, social, and virtual/hybrid meetings.
Joanna is an author, keynote speaker, blogger, and podcaster. Her staff and clients call her Chief Troublemaker because she likes to ask a lot of questions, think outside the box, challenge reality, and tackle the hard issues so stuff gets done. She is passionate about the user experience, aka the member or customer journey.
Session: Using Technology to Your Council’s Advantage
Travis Murphy is a recognized global leader in government affairs, immigration, and sports diplomacy. As the founder and CEO of Jetr Global Sports + Entertainment, he brings more than two decades of experience in international policy and fostering cross-cultural connections. Travis has held pivotal roles as a sports executive, U.S. diplomat, a consular officer in West Africa and South America, as well as chief of staff in Congress. Most recently, he helped lead international government affairs for the NBA.
Session: Council Spotlight Breakout – Sports and Diplomacy
Lissa Weinmann is a journalist and producer who studies the impact of the US embargo on US national interests. She directed the Cuba Project at the World Policy Institute in New York where she led the groundbreaking National Summits on Cuba and helped found and direct Americans for Humanitarian Trade with Cuba, a national bipartisan coalition that helped pass a law allowing US food sales to Cuba. She serves as Treasurer and Youth Outreach Coordinator for Windham World Affairs Council based in Brattleboro, Vermont.
Session: Council Spotlight Breakout – Cuba
Dr. Palina Louangketh and her family’s harrowing refugee journey to the U.S. resulting from the American Secret War in Laos inspired her vision to honor and elevate the human journey on a global scale. As the founder and CEO / Executive Director of the Idaho Museum of International Diaspora (IMID), she is passionate about connecting communities to cultures of the world through creative storytelling platforms. She is comfortable in complex and changing environments and holds a Doctor of Strategic Leadership degree from Regent University in Virginia with a concentration in Strategic Foresight. An alumna of Boise State University (BSU) in Idaho with a Bachelor of Science and Master of Health Science degrees, she also teaches at BSU College of Health Sciences and University Foundations Program. She designed a set of multicultural courses, the IMID’s Global Diaspora Curriculum, that she launched and taught at BSU Honors College. This curriculum has since taken on an international presence. It served as the backbone for the IMID’s inaugural launch of its annual signature global conference held in Slovakia in 2023 with a 2nd annual this year in Ireland, Atlanta, Georgia (USA) in 2025, and plans for Vietnam in 2026. Dr. Louangketh is also a seasoned healthcare and public health leader with 25 years in strategic leadership, change management, and quality improvement. Adding to her many hats and connected to her professional background, she serves as Chief of the Office of Accreditation and Planning in the Division of Public Health at the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare and will be teaching a PhD-level course – Organizational Leadership – at BSU School of Public and Population Health in spring 2025.
Session: Engaging Diaspora Communities
Hagir Elsheikh is an advocate, leader, and survivor whose life’s work embodies resilience, justice, and dedication to peace-building and human rights. Her journey from a survivor of torture, gender-based violence, harassment, female genital mutilation (FGM), and domestic violence to a global human rights champion is a testament to her spirit and lifelong commitment to making the world a better place. Chairwoman and CEO of Hagir Network, HSE Staffing Agency LLC, Kareem’s Mission Org., KMission TV LLC, and Tomorrow’s Smile Org. Hagir Elsheikh is a serial entrepreneur, motivational speaker, political analyst, talk show host, producer, author, and philanthropist.
Session: Engaging and Sustaining New Audiences
A mainstay on televisions and briefing rooms, David Gregory has covered major news events from 9/11 to the Trump Presidency. As White House Correspondent for NBC News during George W. Bush’s presidency, he traveled the world covering summits, interviewing heads of state, and reporting on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
As moderator of Meet the Press during the Obama Administration, he famously interviewed then Vice President Joe Biden, whose remarks in support of gay marriage led the administration to publicly change position before the issue reached the Supreme Court.
Manizha Wafeq is a distinguished development practitioner, expert in women’s economic empowerment, and a dedicated policy advocate. Her persistent advocacy efforts led to the establishment of the Afghanistan Women’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry (AWCCI), bringing about significant policy changes. Notable among these changes is the implementation of a 5% preferential clause for women-owned businesses in the national procurement procedure, ensuring increased access to government contracts. Additionally, her presence at the table resulted in the allocation of 15-25% of industrial parks’ lands to small, medium, and women-owned businesses in the national industrial park’s policy. During her professional career, she has worked with various international aid agencies, government and non-government entities.
Session: Global Pathways to Gender Equality
Richard Madan is an award-winning correspondent for CBC News, based at its Washington Bureau since 2016. He covers politics, economics, trade, and the historic elections in 2016, 2020 and 2024. He is often positioned at the White House.
An accomplished journalist and political specialist, Madan has covered dozens of political and economic summits around the world. Madan also covered all the important NAFTA rounds including Mexico City, becoming the first journalist to break the news that a trilateral deal between Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. was reached.
Prior to moving to the US, Madan was a Parliamentary Correspondent for CTV News in Ottawa, Canada, where his reporting exposed a mental health crisis among Canadian Forces veterans who served in Afghanistan – stories which led to changes in cabinet and more importantly, in how Ottawa treats Canada’s injured veterans. He was awarded RTDNA’s 2015 Ross Munro Award in recognition of this groundbreaking series.
Madan’s high profile international assignments brought him to earthquake-devastated Haiti, on board a Canadian warship patrolling the Black Sea, to live reports in the aftermath of deadly tornadoes in Kentucky, to mass shootings in California and Florida. Born in Georgia, U.S., Madan moved to Canada as a child but closely followed politics on both sides of the border, helping to spark his interest and subsequent career in politics.
After studying Political Science at Carleton University, Madan worked as a policy aide to various MPs on Parliament Hill. He then made the leap into journalism as a freelance reporter for various newspapers in Ottawa. Madan got his start in television with Global News in Winnipeg. He then joined the CBC as its Legislative Reporter in 2000, working out of the Manitoba Legislature. In 2005, Madan returned to Ontario joining CityNews as the station’s Political Specialist, joining CTV News in 2010. He returned to CBC News in November, 2023.
He speaks English and French.
