Elliott 360 – Page 2

March 8, 2024March 8, 2024

The International Women of Elliott Champions Women’s Leadership on Campus and Around the World

Alumni members and students of the International Women of Elliott pose for a group photo.

Formed nearly four years ago, GW’s International Women of Elliott (I/WE) is committed to women’s advancement in international affairs. I/WE Executive Circle members champion Elliott students focused on women’s leadership to ensure those who choose to lead have the resources and tools to do so.

In addition to connecting Elliott alumni and students, I/WE raises funds to provide grants for Elliott students, supporting tuition, research projects, unpaid internships, conference presentations, and other activities. In the last two academic years, I/WE has awarded an impressive $183,000 to 48 students at the undergraduate and graduate levels.

On this International Women’s Day, we spoke with several I/WE Executive Circle members about their participation, what the network means to them, and why women’s leadership matters.

Ambassador Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley, BA ’80; President, Middle East Policy Council, Washington, D.C.

I’m currently running a non-profit that focuses on policy education and bridge-building between Americans and Middle Easterners – crucial in today’s world. As a former Ambassador, I know that ensuring women participate fully in society and in international affairs is essential to a more peaceful world.

Representation is so important. It made a difference to me in forming my goals and my sense of where l belong. Sometimes seeing a woman in leadership was a spur. Sometimes seeing us missing was an even greater one!

Alexandra Garcia, MIPP ’14; Non-Profit Consultant, Washington, D.C.

Helping to create a welcoming, safe, and connected space for younger professional women is very important to me because I don’t think it really existed when I was going through my own educational journey.

I hope and expect that more and more women will come into the decision-making roles that are pivotal in advancing a more just and fair societal order around the world. Women are just as strategic and goal-driven as men, but I believe we are more attuned to and mindful of the impact of our collective actions as a human species on the citizens of the world. “Winning at all costs” has proven over and over to be a failing strategy for world affairs.

Julie Monaco, BA ’85; Managing Director and Global Head, Public Sector Banking, Citi, New York; I/WE Executive Circle Co-Chair

My Elliott School education is why I have succeeded in a career in global banking. My international affairs degree gave me the foundation of understanding and instilled a passion to continue explore and learn about all the political and economic challenges my clients in 150+ countries face every day. Throughout my career, I had fantastic mentors and teachers, both men and women, who helped me grow and contribute in a way that would not be possible without them. I participate in I/WE to provide more young people who share the I/WE mission with the vast opportunities that an Elliott School education will offer them.

Brooke Pearson, MIPP ’16; Lead Program Manager, Google Chrome Trust & Safety, Google, United Kingdom

I used to think that international policy work could only be done from a thinktank, NGO, or in government. However, I learned that there are increasingly more policy-focused roles in the private sector too. I advise young women and students to keep your horizon broad: approach your career with an open mind about where you can make an impact, and where your skills will shine.

Laura Wais, BA ’71; Underwater and Travel Photographer, San Francisco

I/WE is to me a way to connect with former and current students and faculty at the Elliott School. Being invited to join the Executive Circle is a great honor. I owe so much to my education at GW. I feel that I/WE donations help shape the future of Elliott School graduates, who will go into the world as a future generation of leaders.

I live in the San Francisco Bay Area and travel several times a year to take images of Africa and the Indo-Pacific regions. I share my images with different environmental nonprofits and companies to highlight what I have seen in foreign countries. This is important to me from a perspective of increasing a world view to those who may not be able to travel as I do.

March 4, 2024March 4, 2024

Africa’s ‘Iron Lady’ Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Visits GW

Former presdient of Liberia Ellen Johnson Sirleaf talked to an audience that filled Jack Morton Auditorium. (William Atkins/GW Today)

GW’s Institute for African Studies inaugurates the Bridges Institute Africa Series in conversation with the Nobel Peace Laureate and former president of Liberia.

Authored by: B.L. Wilson

Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was introduced as “an extraordinary leader, the former president of the Republic of Liberia, a Nobel Peace Laureate and recipient of the Mo Ibrahim award for achievement in African leadership,” by the Dean of the Elliott School of International Affairs Alyssa Ayres.

These honors were bestowed upon Johnson Sirleaf, the first democratically elected woman of an African country, for restoring democratic rule and bringing economic stability and peace to Liberia after a decade of civil war. “She is now known as a tireless activist, an advocate and champion for peace and for women’s inclusion and participation in peace building,” said Ayres.

With this brief introduction, Ayres inaugurated the George Washington University Bridges Institute Africa lecture series in the Jack Morton Auditorium that was filled to capacity Tuesday evening. The lecture series was endowed by the Bridges Institute, which was founded by the Hon. Vivian Lowery Derryck, a member of the Elliott School’s Board of Advisors, to help strengthen African governments and democracy through advocacy and dialogue by building a platform for civil society to engage with senior U.S. and African leadership on the challenges of peace building, democracy and empowerment.

Derryck provided a broad description of Johnson Sirleaf’s worldwide standing as “Africa’s Iron Lady,” praising her as a “defiant” leader who survived abuse and imprisonment and dared challenge the corrupt leadership of previous Liberian presidents before winning election against a popular soccer star in 2005.

“She invested in agriculture, she emphasized education, she emphasized the importance of democratic institutions and the rule of law,” said Derryck. “She installed competent women in cabinet positions, and she underscored the centrality of market women not only to the economy but to the social fabric of the country.”

Johnson Sirleaf is also noted for stepping down after two terms in office and continuing her activism as a worldwide citizen.

