The Hult Foundation, Clinton Global Initiative and Monterey Institute of International Studies are dedicated to launching the world’s next wave of social entrepreneurs with the 2015 Hult Prize at MIIS competition.  The Hult Prize encourages the world’s brightest minds to compete in teams of 3 – 5 members to solve the planet’s biggest challenges with innovative ideas for sustainable start-up enterprises.  On November 21^st, MIIS will select a winning team to advance to the regional finals.  Each regional winner will get to spend the summer inside the Hult Accelerator – an innovative incubator for social enterprise – and the champion receives $1,000,000 in start-up funding and a one year membership into The Clinton Global Initiative.  All you need to compete is an idea, a team, and a 5 minute pitch that addresses this year’s President’s Challenge:  Early Childhood Development in the Urban Slum and Beyond.

Get more information and register your team today at go.miis.edu/hultprize

Contact: Hprize@miis.edu

The Who, What, When, Where, Why & How!

Policy Studies, Research Associate

Open Data Analyst

Research Associate in Policy Studies, Kroc Institute, University of Notre Dame

The Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at the University of Notre Dame seeks applications for the position of Research Associate in Policy Studies.  The Research Associate will work closely with the Director of Policy Studies at the Kroc Institute on research projects, curriculum development, and organizing research and education events both at Notre Dame and elsewhere.

Application deadline: August 8th

Open Data Analyst, Open Society Foundations, London or New York

The CODEX program seeks to leverage a wide range of open (and sometimes not-so-open) information relating to the extraction of oil, gas, and mineral resources in developing countries. The purpose of the work is to demonstrate, using innovative techniques and creative approaches to data-storytelling, how open data can be a powerful tool in the fight against mismanagement and plunder of natural resource wealth in the world’s poorest countries. This work would constitute a contribution to the growing field of “Open Government.”

Application deadline: August 17th

UNA-USA – Nationwide conference call on Wednesday, August 6 at 2 p.m. ET

with

Ken Payumo
Chief of the Peacekeeping Operations Support Section for the Department of Safety and Security, United Nations

Wednesday, August 6, 2 p.m. ET

U.S./Canada Dial-in: 866-454-4208
Passcode: 8136862

Please RSVP via email to membership@unausa.org.

What do you do when you are up against a government trying to harm its own people? As men with guns tried to enter the UN camp in Bor, South Sudan, Ken Payumo, a civilian officer in charge, stood up to the South Sudanese military when 12,000 refugees fled to the UN base for safety. His brave actions are thought to have saved thousands of lives.

Join us for a conversation with Mr. Payumo, who will provide a closer look at the day-to-day challenges of UN peacekeeping and give an update on the current crisis in South Sudan.

About our speaker:

Ken Payumo is currently the Chief of the Peacekeeping Operations Support Section for the Department of Safety and Security. This section is responsible for overseeing the security of all UN peacekeeping missions. Having more than 14 years of experience in the United Nations, Mr. Payumo’s UN service includes that of Legal and Policy Advisor, United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET); Political Officer, Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO)/Asia Middle East Division (AMED); Mission Management Officer (DPKO Police Division), and most recently Head of Office for Unity and later Jonglei states, United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).

Prior to the UN, Mr. Payumo had served as a police officer in the New York City Police Department. Mr. Payumo is a citizen of the United States of America and was born in New York City.

-Text taken directly from e-mail from UNA-USA Membership membership@unausa.org

Email from TIP Office Public Outreach [TIPOutreach@state.gov]

U.S. Department of State

Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons

 Competitive Grant Solicitation for Research on Trafficking in Persons in Supply Chains in Sub-Saharan Africa

The Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons announces an open competition for funding of one or more projects to answer the following research question:  How do supply chains that touch sub-Saharan Africa operate and intersect with trafficking in persons, and prevent trafficking in sub-Saharan Africa?

Using the results of this research question, the successful applicant will develop a highly detailed typology across sectors, commodities, regions or other subdivisions that become apparent during the research.  The goal of the research is to enable governments and businesses to identify risks and best practices of programs, policies, and laws to combat those risks.

The request for proposals is posted on www.grantsolutions.gov and www.grants.gov under funding opportunity number AT-ATC-14-009.  To be considered for funding, proposals must be submitted by Wednesday, August 27, 2014 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time.

U.S.-based and foreign non-profit organizations, for-profit organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), public international organizations (PIOs), and institutions of higher education are eligible to apply.

Democracy Now! reporter Amy Goodman interviewed Monterey Institute MA International Policy Studies and MBA student Amer Shurrab yesterday.

The interview was titled “What Do Gazans Endure? A Palestinian Student Who Lost 2 Brothers, 4 Cousins Tells His Story“. Amer also earned a BA in Economics from Middlebury College and is a graduate of the Davis United World College of the Adriatic. He is from Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip.

Peace, Trade, and Development Students Visit Tesla

Last week the Peace Trade and Development (PTD) students met with Tesla’s global trade team at the factory in Fremont. The students were there to offer their pitch to the Tesla Challenge which called for proposals on sourcing raw materials for the new Gigafactory. In addition to the pitch session, the students were treated to lunch and a VIP tour of the Tesla factory, an impressive and re-purposed building conveniently situated in a California Free Trade Zone. “I was treating the presentation like a final exam, but when it came time to present, I had realized that we were speaking to real individuals with genuine concerns about their long-term acquisition of critical minerals. This wasn’t a quiz–my team had done in-depth research, provided a reasonable strategy, and were ready to have a conversation about alternatives.” –  Shruti Korada, PTD summer 2014 student What was the best part of the Tesla challenge?  Well, that’s subjective but things definitely got intriguing when one team suggested sourcing Lithium from the moon and another proposed a corporate-backed coup d’etat… Learn more about the PTD program via: go.miis.edu/ptd.