Session: The View From Abroad
Patricia Vasconcellos is the White House and State Department correspondent for Brazilian TV network SBT. Patrícia began her career as an anchor for TV Globo in 2001 before joining SBT in 2008. As Latin American correspondent, she covered South and Central America for six years. Patricia was based in New York City for four years and now, from Washington DC, covers US politics for the Brazilian audience. Her documentary about the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests and police response “Curfew in NYC” received multiple awards including Best short film from New York Film Awards and Best Director for short films and Social Justice Film from New York International Film Awards.
In 2021 she won the Professional Excellence Prize Award from the Association of Foreign Press Correspondents in the U.S. Patrícia is a recipient of the Chevening Award, a scholarship funded by the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office to outstanding emerging leaders from all over the world. She gained her Masters in TV Journalism from University of London. She served as Board Member of the Association of Foreign Correspondents in the USA (2022-2024) being now AFPC’s DC Bureau member. She is a jury member of the New York Movie Awards and a Grand Jury member of the New York Festivals TV & Film Awards.
Session: The View From Abroad
Robert Latiff is an independent contractor and consultant, providing technology advice to corporations, universities, and the military. He is an adjunct faculty member at the University of Notre Dame. Dr. Latiff retired from the U.S. Air Force as a Major General in 2006. His last active-duty military assignment was at the National Reconnaissance Office. In prior assignments he served as the vice commander of the USAF Electronic Systems Center and as the commander of the NORAD/US Space Command Cheyenne Mountain Operations Center.
General Latiff received his commission from the Army ROTC program at the University of Notre Dame and served in Europe, where he was in the infantry and then the Ordnance Corps where he commanded an Army tactical nuclear weapons unit. He transferred to the Air Force in 1980.
He holds a doctorate in materials science from the University of Notre Dame. and is a graduate of the National Security Fellows Program at Harvard’s JFK School of Government.
Dr. Latiff is the author of Future War: Preparing for the New Global Battlefield and Future Peace: Technology, Aggression, and the Rush to War.
Session: Seeing from the Other Side of the Atlantic: The Future of NATO and European Security
Rachel Rizzo is a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Europe Center. Her research focuses on European security, NATO, and the transatlantic relationship.
Prior to joining the Atlantic Council, Rizzo served as the director of programs at the Truman Center for National Policy and the Truman National Security Project, where she managed a team of senior fellows and oversaw all Truman-branded publications, programming, and policy initiatives. From 2019-2020, she spent a year as a Robert Bosch fellow in Berlin, Germany, where she worked at the Berlin office of Human Rights Watch leading a research project on the EU’s dual-use surveillance-technology export policy and serving as an advisor to a member of the German Bundestag. Rizzo also spent over five years at the Center for a New American Security and has co-authored several of the center’s reports including More Than Burden Sharing: Five Objectives for the 2018 NATO Summit, Defining Moment: The Future of the Transatlantic Security Relationship, and Transatlantic Security Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific: Recommendations for the Next U.S. Administration. Her writing has appeared in publications such as Politico, Foreign Policy, Defense One, the National Interest, World Politics Review, and War on the Rocks. She is a frequent commentator on European security, and has provided analysis for the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, CNN, National Public Radio, LA Times, Atlantic, Politico, and Foreign Policy, among others. Rizzo received her MA in security policy studies from the George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs where she focused on defense analysis and homeland-security policy. She graduated from the University of Utah with a BA in finance and began her career as a financial analyst with Goldman Sachs.
Session: Seeing from the Other Side of the Atlantic: The Future of NATO and European Security
Deputy Assistant Secretary Hudson-Dean returned to the Bureau for European and Eurasian Affairs in 2024 to cover relations with NATO, the OSCE, the Nordic and Baltic countries, the United Kingdom and Ireland. For the previous three years, she served as the Chargé d’Affaires, a.i. and Deputy Chief of Mission in Oslo, Norway. Prior to Norway, DAS Hudson-Dean was the U.S. Consul General in Sydney, Australia, leading a large team of U.S. interagency representatives focused on trade and security cooperation. Ms. Hudson-Dean was previously an Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary in the European and Eurasian Affairs Bureau (2017-2018) and served as Chargé d’Affaires, a.i. and Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Riga, Latvia (2014-2017), during which time the United States increased military engagements and NATO deployed Enhanced Forward Presence battalions in response to Russian aggression.
A career member of the U.S. Senior Foreign Service with the rank of Minister Counselor, Ms. Hudson-Dean has three decades of experience as an American diplomat and has represented the United States in Russia, Georgia, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Nepal. She also worked in the State Department’s Bureau of South Asian Affairs and as an American Political Science Association Fellow in the U.S. Senate. Ms. Hudson-Dean holds degrees from Georgetown University and Johns Hopkins University. A lifelong skier and proponent of commuting by bicycle, she and her family enjoy travel, podcasts, and the performing arts.
Session: Seeing from the Other Side of the Atlantic: The Future of NATO and European Security
Dr. Nina Ansary is an award-winning Iranian-American author, historian, women’s rights and gender equality advocate. She is the director of the Cambridge Middle East and North Africa Forum Women’s Leadership Initiative at the University of Cambridge and former director of the World Affairs Councils of America Global Women’s Lecture Series. Her best-selling books Jewels of Allah: The Untold Story of Women in Iran and Anonymous Is a Woman: A Global Chronicle of Gender Inequality garnered numerous awards – including the International Book Award in “Women’s Issues” and the Benjamin Franklin Book Award in “History” and “Interior Design.”
Session: Global Pathways to Gender Equality
Former Alaska Lt. Governor Mead Treadwell has championed safe, secure and reliable Arctic shipping as a goal of Arctic cooperation in public, private and academic work over five decades.
He has been nominated by Gov. Mike Dunleavy to join a Federal Advisory Committee, pending at USDOT, established by Congress to find ways to finance and build marine safety infrastructure and icebreaker services in the Arctic. One internationally cooperative concept, dubbed “Uber for Icebreakers” was developed by a Mission Council Treadwell chaired for the Iceland-based NGO Arctic Circle.