The 85-year-old Johnson Sirleaf stepped gingerly to the podium to speak to the audience before sitting for a conversation with the Director of the GW Institute for African Studies Jennifer G. Cooke. In a measured but spirited voice, she observed that there were many in the audience whom she could name one by one whom she hoped to engage in a dialogue about what they now face.

“The Bridges Lecture takes place at a time of global disarray, a crisis imposed by the crisis of COVID-19 that disrupted the path of sustainable development in the developing world and revealed so starkly the imbalances in our global architecture, politically and economically,” she said. “Today we face the existential threat of climate change, the uncertainties of artificial intelligence and the resurgence of conflicts around the world fueled by the malign actors who see democracy as a threat to their ambitions. These forces are impacting Africa, which has seen a decline in partner support for democracy for the first time in decades.

“The multilateralism that has been the bedrock of global peace and security has been compromised,” Johnson Sirleaf continued. “Social media platforms have fueled shallow understandings of history and the drivers that build society, consensus and cohesion. Our world is crying out for leadership that meets the moment.”

Cooke asked Johnson Sirleaf what she saw as the way forward in this deeply polarized era when people no longer listen to one another, and negotiation and compromise seem almost impossible.

Johnson Sirleaf responded that in the period following World War II leaders addressed conflicts and tensions with dialogue and consultation to achieve global cooperation, processes that current leaders need to go back to.

“It takes a leader who is willing to make sacrifice, compromise…and stand tall for the principles that brought them to leadership,” she said. “We need those old-fashioned methods of assuring peace and security in the world.”

Cooke noted that many regions of the world that were not involved in the creation of those multilateral institutions that set those standards do not feel represented. What could be done, Cooke asked, to restore the legitimacy of multilateral institutions like the United Nations, World Bank and the International Monetary Fund?

Johnson Sirleaf said there are new, big nations that do not subscribe to the old international standards. She pointed out that issues today are more complex. “We must also accept the fact that the time for change has come,” she said. “Some of those institutions…have to be reinstituted, reunited for more participation for people, more participation for society, the acceptances of differences in policies and vision.”

But dialogue, Johnson Sirleaf noted, will be needed to make those changes and work through a system of global interaction.

“In a world bound together by financial and communications systems, one has to recognize that no matter how powerful, nations cannot stand alone and survive,” she said. “The time has come to accept the fact that nations are more equal.”

Addressing younger women in the audience during a Q & A session, Johnson Sirleaf said, “Obtain as much knowledge as you can so when you speak you speak with the abilities that you have developed. Stay focused on what your goals are. Set those goals with full determination, know that you can achieve them. Even when you face tough obstacles be courageous enough to accept them…and rise above it.

“If you are from Africa, get as much as you can get of experience and knowledge and go home. Go serve your country.”

March 1, 2024March 1, 2024

Elliott School Senior Publishes Book on Self-Discovery

“An Inside Job: A Guide to Self-discovery in an Ever-Changing World" by Samyudha Rajesh

by Shawn Calmes

Samyudha Rajesh, a senior at the Elliott School of International Affairs, has just published her debut book, “An Inside Job: A Guide to Self-Discovery in an Ever-Changing World,” aimed at guiding young adults through self-discovery.

Born in India, Rajesh grew up in different cultures and continents, including Thailand, China, Singapore, Switzerland, and the United States. She is passionate about self-development, health and wellness, human relationships, and the human mind and spirit.

In her book, Rajesh draws from her own experiences of feeling lost and confused with the state of the world. Read the extended Q&A with the author here.

Q: What inspired you to focus on self-discovery in our changing world, and how have your studies influenced the book?

A: In all honesty, this book was born out of months of feeling lost and confused within myself and the state of the world around me. I had many questions about why things were the way they were – not excluding – why I was the way I was. Over the summer, when I had a lot more time, I began reading random articles and books and listening to podcasts about different topics I was curious about. I also started doing a lot of journaling and reflection, trying to understand myself and what I really wanted in life. At some point, those two converged, and I realized that understanding myself was the starting point to understanding other people and the world around me. I think much of what I have learned in international affairs and international development has given resonance to this idea. Moreover, sometimes the biggest, most complex, and seemingly impersonal issues bear their solutions in the smallest, simplest, and most personal domains. We can draw parallels between the tensions of two parties or two countries in much the same way we think about tensions between two individuals and their interpersonal struggles.

Q: Your book is divided into two parts, addressing the “outer world” and the “inner world.” How does this structure help tackle questions about personal and global identity?

A: In bridging the “outer” and “inner” world, I want people to realize how and why they are affected by the world around them but equally, to realize how and why they have the power to influence the world too. Seeing these two things – not as separate entities in silos – but as being deeply intertwined and reinforcing, can open our world up a lot more. Maybe with this new and enlarged view, your world seems less like a series of unexplainable events and more like a complicated but beautiful web of cause and effect. Feeling more grounded and at home with yourself inevitably makes it easier to find your place in this world too. Similarly, when we can make meaning of our own identities and experiences, we can add meaning to the things we are part of and the people we are with.

Q: Who do you hope to impact with your book, and what kind of influence do you anticipate it having on young adults navigating uncertainty?

