We will be meeting in person in the semi-private dining room at the Shoal Creek Saloon, 909 N. Lamar. The topic for May will be: Ukraine: What next? “The Putin era is dead.” At least according to John Huntsman, the former U.S. Ambassador to Russia, 2017 -- 2019. But is it? Will Putin survive even […]
Please join like-minded “global thinkers” for a monthly discussion on the major political/economic issues that our world is currently experiencing. We will be meeting in person in the semi-private dining room at the Shoal Creek Saloon, 909 N. Lamar. The topic this month is: Drones: The Future of Warfare? "The introduction of unmanned systems on the battlefield doesn’t change […]
On the first anniversary of the U.S.-NATO withdrawal from Afghanistan and the Taliban’s takeover, WACA presents Elliot Ackerman to talk about his experience in the war-ravaged country. Ackerman left the U.S. military ten years ago, but his time in Afghanistan and Iraq with the Marines and later as a CIA paramilitary officer marked him indelibly. […]
The Global Security Forum convenes the nation's top military leaders, experts and thought leaders to address the most critical global security issues of today as well as the challenges and opportunities of tomorrow. The World Affairs Council of Austin is pleased to partner with the World Affairs Council of Connecticut, the Charter Oak Chapter of […]
On February 24, 2022 Russia invaded Ukraine resulting in major population displacement, thousands of civilian and military casualties, jeopardizing global energy and food supplies and threatening potential escalation of clashes involving a major world nuclear power. Please join our partners at the Kozmetsky Center on Monday September 26, 2022 at 12:00 noon for the forum entitled “World Order, […]
*****EVENT CANCELLED *** We are pleased to feature Diana Villiers Negroponte as our special guest speaker. Author and professor, Diana Negroponte has focused on the Cold War and how it ended. In between teaching at Fordham, George Washington and Georgetown Universities, she researches and writes. In 2015 the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Studies offered […]
Artistic Director, Zoe Seaton will deliver a talk on 'Peacemaking and the Arts' and present the virtual reality headset experience 'The House'. 'The House' was developed by Big Telly using research conducted by the Commission for Victims and Survivors in Northern Ireland. It addresses the legacy of the Conflict/Troubles in Northern Ireland within families and […]
In 2021, the Taliban came to power in Afghanistan. What followed was a period of turmoil, as they turned on those who were in the Administration of President Ashraf Ghani or supported it. Then, there was the diaspora of those associated with the Americans in any capacity. Rangina Hamidi, who served as the first female […]
The World Affairs Council of Austin in partnership with the World Affairs Council of Connecticut presents the Global Security Forum (GSF), which convenes the nation's top leadership and experts to discuss security and strategy in the decisive decade to come. Panelists will explore areas in which acting now will be vital to advancing our national […]
Author James Graham Wilson joins us for another episode of WorldNow with Jim Falk on Paul Nitze, America's most influential national security strategist throughout the Cold War. “This book is not a stale history of an insignificant person. It is a well written, fascinating story centered around a very influential man. It just happens that […]
An online conversation with LTG Robert Ashley, USA (Ret.), 21st Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency and MG Garrett Yee, USA (Ret.) About the speakers: Lieutenant General Robert P. Ashley, Jr. retired from the U.S. Army November 2020 after over 36 years of activity duty service as an intelligence officer. He assumed his last duty […]
What is the region’s future, starting with Gaza and the West Bank? What will be the role of the US and countries like Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Egypt? The US has announced a 20-point plan for the region, and at this time, some would say that a ceasefire and the return of the Israeli […]
Join your fellow World Affairs Council of Austin members for Ukraine and Innovation at the Edge featuring Ross Guieb, Executive Director for the George H.W. Bush Combat Development Complex at the Texas A&M University System RELLIS Campus in Bryan. This event is by invitation-only. Please notify us of your interest to receive an invitation by […]
How did Mossad, Israel’s intelligence service, come to be one of the world’s most notorious and prominent players in global intelligence? Just look to Meir Dagan, the Mossad’s former director who transformed the service into the leading force in counterterrorism and espionage it is today. Samuel Katz, bestselling author of The Architect of Espionage: The […]
The U.S. spends nearly a trillion dollars on its military each year, more than any other nation. Is it really keeping us safe? Bill Hartung, author and senior fellow at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, argues that not only is America's high military spending not keeping America safe, but it is endangering both the […]