He also chairs Qilak LNG, a proposed project to export North Slope Natural Gas via icebreaking tankers to world markets, obviating the need for a trans-Alaska gas pipeline. His firm Treadwell Development is assisting the Native Village of Eyak in developing a new tribal transportation oil spill and marine casualty response port, near Cordova.
As Lt. Governor, 2010-2014, he helped forge US -Russia marine safety agreements in the Bering Strait, advocated for Arctic icebreakers and Arctic ports or port improvements in Nome, Port Clarence, Emmonak, Kotzebue and Barrow, helped finance the US Coast Guard’s Sector Anchorage facilities and Arctic forward helicopter basing with the Alaska National Guard.
Session: Polar Perspectives: The Future of the Arctic
Hear from the following Think Tanks about their current work:
The session “Council Values,” facilitated by Mary Yntema from WorldBoston, will emphasize the critical role that values play in guiding a council’s work. The discussion will focus on how clearly defined values can shape decision-making, foster a strong organizational culture, and build trust within the community. Attendees will explore ways to align their council’s actions with its core values, ensuring that these principles drive both everyday operations and long-term strategic goals.
The Arctic is facing irreversible changes with rising global temperatures. This challenge poses concerns for the entire planet, including potential instabilities in the region’s ecosystems, changes to Arctic operability for great-power navies and inhabitability concerns for local communities. This session will consider the full spectrum of threats and changes confronting the Arctic region at the start of the twenty-first century. This session will be recorded.
Panelists: Patuk Glenn, Mead Treadwell
Engage with ambassadors and diplomats over lunch followed by a closing keynote.
Authors Lauren Markham, Scott Snyder, and Ambassador Stuart Eizenstat will speak about their work.
A mixture of internal and external factors, including global repolarization, is amplifying challenges in the Middle East. Russia’s and China’s support for Iran has enabled its proxies like Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthi rebels in Yemen to pursue destabilizing attacks on their neighbors. Meanwhile, the United States has had to carefully calibrate its support to allies like Israel as it wages war in Gaza in response to the October 7, 2023 attacks. This session will examine the complex relationships affecting raging conflicts in the Middle East and potential diplomatic levers that could curtail them. This session will be recorded.
Moderator: Mona Yacoubian
Panelists: Aaron David Miller, Kamran Bokhari, Brian Katulis
In this session, small Councils will come together to reflect on their strengths, identify areas for improvement, and set ambitious goals for 2025. The discussion, led by Angela Weck from Peoria, will focus on building a supportive community among small Councils, where participants can share best practices, learn from each other’s experiences, and collaborate on solutions to common challenges. This session is an invaluable opportunity for small Councils to connect, strengthen their networks, and develop actionable plans to enhance their impact in the coming year.
This session emphasizes the critical role of intergenerational audiences and members within Councils. Speakers will discuss strategies for engaging young professionals, mid-career individuals, and retirees, highlighting the unique contributions each group brings to the organization. The session will explore how Councils can create programs and initiatives that appeal to diverse age groups, ensuring long-term sustainability and fostering a vibrant, inclusive community. Attendees will learn best practices for attracting and retaining members of different ages, as well as how to leverage the strengths of each generation to enhance the overall mission of their Councils.
The session “Full Rooms and Fundraising Booms” will delve into strategies for maximizing audience attendance at events and converting those attendees into individual donors. Attendees will learn techniques for boosting event participation through targeted marketing, engaging programming, and personalized outreach. The session will also cover best practices for cultivating relationships with attendees, creating compelling donation appeals, and utilizing post-event follow-ups to turn participants into long-term supporters.
This session highlights the critical role of technology in optimizing council operations. It explores the use of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems to enhance efficiency and streamline processes. Additionally, the session explores how Artificial Intelligence (AI) can aid in content development and introduces various other technological tools that can support councils in improving communication, decision-making, and overall effectiveness. Attendees will learn practical ways to implement these technologies to drive better outcomes for their councils.
The “Engaging Diaspora Communities” session, led by two Council Spotlight Breakout Winners from Harrisburg and Utah, focuses on the inclusion of diaspora and local international voices in programming. Hagir Elsheikh and Dr. Palina Louangketh will highlight strategies for broadening audience engagement by incorporating diverse perspectives, with practical examples shared by the facilitators. Councils will learn how to create more inclusive and representative programming, ensuring sustained participation from new and diverse communities.
U.S.-China economic competition has grabbed headlines of late. Prominent American leaders have called for the need to “de-risk” from excessive trade with China. Meanwhile, recent U.S. efforts to limit the types of semiconductors that can be sold to China have caused new tensions. Yet another source of discord has come from a U.S. decision to limit investment in China in the areas such as artificial intelligence and quantum computing. These tensions have complicated U.S.-China economic relations even while both countries remain dependent on one another for their prosperity. This panel will consider the state of relations with a view toward prospects for accommodation and cooperation. This session will be recorded.
Moderator: Satu Limaye
Panelists: Deborah Wince-Smith, Enoh Ebong
Studies have shown a decline in democratic government and the rise of authoritarianism worldwide over recent decades. Meanwhile, authoritarian tendencies have manifested themselves even in seemingly democratic countries, including here in the United States. This session will consider these global trends and what they may signify as America confronts authoritarian governments like Russia and China on the world stage.
Moderator: Adam Clayton Powell III
Panelists: Suzanne Spaulding, Andrea Kendall-Taylor, Soner Cagaptay
The sovereign states system has been an anchor of the international order since at least World War I. But what happens when sovereignty degrades, and states recede into failed states and ungoverned spaces that breed unrest, transnational crime, and terrorism? What becomes of the plight of stateless peoples? The Spectrum of Sovereignty session will consider how sovereignty dissolves and what the international community can do to help weak states reinforce authority over their territories. This session will be recorded.
Moderator: Nicole Bibbins Sedaca
Panelists: Keith Mines, Ambassador Feisal al-Istrabadi, Christopher Fomunyoh
This session, led by Travis Murphy, delves into the current challenges and opportunities the United States faces in the global sports landscape. With experience overseeing international government affairs for the NBA, Murphy offers unique insights into how sports serve as a powerful tool for diplomacy. A key highlight of the session is Murphy’s pivotal role in the release of WNBA player Brittany Griner from her detainment in Russia, underscoring the intersection of sports, politics, and international relations. Attendees will explore the evolving role of sports in U.S. policy and its potential to foster global collaboration and understanding.
