WAC-DC

Mr. Eric Goldstein, president of One World Education, a DC public school curriculum and professional development provider, joined us on the final day, June 29^th of the 2012 Summer Institute for International Affairs, to discuss the opportunities One World Education offers in the classroom.

According to Mr. Goldstein, during his experience as an educator, he realized students were not enthused when given topics to write. Rather, they were much happier writing about topics that they cared about and were interested in. In addition, they cared more about the experiences of their peers and connected more with them in the classroom through reading each other’s essays.

One World Education lesson plans and essay questions are based on student writings and responses to topics. The variety in topics and essay questions makes it easier for teachers to incorporate the lesson plans into their curriculums and apply to current world issues. Some student essays have included life in Peru, teenage pregnancy, life in Sudan and more.  The most unique aspect of One World Education mentioned by Mr. Goldstein is the One World Reflections, an essay competition where students write about topics of their choice. Of all students who submit their essays, twelve with excellent writing skills and stories, are chosen to
be the One World Education ambassadors for the year. In addition, starting from
next year, the twelve ambassadors from the previous year will choose the next
year’s ambassadors.

Since 2007, 325 local teachers registered for One World Education and 1600 middle and high school students have submitted their work for One World Reflections competition. Through writing about topics that they are interested in, not only are students able to gain more knowledge about the topic, they are also able to improve their writing skills. Mr. Goldstein mentioned that with more infrastructure and funding they hope to broaden their scope to other things such as languages and not only writing skills.

Onek Adyanga, History professor at the University of Millersville, Pennsylvania on June 28^th 2012 gave an intriguing insight about the current crisis in Uganda between the government and the Lord
Resistance Army (LRA) at the 2012 Summer Institute on International Affairs.

Mr. Adyanga began by explaining the conflict between the LRA and the government. The LRA gained a lot of attention because of their extensive use of child soldiers as a way of protecting themselves, even after the signing of the Convention on the Rights of Child. In addition, the LRA has been accused of human rights violations because of their continuous attack on ‘soft’ populations and abducting their children to use in warfare such as in Operation North (1994), Operation Iron Fist (2002) and Operation Lightening Thunder which was funded by the United States. The government in an attempt to reduce the harm of the LRA on populations transported entire villages in northern Uganda into camps where they were left unprotected.  The counter-insurgency plan by the government was considered a huge failure and ruined the reputation of the government in solving crises.

Mr. Adyanga mentioned that according to World Health Organization in conjunction with Uganda’s Ministry of Health, approximately 1500 people will die a week in camps.  In addition, according to Oxfam International, the rate of death in Uganda is three times greater than that of Darfur. Mr. Adyanga stressed that looking forward, there is need to push Africans to help solve African problems and look into major issues of illiteracy, disease and poverty instead of weaponry. Currently, the Sudanese government provides the LRA with its weaponry as a form of retaliation against the Ugandan government who supported the Sudanese Liberation Movement. Questions asked included the reason for the failure of the U.S to sign the Convention of the Rights of Child.

On June 28, 2012, Don Kraus, CEO of Citizens for Global Solutions joined us at the 22^nd Summer Institute on International Affairs held at Bank of America headquarters for a talk about the Responsibility to Protect.

In his speech, Mr. Kraus talked about the tenants of the concept Responsibility to Protect (R2P) which are a country has the responsibility to protect its citizens from  (1) genocide, (2) war crime, (3) ethnic cleansing and (4) crimes against humanity.  He stressed that there is an intentional use of the word population versus citizens because there are many immigrants and refugees in various countries and they need to be protected as well. The three main pillars of the R2P include a country has the responsibility to protect its population, the international community should help and all interventions should be made through the United Nations.

Mr. Kraus in addition talked about United States policy towards R2P. In the 2010 National Security Strategy the U.S declared they will work bilaterally and multilaterally to help populations in other countries and in April 2012 formed the Atrocity Prevention Board to respond to issues of mass atrocities. Even though the U.S has not incorporated the R2P, the formation of the board is a stepping stone to ensuring responsible U.S response to crises.

Mr. Kraus mentioned the formation of the concept, The Responsibility NOT to Veto (RN2V), created by five small countries of the United Nations. The RN2V involves encouraging the five permanent members (P-5) of the United Nations to use their veto power responsibly and to shame the P5 members who use their veto power to veto situations dealing with mass atrocities. Even though this concept is new, Mr. Kraus seemed hopeful that RN2V could one day be helpful in reforming the United Nations.

