17吃瓜

IAF 2019 events

TRAVERSE CITY — The International Affairs Forum at 17吃瓜 kicks off the second half of its 2018-19 season with the sixth annual Academic WorldQuest competition, followed by a robust lineup of guest lecturers speaking on timely topics.

• Thursday, February 7: Academic WorldQuest competition
  Seventeen teams from eight area high schools compete in a quiz competition on international affairs. Championship team will represent northern Michigan at the national AWQ competition in Washington D.C. Noon-3:30 p.m., Hagerty Center. Free.
• Thursday, February 21: Trashing the Planet: Mountains of Garbage with no Place to Go. Speaker J.D. Lindeberg, President, Recycling Resources Systems
  America generates a third of the world’s waste but in the wake of new Chinese tariffs on recycled materials and refusal to take “contaminated” materials, it is estimated that by 2030 the U.S. will have 100 million tons of recycling waste with no place to go. 6 p.m., Milliken Auditorium. Tickets $15.
• Thursday, March 21: Reinventing Our Cities: The Impact of Autonomous Vehicles. Speaker Samuel Kling, PhD, Global Cities Fellow 
  Cities and towns are about to radically change as new mobility technologies take to our streets and sidewalks. What can history tell us about the transportation challenges of the future? 6 p.m., Milliken Auditorium. Tickets $15.
  
• Wednesday, April 3: NASA’s Journey of Discovery: The Future of Space Exploration. Speaker Charles Frank Bolden Jr. 
  Space has been transformed from a government-only, high-risk political effort to a business full of new challenges and opportunities, including some in Traverse City. During his 14 years as an astronaut, Bolden logged more than 680 hours in space during four Space Shuttle missions. 6 p.m., Milliken Auditorium. Tickets $15.
• Thursday, April 18: Trumping China: Will China's rise come at our demise? Speaker Tom Watkins, partner/director W-A-Y American School in China.
  The former Michigan state superintendent of schools, Watkins is one of Michigan’s foremost and thoughtful experts on China. He is currently based in China and has traveled there for more than 30 years. 6 p.m., Milliken Auditorium. Tickets $15.
• Tuesday, April 30: World Press Freedom Day with Rami Khouri, Beirut-based journalist and international commentator 
  Professor of Journalism at the American University in Beirut, senior fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School, and Chief Umpire of Little League Baseball in Jordan. 6 p.m., State Theatre, Traverse City. Tickets $5, free to students and educators.
• Thursday, May 16: (Latin) American First? Fixing Problem's in America's Backyard. Speaker Ambassador Charles Shapiro, President, World Affairs Council of Atlanta, former ambassador to Venezuela and coordinator of U.S.-Cuban Affairs
  America’s southern neighbors are in political turmoil. Venezuela was once the richest country in South America. Today, its economy has collapsed and millions have fled the country. The continuing immigration crisis shows that people locked in poverty and violence will do whatever it takes to improve the lives of their children. 6 p.m., Milliken Auditorium. Tickets $15.
  
• Thursday, June 20: Russia Against the West: Can the post-WWII Global Order Survive? Speaker Angela Stent, PhD, Director of the Center for Eurasian, Russian and East European Studies and professor at Georgetown University
  Stent's latest book, PUTIN’S WORLD: Russia Against the West and with the Rest (to be released Feb. 2019) is the culmination of four decades devoted to understanding how Russia, and the Soviet Union before it, really works.  6 p.m., Milliken Auditorium. Tickets $15.

All the Thursday lectures are live-streamed. Students and educators receive free tickets to the livestream overflow room and in Milliken as space allows. Large groups should contact the IAF in advance. For more information on all events visit .

Release date: January 17, 2019

For more information:

Karen Segal 
International Affairs Forum co-chair
(231) 715-6064
karenpsegal@gmail.com