Presenter: Travis Murphy
How does the 62-year-old U.S. unilateral economic embargo on Cuba impact a new generation of Cuban leaders with diverse views on governing and the island’s future? Hosted by the Windham World Affairs Council and led by Lissa Weinmann, this session will explore where fresh thinking is happening on both sides of the straits and discuss prospects for alternative approaches to U.S.-Cuba relations.
Presenter: Lissa Weinmann
The United States has just endured an historic election season that saw an attempted assassination of a former president and candidate while a sitting president declined to run for re-election. The immediate aftermath of the recent election, meanwhile, portends uncertainty and questions about the state of U.S. democracy and its near future. In this session, a group of foreign correspondents discuss the state of affairs in the United States and share their perspectives on America in the wake of the presidential election. In the course of their conversation, they reflect on the health of American democracy, the state of domestic polarization, and how people in other countries view Americans and their plight in this pivotal historical moment. This session will be recorded.
Moderator: Dina Smeltz
Panelist: Richard Madan, Daniel Schmidt, Patrícia Vasconcellos
America’s foreign policy challenges pose a range of questions. How robustly should the United States support Ukraine in its war against Russia? How strongly should Washington lean on Israel to end the war in Gaza? And how can the United States best deter China from threatening the security of Taiwan? This session will discuss everyday Americans’ views on such questions to assess what kind of foreign policy they want the new administration to pursue. It will consider the longstanding tensions between the urge to assert robust U.S. leadership in the world and the tendencies toward isolationism and the desire to put “America First” while avoiding what many see as needless entanglements abroad. This session will be recorded.
Moderator: Dina Smeltz
Keynote Speaker: Liz Schrayer
Panelists: Andrew Albertson, Gabriel Scheinmann
A session on foreign policy in the next administration.
Opening and Closing Remarks: Suzanne Maloney
Mihaela Papa is the director of research and a principal research scientist at the Center for International Studies (CIS). She joined CIS from the Fletcher School at Tufts University, where she was a senior fellow, co-founded and led the Rising Power Alliances project, and taught on sustainable development and global governance. She also previously served as the director of Global Programs at the MIT Sloan School of Management and as the assistant director for international activities in MIT’s Office of the Provost. An expert in negotiation strategy and coalition-building, Papa focuses on BRICS and rising powers in global governance, as well as climate transitions.
She leads the BRICS Lab and has published widely on BRICS, including its evolution as a soft-balancing coalition (International Affairs, 2025), the BRICS Convergence Index and BRICS–U.S. relations (European Journal of International Relations, 2023), and its potential to de-dollarize global finance (Cambridge Elements, 2022). Her work on sustainable development governance and climate coalitions has appeared in Global Environmental Politics, Global Environmental Change, Climate Policy, and other journals. Papa’s postdoctoral fellowship at Harvard Law School inspired her research on emerging economies, leading to fieldwork in India and at Fudan University’s Center for BRICS Studies in Shanghai. Dedicated to bridging theory and practice, Papa has consulted for various organizations, including the US government, the European Commission, and the International Institute for Sustainable Development. Her insights have been featured in Foreign Affairs, The Conversation, and on major media outlets such as CNN, Bloomberg, BBC, News24, and the South China Morning Post.
Papa began her career as a trade economist in the Croatian Foreign Ministry and holds an MA in law and diplomacy and a PhD in international relations from the Fletcher School at Tufts University.
Leading the Arctic Slope Community Foundation, my focus is on fostering community development and leveraging traditional knowledge to empower our initiatives. Incorporated in 2009, we are the only 501(c)3 community foundation that focuses on the geographic region of the Arctic Slope, encompassing the 8 communities in northern Alaska. With over four years at the helm, we’ve cultivated an environment where Iñupiaq heritage and project management coalesce, driving sustainable growth for the Arctic region. Previously before working in the non-profit sector, I’ve worked as a Senior Project Manager for the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation, focusing on community economic development. I’ve also worked as a Museum Curator for the North Slope Borough, Department of Iñupiat History, Language and Culture. I’ve been very fortunate to carry positions that have been deemed valuable from our Iñupiaq leaders, and the most valuable assets are the relationships I have built with our arctic slope community. Building a strong and vibrant community means everything to me.
Besides my professional career, I am a content creator. I harness the power of digital storytelling to educate and engage a global audience. This role compliments my directorship, as both positions require a deep understanding of cultural narratives and the ability to translate them into impactful projects that resonate within and beyond our communities.
Session: Polar Perspectives
Ambassador Alina Romanowski brings more than four decades of distinguished public service to the World Affairs Councils of America, with deep leadership experience across diplomacy, defense, intelligence, and international development. Most recently, she served as U.S. Ambassador to Iraq (2022–2024) and Kuwait (2020–2022), where she helped advance key diplomatic and security priorities during a period of regional transformation. Throughout her career, Ambassador Romanowski has led efforts to build bridges across sectors and borders.
At the State Department, she served in senior roles including Principal Deputy Coordinator for Counterterrorism, Coordinator for U.S. Assistance to Europe and Eurasia, and Deputy Assistant Secretary in both the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs. She was also the founding director of the Middle East Partnership Initiative Office—an early example of her commitment to partnerships rooted in education, dialogue, and long-term engagement. Her public service also includes leadership roles at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Department of Defense, where she served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs and founded the Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies at the National Defense University.
Ambassador Romanowski’s public service has been recognized with numerous awards, including a Presidential Distinguished Rank Award and multiple honors from the State Department, Defense Department, and CIA. She holds both an M.A. and B.A. from the University of Chicago and studied at Tel Aviv University. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and speaks French, with additional studies in Arabic and Hebrew.
