WASHINGTON, D.C. – Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Alina Romanowski (left) meets with Vermont Council on World Affairs Executive Director Anita Selec (right), at the U.S. Department of State, on February 14, 2008.  Ms. Selec was attending a meeting of community-based organizations from across the country that arrange local professional meetings, cultural activities and home hospitality for current and potential foreign leaders visiting the United States under the auspices of the Department of State’s International Visitor Leadership Program. 

Provincial Council Chairman Abdusalam Mohammed, of visiting Iraqi delegation, speaks to the media in Colchester on Thursday.

Photo by Burlington Free Press

From November 7-9, eight officials from Al Anbar province visited to learn about the U.S. political system. To read the local news coverage of their visit click HERE.

From October 5-7 VCWA, Norwich University, and the Vermont Peace Academy held a conference at Norwich Universty on Creating Connections: New Partnerships for Understanding in the Middle East. Did you miss the conference? Click HERE to hear the plenary session and panel discussion.

On June 14 VCWA led a tour of the Port of Boston, Logan airport and the the UPS hub in Chelmsford, pictured above.  For more information and photos click here.

Click here to link to the Global Currents Podcasts hosted by VCWA member Sarwar Kashmeri

Click here to read VCWA member Sarwar Kashmeri's article in the Op-Ed of the Valley News on the Assassination of Pakistani Opposition Leader Benazir Bhutto

To read VCWA member Saleem Ali's recent article in Policy Innovations: A Publication of the Carnegie Council on "Salvaging Peace with Syria" click HERE.

June 11, International Dinner honoring Marc & Dana vanderHeyden, shown above with a group of Russian Open World visitors.

Barbara Finamore from the Natural Resources Defense Council, speaks on June 4 in Montpelier as part of the National China Town Hall events.  To listen to her talk click here.

To watch the National reflections video with Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Thomas Christensen click here.

The Ship for World Youth 

SWY is a unique international cultural exchange program organized by the Japanese Government that brings together over 250 youth from around the world to learn about international cooperation and understanding.

To find out how you can participate click here.

There are brilliant ideas, expressed everyday in public discussions and events, all over the world.  Don't miss them.  FORA delivers discourse, discussions and debates on the world's most interesting political, social and cultural issues, and enables viewers to join the conversation.

A collection of public affairs lectures, panels and events from academic institutions all over the world
-- for you to view, listen to, stream or download.

SHOP AND RAISE MONEY FOR VCWA!

Like to help VCWA in a  big way? Buy something for yourself. Better yet, buy a lot of somethings for yourself! But first join www.iGive.com/VCWA Because whenever you purchase everyday items at the Mall at iGive, up to 26% of every purchase is donated to VCWA, at no cost to you!  

At iGive.com you get free membership and access to the over 600 brand-name merchants like Barnes & Noble, Eddie Bauer, LandsEnd and PETsMART; super savings and deals every day; and of course, free donations to VCWA! Join www.iGive.com/VCWA, and then shop till you drop.

Help VCWA earn money every time you search the internet!

VCWA has hooked up with GoodSearch, a Yahoo-powered search engine with a unique mission; 50% of its advertising revenue, about a penny per search, is shared with the nonprofits selected by its users.  The more people use GoodSearch, the more money will be directed towards VCWA.  

Just go to www.goodsearch.com and be sure to enter Vermont Council on World Affairs as the charity you want to support.  Just 500 of us searching four times a day will raise about $7300 in a year without anyone spending a dime!  And, be sure to spread the word!

May 7, 2008

Living History:  13 Real Lives in China Today

The latest book by Burlington author MADELYN HOLMES:
Students and Teachers of the New China (McFarland Publishers)

Meet the Author:

7 - 8:30 p.m.
Chorus Room
Burlington H.S. 
Open to students and the general public. 

Far be it from the upper echelons of power, what was it like to be living in China during certain periods of recent Chinese history?  During her time teaching in China, the author interviewed thirteen ordinary Chinese citizens ranging in age from 7 – 72.  Each has lived through a dramatically different period of Chinese history since 1949 and all have a unique personal perspective of an ordinary person’s life in China during some of the tumultuous history since the Communist take over in 1949.  Come and hear a personal perspective of modern history.  

For further information phone 802-863-6908

May

The U.S. and the U.N.: Why the cold feet? Panel Discussion

More details to come.

Fall of 2008

Panel Discussion, Russia: Post Putin

Panelists:
John O'Keefe, Former U.S. Ambassador and current Executive Director of the Open World program

South America: Shift to the Left? Panel Discussion

Panelists:
Caroline Beer, political science professor at the University of Vermont
Mark Williams, political science professor at Middlebury College

Free and open to the public.
More details to be announced.