In conclusion Mr. Kraus stated that the concept of R2P has been incorporated by many countries and organization such as Canada in the International Commission on Intervention and State Sovereignty, by the African Union in 2005 to their Charter and by the United Nations during the U.N 2005 Summit.

Molly Williamson reaffirmed the challenges of energy demands and their consequences throughout the world during the second day of the 22^nd Summer Institute. Her profound knowledge and expertise on oil consumption, human behavior and resolutions that nations must make were undeniable, but the teachers also lauded her undeniable ability to captivatingly present on the “politics of petroleum” in clear, concise, and approachable terms.

Williamson leads the keynote with a thesis: Everyone believes that development is good and in everyone’s interests – access to water, construction of roads, job opportunities, to live and provide enough for the next generation – while poverty and disease are loses to the world. However, as economies develop, more energy is and will be demanded to accommodate such growth. Therefore, the overarching question is: Is there enough energy available?

Here is where the problems arise. Technological advancements enable man to extract up to 70% of oil reserves from each drilling site, which is considered “full production.” Thus, there is an artificial limit on how much oil and energy we can accrue in order to support our demands. Additionally, politicians enter a game of contradictory politics in their bids for elected positions. While agreeing that we need more energy, politicians readily promise to protect the environment and the local natural landscape with “not in my backyard” rhetoric, or by ensuring the public that oil rigs will not (visibly) drill off of beautiful shores. Furthermore, both nature and mankind are whimsy. Natural disasters are unpredictable and can shove oil production into a standstill while sanctions and policies can dramatically curtail oil production internationally.

Williamson reassuringly endorses a three-pronged approach to solve these challenges. She states that we should improve energy efficiency to receive more output per input. Concomitantly we need to expand available energy sources beyond petroleum, such as shale oil. Lastly, leaders must maintain diplomatic partnerships to reinforce trade relations and cohesively support energy development. The resources to implement these measures are available and global demands will ultimately force the world to address the energy deficit.

Speaking before the World Affairs Council D.C.’s Summer Institute for Educators, Richard Whittle gave an interesting presentation which provided those in attendance with a lively discussion on a controversial topic in current affairs. Drone warfare has become a consistent theme in media coverage of the War on Terror, and the usage of drones has drastically increased, and caught public attention, since the attacks on 9/11. The usage of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), many of which are heavily armed, has drastically increased in recent years and has posed a number of ethical and practical considerations, domestically and internationally.

Used with great effectiveness in a number of high-profile attacks on terrorist leaders, Mr. Whittle illustrated how rapid advancements in technology may represent a revolution in military tactics as the United States in particular is using a large number, and wide variety of, drones in its military operations around the world. However, the civilian casualties sustained during drone attacks on supposed terrorist targets, and the fact that roughly a third of all drones deployed have crashed at some point, has made the usage of this effective military tool all the more controversial.

Richard Whittle, over the course of his discussion, also highlighted current debates over the possibility of unarmed drones being deployed domestically by the police and other agencies, as they can have a very large number of applications in the United States. The prospect of drones being deployed domestically has also raised serious questions over the implications their usage can have for privacy. Ultimately, Richard Whittle prompted a valuable debate over the implications of a technologically advanced future where drones will certainly play an elevated, but controversial, role.

Jonathan White’s presentation for educators at the Summer Institute on Fragile States and post-conflict operations carried out by the international community provided valuable insight into the challenges many countries find themselves facing, as many others have in the past. Discussing the example of the Marshall Plan in reconstructing a post-World War II Germany, Mr. White illustrated how important post-conflict stabilization and reconstruction is in preventing a reoccurrence of the previous conflict. The United States and the European Union have been at the forefront of post-conflict development and aid, although the manner in which they have carried out these operations has sometimes drawn criticism.

The discussion focused upon how US aid efforts are concentrated in a relatively small number of states, and the nature of stabilization and reconstruction programs is often not conducive to long-term sustainable development. Mr. White shared with the audience how US stabilization and reconstruction projects often fail to stabilize the state as the root causes of the conflict remain. Futhermore, these projects, it was learned, are short-term, high impact, and high visibility, rather than engaging closely with local businesses in order to break away from dependency on foreign aid.