A: I hope to offer a sense of reflection, understanding, ease, and togetherness for everyone navigating change and uncertainty in their lives – which is all of us at some point or the other. However, in particular, I really hope to offer some relief to young adults (like myself) who are navigating so much change and uncertainty within and about themselves and the world around them at the same time. If I am being honest, I feel like being in your twenties is a string of existential crises. For example, not knowing what to do in life, trying to reconcile what you are “supposed to” with what you want to do, constantly wondering if you made the right decisions, fearing that you’ll end up alone, feeling like you are the only one struggling when everyone else has it figured out – it can all be very exhausting. I hope that by reading this book, people can learn more about the world today by looking at recent trends and patterns in research and data. This might validate how they already feel or change how they feel entirely. I also hope the book gives people the safe space to look deeper into themselves and finally spend some time getting to know that person – their likes, dislikes, values, purpose, dreams, deep-seated fears and insecurities, unanswered questions, and answers – that lie just as much within themselves as around them.

Q: Can you share some challenges you encountered while writing this book and any unexpected insights you discovered?

A: I think the biggest challenge I encountered in writing was to reconcile going deeper with casting a wider net. I wanted to touch on a variety of relevant topics like dating, social media, purpose and profession, religion and spirituality, and global currents whilst keeping focus on the inner experience. I also think it

can be hard to achieve the perfect balance between statistics and stories because different readers will resonate differently with both. This entire process definitely taught me to become less attached to my work, because so much of writing is re-thinking and re-writing what you once thought was “set in stone”. In other words, I had to be more flexible and open and realize that what I intend to convey and what is actually conveyed might not always be identical – and that’s okay.

Q: With your book launching soon, what are your future plans, both in writing and your professional career?

A: I am still exploring different opportunities in my professional career, but I am passionate about the intersection of human behavior, organizational sciences, and social psychology in the context of multinational corporations and international organizations. I am particularly fascinated with the concepts of conflict resolution and motivation. I hope to continue writing in the future and have a few potential ideas for my next book. However, my priority right now is to make the most of this journey and put my all into sharing this book with the world.

Q: Do you have any advice for other Elliott School students hoping to follow in your footsteps and become an author?

A: I would say if there is anything that you want to do – whether it is writing a book or something else – don’t wait for the right moment or opportunity to hit you. Sometimes you have to make your own experiences and create your own timeline. You “become ready” when you decide you are ready to do that thing you have always been wanting or meant to do.

In terms of more specific writing advice, I would say find a spot that you can focus well in and feel good in. I wrote most of this book in between two places – the third floor of Gelman Library and Foxtrot Cafe in Georgetown. Creating a sort of routine with writing helped me a lot. As with working out, picking a time in the day to dedicate to writing and then sticking to it is great for consistency. I also kept a notes app on my phone to jot down random ideas I thought of or information I learned throughout the day. Writing is honestly more reading and rewriting than anything else, whether that means reading other books and articles to refine your thoughts or re-reading your own work constantly to make it better.

About the Author:
Samyudha Rajesh is a Senior at the George Washington University studying International Affairs and Journalism. Born in India, she grew up across different cultures and continents including Thailand, China, Singapore, Switzerland, and the United States. She is passionate about self-development, health and wellness, human relationships, and the human mind and spirit. She hosts a podcast on Spotify called “Touchpoints,” dedicated to conversations about life and our individual and collective growth. You can find her on Instagram @SamyudhaRajesh. Sam also has an endurance sports/fitness background and loves to workout and cook in her free time.

February 22, 2024March 1, 2024

GW Serves: Native Washingtonian Gives Back to D.C. Public Schools

GW sophomore Eden Parker offers guidance at a student council meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 7 at Eliot-Hine Middle School.

Elliott School Sophomore Eden Parker, a Stephen Joel Trachtenberg scholar, has extended her Civic Changemakers summer program work through the school year.

Authored by: Nick Erickson

GW sophomore Eden Parker offers guidance at a student council meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 7 at Eliot-Hine Middle School. (Taken by William Atkins)

Every now and then, Eden Parker would offer a suggestion she probably could have at any point of the meeting. But mostly, the current George Washington University sophomore sat back and listened to a trio of adolescents at Eliot-Hine Middle School as they shared their own thoughts and ideas on how to best organize an upcoming school dance.

This was their show, after all, and she was there to offer support to the school’s student council, as she does every Wednesday afternoon when the school day ends.

A former D.C. Public School (DCPS) student herself who has performed service and civic engagement projects since her early childhood days, including with the Jack and Jill of America organization that stewards young Black leaders, Parker defines leadership as being humble and receptive to community needs.

“I don’t necessarily think of someone who is always in command or in charge, but rather someone who is sensitive to everything and is hyper conscious of the things that are happening around them and who have the will within them to change, create change or to actually question the things around them,” said Parker, who graduated from Jackson-Reed (former Woodrow Wilson) High School.

Parker, who is majoring in international affairs and Africana Studies while concentrating in international development at GW, was once in those DCPS students’ shoes with her own ambitious goals and visions. She was just seeking an opportunity to act on them, and through GW she found it. In 2022, Parker was one of 10 D.C. residents and high school graduates awarded the Stephen Joel Trachtenberg Scholarship, which covers tuition, room, board, books and fees throughout four years at GW.

Once on campus, SJT scholars participate in service-oriented activities and are called on regularly to represent the university in a variety of ways. Parker, who is close and connected to many of her fellow scholars, has been inspired to give back to DCPS students, GW and other community interests since she received the scholarship. After her first year of studies at GW, Parker joined the Civic Changemakers program out of the Honey W. Nashman Center for Civic Engagement and Public Service.

