Global Conversations: Recent Episodes
CCWA
Ambassador Marie “Masha” Yovanovitch has a stark but hopeful story to tell of the dedication of foreign service officers and her own career. As Ambassador to Ukraine, her endeavors to encourage democracy, support anti-corruption efforts, and advance U.S. interests and values in Ukraine no doubt left a lasting impression that continues to inform the policies of a country now under direct military attack. On April 26, 2023, she sat down with CCWA President and Ambassador-in-Residence, Heather Hodges for a special luncheon Foreign Policy Forum. Please note that this episode will only be available for a limited time, per the Ambassador's request. It will be removed on June 30, 2023.
The world has always been managing crises. From armed conflict to climate change and pandemics, the United Nations is the place where the international community gathers to attempt to solve them. Effective communication about these challenges and the responses to them is one of the keys to global cooperation. On April 11, 2023 the United Nations’ top communications official spoke about her work at Cleveland Council on World Affairs' Foreign Policy Forum.
The International Women of Courage Award given by the U.S. Secretary of State recognizes extraordinary women from around the world who have demonstrated exceptional courage, strength, and leadership in advocating for peace, justice, human rights, gender equity, and the empowerment of women and girls, in all their diversity, often at great personal risk and sacrifice. Since the inception of the International Women of Courage Award in March 2007, the U.S. Department of State has recognized more than 170 women from over 80 countries.
On March 14, 2023, the Cleveland Council on World Affairs welcomed three of the 2023 honorees to share their stories and help us mark International Women’s Day by recognizing the incredible work that they are leading in their respective countries. Please note that the event was held in English and French with English interpretation. Please enjoy the forum.
As the CEO of a multinational corporation, Rich Kramer is leading The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company through an evolution of mobility and transportation that is taking place around the globe. From its world headquarters here in Northeast Ohio, Goodyear has continuously reinvented its business during its 125-year history to adapt to the conditions and challenges of our interconnected world. In his discussion, Kramer described how and why Goodyear has grown from a tire company to a technology company driving innovation a new world of transportation. This event was made possible through the generosity of the Dr. Raj and Karen Aggarwal Forum on International Business.
The Republic of Korea has been a strategic U.S. military and economic ally since the 1950s. With regional tensions with China at an all-time high, a new Korean President since May, and global trade experiencing massive disruption, what does the future of the strategic U.S.-Korea relationship look like? And how might they jointly, or multilaterally, continue to thwart the threats from ongoing missile tests and nuclear program development from the Democratic Republic of Korea (DPRK)? To examine this question, the Cleveland Council on World Affairs hosted a delegation including representatives from the Korea Economic Institute, the Korean Embassy and the U.S. Department of State.
Significant moves in both diplomatic and economic relationships are already bearing fruit after the historic signing in September 2020 of the Abraham Accords to jointly normalize relations between Israel, Bahrain, […]
The Summit of the Americas, hosted in San Diego in June, brought about tense interactions between the U.S. and our hemispheric neighbors to the south. Debate about the guestlist, threats […]
In April 2022, The Cleveland Council on World Affairs had the opportunity to speak with Elizabeth Shackleford on the importance of foreign policy education and discourse in the everyday lives of all Americans. She also shares invaluable advice on developing mentoring relationships and a surprising recipe from Somalia for bananas on spaghetti.
