A few months ago I happened to meet Jed Willard, Director of the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Foundation for Global Engagement at Harvard College, at a program on social media organized by the Canadian consulate in Boston. When we spoke briefly at the consulate I was intrigued by his description of the work of the Foundation, which includes research, programming for students and more, all carried out with the legacy of President Roosevelt in mind.
Recently I had a chance to sit down with him again
to talk about the Foundation in his office in Adams House, located in rooms that were home to FDR during his time as an undergraduate at the college. With a
light drizzle falling and cloudy skies outside, we sat in front of a fire as it
crackled away in the fireplace, discussing the unique role that his think tank
plays at Harvard College and the state of the world in general. Over the course
of an hour we touched on his work with eastern European nations, discussed
American-Canadian competition in the Arctic, and speculated about the likely consequences
of climate change. I also got the sense from our talk that one of the central
strengths of this think tank is its approach to global challenges, at once
focused on individual emerging trends, while at the same time embracing a broad
view of the various political, cultural and strategic elements that may be at
play in any particular situation.
It will likely come as no surprise to readers of
this blog that looking at world issues this way resonates deeply with me – as I
have written before, on topics ranging from the Arab Spring to Russian
aggression in the Ukraine, to bipartisan politics, that attempting to
comprehend (let alone solve) the problems of the world requires the ability to
move between the micro and macro, always mindful of nuance, without getting
tripped up or waylaid by minutiae. In addressing contemporary points of crisis as
well as those that are more foundational, my sense is that Mr. Willard and his
colleagues are seeking to foster an environment in which undergraduates,
faculty and practitioners can engage with subjects that have both shaped the
world as we know it today and likely determine how societies will change going
forward. This can only be a good
thing.
If you visit the
organization’s website I think you’re likely to notice, as I did, that there a
number of questions posed, such as, “As national
borders fray, are we seeing the ‘reintroduction of geopolitics?" and “How
can we understand and defuse the impact of international politics on regional
cooperation in the Arctic?” Good questions are at the heart of any intellectual
debate worth having, and when the subject is international relations, solid
questions are vital not only to the quality of discussion, but in helping guide
policy experts and decision-makers faced with choices which will have serious
consequences in the real world.
In
exposing students to the complexities of decision-making at the global level I
think the FDR Foundation for Global Engagement is not only potentially influencing
the career paths of future graduates, but perhaps more importantly, helping to
prepare them to be better citizens of the world. Given all of the challenges we
are facing, from terrorism to climate change to breakdowns to entire regions in
turmoil, right now the world could use a few more good global citizens.
Copyright Daniel E. Levenson 2015.
No comments:
Post a Comment