Parker helped mentor a group of young students at Sousa Middle School on a project addressing gun violence in the city. She felt inspired by their passion to solve some of the most pressing social issues in their lives and was moved by their creative approaches to the project.

“I feel like they all have incredibly powerful voices with really deep life experiences that can attest to the work that they do in terms of service and civic engagement,” Parker said. “I really enjoyed the mission of civic engagement and just general activism of the youth. It’s just so nice to see their ambition and intelligence and that they’re highly motivated to have a powerful voice. I just wanted to continue doing that.”

She jumped at the chance to continue her summer work by helping young and inspired leaders in the Eliot-Hine student council. Especially in her position as an SJT scholar, Parker has felt compelled to share her journey and some of the opportunities she has earned to those passionate DCPS students. She’ll also help the Nashman Center host DCPS students on a retreat to GW in March, giving those youth a chance to set foot on a college campus and plant the seeds of inspiration.

“Having those conversations with other DCPS students, I’m able to see where there’s a lack of awareness about resources we have and the need in D.C. schools,” Parker said. “I want to give back in that sense, just because I am a little bit more aware now.

“My interest in giving back is centered around having a connection with other D.C. natives and D.C. students and sharing our experiences together.”

Parker, too, has large aspirations, shaped in part by some of those very students she mentors. She’s passionate about poverty alleviation, access to education and honoring Black culture and heritage. Coursework at GW in international affairs and Africana Studies has allowed her to see a reflection of herself in the curriculum for what she says is really the first time. She seeks a career in international development so others can have that experience and opportunity, regardless of their backgrounds.

As her journey reaches new heights, she’ll continue to listen and be curious so she can bring others up with her. Because that’s how Parker chooses to lead.

February 6, 2024February 6, 2024

SPS celebrates its 45th Anniversary

A Brief History of Security Policy Studies at Elliott, 1979-2024

By Professor Paul D. Williams, SPS Program Director

The Elliott School’s M.A. program in Security Policy Studies (SPS) was born out of the George Washington University’s collaboration with U.S. military colleges that started in 1961. Across two decades, the university offered master’s degrees to military officers; tuition back then was $81 per semester hour!

The Security Policy Studies program officially launched in 1979, when Professor Burton Sapin recognized the importance of studying how the United States dealt with its foreign policy and security problems. The program examined how security policies are formulated, implemented, and evaluated, which remains the central task of SPS today.

Over the coming decades, the program evolved and grew in response to emerging issues in the field. For example, SPS broadened its curriculum to include environmental and economic challenges and emerging concerns about terrorism. In the 1990s, SPS Director Deborah Avant decided to add skills-based courses to enable students to learn first-hand how security agencies and organizations really operate.

Professor Avant also instituted a practicum capstone. “I will never forget that first capstone,” she said. “It was a simulation with Admiral/Ambassador Crowe playing president. It was so rewarding to see the students use both their theoretical and practical training as they worked through the scenario.”

September 11, 2001, was a watershed moment for the security studies field, at Elliott and elsewhere. Under Professor Joanna Spear’s leadership, the SPS program responded with a renewed emphasis on transnational security issues, including a focus on how intelligence communities were responding to them. New courses launched, including Understanding Terrorism, Responses to Terrorism, Counterinsurgency, and Transnational Security Issues.

The program also launched a specialized concentration in “Security and Development,” to give students a “toolbox” to take into their careers.” And thanks to a donation from the Cumming Family, SPS ran a series of workshops culminating in the co-edited book, Security and Development in Global Politics: A Critical Comparison (Georgetown University Press, 2012).

By the late 2010s, counterterrorism and counterinsurgency were receding from the list of U.S. national security priorities. Of course, both issues persisted, but the Washington spotlight returned to great power competition, codified in the 2018 U.S. National Defense Strategy. Today’s SPS program, with its four concentration areas, grew out of faculty members’ work to ensure the SPS curriculum provided students with key foundational knowledge, along with flexibility to specialize in areas relevant to their career aspirations.

In 2020, the COVID pandemic affected every dimension of higher education. Leading the SPS program into the realm of online and hybrid learning, Program Director Professor Arturo Sotomayor made a significant advancement by managing risks and uncertainties while also diversifying the student body. In fall 2022, with students back on campus, the Elliott School launched the SPS online degree in U.S. National Security.

Amidst the challenging conditions brought on by the pandemic, the SPS Student Board served as an essential conduit between educators and students. A vibrant and active student body is one indicator of a flourishing program, and our Student Board plays a vital role in ensuring student voices are part of the program’s governance and building a strong sense of community and friendship among an SPS student body.

This year, as we celebrate the 45th anniversary of the SPS program, we are grateful to past directors, who kept an eye on emerging trends and adapted the curriculum accordingly. The program’s suite of professional skills courses is second to none, helping students develop distinctive selling points in competitive job markets. Today’s SPS students are comfortable operating in cyberspace as well as physical space. And they have a keen interest in data analytics—to better understand and present evidence, trends, arguments, and conclusions.

The Security Policy Studies program is not an island! We have greatly benefited from being part of the larger suite of postgraduate programs offered at the Elliott School and the George Washington University, which provide students with a large range of multidisciplinary options. SPS students learn from an impressive array of courses: covering issues from global health security to national security law and from hacking cyber systems to understanding geographic information systems.

Many part-time faculty—often practitioners—help to enrich the SPS program despite their own hectic professional schedules. To demonstrate the degree of dedication: Bruce Powers has consistently taught defense policy for over three decades. The program’s gratitude goes to Bruce and to each and every part-time faculty member.

