AIA Winter - Spring
2012 International Lecture Series
BUBBLE, BUBBLE, BOIL and TROUBLE?
Critical Countries, Critical Issues We Do Not Understand
Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Turkey, and Egypt are critical for American diplomacy, business and the general public for many different reasons. Some of these countries are already a source of concern and in others troubles may lie just over the horizon. If something goes wrong in any one of them, consequences for the United States can be very serious. New Mexicans need to be informed about the politics, economics and problems of these states, and this is the aim of the AIA’s Spring 2012 International Lecture Series. The series will not focus on a single issue, but will present a diverse panorama of crucial world problems.
January 22 (Sun), 3:00 – 5:00 PM at UNM Continuing Education
THE NEW OTOMANS: TURKEY’S MUSLIM NATIONALISTS
by Dr. Jenny White, Boston University
To all appearances, Turkey is caught in a fierce battle between secularist and Muslim sectors of the population, with one side accusing the other of heavy-handed imposition of its own values and practices. Since the 1980s new "self-consciously" Muslim elite has mounted a powerful political and economic challenge to the traditional secular elite. In doing so, it has developed an alternative unorthodox definition of the nation based on a nostalgic revival of Turkey’s Ottoman past, pushing aside the Republican model. The outcome has been revolutionary in its transformation of Turkish society and politics, but this transformation does not map neatly onto our expectations of what “secular” and “Muslim” mean.
February 26 (Sun), 3:00 5:00 PM at UNM Continuing Education
PAKISTAN FOUR FUTURES FOR A TROUBLED RELATIONSHIP
by Dr. Timothy Hoyt, US Naval War College.
Pakistan is a critical American ally in its efforts to combat global terrorism. It has a large army, a significant nuclear arsenal, and a long - if troubled - history of alliance with the United States. Nevertheless, America's relations with Pakistan are difficult - a fact brought home by the recent killing of Osama Bin Laden in a compound only thirty miles from Pakistan's capital. As the U.S. re-examines its policies in South Asia, including a possible withdrawal from Afghanistan and a growing friendship with India, the U.S. also needs to consider its relationship with Pakistan and Pakistan's future. Professor Timothy Hoyt of the U.S. Naval War College will lay out four different possible futures for Pakistan, and lead a discussion of how the U.S. can best contribute to Pakistani stability and development in the coming decades.
March 23 (Fri), 3:30 5:30 PM at UNM Continuing Education
SAUDI ARABIA: A PROBLEMATIC ALLY?
By Dr. Toby Jones, Rutgers University
On the surface, the "Arab Spring" does not seem to have touched Saudi Arabia, but in reality the Kingdom has followed pro-democracy protests very closely and has resisted demands from its own people for genuine political reform. Saudi Arabia has sent troops to help a fellow Sunni regime in Bahrain quell anti-regime protests and suppress the Shia majority in that Island country. The presentation will focus on the nature of Saudi stability, the impact of the "Arab Spring" on the core pillars of that stability, and the critical role of Saudi oil globally. The talk will also address the special US-Saudi relationship and the impact of active Saudi resistance to genuine political reforms on this relationship and on the future of the region's largest hydrocarbon dinosaur.
April 21 (Sat), 3:00 5:00 PM
EGYPT in REVOLUTION
by Dr. Nathan Brown, George Washington University
at UNM main campus, Woodward Hall (venue TBC).
Egypt is one of the most important, if not the most important Arab country in the world, but we know very little about the new and confusing mix of forces and politics that has emerged following the removal of Mubarak. After being ruled by the same president for thirty years, Egypt has entered a period of prolonged political transition. While the various political actors in Egypt--the military, Islamist groups, revolutionary youth, labor unions, and so on--are well known, these forces are forging a new set of rules for political life in a very uncertain setting. What sort of political order will arise in Egypt? How stable will it be? How democratic will it be? And how will it affect Egypt's international position?
May 4 (Fri) 3:30-5:30 PM
INDONESIA: CHALLENGES TO THE WORLD’S LARGEST MUSLIM DEMOCRACY
by Dr. Bill Liddle, Ohio State University at
UNM Continuing Education, 3:30 – 5:30 PM
A former Dutch colony, modern Indonesia is a multi-ethnic Muslim-majority developing country comprising thousands of islands spread across nearly four thousand miles in equatorial Southeast Asia. After forty years of personal and military dictatorship under Presidents Sukarno and Suharto, Indonesia became a democracy in 1999. Three successful national elections have since been held; a fourth is scheduled for 2014. Serious challenges to democratic stability remain, however, including corruption, weak judicial institutions, threats from radical Muslims, separatism in the easternmost provinces of Papua, and the slow pace of economic growth.
EXPECTING THE UNEXPECTED, GEOPHYSICAL CATASTROPHES and HUMAN CIVILIZATION
by Professor Richard Aster, New Mexico Tech
at UNM Continuing Education
(Date to be announced)
The world has recently witnessed some truly remarkable and tragic geophysical events, such as unprecedented earthquakes, and tsunamis. The geological record provides us with a much longer record of these phenomena, and offers critical lessons on the likely impacts of extreme geophysical hazards to human civilization. This talk will summarize what is currently known from the geological and historic record about earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, asteroid impacts, and other events, and will address likely impacts to civilization and our ability to anticipate and prepare for such eventualities.