Dec 20 2010
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Climate Change and Environmental Issues, YLD Conference in Prague

Relive the Conference in Prague

The Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs at the U.S. Department of State is pleased to announce the Young Leaders Dialogue Conference in Prague, scheduled for November 6 – 12, 2010. Conference attendees will number 50 Americans and 150 Europeans, including the Europeans who participated in the February 2010 U.S. Study Tour.

The goal of the Prague Conference is to bring together the Young Leaders from Central Europe, the Baltic States, and the United States to continue dialogue on issues related to new challenges in transatlantic security, the environment and climate change, and tolerance and diversity.

Catherine Noyes is a second-year MEM Candidate in the Global Environmental Change Concentration.  For the last year, Catherine has worked with the Institute for Sustainable Development to educate and certify businesses on triple bottom line sustainability policies and practices.  Her interests are in business and organizational sustainability, environmental program management, and stakeholder engagement around sustainability. Continue reading →

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Dec 20 2010
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Climate Change and Environmental Issues

Trans-Atlantic Dialogue on Climate Change

Ahoy from Prague! ‘Ahoy’ is Czech for “hi,” and is one of the few words I learned during this e-day conference for young leaders from Central and Baltic Europe and the U.S.A. Solidly anchored in the center of geographic Europe, Prague hosted the second gathering of young leaders. A program of the U.S.

A program of the U.S. Department of State and the Institute of International Education, this November conference brought over 150 leaders under the age of 30 from the U.S. and 12 Central and Eastern European countries. Together we are participating in trans-Atlantic strategic learning and exchange sessions. And the exchange has certainly been engaging. Another Czech translation that I have learned is klimatických změn, or “climate change.” My focus group is on environment and climate change. Continue reading →

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Dec 20 2010
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Climate Change and Environmental Issues

I’ve always thought…

I’ve always thought that should I be the type of person to commit to things (unlikely) or a person who could thrive outside of Europe or San Francisco )(perhaps also unlikely), that I’d join the foreign service or work in government. I’ve spent the week at the Young Leaders Dialogue with America conference in beautiful Prague and have met so many fascinating people, many of whom work in government or are on their way there. These people are smart, passionate, and committed to making the world a better place, just like those who I meet at business schools and companies around the country.

My role here has focused on climate change and environmental issues and I’ve been struck by the many comments that due to the divided government, significant government action on climate change is all but impossible. As in – off the table! This strikes me as absurd. My grasp of American politics is tenuous at best but can you imagine a business or nonprofit saying “Oup, our board is divided, so we can’t do anything for two, four, even six years!” It’s unthinkable. Even companies with significant environmental challenges are addressing issues head on, with a remarkable amount of commitment. Continue reading →

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Nov 22 2010
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New Challenges in Transatlantic Security, YLD Conference in Prague

“Folly of Abandoning Europe” and a Response to the Acolytes

One of the most vivid debates of the recent Youth Leaders Dialogue with America conference in Prague was whether the new Obama Administration has indeed abandoned (and some would go as far as to say sacrificed) Central Europeans for the sake of restart of relations with Russia. Those who feel that Obama has indeed not abandoned the Central Europe feel obliged to resort to numbers and claim that since President Obama made 6 or 8 trips to Europe (the number depends on the speaker), it is foolish to speak of any abandoning. Timothy Westmyer is one of them. Statements to the similar effects were made at the conference by Joel Rubin and other speakers.

Social scientists know well that numbers are useful as long as there is any sense to them. Numbering trips of the US President to Europe is one of those occasions when numbering must be made very cautiously.Conveniently resorting to Wikipedia, I tried to make list of all those trips of President Obama to Europe. Continue reading →

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Nov 19 2010
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New Challenges in Transatlantic Security, YLD Conference in Prague

Central and Eastern European Young Leaders Encouraged by New Relationship with United States

The United States and Central and Eastern European (CCE) relationship is evolving into robust and strong partnership based on a common understanding of 21st century security needs. Earlier this month, I had the privilege of seeing this forward thinking first hand as a participant of the Young Leaders Dialogue with America conference in Prague. However, I left the Czech Republic with an entirely more enthusiastic impression of how my trans-Atlantic colleagues saw President Barack Obama’s outreach to CEE than that expressed by a recent blog post by the Heritage Foundation.