Clearly, the efforts of many people have shaped the highly successful SPS program of the 2020s. Here’s to the next 45 years and beyond.

February 6, 2024February 6, 2024

One Summer: A World of Opportunity

The Elliott School of International Affairs and GW’s College of Professional Studies partner with the Ronald Reagan Institute to give students a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

January 31, 2024 | Authored by: Danielle Robleski

GW RRI: Academy For Civic Education & Democracy

A summer in Washington, DC is enough to entice any civic-minded young professional. The Ronald Reagan Institute’s Academy for Civic Education and Democracy (ACED) has partnered with The George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs and College of Professional Studies to make this dream a reality for a select cohort of students from all across the country. Selected undergraduate students will participate in an eight-week summer program of profound, experiential learning at no cost to them.

The Ronald Reagan Foundation and Institute, a nonprofit organization created by former President Ronald Reagan, lists as its mission that it seeks to “complete President Reagan’s unfinished work and to preserve the timeless principles he championed: individual liberty, economic opportunity, global democracy and national pride.” Their main location, which includes the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum, is located in Simi Valley, California. In 2022, they opened the Ronald Reagan Institute (RRI) just north of the White House, which carries out the Foundation’s mission in Washington, D.C.

Students in the program will be able to take three courses through GW: A core course titled “Civic Education and Democracy” and two elective courses offered by ESIA, entitled “U.S. Foreign Policy and Decision Making” and “Inside the Embassy.” The courses will be taught by Amb. Paula Dobriansky and Amb. Bill Taylor, respectively. The courses will not only include classroom instruction, but also hands-on learning with weekly site visits to embassies, the U.S. Senate, the State Department, and the White House/National Security Council.

The ACED scholars will also be placed in internships throughout the eight weeks where they will have the opportunity to take what they are learning in the classroom and apply it in real world scenarios. This unique, invaluable experience will foster the next generation of civic leaders and act as a springboard to empower the scholars to launch their own leadership journey.

Last month, the ACED program hosted a kick-off event which drew many distinguished guests who were excitedly optimistic about this new partnership. Dr. Henry R. Nau, Professor Emeritus of Political Science and International Affairs at the Elliott School, gave remarks on behalf of Dean Alyssa Ayres and members of the Elliott School community.

The program will bring students and distinguished faculty to the Elliott School and will be entirely funded by RRI. Over 70 applicants have already applied to fill this summer’s 40 available seats. The program is slated to run each summer, at least through 2026.

“It’s an important opportunity to invite bipartisan dialogue in shaping the future foreign policy leaders of America. We are thrilled about this partnership with RRI and look forward to fostering a relationship with them to create future mentoring and internship opportunities for our students.”

Laila Sorurbakhsh, PhD, Assistant Dean of Academic Programs at The Elliott School of International Affairs

February 6, 2024February 6, 2024

Alumnus Utilizes Higher Education to Effect Local and Global Change

In honor of Black History Month, we caught up with Kyle Farmbry, ESIA BA ’92, GWSB MPA ’94, PhD ’99, to learn how GW and the Elliott School influenced his career in higher education.

Authored by: GW Alumni Association

GW: Tell us about what you are doing now and why it matters to you?

KF: I’m currently serving as the 10th President of Guilford College, a small liberal arts college in Greensboro, North Carolina. In my role, I am able to not only influence the lives of the college’s students, faculty, staff, and alumni, but also situate Guilford as an entity that can impact the greater community of Greensboro and the lives of people in communities around the world.

I think higher education institutions can have tremendous roles in societies. They can be places of innovation, social change, and economic enhancement. Being in this position as a college president has enabled me to reflect deeply on how my institution can build opportunities for Guilford students, faculty, and staff, as well as other people whose lives we touch.

GW: What drew you to GW and the Elliott School for college and later your graduate degrees?

KF: I was very interested in international development when I was a teenager. I had spent several years as a high school student volunteering for the U.S. Committee for UNICEF, and actually had an opportunity to visit UNICEF, CARE, OXFAM, and Save the Children projects during the summer between graduating high school and my first year at GW. At the time, a university in the middle of Washington that was a few blocks from the State Department, the World Bank, the White House, and scores of organizations engaged in international development policy seemed like a natural place to go to school.

After finishing my undergraduate studies in the Elliott School, I had an opportunity to remain at GW and participate in the Presidential Administrative Fellows program, created by then-President Stephen Joel Trachtenberg. Through this program, I was able to complete my master’s degree at GW. I then decided to continue with my Ph.D. studies, again at GW.

GW: How did GW and the Elliott School influence your professional choices and successes? Who helped you on your career path?

KF: GW and the Elliott School provided me with mentors who helped me to envision all of the possibilities that life might hold for me. I will always be grateful to people such as Ambassador Ronald Palmer (who taught at the school for a number of years), then-Dean Mickey East, President Trachtenberg, and so many others who I encountered during my time as an Elliott School student, for providing me with guidance and insight at different stages during my time at GW.

The most beneficial thing was that I was able to learn about international policy first-hand – both in and out of the classroom. Many of the most impactful professors were those who were working closely with institutions making some form of difference in the world. They were professors who weren’t just studying international development, but were also engaged in international and broader policy-making activities. I also had the opportunity to be a part of the larger DC international studies community myself. Truly an #OnlyatGW experience, though we didn’t call it that back then.

Kyle Farmbry with Guilford students at a Greensboro Grasshoppers game.

