As with many other wars and conflicts that grew out of the collapse of the Soviet Union, there is a much deeper history to what is going on between Azerbaijan and Armenia. You have to understand the historical context to understand why these two countries cannot get together and come to a lasting agreement over their border and what to do with Nagorno Karabakh. With a breaking of the ceasefire last month, and at least 300 dead, this region continues to see instability that has the potential to flare up again and again. For this episode we talk with Mary Glantz, a former US Foreign Service Officer and a current Senior Advisor to the Russian and European Center at the US Institute of Peace, about the intractable nature of this conflict. On a rare positive note, there is hope that a breakthrough in the peace process is closer than ever and there is a high likelihood that the United States could help push this over the finish line. Listen today to help better understand the drivers of this conflict and what the what is happening here!

Dr. Mary Glantz was a career member of the U.S. Foreign Service and was detailed to USIP as a State Department fellow prior to her retirement in 2022.

Most of her 20-year career as a diplomat has focused on Russia, the former Soviet Union, and other countries of Europe and Eurasia. Previous overseas postings include Baku, Jerusalem, Estonia, and Kosovo. Dr. Glantz also has served as a Russia analyst in the Bureau of Intelligence and Research as well as on the Russia and Poland desks at the State Department. Prior to joining the State Department, she worked as an intern for the Special Adviser for Central and Eastern European Affairs to the Secretary General of NATO, serving in Moscow, Russia and Vilnius, Lithuania.

Dr. Glantz received her bachelor’s in history from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, her master’s in post-Soviet studies from the University of London’s School of Slavonic and East European Studies, and a doctorate from Temple University with a specialization in military and diplomatic history. She recently completed a certificate in data science at Montgomery College.

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The nature of work has consistently changed and morphed, through technological innovation and societal upheavals. Currently, the world sees both factors pushing new ways for people to work, as well as what employees value in their work lives. We speak with Kevin Cassidy, Director and Representative to the Bretton Woods and Multilateral Organizations at the International Labour Organization, about the work that the ILO does to bring together governments, businesses, and workers to ensure a human centered approach to work. Through collaborative efforts of these three stakeholders, a more positive and successful environment for employers and employees can be created. Whether viewed through the lens of the "Great Resignation" the "Great Reshuffling" or the "Great Exploration", the fact of the matter is that major changes are underway and understanding the reason are vital to ensuring a positive outcome.

If you would like to join us for our event with Kevin on October 5th, either in-person or online, you can find more information at: https://wacnh.org/event-4953543

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Over the past few month, Sri Lanka has undergone massive protests that have led to the dissolution of the Cabinet, the resignation of the Prime Minister, and the fleeing of the President. Protests were fueled by rising inflation, inaccessible basic goods, corruption, and a feeling that the government was more interested in serving itself than the people. In this episode, we speak with Dr. Neil DeVotta, Professor of Politics and International Affairs at Wake Forest University, about the historical roots of this crisis and what the future looks like for this island nation.

Understanding this crisis can provide insights and lessons for other countries to help them avoid destabilizing protests, brought on by economic mismanagement. It is also a cautionary tale for countries experiencing democratic backsliding and high levels of corruption. For the everyday person, it is important to understand this crisis as Sri Lanka is located in a geo-strategic location, situated in-between India and China. A prolonged crisis in this country can lead to further supply chain disruptions, open the door for criminal organizations to operate, and intensify the U.S. - China competition for influence in the region.

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The war in Ukraine continues to rage, despite international efforts to end it. Russia has redefined their end goals, while Ukrainians continue to fight for their homes. NATO and its allies have continued to support the war effort, while punishing Russia through one of the largest sanctions regimes the world has seen. However, other countries continue to provide support to Russia, refusing to condemn this invasion. Here in the U.S., we continually hear about this war through an American lens, not gaining insights from other countries. In this episode, the World Affairs Council of New Hampshire brings you a view of the war from Lithuania, a country on the front lines of Russia aggression. Gintautas Paluckas, a member of Parliament in Lithuania, visited NH through the International Visitor Leadership Program and shares insight on the ongoing war from his country's perspective. 

Over the years, the United States has worked with many different international partners. Some of these partnerships have grown out of a shared sense of values and understanding of the world. Other partnerships have been merely for a narrow set of strategic goals, while ignoring the challenges these partners have posed. Turkey, particularly in the past ten or so years, has challenged the US's ability to balance these competing forces, as Erdogan has worked tirelessly to make as many people question their reliability as a partner, while doing just enough to remind people of their geopolitical importance. With their latest gambit to hold the NATO alliance hostage for their own gain, Turkey has raised objections to the expansion of the alliance to include Sweden and Finland. What is behind their stated concerns? Are they simply looking to leverage this crisis for their own personal gain? Can they be counted on as a reliable partner, or would it be better to cut them loose at this point? We explore these questions, and more, with Dr. Melinda Negron Gonzales, Chair of the Department of Security Studies at the University of New Hampshire Manchester and our resident Turkey expert. 

