Catch up on the latest news and commentary from the Pacific Council. NEWSLETTER / August 20, 2020 The Pacific Council’s biweekly Newsletter shares international affairs commentary and analysis by our members and experts plus news from the Council and recaps of our recent events. SUPPORT THE COUNCIL Now, more than ever, the Pacific Council’s work to promote global engagement is vital. Learn about all the ways you can support our mission in Los Angeles, California, and beyond! donate today >> ANALYSIS A TALE OF COVID-19 IN THREE COUNTRIES: VIETNAM, ITALY, AND THE UNITED STATES Peter Katona, Clinical Professor of Medicine at the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine and Adjunct Professor of Public Health at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, and Seth Freeman, a writer, producer, director, journalist, and playwright The United States is still battered by the coronavirus while other countries have gotten the epidemic under control. read more >> LA-BASED HOMEBOY INDUSTRIES WINS 2020 HILTON HUMANITARIAN PRIZE Marissa Moran, Chief Communications Officer at the Pacific Council By recognizing the work undertaken to serve a specific, marginalized population primarily in East LA with a global humanitarian prize, the Hilton Foundation is pointing to the example that Homeboy sets for the rest of the world. read more >> NOW IS THE TIME TO IMPLEMENT A MULTILATERAL STRATEGY FOR THE PACIFIC C. Steven McGann, former U.S. Ambassador to the Republics of Fiji, Nauru, Kiribati, and the Kingdom of Tonga and Tuvalu, and Richard K. Pruett, former Deputy Chief of Mission to six Pacific Islands Countries Washington should build upon new congressional initiatives to strengthen its alliances and partnerships with Pacific Islands Countries. read more >> COVID-19 AND THE CHANCE TO REFORM U.S. REFUGEE POLICY Kemal Kirişci, Nonresident Senior Fellow of Foreign Policy at the Brookings Institution’s Center on the United States and Europe and the Turkey Project, and Sam Denney, Senior Research Assistant at the Brooking Institution’s Center on the United States and Europe To build a better, more democratic, more equitable world after the pandemic, the United States could start by helping refugees, rather than what it can do by merely seeking its own benefit. read more >> PRESERVE THE TRADITION OF LATIN AMERICAN LEADERSHIP OF THE INTER-AMERICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK George Shultz, former U.S. Secretary of State, Thomas McLarty, former White House Chief of Staff and Special Envoy for the Americas, Carla Hills, former U.S. Trade Representative, Robert Zoellick, former World Bank president, Abraham Lowenthal, president emeritus of the Pacific Council, and Nelson Cunningham, former special advisor to the president Sixty years of tradition—of Latin American leadership of the Inter-American Development Bank—should not be overturned in its presidential election, which is currently scheduled for mid-September but should be deferred until March. read more >> CHINA, CLIMATE CHANGE, AND COVID-19: AN INTERVIEW WITH KEVIN RUDD Jongsoo Lee, Center Associate at the Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies at Harvard University Former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd discusses the challenges facing the Indo-Pacific, including the many facets of China’s rise. read more >> REMEMBERING BRENT SCOWCROFT Abraham Lowenthal, president emeritus of the Pacific Council Brent Scowcroft, former National Security Advisor who recently passed away at age 95, became a founding member of the Pacific Council on International Policy from the very start in 1995. read more >> read more >> TRUMP HAS PULLED OUT OF THE GLOBAL BATTLE FOR HEARTS AND MINDS Madeleine Albright, former U.S. Secretary of State from 1997-2001, and Marc Nathanson, co-chair of the Pacific Council's Board of Directors and former chair of the Broadcasting Board of Governors (now the U.S. Agency for Global Media) from 1998-2002 Voice of America has been effective because it broadcasts truth rather than propaganda, but its independence is now in jeopardy. In a world where Russia and China are actively spreading disinformation and propaganda, the United States must tell the truth—not as it is narrowly defined by ideologues of the left, right, or center, but as boldly, broadly, and free from bias as possible. America’s public diplomacy, as well as the future of democracy in the world, demands that we maintain this proud tradition. More News and Analysis EVENT RECAP watch and read more >> THE FUTURE OF AID AND CONFLICT IN SYRIA "The healthcare infrastructure [in Syria] was badly damaged if not destroyed in some areas, and 70 percent of Syria’s doctors have left the country," said Mona Yacoubian in a recent webcast about restrictions placed on humanitarian aid delivery in Syria because of the COVID-19 pandemic. "How do you deal with a pandemic in the midst of a conflict?" More Event Recaps UPCOMING EVENTS ROADBLOCKS: U.S.-E.U. COOPERATION ON CHINA Thursday, August 20 / 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. PT The fifth installment of the Edgerton Series on Responding to a Rising China, on what a joint U.S.-E.U. strategy on China might look like. Open to the public. register >> THE MILITARIZATION OF LAW ENFORCEMENT Thursday, August 27 / 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. PT A webcast on the national debate around law enforcement. Open to the public. register >> More Events BECOME A MEMBER Members of the Pacific Council become part of a community of thoughtful, concerned global citizens whose experience informs smart policy and discourse. We connect you to a network of leaders, bring you in on both live and virtual discussions with global thinkers, and invite your ideas to contribute to public discourse and improved policy. learn more about membership >> SUBSCRIBE Sign up for our biweekly email Newsletter to receive the latest news and commentary from the Pacific Council on International Policy. stay informed >> STAY CONNECTED Pacific Council on International Policy | 725 S. Figueroa St., Ste. 450, Los Angeles, CA 90017 Unsubscribe [email protected] About our service provider Sent by [email protected]