GW: How has diversity and inclusion impacted or influenced your career? How can alumni promote DEI and DEI efforts?

KF: I firmly believe in finding ways to create opportunities for others – particularly when people are from communities where there have historically been limited opportunities. If we have enough people thinking strategically about how they can open doors, and in doing so, build toward institutions that reflect the demographics of the nation, then I think we will see the changes that we need for achieving a more equitable society. I really believe facilitating such equity should be part of everyone’s aspirational goals.

GW: What would you say to current GW students who want to make a positive difference in the world?

KF: Just get started. Take advantage of the time you have in DC and at GW to make a difference and get involved. Study abroad. Get an amazing internship. Then get another amazing internship. Develop an innovative idea for addressing a major problem in the world, then find a way to implement that idea. GW provides so many opportunities for its students – far more than many other colleges and universities – to be part of the GW community, and the Elliott community is such an exciting opportunity. Appreciate every single moment that this opportunity presents you.

February 6, 2024February 6, 2024

Elliott students travel to Senegal to explore culture, foreign influence

Authored by: Fiona Riley, Assistant News Editor at The GW Hatchet

Elliott School of International Affairs students traveled to Senegal over winter break and met with foreign service officers, professors and locals in a short-term abroad course launched this year.

Sixteen undergraduate and graduate Elliott School students spent nine days of winter break attending conferences, focus groups and lectures on foreign influence in the country. Matthew Kirwin, a professorial lecturer who taught the course, said he wanted to give students a deep understanding of an African country because policymakers are interested in foreign influence on the continent and chose Senegal because it’s politically stable and easy to navigate.

“It was a dream come true for me to be able to do this, to see the students see Africa through my eyes because I was able to put together a program that I thought would be very insightful,” Kirwin said.

Kirwin, a division chief at the State Department, said he submitted the short-term abroad program proposal during the 2019-20 academic year. The three-credit course, Foreign Influence in Senegal: Exploring the Effects and Senegalese Perceptions, counted as credit for Special Topics in African Studies, a course offered to Elliott School undergraduate and graduate students.

He said about 37 undergraduate and graduate students applied in October 2023 for 16 spots.

Kirwin created the trip itinerary with the help of the West African Research Center, a group that connects American researchers with West African countries. He said the center connected him to Senegalese professors and helped him plan trips to significant cultural and political locations like Gorée Island, a former outpost for the slave trade located off the coast of Dakar, and Touba, a town with the biggest mosque in West Africa.

“We went back and forth on what things made most sense to do, keeping in mind trying to make it affordable for students,” Kirwin said.

He said through connections from his job at the State Department, he also coordinated a meeting with several foreign service officers to explain the U.S. relationship with Senegal. The U.S. trades with Senegal and views the country as a stable democracy in Africa and a “model” for religious and ethnic tolerance, according to the Bureau of African Affairs’ bilateral relations fact sheet.

Kirwin said the class met on campus several times before the trip to learn about Senegal and hear student presentations on aspects of Senegalese culture like food, religion, politics and water sports like surfing. He said during the first pre-departure meeting, he brought in the principal deputy assistant secretary for global public affairs Kristin Kane, who previously served as a foreign service officer in Senegal, to provide insight into U.S. foreign influence in Senegal.

Before the start of the trip, Kirwin said he created an Instagram page for students to document the trip. He said he required students to upload pictures with captions that summarized what they learned on a given day at least three times during the trip.

Kirwin said students talked with local Senegalese people in focus groups to learn about the culture and how foreign influence is viewed by locals. He said students also attended lectures on relations between the United States, Russia and China to learn about how different countries approach foreign affairs.

“There’s this foreign power competition that’s going on where every country is trying to promote their values and promote their interests,” Kirwin said.

Kirwin said foreign influence in Africa often looks like “soft power,” meaning countries like the United States, Russia, China, France and Turkey attempt to form relationships with African countries through infrastructure projects and by asserting their culture, music and sports in cities. He said countries like the United States work to appear as partners with Senegal by bringing Senegalese basketball players to play in the NBA while other countries like China build roads and bridges.

“Turkey, for example, built the new soccer stadium in Dakar, and the Senegalese are very passionate about soccer,” Kirwin said.

He said the group will not meet in person again but students will work together on a 15 to 20-page policy paper due in February that incorporates information collected from panel discussions, academic lectures and daily interactions with Senegalese people. He said the final project is an opportunity for students to synthesize the cultural, historical and political information they learned on the trip and create a paper that American policymakers could use to better understand Senegalese culture.

“We talked about what are all the data points that we’ve collected and how can we refine our research question to write something that’s going to be of interest,” Kirwin said.

Christopher Zrazik, a junior studying international affairs and public policy, said he learned how countries like China, Turkey and the United States exert influence on Senegal through foreign investment in infrastructure projects.

“Through our lectures, through the focus groups that we engaged in and even observations as we drove through Dakar and in the surrounding areas, it really revealed the extent to which foreign powers are establishing themselves in the country,” Zrazik said.

Bryson Handy, a first-year studying international affairs and economics, said his favorite part of the trip was when the group saw a rally for Senegal’s upcoming presidential election in February while visiting the African Renaissance Monument in Dakar. He said the experience launched him into Senegalese politics and presents an example of the benefits of visiting an African country and learning through first-hand experience about the political system.

Deseree Chacha, a senior studying international affairs, said she learned about cultural diplomacy and development from the group’s tour guides and driver. She said during the two focus groups with students and people in the workforce she learned about Senegalese lifestyles, perspectives on foreign influence and Senegal’s upcoming presidential election.