Reporter and author. Studied in Manchester and London (BA Politics & Economics, MSc Asian Politics), currently living in Washington, D.C., covering U.S. politics and the Biden White House for German news media. His beat: pop, culture, politics. Daniel writes for a number of papers, magazine, and websites –– in the past among others: DER SPIEGEL, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, DIE ZEIT / ZEIT Online, Neue Zuercher Zeitung, Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Musikexpress, Der Tagesspiegel
Session: The View From Abroad
Joyce M. Davis is a veteran journalist who has lived and worked around the globe for some of the nation’s most respected news organizations. She is Outreach & Opinion Editor for PennLive and The Patriot-News, the major news organization in Pennsylvania’s capital, and regularly writes commentators for CNN’s opinion page.
Davis spent five years in Prague, Czech Republic, working as Associate Director of Broadcasting for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, supervising broadcast services to Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, and Central Asia. She has worked as a foreign correspondent and editor for National Public Radio and the former Knight Ridder newspapers and is the author of two books on international affairs: “Between Jihad and Salaam: Profiles in Islam” and “Martyrs: Innocence, Vengeance and Despair in the Middle East.”
She has been awarded four honorary doctors in international affairs and the humanities and is considered an expert on Islamic movements and the Middle East, having covered the region for more than two decades.
Zoe, a senior majoring in International Business with a minor in German at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, is an aspiring Foreign Service Officer. As a recent alumna of the prestigious Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange program, Zoe spent the past year living in Germany, where she interned at a freight forwarding company and achieved fluency in German. Now, as she completes her final year of studies, Zoe remains dedicated to learning new languages, including Spanish, Arabic, and Hebrew, while pursuing her passion for diplomacy and international relations.
Will is originally from Bozeman, Montana studying international politics at Emory University in Atlanta. He has been passionate about international affairs for much of his life and involved with internationally focused student organizations including Model United Nations and Academic WorldQuest. He is interested in pursuing a career as a Foreign Service Officer.
Taylor is a fourth-year journalism student minoring in political science at the University of Alaska Anchorage. Taylor is passionate about the power of storytelling and how it can connect people across communities. At UAA, she is the Model United Nations Security Council director and works to promote an interest in global affairs in high school and college students.
Ta’Mariah is a dedicated and driven young scholar pursuing her education at Utah State University. Her academic journey is not merely about personal growth; it is fueled by a genuine passion for addressing educational inequalities. Her aspirations extend beyond borders, aiming to tackle disparities in education for marginalized groups. With an unwavering dedication to effecting positive change, Ta’Mariah aims to channel her expertise into the realm of the US government.
Sam is a sophomore in college majoring in Korean, and minoring in Spanish and Education. She loves learning world languages, watching Thai dramas, traveling, being a night owl, and photography. She is from Ohio, very “Type A,” and excited to meet her fellow Student Scholars!
Paige is 21 years old and from southwest Washington. She is currently a senior at Brevard College in Brevard, North Carolina double majoring in history and psychology. After completing undergraduate studies, she hopes to study abroad and earn a PhD in modern European history with a specialization in the history of terrorism.
Naserian is an international student from Tanzania at the University of New Mexico with a dedication to international relations, the environment and women’s rights. Having travel exposure from a young age, Naserian wants to contribute to global policy and international cooperation in addressing equal rights and sustainability. She is inspired by the women in her community and committed to environmental justice especially for refugees, women and children.
Marouane, an international student at Macalester College, is pursuing a double major in Political Science and International Studies. Hailing from Morocco, he is passionate about examining issues related to international development, postcolonialism, and political stability. With the goal of becoming an expert in international affairs, Marouane is driven to decode the complexities of the modern world order. In his free time, he enjoys surfing and swimming by the sea.
Madilyn is a college student at Bradley University completing an undergraduate degree in arts for International Studies, and double minoring in Spanish and East Asian Studies. She is very active in many organizations on campus and plans to study abroad in the upcoming spring semester. With aspirations to travel and aid others in her future, she will be finishing her degree this summer in 2025.
Leo is from Saint Louis, Missouri. He is a senior majoring in politics and philosophy at the University of Pittsburgh. In his free time, he enjoys reading classic literature and playing video games.
LeeAnn is a third-year political science and economics student at the University of Texas at Dallas who plans on going to law school following graduation. She just returned from a semester abroad in Marburg, Germany where she took classes in political science, economics, and German language and culture as well as conducted research in environmental economics. She is very passionate about asylum and civil rights law, and on campus she is involved with UTD’s Model UN and Moot Court teams as well as holding office in the Women Pursuing Law pre-law society.
Jessica is from Hanover, New Hampshire. She is a sophomore at Indiana University (the Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies) studying International Studies with a focus on diplomacy, human rights, and minoring in Business and Portuguese. She has a passion for travel, backpacking, cycling, history, politics, learning languages and connecting with others who share these interests or entirely different ones!
Jenna Wright attended high school in Washington State, received an associate’s degree in Geography in Colorado, and now resides in Indiana, where she majors in International Relations at the University of Indianapolis. Upon graduating in December, she plans to return to the university to pursue a master’s degree. Her favorite subjects are international relations theory and foreign policy.
Jacob hails from the small village of Sherman in central Illinois. He has a passion for language learning, learning about the world around him, and engaging in global discussions. He firmly believes international communication and discussions of global affairs are the keys to a more connected and peaceful world.
Jackson was born and raised in Houston, Texas. He attended his first two years of college at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee where he planned to major in history and international studies before transferring to Louisiana State University. At LSU, he majors in international studies with a focus on global diplomacy and a minor in history.
Grace is from Scituate, Rhode Island. She is a junior at Benedictine College majoring in Finance and minoring in Entrepreneurship. She is actively involved in the Student International Business Council, the Investments Club, and the Gregorian Fellows Leadership Program. She also serves as a Virtuoso Research Fellow at the Byron G. Thompson Center for Integrity in Finance and Economics. Grace is passionate about continuous growth and spends free time honing her Spanish skills and exploring coding. She also has a deep love for travel and international studies, which fuels her academic and professional pursuits.
Eric is a third-generation Chinese-American born and raised in the beautiful state of Hawaiʻi. A prospective double major in International Business and Political Science with a minor in education at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, he strives to create equitable platforms for young adults to be heard at local, state, and national levels. He currently serves as Chairperson of the County of Hawaiʻi Youth Commission, Liaison of the Hawaiʻi State Youth Commission, and Youth Advisor of the Hawaiʻi Green Growth Sustainable Development Goal Youth Council.