Dr. Negrón-Gonzales has taught at UNH since fall 2008 and teaches courses on global studies and comparative politics. She is the Chair of the Department of Security Studies and the Founding Program Director of the Global Conflict and Human Security master's program.

Her research covers social movements and civil society, counter-terrorism and human rights, international norms that promote human security (especially the responsibility to protect/R2P), and Turkish and Middle East politics. Her latest research explores the tension between counter-terrorism and human rights and analyzes the ways civil society organizations in Turkey have attempted to promote human rights and hold state officials accountable for gross human rights violations during armed conflict.

Dr. Negrón-Gonzales was a Fulbright Scholar (Turkey, 2006-7). She received UNHM's Faculty Excellence in Teaching award in 2013 and a Silver UNH Sustainability Award in 2021. She serves on the Board of Directors of the World Affairs Council of New Hampshire.

Please consider donating to the World Affairs Council of New Hampshire to help support this program and our overall efforts to help make sense of this complex world we all live in.

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You never know when your next global connection will happen. While host and executive director, Tim Horgan, took his daughter to a play group, he met the leader of a twice yearly service trip to Rwanda right here in New Hampshire. After talking about the program and how it is a true grassroots effort, Tim wanted to tell the story of how the people of New Hampshire forge inspiring connections to the world in various ways. This month's episode focuses on NINH's efforts to bring a little light and progress to communities in and around Kigali, Rwanda. It highlights the power that small groups can have to create change in the world, as well as how those going on the trip are changed, too. Even here, in the small state of New Hampshire,  people are able to have a positive impact on others six time zones away.

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On February 4th Russia and China announced a renewed relationship that "has no limits". Three weeks later Russia began its invasion of Ukraine, violating the territorial sovereignty of an independent nation. In this month's episode we explore the relationship between these two countries and what the invasion signals for the future. Sarwar Kasmeri, host of the Polaris Live Podcast, joins us to provide his perspective on the issues and opportunities that he sees as the world grapples with the largest invasion of a European nation since World War II.

Sarwar Kashmeri is an international relations specialist, author, and commentator, noted for his expertise on U.S. global strategy and national security. He speaks frequently before business, foreign policy and military audiences. He is the host of Polaris-Live, featuring 30 minute live conversations on the business and geopolitical impact of China’s rapid rise to superpower status.

Kashmeri is author of the Foreign Policy Association’s report “The Telegram: A China Agenda For President Biden“ (2021); “China’s Grand Strategy: Weaving a New Silk Road to Global Primacy,” (Praeger), his third book, was published in July 2019. It is a centennial book of the Foreign Policy Association where Sarwar is a Fellow. The book was released at a  Washington D.C. launch on 7 November 2019 featuring Kashmeri and former U.S. Defense Secretary, Chuck Hagel.

He is also an Applied Research Fellow of the Peace and War Center of Norwich University, Vermont, USA. He served a four year term as a non-residential Senior Fellow at the Brent Scowcroft Center for International Security of the Atlantic Council in Washington D.C. He serves on the American Advisory Board of UK’s Ditchley Foundation.

In a recent article for Foreign Affairs, Erica Chenoweth and Zoe Marks argue that Authoritarians repress women's rights for more than just chauvinism, but because they actually "fear" the power women hold in creating lasting democratic change through pro-democracy movements. In this episode, we discuss why women help to make these movements so successful and what this means for the prospects of democracy around the world. In a time when authoritarianism is on the rise and women's rights are being rolled back by these same governments, it is important to understand how these issues intersect.

Article Link Here: https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/china/2022-02-08/women-rights-revenge-patriarchs

Zoe Marks - A Lecturer in Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School. Her research and teaching interests focus on the intersections of conflict and political violence; race, gender and inequality; peacebuilding; and African politics.

Her current book project examines the internal dynamics of rebellion in Sierra Leone to understand how and why rebel groups can sustain a viable threat to the state without widespread support. It draws on nearly a decade of fieldwork, several hundred interviews with former combatants and community members, and private archives from members of the Revolutionary United Front. Professor Marks is leading a separate project that examines how wartime experiences shape individual wellbeing and community reintegration after war. Using surveys and social network analysis in Sierra Leone and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the project compares peaceful and protracted conflict settings, respectively, to explain how mobilization for violence affects prospects for poverty alleviation and peace.