Upcoming International Visitors

Local officials from Baghdad, Iraq meet with State Representative Denise Barnard at the Richmond Town Meeting

Upcoming International Visitor programs:

• Russia (May 28-31):Six delegates from Russia will be visiting to learn more about housingissues.
• Ukraine (June 5-26): Eleven Ukrainians will be visiting to learn about forest preservation and national park management.
• Multi-regional (July 1-5): Twenty-one delegates from all over the world will be visiting to learn more about grassroots democracy.
• Multi-regional (July 16-20):  A large delegation from all over the world will be visiting Vermont to learn more about local government.

Delegations who have already visited Vermont in 2008:

• Europe (April 19-23):Eleven delegates from Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Romania, the Slovak Republic, and Slovenia visited Vermont to learn more about alternative energy.  They toured Blue Spruce Farms, the South Farms “net zero” energy efficient housing development in Hinesburg, and NRG.  They met with Lt. Governor Brian Dubie and members of the Vermont legislature, and had meetings at the Clean Energy Group and the Vermont Department of Public Service.  They also participated in an Interfaith Seder at Ohavi Zhedek Synagogue.

• Iraq (March 1-6) Seven local government officials from Baghdad,Iraqi visited Vermont to learn about grassroots democracy. During their stay, they attended the Richmond Town Meeting and talked with State Representative Denise Barnard; visited polling places in Colchester and Shelburne where the Town Clerks explained the election process; made presentations to a senior class at Colchester High School and the "Transitions to Democracy" class at Saint Michael's College; and participated in other election-related events.

• Multiregional group (February 7-9): Twenty delegates from 20 different countries (Bulgaria, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Hungary, India, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Lithuania, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, the People’s Republic of China, Romania, Tanzania, Trinidad & Tobago, and Uganda) visited Vermont to learn more about intellectual property rights, copyrights, and patent law. During their stay, they met with Governor Douglas, Lt. Governor Dubie, Vermont Supreme Court Justice Brian Burgess, Michael Chernick of the Vermont Legislative Council Peter Kunin at the Vermont Law School, Andrew Manitsky of Gravel and Shea, Mark Oettinger, and Emily Wetherell, a law clerk at the Vermont Supreme Court.

• Belarus (January 17-20): Four university officials from Belarus visited Vermont and during their visit they met with Gail Stevenson, Director of International Programs at Champlain College; Professor Kevin McKenna of the Russian and Eastern European Studies Program at the University of Vermont; and Professor Robert Niemi, Coordinator of the American Studies Program at Saint Michael's College. They also enjoyed dinner at the home of Evan & Mary MacEwan and were our featured guests at the “East Meets West” potluck dinner.

In calendar year 2007, we hosted 25 delegations of international visitors totaling 124 delegates from 49 different countries (Afghanistan, Albania, Argentina, Armenia, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bolivia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Brazil, Cambodia, Cameroon, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Denmark, Ecuador, El Salvador, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Germany, Guatemala, India, Japan, Iraq, Korea, Kosovo, Latvia, Macedonia, the Maldives, the Marshall Islands, Moldova, Montenegro, Nepal, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Qatar, Russia, Serbia, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Turkey, Uganda, Venezuela, and the West Bank). The delegates were accompanied by 49 officials from the U.S. Department of State and other government agencies. The topics of their visits included criminal justice, community development, environmental education, grassroots democracy, journalism, the judiciary, local government, political parties, renewable energy, rural health care, sustainable agriculture, telecommunications, and youth leadership. For more information about these delegations, CLICK HERE

If you would like to be involved in these programs, please contact Carol Casey, Director of the International Visitor Leadership Program, at ccasey@vcwa.org or call 654-2727.

 

*Special Notes:

Host Families Needed in Southern Vermont for High School Exchange Students: Several high school students from Afghanistan and other Muslim countries will be spending the 2008-2009 academic year in Vermont as part of the Youth Exchange and Study Program coordinated by the American Councils of International Education.  Kara Lozier, the Vermont Coordinator of the program, is seeking host families for these students.  If you are interested in being a host family, please contact Kara at karalozier@yahoo.com.

The Vermont Studio Center in Johnson will be hosting two visual artists of Himalayan origin for a 2 month residency program. 
For more information, go to http://www.vermontstudiocenter.org/vsc-to-host-himalayan-artists/

 

Upcoming Community Events

May 9, 2008

The Windham World Affairs Council Presents:

Friday, May 9, at 7:30 PM
Brooks Memorial Library

Ellen L. Frost, author and former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, will speak on her new book Asia's New Regionalism.

Frost states that  the political drive to establish closer economic and security ties among Asian governments continues to gain momentum. One motivation is the need to engage a rising power -- China. The United States, preoccupied with the Middle East, has largely ignored the new trend, but China has become a skilled practitioner of regional diplomacy.

 

October 9-May 27, 2008

The Center for Technology in Essex is offering a Focus on China in its International Studies Academy for students and adults wishing to learn about the language and culture of China in a series of four courses from October 9, 2007 through May 27, 2008 from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  For more information, contact Charles Brady by phone (802-879-5560)