Spring 2012 Conference: “Should America Promote Democracy Abroad?”
The Center is pleased to announce that its second biennial conference will be held April 12-14, 2012, oriented aroundthe question “Should America Promote Democracy Abroad?” This conference was made possible in part by support from a “We the People” Challenge Grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities*, the Thomas W. Smith Foundation, and the George L. Ohrstrom Jr. Foundation.
Held over the course of three days, the conference will take place on the Kenyon campus in Gambier, Ohio, and involve broad student, faculty, and campus participation. Conference invitees include public panels and private discussions, with participants from a variety of fields: journalists, academics from a variety of disciplines, political actors, policy analysts, and representatives of non-governmental organizations involved in the work of democratization. Panels will look at the political, economic, and social aspects of democracy, as well as how or to what extent the promotion of democracy coheres with the principles and values of the United States. While recent developments in the Middle East make the conference topic timely, panelists will consider a broad spectrum of regions and questions, including:
- What are the prospects for democracy in the Middle East, after the Arab Spring?
- Is it in America’s national security interest to promote democracy abroad?
- What can we learn from experiences with democracy promotion outside the Middle East?
- What are the underpinnings or prerequisites of successful liberal democracies?
- What are the practical impediments to the further spread of democracy?
Schedule of Events
All events are free and open to the public. No advance registration required.
Thursday, April 12
5:30 pm: Evening Reception (Fischman Lobby, Gund Gallery)
7:00 pm: Keynote Address-George L. Ohrstrom Jr. Lectureship on Democracy:
Zalmay Khalilzad, former U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan, Iraq and the United Nations (7:00 pm, Rosse Hall)
Friday, April 13
9:30 am: Morning Remarks
Elliott Abrams, Council on Foreign Relations and former White House official
Nicholas Burns, Harvard Kennedy School of Government
10:30 am: Morning Panel 1: Assessing the Arab Spring and Democracy in the Middle East
John Agresto, Board of Trustees of the American University of Iraq
James Zogby, Arab American Institute
Danya Greenfield, Atlantic Council
Karan Bhatia, Senior Counsel & Vice President of General Electric
1:30 pm: Afternoon Remarks
Judy Woodruff, Bloomberg News, PBS News Hour
Al Hunt, Bloomberg News
2:45 pm: Afternoon Panel 1: Is Democracy Promotion in America’s Interest?
Scott Carpenter, Principal, Google Ideas
Charles Kesler, Claremont McKenna College
Michael E. O’Hanlon, Brookings Institution
Anthony Cordesman, Center for Strategic and International Studies
Tony Smith, Tufts University
4:30 pm: Afternoon Panel 2: Democracy Promotion Beyond the Middle East
Morton H. Halperin, Open Society Institute
Nadia Diuk, Vice President, National Endowment for Democracy
Adam Przeworski, New York University
John D. Sullivan, Center for International Private Enterprise
5:45 pm: Evening Reception (Fischman Lobby, Gund Gallery)
Saturday, April 14
9:00 am: Morning Panel: The Mechanics of Democracy Promotion
David Kramer, President of Freedom House
Les Campbell, National Democratic Institute
Melinda Haring, American Security Project
Jamila Raqib, Einstein Institute
Tom Garrett, International Republican Institute
11:30 am: Closing Address: Larry Diamond, Hoover Institution, Stanford University
All events are located in the Community Foundation Theater, Gund Gallery, unless otherwise noted.
While all events are free and open to the public, and require no registration, please contact us atamericandemocracy@kenyon.edu if you are planning to attend.
The Center for the Study of American Democracy is made possible in part by support from a “We the People” Challenge Grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this conference do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.