Delaney was born and raised in Vienna, Austria by American parents. She attended the American International School Vienna until graduating high school and moving to the United States to pursue her bachelor’s degree. She is currently in her third year at Bowdoin College double majoring in Government and Legal Studies and History, while also competing on the cross country and track teams.
Caroline is a senior in the College of Charleston’s Honors College, double majoring in political science – with a concentration in politics, philosophy, and law – and international studies with a concentration in Asia. Caroline is a student athlete at the College, Chair of the Honor Board, and Co-Secretary General of the Model UN club. She has studied Mandarin Chinese since she was eleven years old and is currently studying the impact of a rising China on the Middle East for her Honors College Bachelor’s thesis, inspired by her main areas of study of international law, global development, and non-traditional security threats.
Caleb is currently a junior at the University of West Florida pursuing a degree in International Relations. He has studied abroad in the United Kingdom and has an interest in European politics and languages, particularly in Eastern Europe. Following his graduation, he hopes to pursue a career in diplomacy and foreign policy in the United States.
Cait is from New Prague, Minnesota. She is a sophomore double majoring in politics and international affairs with economics at Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina. She is excited for this opportunity and the chance to meet other Student Scholars!
Bradyn is a junior at Clark University majoring in Political Science with a Minor/Concentration in German and a subfield in Comparative Politics. He is a military dependant who most recently has lived in Virginia, Vermont, and Germany, and plans to study abroad in Germany next semester. His school activities include the Clark Varsity Swimming team and Model United Nations.
Aarushi Dedhiya is a freshman at Yale University, majoring in Economics and Political Science. She previously served as a student representative on the Pennsylvania Board of Education, representing 1.8 million K–12 students and shaping education policies statewide. Aarushi is passionate about health policy and advocacy, and as the 2024–2025 National President of Students Against Destructive Decisions, she has designed projects to promote healthy lifestyles and mobilize communities across the country
Alec C. “Camm” Potter is a senior at the University of North Florida majoring in Political Science. He is originally from Gulf Breeze, Florida and plans to join the U.S. Foreign Service after graduation. He cites his late father’s service in the United States Air Force and the mentorship of his instructors at UNF, all career diplomats, as inspiration for a career in international relations.
Abigail is a third year student at Ohio State University. She majors in international relations and diplomacy due to her passions for peace and war politics and Western Europe & Middle East immigrant & refugee policy.
Katherine A. Brown is the President and CEO of Global Ties U.S., the national leader in connecting people in the U.S. and their communities with the world through international exchange and public diplomacy programs. Katherine and her team support 80+ member organizations nationwide to advance U.S. strategic priorities abroad and boost prosperity at home by harnessing the diplomatic potential of our country’s greatest asset: our people.
Before joining Global Ties U.S. in 2018, Katherine served in various government roles focused on media and public diplomacy. She began her career at the National Security Council at the White House before serving as a Public Diplomacy Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, as a Professional Staff Member at the Committee on Foreign Affairs at the U.S. House of Representatives, and as the Executive Director of the U.S. Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy at the U.S. Department of State. She also previously worked at The Asia Foundation, Bloomberg Opinion, and Meta.
Katherine is a member of the University of Southern California’s Center on Public Diplomacy Advisory Board and an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Georgetown University’s Center for Security Studies, where she teaches a course on soft power and national security. Her book, “Your Country, Our War: The Press and Diplomacy in Afghanistan,” was published by Oxford University Press in 2019. She received the Council on Foreign Relations International Affairs Fellowship and is a former French-American Foundation Young Leader.
Katherine holds a B.A. in International Affairs from The George Washington University and a Ph.D. in Communications from Columbia University.
Soner Cagaptay is the Beyer Family Senior Fellow and director of the Turkish Research Program at The Washington Institute. He has written extensively on U.S.-Turkish relations, Turkish domestic politics, and Turkish nationalism, publishing in scholarly journals and major international print media, including the Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, New York Times, Foreign Affairs, and The Atlantic. He has been a regular columnist for Hürriyet Daily News, Turkey’s oldest and most influential English-language paper, and a contributor to CNN’s Global Public Square blog. He appears regularly on Fox News, CNN, NPR, BBC, and CNN-Turk. His latest book, A Sultan in Autumn: Erdogan Faces Turkey’s Uncontainable Forces, was published in June 2021 by I.B. Tauris. His books have been translated into Turkish, Italian, Greek, Romanian, and Croatian.
Session: A Slippery Slope: Democracy, Autocracy, Hypocrisy
Ned Price served during the Biden Administration as the Deputy to the U.S. Representative to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, overseeing the U.S. Mission to the United Nations’ Washington office and, as a Deputy Cabinet-level official, serving as a standing member of the National Security Council’s Deputies Committee. Ned began his most recent stint in government at the Department of State in January 2021, when he assumed the role of Department Spokesperson, a title he held until March 2023. He then served as Senior Advisor to Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken until he took on his leadership role with the U.S. Mission to the UN.
Prior to the Biden Administration, Ned was Co-Founder and Director of Policy and Communications at National Security Action, a non-profit advocacy organization. During the Obama Administration, he served as Special Assistant to President Obama on the National Security Council staff, where he also was the Spokesperson and Senior Director for Strategic Communications. He previously was at the Central Intelligence Agency, where he was a senior analyst and Spokesperson. He has been an NBC News analyst and contributor and taught at Georgetown University and The George Washington University. He graduated summa cum laude from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and received a Master’s from Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. He is originally from Dallas, Texas, and is a lifetime member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
Nicole Bibbins Sedaca serves as the interim president of Freedom House. Prior, she served as Executive Vice President for three years, where she oversaw the organization’s strategy and programs. Prior to joining Freedom House, Ms. Bibbins Sedaca served as the Deputy Director of Georgetown University’s Master of Science in Foreign Service (MSFS) program, the Co-Chair for the Global Politics and Security Concentration, and a Professor in the Practice of International Affairs in MSFS. She is also the Kelly and David Pfeil Fellow at the George W. Bush Institute.
