International policy and diplomacy

The International Policy Center hosts Scott Atran (University of Oxford/ CNRS, Paris/ University of Michigan) presents his field research from Europe, North Africa, and the frontlines in the battle with ISIS to make the case that the Devoted Actors' commitment to making costly sacrifices enables low-power groups to endure and often prevail against materially much stronger foes.

Traditionally, central banks have served three policy functions – monetary policy, payments systems oversight, and financial institution supervision. This conference will convene international experts and practitioners to examine how these core functions contribute to financial inclusion, poverty alleviation, and a more inclusive economy – and what could be improved.The conference contributes to a research initiative undertaken by the University of Michigan’s Center on Finance, Law & Policy, in partnership with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to consider how the role of a central bank could evolve in the future and enable central banks to make greater contributions toward financial inclusion. Ultimately, the research intends to identify technologies, processes, or tools that could benefit a central bank in supporting public policy objectives related to inclusion, and consider whether other sectors, including philanthropy, might have a role to play in supporting the development of those tools. Registration to the event is free. Speakers and attendees will include individuals from  standards-setting bodies, central banks and other financial regulators, and policymakers, as well as futurists and technologists, and other financial ecosystem stakeholders.For more information visit http://financelawpolicy.umich.edu. 

The Penny Stamps Speaker Series event featuring Congressman John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell.

U.S. Senator Chuck Hagel is a Distinguished Professor at Georgetown University and the University of Nebraska at Omaha. He is Chairman of the Atlantic Council and a Member of the Secretary of Defense's Defense Policy Board.

A presentation and Q&A on the Iran deal featuring two White House officials, including one of the Administration's negotiators.From the speakers: This presentation will lay out the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action negotiated between six major world powers and Iran after nearly two years of highly technical and painstaking sessions. Presenters include Paul Irwin, one of the negotiators, who will detail what the deal does and how it addresses international concerns about Iran's nuclear program, and Matt Nosanchuk, Associate Director for Public Engagement and Liaison to the American Jewish Community and on International Issues, and a native Detroiter.

The International Institute and the International Policy Center host a panel discussion with foremost experts on the Middle East and the threat of ISIS.  

Juan R.I. Cole, Professor of Middle East and South Asian History, University of Michigan. Professor Cole has written extensively about modern Islamic movements in Egypt, the Persian Gulf, and South Asia. Since the 2002 launch of his weblog, 'Informed Comment: Thoughts on the Middle East, History, and Religion,' Cole has become a prominent media commentator and has published political writings in The Guardian, the San Jose Mercury News, Salon.com, the San Francisco Chronicle, and The Nation.

Francisco Thoumi - Institutions, Governability and Illegal Drugs in Colombia and Afghanistan: Why Traditional Policies Are Not Enough

Former President of MIT Charles M. Vest will deliver the Harry A. and Margaret D. Towsley Foundation lecture October 12, at 3:30 p.m. in the Michigan Ballroom. The lecture is titled 'Improving the U.S. Intelligence Community – Lessons from Iraq, Libya, and Elsewhere.' The talk is part of Dr. Vest's visit to the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, where he is the Towsley Policymaker in Residence. The Towsley Policymaker in Residence program at the Ford School brings a policymaker to campus for an extended period of time to teach, write, and talk with faculty and students.

Sir Tony Atkinson Warden, Nuffield College, Oxford. Sir Tony Atkinson is internationally known for his work on inequality and income distribution He has been the Warden of Nuffield College, University of Oxford since 1994, and has been involved as an advisor to the European Union on social policy issues. This lecture was the keynote address for the conference, 'Changing Social Policies for Low-Income Families and Less-Skilled Workers in the EU and the U.S.,' jointly sponsored by the

Paul Krugman is an economist and prolific writer who divides his energies among many pursuits: he is professor of economics and international affairs at Princeton University, a centenary professor at the London School of Economics, and, perhaps, his best-known job, an op-ed columnist for The New York Times. Krugman was recently honored for his work on global trade patterns by winning the 2008 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences.

This event has been canceled.

Jeffrey Sachs is one of the world's most influential development economists. He is the author of 'Common Wealth: Economics for a Crowded Planet' (2008) and 'The End of Poverty,' his seminal 2005 prescription for ending extreme poverty in the world by 2025.

Sultan Al Qassemi is a 33-year-old scholar, columnist, and influential Twitter commentator. TIME Magazine says he's "shaping the conversation" on events unfolding in the Middle East. NPR says he "wrote the first draft of Middle East history in short sentences tapped out on his computer and his cell phone."

Lecture by General Michael Hayden, retired United States Air Force four-star general and former Director of the CIA and NSA.

The U.S. was founded as a maritime nation and was a world leader for most of the 19th and 20th centuries. We have lost much of that leadership. We have the largest Exclusive Economic Zone of all nations, and in 2010 got our first ever National Ocean Policy, but we are still stuck in the muck. We have failed to ratify the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea; application of Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning is sputtering; ecosystem-based management remains elusive; and the ocean is rarely mentioned as a source of jobs and new economic activity in the current debate.

Free and open tot he public. About the Film Telling the story of his family's escape from the Khmer Rouge, End/Beginning: Cambodia was commissioned by Channel News Asia (based out of Singapore and broadcasting all over Asia) after the 6-minute TED Talk in 2009 by Sophal Ear, Assistant Professor, Naval Postgraduate School. It has been broadcast a dozen times in 2011 and 2012 on CNA throughout Asia. In 2012, the film won a Gold World Medal in History & Society at the 55th New York Festival International Television and Films Awards.

Ford Security Seminar will host William G. Rich to discuss about how the changing economic trends and politics of the GCC are Affecting U.S. Security Interests.

Free and open to the public. Preceded by a reception in the Great Hall at the Ford School at 5:00 PM. Join the conversation on Twitter: #FordPolicyUnion. About the event This Ford Policy Union event will feature a debate on the effectiveness of international agreements on cyber security. Professor John Steinbruner, a noted international security scholar, will argue that the U.S.

Free and open to the public Join the conversation on Twitter: #policytalks About the event: Please join us as Kenneth Lieberthal returns to the University of Michigan for a lecture on current U.S-China relations under President Obama's new foreign policy team. Lieberthal will also take questions from the audience and from Twitter. From the speaker's bio: Kenneth Lieberthal is senior fellow in Foreign Policy, Global Economy, and Development and also at the John L.

Lecture by Alan Bersin, Assistant Secretary of International Affairs and Chief Diplomatic Officer for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Free and open to the public Join the conversation on Twitter: #FordPolicyUnion About the event: The United States has four stated policy goals in the Middle East. 1. Helping Iraqis build a unified, stable, and prosperous country; 2. Renewing progress toward the two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict; 3. Working against terrorists and their state sponsors, as well as against the spread of weapons of mass destruction; and 4. Supporting efforts at economic and political reform in the region.

Saumitra Jha, Stanford University will present Swords into Bank Shares: Financial Innovations and Innovators in Mitigating Political Violence in EDS Seminar on Tuesday, April 10 at 2:30pm in 201 Lorch Hall.

Join us for a student workshop lunch and conversation with Professor Jennifer Haverkamp discussing about International Climate Change Diplomacy. If you are interested, please sign up here.