During the conference, I moderated a panel discussion on the New START treaty and the role of Russia and Europe in the global nonproliferation agenda. As one would expect, the conversation turned to the Obama administration’s decision last year to shift toward a more mobile missile defense network in Europe. Continue reading →

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Nov 19 2010
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New Challenges in Transatlantic Security, YLD Conference in Prague

Obama’s Neglect of Central and Eastern Europe Doesn’t Impress Young Leaders

The United States no longer considers relations with Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) a top priority. This was one of the recurring themes at the Young Leaders Dialogue with America conference last week in Prague.

Irena Kalhousova, chief analyst at Prague’s Security Studies Institute, lamented that President Barack Obama ignores CEE and cast doubt on the certainty of transatlantic partnership. Indeed, the Administration’s brazen cancellation of the third site missile defense program last year, with radar stations in the Czech Republic and missile interceptors in Poland, was “a slap in the face for those who actually believed a key agreement with Washington was worth the paper it was written on.” Though the radar stations were unpopular with the Czech public, many Czech parliamentarians who vigorously advocated for the stations suffered at the polls the following election. Continue reading →

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Nov 11 2010
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New Challenges in Transatlantic Security, YLD Conference in Prague

Do Czechs Want U.S. Support?

For me, the conference in Prague has been a lucky return of sorts – in 2006 I spent a semester studying at Charles University. While there I took a course under Vojtech Cepl, a Czech constitutional court justice and one of the primary drafters of the 1992 constitution, who unfortunately passed away last year. On the first day of class, Cepl asked his students: “Which country do you think is the greatest threat to the world?” Students were hesitant. He immediately added: “I think it’s the United States.” At this point, I was expecting another trite diatribe from a “liberal” professor, accusing the US of global hegemony and imperialism. Instead, Cepl continued (and I’m paraphrasing): “I think the US is abandoning its global role, and that makes the world less secure.” Continue reading →

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Nov 11 2010
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New Challenges in Transatlantic Security, YLD Conference in Prague

The West vs. The Rest?

This afternoon the Young Leaders Dialogue Conference hosted a panel discussion with James Rubin (President of the Atlantic Partnership, USA) and Andor Sandor (former Chief, Defense Intelligence, Czech Republic).    The panel topic was on transatlantic security concerns and predictably, it elicited strong responses from the audience and panelists alike.  While there were many things posed by the panelists that warrant serious discussion, I was particularly concerned about the rhetoric employed by Rubin in separating the “West” from the rest of the world.

More than once, Rubin noted the need for Europe and the US to rally together behind our “shared Western values,” noting that it was “the West” that supported human rights, shared similar “ways of looking at the world,” etc.  Holding aside the question of what, exactly, Rubin means by “the West,” there is a very serious issue at play here.  As young leaders, should we really be encouraged to group the world as “the West” and the rest?  As “us” (meaning what? white people?!) vs. “them” (a category in which he seemed to group China and the Taliban)?  What are the dangers in thinking about the world in this way? Continue reading →

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Nov 10 2010
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YLD Conference in Prague

The Idea, The People, The Venue

There are so many things about the conference that I find fascinating – the idea, the people, the venue – Prague is really an inspiring place. It’s been just two days since we started but I haven’t met a person that is not in place here. There is so much potential, diversity and youth gathered here at one place that I get the sense we could really have an impact over the debate of climate change policy. All of the young professionals here have set their career mission and are determined to change the societies they live in. This is really charging, it gives a broader perspective to everyone, it makes us get the better holistic picture of the situation this world is in and so to say “upgrades” our vision toward what is the possible and the better future we have to develop for us and for the rest.

Continue reading →

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Nov 09 2010
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New Challenges in Transatlantic Security

Well Maybe They Should

NATO has a PR problem in Russia. A recent picture from a trip to Samara, a city on the Volga almost 1000km from Moscow, provides some context: “War = NATO. 1941 = 2010? Wake up.” Other graffittied slogans from my trip to that city included “NATO = Death” and “NATO: Get out of Russia.”

But let’s provide some data points. The Levada Center, which conducts surveys of Russian general opinion, has been monitoring the question “What do you think, is there a basis in Russia to fear those countries of the west including NATO?” With slight fluctuations in 1997 60% of people answered “Absolutely Yes;” in 2009, 62%. (Those answering “Absolutely No” were 27% in 1997, 26% in 2009). (Site in Russian here.)

This general trend is supported by other surveys. In 1997 and 2007 they asked “The leadership of NATO states that the bloc is now not directed against Russia. What do you think?” In 1997 44% responded “It’s a fib – NATO was and remains hostile to our country.” In 2007 it grew to 56%. (Site in Russian here.)  Continue reading →

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