Delve into the real story behind the headlines during a series of forums at the Mark Twain Library on international relations with Bill Stewart, a retired U.S. diplomat and Senior Foreign Service Officer with the U.S. Department of State.
The series, entitled “World Affairs Forum: In Context,” will revolve around explorations and discussions of the deeper context of foreign relations. Before retiring from the State Department and moving to Redding, Mr. Stewart served as a diplomat for over three decades abroad, mostly in the turbulent Middle East. The son of an oil executive, Mr. Stewart grew up in the Shah's Iran and later joined the Foreign Service, returning to the Middle East to help implement American foreign policy in places as diverse and as important to U.S. interests as Yemen, Egypt, Dubai, and Iraq. Before he retired in 2013, Mr. Stewart served as the deputy ambassador to Sweden.
"I'm looking forward to both sharing my perspective and learning from others during this forum,” said Mr. Stewart, who is teaching a course at Western Connecticut State University on comparative world political systems and economies. “I think this will be an excellent opportunity to start a conversation and to explore some of the most important and pressing international issues of our time."
The forums will be held on Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. at the Library. After a successful first talk, the second is schedules for February 19. The conversation will be titled “The Price of Power: The Nexus of Economics, Politics & Demographics on the World Stage” and the final program will be held on March 26 and titled, “Buddy System or Dysfunctional Family? Global Threats & International Cooperation.”
After spending his adult life in the world of diplomacy, Mr. Stewart said one thing he learned is to “listen hard and never jump to conclusions — every issue has more than one side to it, and most of them have many.”
Participants are invited to attend one, two or all three sessions. Refreshments will be served. Please register online at www.marktwainlibrary.org, at the Library or call 203 938-2545.