Session: The Spectrum of Sovereignty
Thomas E. Graham is a distinguished fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. His book, Getting Russia Right, was published in September, 2023. He is a cofounder of Yale University’s Russian, East European, and Eurasian studies program and sits on its faculty steering committee. He is also a research fellow at Yale’s MacMillan Center. He has been a lecturer in global affairs and political science since 2011, teaching courses on U.S.-Russian relations and Russian foreign policy, as well as cybersecurity and counterterrorism. Graham was special assistant to the president and senior director for Russia on the National Security Council staff from 2004 to 2007, during which he managed a White House-Kremlin strategic dialogue. He was director for Russian affairs on the staff from 2002 to 2004.
Session: 1918 Dinner (Invite only / Contact ebernstine@worldaffairscouncils.org for more information)
Eric Green is a nonresident scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. In 2023, Mr. Green completed a 32-year career in the U.S. Foreign Service, in which he achieved the rank of Minister-Counselor. From 2021-23 he served as Special Assistant to President Biden and Senior Director for Russia and Central Asia in the National Security Council, where he helped design and execute U.S. policy before and during the war in Ukraine.
During his career in the Foreign Service, Green served in several leadership positions, including as the Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. embassies in Poland and Iceland and Principal Officer in Adana, Turkey. He served twice in Moscow and once in Kyiv and worked for five years on the Northern Ireland Peace Process in both Belfast and Washington.
In Washington, his assignments included Associate Dean at the Foreign Service Institute and senior positions in the bureaus of European Affairs, International Organizations, International Narcotics and Law Enforcement, as well as on the Secretary of State’s Policy Planning Staff.
With 25 years of experience designing and fielding international social and political surveys, Dina Smeltz joined the Chicago Council on Global Affairs as senior fellow on public opinion and foreign policy in 2012 and became vice president of public opinion and foreign policy in 2023. She oversees the Council’s well-known annual survey of American attitudes toward foreign policy and has authored and co-authored many of the analyses based on that work. She also directs the Council’s collaboration with Russian, Mexican, Canadian, Australian, and East Asian research organizations. Smeltz has published commentary on public opinion and international issues in The Washington Post, Foreign Affairs, POLITICO, RealClearWorld, Foreign Policy, and the Council’s survey blog (Running Numbers).
Sessions: Americans and the World, The View From Abroad
Amb. Brian D. McFeeters (ret.) currently serves as interim President and CEO of the US-ASEAN Business Council. Amb. McFeeters joined the Council in 2023 as Senior Vice President and Regional Managing Director in Singapore. Throughout his diplomatic career, he held key positions around the world, including in Indonesia, South Korea, and Malaysia. He also played a central role in advancing U.S. business interests through multilateral engagements at the U.S. Mission to the European Union in Brussels and the U.S. Mission to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in Paris.
Having spent half of his 32-year Foreign Service career in Asia, he most recently served as U.S. Ambassador to Malaysia from February 2021 to August 2023. Prior to that, he held several senior roles, including Senior Advisor to the Counselor of the Department of State, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs, Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Iraq, and Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Indonesia, among other key assignments.
Before his diplomatic career, Amb. McFeeters worked in the private sector as an analyst at Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) and served as a Captain in the U.S. Air Force. He holds an M.A. in International Affairs from SAIS Johns Hopkins, an M.S. in Chemistry from the University of New Mexico, and both a B.S. in Chemistry and a B.A. in English from the University of Notre Dame.
Yacoubian joined the U.S. Institute of Peace after serving as deputy assistant administrator in the Middle East Bureau at USAID from 2014 to 2017, where she had responsibility for Iraq, Syria, Jordan and Lebanon. Prior to joining USAID, Yacoubian was a senior advisor at the Stimson Center focusing on the Arab uprisings with an emphasis on Syria. Prior to joining the Stimson Center, she served as a special advisor on the Middle East at the U.S. Institute of Peace, where her work focused on Lebanon and Syria as well as broader issues related to democratization in the Arab world. From 1990 to 1998, Yacoubian served as the North Africa analyst in the State Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research.
Session: Middle East Magnetics
Lauren Markham is a California based-writer covering issues of migration, justice and the environment. Her work has appeared in outlets such as the Atlantic, Harper’s, The New York Review of Books, The New York Times Magazine and VQR, where she is a contributing editor. The author the award-winning book about child migrants entitled The Far Away Brothers: Two Young Migrants and the Making of an American Life and the recent critically-acclaimed A Map of Future Ruins: On Borders and Belonging, she has also spent over fifteen years working at the intersection of education and immigration. Her forthcoming book, Immemorial, will be published in February of 2025.
Suzanne Spaulding is senior adviser for homeland security and director of the Defending Democratic Institutions project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). She also served as a member of the Cyberspace Solarium Commission. Prior to joining CSIS, Ms. Spaulding was Undersecretary at the Department of Homeland Security, leading the National Protection and Programs Directorate (NPPD), which has since been renamed to the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).
Ms. Spaulding served under Republican and Democratic administrations and for both sides of the aisle in Congress. She has formerly served as Assistant General Counsel at the CIA, General Counsel for the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, and Minority Staff Director for the House of Representatives Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.
Session: A Slippery Slope: Democracy, Autocracy, Hypocrisy
Ambassador Daniel B. Shapiro is a distinguished fellow with the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative. From 2022 to 2023, he was the Director of the N7 Initiative.
In his most recent government service, Shapiro was Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Middle East from 2024 to 2025, and prior to that was Senior Adviser on Regional Integration in the State Department’s Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs. He is a former US ambassador to Israel, having served in that role from 2011 to 2017. Prior to his appointment, he worked as senior director for the Middle East and North Africa on the National Security Council at the White House, following his role as senior policy adviser in Barack Obama’s presidential campaign.
From 2001 to 2007, Shapiro worked as legislative director and later deputy chief of staff for then US Senator Bill Nelson. From 1999 to 2001, he was director for legislative affairs at the National Security Council, serving as congressional liaison for National Security Adviser Sandy Berger. Shapiro also previously served as a staff member on the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Europe and the Middle East and as a senior foreign policy adviser to US Senator Dianne Feinstein.