“The whole group took a step back, we were there mainly just to listen to observe, to kind of be one with the Senegalese people,” Chacha said.

January 5, 2024January 5, 2024

Student Voices: An Open Letter to the World Food Forum

Six GW graduate students share their thoughts after representing the Global Food Institute at the global forum in Rome, Italy.

Authored by: Sydney Pryor, Kailey McNeal, Nicholas Smaldone, Juan Archila Godinez, Lois Maison, Angela Tarana

While the draw of authentic cacio e pepe just might be strong enough to pull some of us from D.C. across the Atlantic, it was the 2023 World Food Forum (WFF) that brought us to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) headquarters in Rome, Italy.

Our group of six graduate students from the George Washington University in Washington, D.C., represented the GW Global Food Institute as a youth delegation to the WFF. The six of us also share the belief that the policies that currently govern agrifood systems uphold the interests of governments and powerful industry groups at the expense of human health, social justice and the future of the planet.

As collective first-timers to any United Nations convening, we want to provide you with our insights as six individuals with diverse, yet often overlapping, reflections on our time and the opportunities we see to make the WFF more inclusive and action-oriented. Although this year’s WFF did an amazing job of bringing together compelling voices and actors from across the globe for important discussions, there were also a few key areas of improvement that would have made the event that much more successful.

Here are our “sweet” (our favorite parts) and “sour” (our not-so-favorite parts) reflections and our suggestions to strengthen the WFF experience for future youth food systems advocates.

What is the World Food Forum?

The WFF is a global platform to transform agrifood systems with the 2023 theme of “Agrifood systems transformation accelerates climate action.” The forum was composed of three interconnected events—the WFF Global Youth Forum, the FAO Science and Innovation Forum and the FAO Hand-in-Hand Investment Forum.

These were intended to facilitate intergenerational and cross-sector conversations about the transformation of agrifood systems at the local, regional and global level. The WFF Global Youth Forum was specifically designed to change the conversation around food and agriculture by giving young people a seat at the table and fostering youth-to-youth connection through open dialogue and a series of cross-cutting events.

Opportunities to attend the Global Indigenous Youth Forum

At the same time as the World Food Forum event, the FAO also held the Global Indigenous Youth Forum. Although they were separate events, they both took place at the FAO headquarters allowing us to attend several sessions of the Indigenous Youth Forum.

Although we appreciated being able to attend the sessions within the Global Indigenous Youth Forum, we were disappointed that the Indigenous youth event was separate from the WFF because Indigenous youth are an integral part of any youth-focused agrifood system discussion. While recognizing the value of having a separate space for Indigenous youth, it was off-putting to have the event at the same time and place as the WFF, as if to silo the two groups and create a false dichotomy between Indigenous and non-Indigenous youth in agrifood systems.

Limited opportunity for open dialogue and minimal action items

The Sour: The sessions we attended were valuable for continuing to think about actions to implement for agrifood systems transformation and environmental protection. However, the panel sessions lacked the opportunity for meaningful insights from panelists. We appreciated the efforts of the panelists to convey their messages in a very short time, but the lack of time limited panelists’ contributions to their pre-prepared speeches, inhibiting any dialogue between speakers.

Room for improvement: We suggest the organizers:

Decrease the number of panelists
Ensure higher-level policy- and decision-makers are in attendance
Keep an open mind and a positive, solutions-oriented mindset
Increase the structured participation of decision-makers at roundtables
Open all WFF sessions to youth attendees

Misalignment of the 2023 WFF theme

Unfortunately, the forum theme this year of “agrifood system transformation to accelerate climate action” seemed like an afterthought during many of the forum’s central deliberations.

Our policy deliberation at the WFF was only centered around changing behavior at the individual level in schools through education. Despite the importance of childhood education around food and agriculture and the need to connect students with how their food is produced and prepared, we felt this hyperfocus on education significantly inhibited our ability to propose policies that could drive “agrifood system transformation” and led to a lack of disruptive change policies.

Policy actions should not only facilitate the consumer’s ability to make healthy and sustainable food choices, but also incentivize the producer’s participation in an economically rewarding and just transition and empowering workers through stable livelihoods and protections.

Room for improvement: We suggest the organizers:

Provide more time for deliberation around larger systems-level challenges
Democratize the process of choosing data and policy priorities
Ensure transparency in the agenda setting process

Looking forward, we need the guidance and insight of those with experience in the critical topics being discussed at the WFF and more seats at the table for diverse agrifood system perspectives. We believe that together, across generations, we can do more “to move the needle.” We appreciated the opportunity to listen, engage, be inspired and critically reflect on the urgency of transforming our agrifood systems and moving from conversation to action.

(This letter was edited for space. Read the students’ full open letter on the Planet Forward website.)

Individual Reflections on the World Food Forum

Read the students’ full reflections by clicking on the links below.

