Iowa City Foreign Relations Council

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Latest Episodes:

ICFRC: 2024 Mandela Washington Fellows Jul 17, 2024

During this panel discussion, several Mandela Washington Fellows shared insights about their work in their home countries, program experiences at the University of Iowa, and impressions of Iowa.
The featured Fellows were Adja Boudy Kante of Senegal, Gift Govere of Zimbabwe, Percy Fonge of Cameroon, and Vivian Anena of Uganda.
Established in 2014, the Mandela Washington Fellowship has brought nearly 5,800 young leaders from every country in Sub-Saharan Africa to the United States for academic and leadership training. The Fellows, between the ages of 25 and 35, are accomplished innovators and leaders in their communities and countries.
For more information about the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council, visit icfrc.org. To watch other ICFRC programs, please view our extensive collection at citychannel4.com/icfrc.

ICFRC - Obstacles to Peace: Stories about Palestine May 03, 2024

Palestinian and Jewish Iowans share their personal stories and experiences of identity, oppression, solidarity, and hope from inside Palestine and in the US. The speaker panel includes Palestinians who grew up in the Gaza Strip, West Bank, and from the diaspora. They are; Dr. Deema Tota, Yaser Abadagga, Mona Odeh, Dani Love Misyuk, and Samanth Brotman.
For more information about the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council, visit icfrc.org. To watch other ICFRC programs, please view our extensive collection at citychannel4.com/icfrc.

ICFRC - MSF/Doctors Without Borders: Surgical Missions and Tales from the Field Apr 17, 2024

"Mine has been a life of frequent moves. I grew up as an 'army brat', traveling across the US and Europe - graduating from high school in Frankfurt, Germany in 1977. Medical School (Uniformed Services University, 1986) and residency took place while spending 16 years in the Army. I considered myself a pretty savvy man of the world until the Army sent me to Haiti for 7 months. This deployment led to a profound awareness of lives lived outside our 'first world' bubble - eventually spurring me to join in the missions and activities of Doctors Without Borders."
For more information about the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council, visit icfrc.org. To watch other ICFRC programs, please view our extensive collection at citychannel4.com/icfrc.

ICFRC: Eyewitness to History Apr 10, 2024

This Iowa City Foreign Relations Council (ICFRC) event marks the end of a year-long series of events celebrating four decades of ICFRC's impact in the community, celebrating the past, and looking forward together to reach even more hearts and minds through diverse, inclusive, and timely topics on the most urgent issues facing our world and all of those in our community who call it home.
National Public Radio's (NPR) Frank Langfitt has reported from more than 50 countries and territories since the late 1990s. In a video and audio presentation, Frank recounts the history he's witnessed through the people he's met and how that history has shaped today's challenging geopolitical landscape. Frank explains what he learned driving a free taxi in Shanghai and tracking elephants in South Sudan. He also discusses reporting in Ukraine during Russia's 2022 invasion and covering the Israel/Gaza war.
Frank Langfitt is NPR's Global Democracy correspondent based on the Investigations desk in Washington, D.C. He covers threats to democracy at home and abroad. Previously, Langfitt spent nearly two decades as an international correspondent, reporting from more than 50 countries and territories. Based most recently in London, he covered the UK and Ireland, as well as the war in Ukraine and its implications in Europe.
Ben Kieffer joined Iowa Public Radio (IPR) in 2000 and is host of IPR's daily noon talk show, River to River, which he also helps produce. Prior to joining IPR, Ben lived and worked in Europe for more than a decade. He reported firsthand the fall of the Berlin Wall and covered the Velvet Revolution in Prague. Ben has won numerous awards for his work over the course of more than 30 years in public media.
For more information about the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council, visit icfrc.org. To watch other ICFRC programs, please view our extensive collection at https://citychannel4.com/icfrc.

ICFRC: Kosovo: Education as Resistance Apr 05, 2024

Aferdita Krasniqi, a widely recognized expert in international education, shares her extensive 24 years of experience fostering academic and cultural relations between the tiny nation of Kosovo and the influential United States. Her pivotal role in establishing Kosovo's institutions post-1999 war while working at the U.S. Embassy in Kosovo showcases her commitment to education in the region.
For more information about the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council, visit icfrc.org. To watch other ICFRC programs, please view our extensive collection at citychannel4.com/icfrc.

ICFRC: Why Women Peacebuilders Matter Mar 08, 2024

The U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP) presents the Women Building Peace Award (WBPA) annually to an extraordinary international woman peacebuilder. During this International Women's Day event, Dr. Kathleen Kuehnast, Director of Women, Peace, and Security at USIP, will discuss gender-inclusive peacebuilding and present the work of 2023's WBPA finalists.
Dr. Kathleen Kuehnast is the director of the Women, Peace, and Security portfolio at USIP, where she oversees the Institute's work on the gendered impacts of violent conflict, drawing upon U.N. Security Council Resolution 1325, emphasizing the critical role women play in all aspects of peacebuilding. Since 2012, Kuehnast has served as a founding partner of the Missing Peace Initiative, which is focused on ending conflict-related sexual violence by bringing a survivor-centered focus to research, policy, and practice. Since 2010, she has also spearheaded the U.S. Civil Society Work Group on Women, Peace, and Security, of which USIP is the secretariat.
For more information about the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council, visit icfrc.org.

ICFRC: Russia and Ukraine - Entangled Histories, Diverging States Feb 21, 2024

The root of the Russo-Ukrainian War is not geopolitical competition, but the multifaceted divergence between Ukraine and Russia over the past 30 years. In February 2022, Russian missiles rained on Ukrainian cities, and tanks rolled towards Kyiv to end Ukrainian independent statehood. What are the roots of this war, which has upended the international legal order and brought back the specter of nuclear escalation? How did these supposedly "brotherly peoples" become each other's worst nightmare?
Maria Popova is an Associate Professor of Political Science at McGill University, Scientific Director of the Jean Monnet Centre Montreal, and Editor of the Cambridge Elements Series on Politics and Society from Central Europe to Central Asia. Her work explores the rule of law and democracy in Eastern Europe.
For more information about the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council, visit icfrc.org.

ICFRC: In Pursuit of Food Justice, Globally and Locally Feb 07, 2024

Food Justice, a social movement ensuring universal access to nutritious, affordable, and culturally appropriate food for all, is a growing imperative today. Only by examining the structural disparities of food systems and by becoming prepared to accept a meaningful change can we address the urgency of food insecurity, particularly for communities of color and low-income communities. The Global Food Project in Johnson County is one example of how people in Iowa have come together for an inclusive, just, and sustainable way forward.
Featuring speakers: Will Kapp of the Global Food Project for IC Compassion, Ayman Sharif of Center for Worker Justice of Eastern Iowa, and Dr. Brandi Janssen in the Department of Occupational and Environmental Health at the University of Iowa.
For more information about the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council, visit icfrc.org.

ICFRC: Working with Refugees and Displaced Persons: The International Rescue Committee in Iowa Jan 23, 2024

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) is a humanitarian nonprofit organization supporting individuals impacted by conflict and displacement. The IRC operates in 52 countries internationally and 30 offices in the United States. Sarah Terlouw, IRC's Executive Director in Iowa, will speak about her 15-year career supporting refugees and other conflict-affected populations. She will share her experiences overseas and the transition to working domestically, focusing on the opening of the IRC in Iowa in 2022 and the organization's expansion into Iowa City in October 2023. Aimerance Makunda, originally from the DRC and an Iowa City resident since 2012, also speaks.
For more information about the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council, visit icfrc.org.

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