Ultimately, Jonathan White’s presentation at the event gave detailed insight into the unique challenges posed by stabilization and reconstruction efforts in post-conflict fragile states; stressing the need for more partnerships with other nations carrying out these operations. The need to also forge lasting economic partnerships with the fragile states who need lasting trade and not necessarily a food drop, was also touched upon. From an educational perspective, Mr. White’s talk proved especially relevant in a globalized world with many developmental challenges, and the economic and security threat posed by fragile states.

Ms. Tamara Coffman Wittes joined us on June 28^th during the Summer Institute on International Affairs to discuss the Middle East after the Arab Spring. Ms.Wittes discussed various issues currently impacting the Middle East.

Ms. Wittes mentioned demographics, economics and media as the three underlying trends currently in the Middle East. With half of the Arab World under the age of 30 and an economic downturn, many have fallen into unemployment. Egypt currently has an unemployment rate ranging between 20% -30%.  With no jobs and high corruption rates, there is a huge gap in equality, especially in the oil-rich countries. With fast technology, many people in the Middle East no longer rely on their governments for information- they turn to Facebook and Al-Jazeera.

Many teachers had questions regarding women and their rights. Miss Wittes emphasized that life for women in Middle East varied greatly depending on the country. In countries such as Saudi Arabia, they are many things written into law that prohibit women, but in other countries there are unwritten laws for women.  However, women are demanding changes in their status in society.  In many countries, majority of college student are women and many of them seek education because it helps them to get married
into better families. In Egypt, many women helped in the revolution and hope in return to have their voices heard.

Among the many questions included good literature about the Middle East and the Arab-Israeli conflict. Ms. Wittes’ recommendations included a book by Ishan Matar about his insights as a 7 year old boy and Shirin Ebadi about Iran.

Kristin Wedding from CSIS discussed an issue of great importance on Wednesday, June 27^th at the 22^nd Summer Institute for Teachers. Wedding spoke of food security and discussed findings from CSIS’s Global Food Security Project.

To begin her presentation, Wedding explained the three components of food security: 1) food availability, 2) food access, and 3) food utilization.

Population trends for the next few decades are changing at a tremendously fast pace. By 2050, the estimated world population hails at 9.3 billion people. The population is growing and urbanizing much more rapidly than we could have imagined. Despite the fact that our human productivity has increased almost tenfold since the 19^th century, the amount of growth necessary in the next 50 years is more than we had needed in the past 1,000 years to feed the global population. As a result, Wedding explained, food security is becoming increasingly important and largely because of these changing global patterns.

Wedding also discussed the one million people worldwide who suffer from extreme hunger – she explained that 65% of the world’s hungry are concentrated in only 7 different countries (India, China, Bangladesh, Democratic Republic of Congo, Indonesia, Pakistan and Ethiopia). Despite these cases of extreme hunger, obesity is on the rise in the United States. Comparatively, 61% of the world’s population is in Asia, yet Asia constitutes only 13% of the world’s mass while North America is 6% of the world’s population, but constitutes 34% of the world’s mass. The future of food security may be threatened by growing population trends, but Wedding believes that technological advances, sustainable farming practices and water management give us hope for adapting to the future.

On Monday, 25 June, the World Affairs Council D.C. was honored to have Bruce Stokes, the Director of the Pew Research Center’s Global Economic Attitudes surveys, lead a discussion at their Summer Institute for Educators event. Mr. Stokes’ presentation was carried out before a number of educators from different schools in the United States, with the intention of helping them become better prepared to educate their students on international affairs topics. As a columnist on economics for the National Journal, and co-author of the book  America Against the World: How We Are Different and Why We Are Disliked, Bruce Stokes has a wealth of experience in the fields of economics, international affairs, and people’s attitudes towards these topics.

The presentation provided by Mr. Stokes on Monday provided valuable insight into the historical and contemporary debate over the integration of the United States into the world economy through trade. The presentation focused upon survey data gathered by the Pew Research Center which indicated the negative perceptions most Americans have of international trade, particularly with China. The research presented by Mr. Stokes also indicated the areas which many Americans know relatively little about; illustrating the need for further education on international affairs and America’s role in the global political economy.

Over the course of the discussion, Mr. Stokes also presented data on perceptions of the United States abroad, illustrating the areas in which America’s soft power remains influential as well as the areas in which the U.S. is negatively perceived. Mr. Stokes’ discussion indicated the disparity between American perceptions of their role in the global economy and the practical decisions made by policy makers who seek closer economic ties with the international community. In concluding the discussion, Mr. Stokes reinforced the importance of educating students about international affairs and the ongoing role played by the U.S. in the global economy.