“As someone who is passionate about transforming food systems for the benefit of racial justice and animal protection, I was eager to connect with other young advocates globally on these issues. While the forum provided opportunities to share ideas with other young people engaged in bettering food systems, I was disappointed by the lack of acknowledgement of the role that systemic factors play in the transformation of food systems.”
Assessing the youth role in food systems transformation
Kailey McNeal
GW Law ’24

“People from all over are thinking about the impact of our food production and consumption on the environment, on livelihoods, on our future—and advocating for an agrifood system transformation that is healthy, sustainable, and socially just.
“Thinking about how best to communicate this urgency, how to hold governments and corporations accountable, how to empower communities. People are calling for innovation, and not just the start-up kind, but innovative pathways for preserving, scaling and repurposing traditional knowledge and practices to our urgent crises. But how do we better address this question?”
The dichotomy of plant-based diets vs livestock
Sydney Pryor
Milken Institute SPH Ph.D. candidate in Health Policy

“We youth, as a group, are more than just a category defined by age. We are intersectional and multi-faceted in our identities. Our struggle overlaps with other marginalized and undervalued groups in society, such as Indigenous peoples, women, gender and sexual minorities, people with disabilities, poor people and more.”
An open letter to my fellow youth and our future leaders
Nick Smaldone ’23
CCAS M.S. candidate in Geography

“Each session I attended, and every interaction I had, was a vivid tapestry of insights. Voices ranged from smallholder farmers to academics, from private sector mavens to policymakers, each contributing to a rich mosaic of perspectives. The diversity underscored the multifaceted nature of our quest for food security—a challenge demanding nothing less than collaborative ingenuity.”
Passionate young voices come together
Angela Tarana
Elliott School M.A. candidate in International Development

January 5, 2024January 5, 2024

The Role of Unity in Advancing Democracy in Iran and the World

Nazanin Boniadi visited GW to talk about about the status of women in Iran. (Photos by William Atkins/GW Today)

Iranian born actor and activist Nazanin Boniadi provided an Elliott School audience an update on the progress and status of Iran’s freedom movement.

Authored by: B.L. Wilson

It’s been more than a year since Mahsa Jina Amini died after being detained by Iran’s morality police for not properly wearing a veil, the hijab that is mandatory under the Islamic Republic’s laws.

The Elliott School of International Affairs invited Iranian born actor and activist Nazanin Boniadi for a conversation not only about the status of women in Iran since Amini’s death, but also on the “The Role of Unity in Advancing Democracy for Iran.” The conversation was led by Alyssa Ayres, dean of the Elliott School, and was held at the Jack Morton Auditorium Tuesday.

In opening remarks before the start of the discussion, Mary Ellsberg, executive director and founding director of the George Washington University’s Global Women’s Institute, said the 22 year old’s death sparked protests that gave rise to the Women’s Life Freedom Movement in Iran and across the diaspora. It prompted thousands of Iranian women to flood the streets, remove their veils and cut their hair, and inspired women across the globe to raise their voices against the repressive and dangerous regime, said Ellsberg, who also is a professor of international studies at the Elliott School.

Boniadi, who has been featured in television shows and movies from “How I Met Your Mother” to “Lord of the Rings,” said her “first protest” was in the womb of her 19-year-old mother who was heavily pregnant but had “the foresight to see what was happening to Iran during the Iranian Revolution in 1979.” Her parents joined a minority of Iranians protesting the newly formed government and were forced to flee or risk execution.

The Women, Life, Freedom Movement, said Boniadi, transcends women’s rights though women were the spark and engine. “It is a declaration of opposition to a regime that is not only misogynistic, but murderous and repressive, a perfect rallying cry for democracy, for representative and accountable government that includes women,” she said.

Elliott School Dean Alyssa Ayres (l) led the conversation with actor and activist Nazanin Boniadi.

When Ayres asked what toll activism has taken on her, Boniadi mentioned the death threats she has received and the time it has taken away from her career but added that that “pales in comparison to what the Iranian people are going through.”

“The artists and activists, my counterparts in Iran saying these same words lose their careers, they get sent to prison, they get lashed, they get killed, blinded, raped, tortured, forcibly disappeared,” Boniadi said. “The list goes on and on. That puts it in perspective for me.”

Organizations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch report that more than 500 Iranians have been killed (the vast majority of whom were men) and thousands more arrested since the protests began. Boniadi said she is invited to speak, write articles and receives accolades including membership in the Council on Foreign Relations, the leading think tank on U.S. Foreign Policy and national security. She has been awarded the Sydney Peace Prize, Australia’s international prize that recognizes leading global voices that promote peace, justice and nonviolence.

“Though victories are few and far between,” she said, “every time a family is reunited after a hostage has been taken or someone is freed after being wrongfully imprisoned or an execution is stayed or an unjust law is overturned, it provides fuel to keep going.”

Setbacks have come on the heels of victory. Members of what Boniadi calls the community of democracy took the unprecedented step of getting the Islamic Republic of Iran ousted from the UN Commission on the Status of Women, something they were told could not be done. They fought for it, she said, to prevent the regime from using the UN system to legitimize themselves on the global stage and to give hope to people in countries like Afghanistan. The democracy community won only to face two major setbacks months later. Iran’s envoy to the United Nations was elected Vice President of the UN General Assembly and chair of the UN Human Rights Council.

She said the member states had been working in concert with the Islamic state while dissidents from Russia, Venezuela and Iran were fractured and fighting each other. Autocrats and oppressive governments united in their objective to stay in power and found influential voices among the opposition to divide and rule. “Democracies failed to be as united,” she said.

“Until we understand that we are inextricably bound, all democratic people, democratic loving people, inherently tied to each other, and we have to work on common objectives and safeguard democracy not only in our countries but also ensure that democracy prevails worldwide, we will fail,” she said.

The event was co-sponsored by the Elliot School for International Studies, the Global Women’s Institute, the Institute for Middle East Studies, the Elliott School’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Initiative and the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences Gender, Sexuality, and Studies program.