Shapiro has served as an adjunct professor at the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, and in 2007 he was named vice president of Timmons & Company. Shapiro was a distinguished visiting fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv from 2017 to 2021. Concurrently, he was a principal at WestExec Advisors.
Mines joined USIP after a career at the State Department, where he was most recently director for Andean and Venezuelan affairs. In 32 years of diplomatic and military service, he has worked on governance and institution building in Central America and Colombia; Middle East peace in Israel and the West Bank; post-conflict stabilization in Haiti, Iraq and Afghanistan; global financial stability and the environment in Brazil; security sector reform in Hungary; famine relief and tribal reconciliation in Darfur and Somali; and creating a culture of lawfulness as the first director of the Merida Initiative in Mexico City.
Session: The Spectrum of Sovereignty
Ambassador Arturo Sarukhan is the founder and president of Sarukhan + Associates. A consultant and public speaker, he is also a nonresident senior fellow at The Brookings Institution, an adjunct lecturer at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS),a distinguished visiting professor at the Annenberg School of Public Diplomacy at the University of Southern California, an Associate Fellow at The Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House) in the UK, and a Global Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson Center’s Mexico Institute. He writes a biweekly column in Mexico City’s El Financiero newspaper and frequently publishes op-eds in U.S. media outlets. He also participates in a weekly Mexican television newscast on Milenio TV and a weekly radio segment on Enfoque Noticias.
Ambassador Sarukhan served as a career diplomat in the Mexican Foreign Service for 22 years, receiving the rank of career ambassador in 2006. From 2007 to 2013, he served as Mexico’s ambassador to the United States. He was the youngest and longest-serving Mexican ambassador in Washington in modern times and led a team of 250 diplomats, plus an additional staff of 1,500 in Mexico’s 50 consulates across the U.S. He became the dean of the Group of Latin American Ambassadors (GRULA) to the United States during his tenure.
Ambassador Sarukhan is a digital diplomacy pioneer and the first ambassador accredited in Washington, D.C. to use Twitter in an official capacity as a public diplomacy and outreach and engagement tool. Ambassador Sarukhan lives in Washington, D.C. He is married and has two teenage daughters. In his spare time, he is a music aficionado and a rabid soccer player and fan.
Walter Russell Mead is the Ravenel B. Curry III Distinguished Fellow in Strategy and Statesmanship at Hudson Institute, the Global View Columnist at The Wall Street Journal and the Alexander Hamilton Professor of Strategy and Statecraft with the Hamilton Center for Classical and Civic Education at the University of Florida. He is also a member of Aspen Institute Italy and board member of Aspenia. Before joining Hudson, Mr. Mead was a fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations as the Henry A. Kissinger Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy. He has authored numerous books, including the widely-recognized Special Providence: American Foreign Policy and How It Changed the World (Alfred A. Knopf, 2004). Mr. Mead’s most recent book is titled The Arc of A Covenant: The United States, Israel, and the Fate of the Jewish People (Alfred A. Knopf, 2022).
Suzanne Maloney is the vice president and director of the Foreign Policy program at the Brookings Institution, where her research focuses on Iran and Persian Gulf energy. Prior to being named vice president and director, she served as the deputy director of Foreign Policy for five years. At Brookings, she is a leading voice on U.S. policy toward Iran and the broader Middle East, testifying before Congress, briefing policymakers, and engaging with government, non-profit organizations and corporations. Maloney also serves on the External Research Council for the National Intelligence Council and is a frequent commentator in national and international media.
Session: Breakfast Briefing
Carrie Filipetti is the founder and Executive Director of the Vandenberg Coalition. She previously served as a Deputy Special Representative for Venezuela and Deputy Assistant Secretary for Cuba and Venezuela under Secretary Michael Pompeo and as Senior Advisor for the Middle East, Counterterrorism, and Latin America under U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley.
Session: U.S. Attitudes Toward Foreign Policy
Dr. Kamran Bokhari is a founder and Senior Director of the Eurasian Security and Prosperity at the New Lines Institute for Strategy & Policy in Washington. Bokhari has 15 years of experience in the private sector intelligence space during which he provided intellectual leadership in the publishing of cutting-edge geopolitical analysis and forecasts.
Session: Middle East Magnetics
Virginia Beach, Virginia
Burlington, Vermont
Brattleboro, Vermont
Salt Lake City, Utah
Austin, Texas
Houston, Texas
Dallas, Texas (Regional Service)
El Paso, Texas
Laredo, Texas
San Antonio, Texas
Corpus Christi, Texas
Nashville, Tennessee (Statewide Service)
Brookings, South Dakota
Columbia, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
Hilton Head, South Carolina
Greenville, South Carolina
Narraganset, Rhode Island (Statewide Service)
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Reading, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Portland, Oregon
Cleveland, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Dayton, Ohio
World Affairs Council of Northwest Ohio
Stony Ridge, Ohio
New York City, New York
Troy, New York
Hyde Park, New York
Rochester, New York
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Santa Fe, New Mexico
Manchester, New Hampshire (Statewide Service)
Las Vegas, Nevada
Omaha, Nebraska
Anchorage, Alaska
Juneau, Alaska
Missoula, Montana (Statewide Service)
Kansas City, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
Minneapolis, Minnesota (Statewide Service)
Traverse City, Michigan
Detroit, Michigan
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Worcester, Massachusetts
Springfield, Massachusetts
Boston, Massachusetts
Baltimore, Maryland
Portland, Maine
New Orleans, Louisiana
Highland Heights, Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky
Iowa City, Iowa
Davenport, Iowa
Kansas City, Missouri (Regional)
Indianapolis, Indiana
Louisville, Kentucky (Regional)
Peoria, Illinois
Springfield, Illinois
Honolulu, Hawaii (Statewide Service)
Naples, Florida
Sarasota, Florida
St. Petersburg, Florida
Jacksonville, Florida
Miami, Florida
Palm Beach, Florida
Waterford, Connecticut
Hartford, Connecticut
Colorado Foothills World Affairs Council
Evergreen, Colorado
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Denver, Colorado
Sacramento, California
Los Angeles, California
San Diego, California
Irvine, California
Santa Rosa, California
Palm Desert, California
Monterey Bay, California
Phoenix, Arizona
Troy, Alabama