Guest: Fiona Hill Since her testimony in the 2019 presidential impeachment hearings, Fiona Hill is sounding the alarm on the conditions that lead to populism and democratic decline the world over in her book There Is Nothing for You Here. Drawing comparisons between economic dislocation in places like the Rust Belt, manufacturing regions of England […]
Guest: David Pogue, Cleveland native, six-time Emmy winner for CBS Sunday Morning, and New York Times bestselling author. With climate change leading the agenda for many world leaders and yet trailing in global cooperation to manage its effects, David Pogue brings the case that individuals all around the world must begin to adjust their daily […]
Panelists included André Gremillet, President and CEO of The Cleveland Orchestra; Heather Lemonedes Brown, Chief Curator of The Cleveland Museum of Art; Yaron Kohlberg, President of Piano Cleveland; and international pianist, Bishara Haroni. In a partnership with Piano Cleveland, the Cleveland Council on World affairs hosted a panel discussion on the topic of Art and […]
Guest: Tanvi Madan, Director of The India Project at Brookings Institution. On February 8, 2022, we explored the relatively new Indo-Pacific quadrilateral coalition of Japan, Australia, the U.S. and India and what it means for the region.
Guest: Michael Weidokal, Founder and Executive Director of International Strategic Analysis, a company providing country intelligence, economic forecasting and international market studies for many of the world’s leading companies. On January 19, 2022, in our first forum of the new year, Mr. Wiedokal shared his thoughts on economic performance in 2021 and his forecast for […]
Guest: Rachel Ellehuus On November 16, 2021, Deputy Director for the Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, offered her insights into the current state of the transatlantic alliance.
Guest: Stéphane Dujarric On October 19, 2021, the Cleveland Council on World Affairs hosted Stéphane Dujarric, the Spokesperson for the United Nations Secretary-General, to talk about the role of the United Nations in a changing world. Please enjoy this moderated conversation, audience questions and candid responses.
Guest: Dr. Robert M. Gates The 2021 Global Impact Award honored Dr. Robert M. Gates, former U.S. Secretary of Defense, for his distinguished career in national security. Dr. Gates delivered the Brooks Emeny Distinguished Lecture and discussed his newest book, Exercise of Power: American Failures, Successes, and a New Path Forward in the Post-Cold War […]
Guest: Gayle Tzemach Lemmon During this Foreign Policy Forum, Gayle Tzemach Lemmon discussed The Daughters of Kobani, which tells the story of an unlikely fight in northeastern Syria in 2014, when an all-female militia faced off against ISIS. In general, women’s contributions to matters of war and peace, foreign policy, national security, and even combat […]
Guest: Molly Williamson Climate change is one area where politics, economics, and science come together to create an all-encompassing challenge that must be met by leaders worldwide. Unfortunately, it is clear that the causes, effects, and policies needed to counter climate change are a point of contention, as everything regarding climate change has become politically […]
Guest: Kelsey Davenport and Paul Pillar The U.S.-Iran relationship is one the most pressing foreign policy challenges the Biden Administration will navigate in the coming years. CCWA was joined by Paul Pillar, Nonresident Senior Fellow of the Center for Security Studies at Georgetown University, and Kelsey Davenport, Director for Nonproliferation Policy at the Arms Control […]
Guest: Nicolas Véron
At the start of the new year, Nicolas Véron, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, spoke at CCWA’s inaugural Dr. Raj and Karen Aggarwal Forum on International Business. Véron addressed the continuing impact of the global pandemic on the world economy. In Q&A, he touched upon the outlook for China, the European Union, and the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines.
Guest: Susan Thornton
Susan Thornton, a retired senior U.S. diplomat with near 30 years of experience with the U.S. State Department and current Senior Fellow at Yale Law School, spoke in a virtual webinar for CCWA in November of 2020. Thornton addressed the changing U.S.-China relationship and what the future might look like. Throughout Q&A, she addressed Taiwan, Hong Kong, the South China Sea, and lessons that other nations can learn from China.
Guest: Ambassador Nicholas Burns
Ambassador Nicholas Burns, the Roy and Barbara Goodman Family Professor of the Practice of Diplomacy and International Relations at the Harvard Kennedy School, spoke in a virtual webinar for CCWA on October 26, 2020. Ambassador Burns discussed the role of foreign policy in the 2020 election and the changing role of the United States in the world. During Q&A, the Ambassador addressed emerging global powers and the U.S. foreign service, among other global issues.