 Erica Chenoweth - the Frank Stanton Professor of the First Amendment at Harvard Kennedy School and a Susan S. and Kenneth L. Wallach Professor at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Studies at Harvard University. They study political violence and its alternatives. At Harvard, Chenoweth directs the Nonviolent Action Lab, an innovation hub that provides empirical evidence in support of movement-led political transformation.

Chenoweth has authored or edited nine books and dozens of articles on mass movements, nonviolent resistance, terrorism, political violence, revolutions, and state repression. Their recent book, Civil Resistance: What Everyone Needs to Know (Oxford, 2021), explores what civil resistance is, how it works, why it sometimes fails, how violence and repression affect it, and the long-term impacts of such resistance. Their next book with Zoe Marks, Rebel XX: Women on the Frontlines of Revolution, investigates the impact of women’s participation on revolutionary outcomes and democratization.

Chenoweth maintains the NAVCO Data Project, one of the world’s leading datasets on historical and contemporary mass mobilizations around the globe. Along with Jeremy Pressman, Chenoweth also co-directs the Crowd Counting Consortium, a public interest and scholarly project that documents political mobilization in the U.S. since January 2017.

In this month's episode, we take a look at the ongoing diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Olympic Games held in Beijing. As a part of the wider geopolitical competition between the US and China, this effort to highlight human rights abuses in China has been met with mixed success. We talk with former Olympian and NH resident, Julia Ford, former US Olympic Committee member, Dick Swett, and China expert, Vikram Mansharimani, we explore the positives and negatives of this effort. There are many ways to make your voice heard and we hope you will find valuable information here. As the Olympics kick off in a couple days, it is important to understand why the US has taken this route and what the goal is.

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Julia Ford - Ms. Ford is a former member of the U.S. Ski Team, with whom she competed in 40 F.I.S. World Cup races and the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia. She is a two- time U.S. National Downhill Champion. Before joining the U.S. Ski Team, she was a multi-sport athlete at Holderness School.

Vikram Mansharimani - Dr. Vikram Mansharamani is a global trend-watcher who shows people how to anticipate the future, manage risk, and spot opportunities. He is the author of the recently-released THINK FOR YOURSELF: Restoring Common Sense in an Age of Experts and Artificial Intelligence and BOOMBUSTOLOGY: Spotting Financial Bubbles Before They Burst.  He has been a frequent commentator on issues driving disruption in the global business environment. Vikram’s ideas and writings have also appeared in Bloomberg, Fortune, Forbes, The New York Times and a long list of other publications. Linkedin twice listed him as their #1 Top Voice for Money, Finance and Global Economics and Worth has profiled him as one of the 100 most powerful people in global finance. Millions of readers have enjoyed his unique multi-lens approach to connecting seemingly irrelevant dots.

Ambassador Dick Swett - Richard N. Swett was nominated to be ambassador to Denmark in 1998. In 1990, he was elected to the United States House of Representatives. He served on the U.S. Congressional Delegation for Relations with the European Parliament; the Congressional Human Rights Caucus; and the Committees on Public Works and Transportation, and Science, Space and Technology. Ambassador Swett’s business experience encompasses architectural design, corporate management, project development and finance. He recently served as managing principal of the Washington, D.C., office for the eighth largest architecture and engineering firm in the United States, and currently is developing alternative energy and socio-economic enterprises in developing countries around the world. His activity is primarily in real estate, alternative energy, energy conservation, industrial development and international export promotion. He has consulted on energy technology projects and assisted with financing through the World Bank and the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development in Eastern and Central Europe. He also worked with U.S. government organizations, such as USAID and the United States Trade and Development Agency.

The World Affairs Council of New Hampshire sat down with Vikram Mansharamani to gain his insights into why the Uyghurs matter. This discussion dives into the history of the Uyghur lands, why China views them as a problem, and the geopolitical standoff that is occurring around these people. With competing narratives around what is actually happening (re-education vs. forced labor), it can be difficult to find the truth. Take a listen to this episode to find out more about this global challenge and what steps you can take to bring about change.

Dr. Vikram Mansharamani is a global trend-watcher who shows people how to anticipate the future, manage risk, and spot opportunities. He is the author of the recently-released THINK FOR YOURSELF: Restoring Common Sense in an Age of Experts and Artificial Intelligence and BOOMBUSTOLOGY: Spotting Financial Bubbles Before They Burst.  He has been a frequent commentator on issues driving disruption in the global business environment. Vikram’s ideas and writings have also appeared in Bloomberg, Fortune, Forbes, The New York Times and a long list of other publications. Linkedin twice listed him as their #1 Top Voice for Money, Finance and Global Economics and Worth has profiled him as one of the 100 most powerful people in global finance. Millions of readers have enjoyed his unique multi-lens approach to connecting seemingly irrelevant dots.

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