Book Launch: Mohammed bin Salman: The Icarus of Saudi Arabia?

Wednesday, Sept. 29 // 10–11:30am (ET)

Mohammed bin Salman. A monarch-to-be without scruples? Or a visionary seeking a path to global power? A social reformer determined to bring his country into the twenty-first century? Or just another brutal dictator? A leader on the road to greatness, or one destined to follow in the footsteps of Icarus?

Veteran Washington Post foreign correspondent David Ottaway draws on more than a half-century of observation and reporting to shed light on these conundrums at the heart of any attempt to understand Saudi Arabia—and the man who is poised to rule the country for decades to come.

The Last Good Neighbor: Mexico in the Global Sixties

Monday, Sept. 27 // 4–5:30pm (ET)

In The Last Good Neighbor, Eric Zolov proposes a revisionist interpretation of Mexican history during the 1960s. He shows how Mexico's political leadership simultaneously leveraged the nation's strategic partnership with the United States and harnessed the left's revolutionary passions, in pursuit of a grand strategy: to broaden Mexico's international relations and break free of economic subordination to Washington.

Antarctic Science: Ensuring Vital Contributions to Environmental Policy and Understanding Climate Change

Wednesday, Sept. 29 // 1–2pm (ET)

The Wilson Center's Polar Institute will convene a panel of preeminent U.S. experts in different fields of Antarctic science who will speak to priority projects underway in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean and the contributions polar scientists make to global policies related to climate change, predicting sea-level rise, marine protection and environmental policies generally.

Partnerships and Business Innovation to Rein in Plastic Waste in the U.S. and China

Wednesday, Sept. 29 // 2–3:15pm (ET)

The United States and China are major contributors to global plastic production, consumption, and pollution. The recognition of how single-use plastic waste is damaging ocean ecosystems and contributing to climate emissions has sparked new partnerships between corporations, NGOs, and local governments in both countries. These collaborations aim to help close the loop on plastic waste by promoting innovations in plastic packaging reduction and waste management systems. In this panel speakers will talk about their work building partnerships to reduce and create a circular economy for plastic waste.

Turning to Technology in Latin America’s Pandemic Response

Wednesday, Sept. 29 // 3–4:30pm (ET)

Learn more about Latin America’s most technologically innovative government leaders in this discussion on critical technologies for recovery and growth in Latin America.

Babi Yar: Marking the 80th Anniversary of the Tragedy

Thursday, Sept. 30 // 10–11:30am (ET)

Babi Yar is one of the most potent symbols of the Holocaust. It is also a symbol of and erasure and the forgetting that happen when history is made to serve political agendas. 80 years after 34,000 Jews were massacred in the Babi Yar ravine in Kyiv, numerous gaps remain in our knowledge about the tragedy. To mark the anniversary, we will discuss the latest findings regarding the site; consider what Soviet intelligence knew in real time about the genocide of the Jews in the occupied territories; raise questions about Soviet evacuation efforts; and ask whether the latest efforts to construct a memorial complex at Babi Yar will finally bear fruit.

All Systems Go: Integrating Climate Security Across the U.S. Government

Friday, Oct. 1 // 8–9:30am (ET)

Join us for a Berlin Climate and Security Conference panel with representatives from the NSC, State Department, USAID, and NOAA for an update on efforts to address climate security in the U.S. and with partners around the world.