Meet the Speakers

Session 1 - From Conflict to Connection:
Discourse as a Tool for Peace

  • Jim Welch is an adjunct lecturer in English at the University of Vermont, where he works with the Reporting and Documentary Storytelling Program and serves as editor at large editor with the Community News Service.

    He is a former senior editor and CEO at VTDigger, the independent digital news organization based in Montpelier. Now in its 15th year, the investigative outlet produces rigorous journalism that explains complex issues, promotes public accountability, and fosters democratic and civic engagement. 

    Jim began his journalism career at National Journal, a weekly magazine on government and politics, while still a student at Georgetown University in Washington. There he studied international relations and later received a master’s degree in leadership from its graduate school of business.

     He then moved to the Burlington Free Press here in Vermont, where he served for seven years as editor in chief. During that time, he also reported for Gannett News Service from such places as Nicaragua, El Salvador, Cuba, Uzbekistan and Russia.

    Jim later joined USA Today, where he was one of its founding editors. He was deputy managing editor for sports and led reporting delegations to 10 Olympic Games, including those in Beijing, Athens, Sydney and Torino. He also served as a sports commentator on CNN and later moved to USA

    Today’s News section, where he oversaw the organization’s transition to full seven-day coverage.

    Before returning to Vermont in 2017 to join VTDigger, Welch worked as a speechwriter for the president of the American Bar Association. He has also been a professional in residence at the University of Iowa.

  • Christina S. Barsky is an Associate Professor Director of the Master of Public Administration (MPA) program at the University of Vermont. A “prac-academic,” Barsky bridges theory and practice in public administration and is motivated by community-engaged projects that address complex problems and meet local needs. Her work is centered around the dynamics of citizen-state interactions on the frontlines of democracy and offers actionable insight for policymakers, practitioners, and general audiences. She holds degrees from Northern Arizona University (Ph.D.), the University of Montana (M.P.A.), and Skidmore College (B.A.) and is a proud national service (VISTA) alumna. Barsky’s recent academic work can be found in Administration & Society, the International Journal of Public Administration, the Journal of Health and Human Service Administration, the Journal of Health Politics, Policy, and Law, Political Science Now, the Journal of Public Affairs Education, Public Administration Quarterly, and Teaching Public Administration, among others.

Moderator

  • Wilmer is the superintendent of the Winooski School District, leading the only "minority-majority" district in the state and modeling practices that affirm, protect, and capitalize on the diversity of the district. Wilmer has held other leadership positions in Milton, the Windham Southwest SU, and the Española Public Schools in New Mexico, and served in other formal capacities at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the Los Alamos National Laboratory Foundation. He is a Watson Fellow and a Davis Scholar, and holds college and graduate degrees from Earlham College, the University of New Mexico, and Harvard University. Wilmer was born a refugee and raised in northern Nicaragua, becoming a US citizen in 2018.

Session 2 - Power and Presence:
What Happens When the U.S. Steps Back

Moderator

  • During her 25+ year career in international development, Ellen has focused on governance, strategic communications, capacity building and gender. She has served as a trainer and advisor in more than 30 countries in Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Middle East -- on the importance of free and fair elections, advocacy, and women’s leadership. Along with her husband, Ellen co-founded the One Connected Village Foundation to devote resources to women and girls in conflict. 

  • Journalist and Pulitzer Prize finalist historian Garrett M. Graff has covered politics, technology, and national security for two decades. The former editor of POLITICO Magazine, he writes the popular Doomsday Scenario newsletter and hosts the Edward R. Murrow Award-winning podcast, Long Shadow. The author of ten books, including Watergate: A New History, he is best known for his bestselling landmark volumes of oral histories, The Only Plane in the Sky: An Oral History of 9/11, When the Sea Came Alive: An Oral History of D-Day, and, most recently, The Devil Reached Toward the Sky, about the making of the atomic bomb.

  • Sarwar Kashmeri is an international relations specialist, author, and commentator known for his expertise on U.S. global strategy and national security. He is the founder and host of Polaris-Live.com, a program exploring the geopolitical and economic impact of China’s rise. A Senior Fellow at the Foreign Policy Association and an Applied Research Fellow at Norwich University’s Peace and War Center, Kashmeri has authored several influential works, including China’s Grand Strategy and two Telegram reports on U.S.-China policy. He has spoken at West Point, appeared in global media outlets such as CNN, Deutsche Welle, and The Guardian, and served as a communications advisor and former CEO in the tech sector.

    Kashmeri holds engineering degrees from Saint Louis University, where he also taught and led major computing initiatives.

  • Courtney Chubb is a retired Senior Foreign Service Officer with over 25 years of leadership experience at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). She served as Mission Director in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where she advanced democratic governance, energy reform, and economic development. Previously, she led the USAID Mission/West Bank and Gaza, navigating high-stakes diplomacy and restarting a $100M assistance program. Her international assignments also included leadership roles in Thailand, Russia, Mexico, Colombia, and as Director of USAID’s Foreign Service Center in Washington, D.C.

    Courtney is known for her strategic vision, collaborative leadership, and ability to manage complex operations in challenging political environments. She has successfully guided multi-million-dollar portfolios, mentored diverse teams, and briefed senior U.S. government officials during crises, including the 2021 Gaza conflict.

    She is married to a retired Department of State Foreign Service Officer and has two sons.

Session 3 - The Other-ing Effect:
Preventing Hate Through Inclusion

  • Rachel Miner is the founder of Bellwether International where she works at the intersection of economics, human rights, and policy to protect and promote freedom of religion or belief, also known as freedom of conscience. As executive director of Bellwether International, Rachel works directly with government leaders, faith and belief leaders, and other nongovernmental organizations to address the growing human rights violations that affect groups such as the Uighurs in China and the Rohingya in Myanmar. She has worked extensively on public policy in the United States Senate and, most recently, in the Utah State Legislature, helping to draft and facilitate support for three separate bills that ensure protection to sexual assault survivors.

  • Paul Suk-Hyun Yoon is the Chief Culture and Compliance Officer of Vermont State University. He believes his purpose in life is to passionately pursue justice to make the world a more equitable place and brings more than 18 years of experience in education to this role. His most recent position was as Senior Advisor for Inclusive Excellence in the Division of Inclusive Excellence at the University of Vermont. In addition, Paul is a Partner with CQ Strategies, a Vermont-based consultancy committed to justice, equity, cultural proficiency, and social justice.

Moderator

  • Brown came from his native Jamaica decades ago to study at Concordia University in Montreal, graduating in 1982 before coming to Saint Michael’s for his graduate degree in education. He liked the community so much, he stayed in the area after exploring many other regions that never quite measured up. He has been honored with the Burlington Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Award and many other awards for his service. A major accomplishment in his life and career was planning and executing the historic visit of Archbishop Desmond Tutu to Vermont in 2005. 

    Active for many years as a partner in programming at Burlington’s Howard Center and a longtime lecturer at the University of Vermont, also has been one of the most active members of the greater Burlington community as an advocate and educator on diversity issues and initiatives. 

    Currently serving as a Trustee of St. Michael's College, member of the State Board of Education, The Vermont New American Advisory Council, Age Well and the Greater Burlington Multicultural Resource Center, and Vice Chair of the Board of Directors for the Vermont Council on World Affairs, among other volunteer activities. 

  • Sarika consults, speaks, teaches, writes, and collaborates at the intersection of race, equity, and environmental issues. Sarika partners with leaders and organizations to re-imagine their programs, strategy and outcomes to center racial equity. She is deeply committed to working for racial environmental and climate justice, and to uplift the inherent power, brilliance, and well-being of communities of color.