Josh Fleming (MA IPS ’15) participates in a facilitation exercise during the second week of DPMI Monterey this June.

I had heard repeatedly on campus that DPMI (Design, Partnering, Management and Innovation) is one of the most useful courses you can take. I found this hard to believe at first, but now I agree. If you haven’t taken this leadership training in international development project management and social change then you should reconsider.

You will walk away from the DPMI training having learned some ground-breaking and ‘tried and true’ tools to solving your next problem, motivating your staff or making your next big partnership. Tools that break down these processes  into quantifiable, qualifiable methods to be used at a given moment or throughout the lifespan of a project.

If you are a non-profit guru, a development practitioner in training, or a social change maker then you will notice, quickly, that these tools and capacities that DPMI finds so important are actually pretty important. This is how USAID, and other major non-profit employers do it, and whether you like it or not USAID often sets the standard. Additionally, from the United Nations to grassroots organizations, from CSR departments to State department recruiters–most are looking for project management skills. DPMI fits them nicely into the longest three weeks of your life (Yes, I’ve thrown in a bit of sarcasm). It’s worth it though. I implore you to find one job posting that doesn’t ask for project management skills.

MIIS PTD students meet with Tesla to pitch ideas for the new battery.

Our friends from Tesla visited the MIIS campus last week. They started off the day by meeting with the Peace, Trade, and Development (PTD) summer program students. PTD students learned about what it takes to snag a job at Tesla and work under the driving force of Elon Musk’s vision. This is just the beginning of the MIIS-Tesla exchange. Next week, PTD students will visit the Tesla Gigafactory in Fremont where they will present ideas for the next electric car battery innovation.

The Challenge

The efficiency of the car battery is the lifeblood of moving Tesla forward. PTD students are posed with the Gigafactory challenge question – what are the optimal raw materials to source for battery cell manufacturing?  To arrive at a solid pitch, students will analyze a broad scope of factors, including:

• From where and from whom can the materials be sourced?
• What locations are optimal from a customs duty/tax and logistics cost perspective?
• “Outside the box” ideas and key factors to consider in the sourcing decision

Interested in hearing about how the pitch goes? Stay tuned for an update in the next few days. In the meantime, you can enjoy this video!

From posting these blogs to writing them! 

IPSS in Cambodia

It seems like ages that I was working at the GSIPM front desk, driving my boss and other staff “insane” with my preparation-related anxieties and emotional outbursts for my IPSS applications. I am sure they were as much relieved as I was when the Cambodia Office of The Asia Foundation approved my application.

Today, 93F/62% humidity (and climbing!), Cambodia feels already like home and it’s only been 7 weeks. Why does it feel like home? When I came back to Phnom Penh from a weekend visit to Siem Reap a few weeks ago, I was sitting at the back of a motorbike taxi driving me home from the bus station. I was directing him, and I got this strange feeling of coming home. I knew my way around, recognized buildings and streets. Anybody slightly familiar with Phnom Penh knows that the streets in this city are a nightmare. House numbers do not make any sense. The only way to communicate where you are is you or a building in relation to a street intersecting. You get the hang of it pretty quickly: “Hey, I live at Street 278, close to street 143, third building on the left, next to a school. Our house has a green iron gate. Walk east towards the Olympic Stadium if you get lost and call me.”  Or, “my work is on Street 242, between Monivong Blvd and Street 63.” I communicate with motorbike taxis and tuk tuk drivers the same way, “Just head towards the Royal Palace, I will show you.” Fascinating!

It was scary to hop on a motorbike at first but now I have a bike. It is a lot of fun to bike through Phnom Penh especially on the weekends when traffic is slow. Most of the time, however, it feels like committing suicide when I merge into the traffic. There are no apparent rules, except for one: Be reckless and inch your way forward at all cost! This is particularly evident at traffic lights when the time is ticking down. At 10 seconds, you can feel the vibe of hundreds of motorbike drivers around you, getting itchy, accelerating – vroom vroom –  and rolling forward inch by inch, hitting your tire, and releasing a bunch of exhaust fumes into your face. Not that it will do anything for them – and it certainly does not do anything for me except speeding up the decay of my inner organs – but it is hilarious to watch. Then the traffic light hits 3 seconds. Oh boy! The patience has come to a sudden death, an invisible conductor begins to direct the honking concert and the chaos unfolds. The bus coming straight at you, no problem. People here can manoeuver very well. There is also a panacea for this: drafting behind a big SUV or within a group of 10 motorbikes which are forcing their way through traffic and I am good to go. Or, change lanes to the opposite side and wait on the sidewalk (the 3 or 4 in this city that actually earn the name sidewalk) and take any opportunity to make a left turn even though
the traffic light for the left turn lane is still red. I am afraid I have to re-learn how to drive when I come back to the US.

MIISmafia reunion in Phnom Penh from left: MPA alumna Alex Murga, IPSS Candidate Alexandra Amling, IPS alumni Meg Fukuzawa and Robin Narcisso.

I was very fortunate when I got here because the arm of the MIIS Mafia reaches very far. During my preparations, I bombarded two MIIS alumni and friends working and living in Phnom Penh with hundreds of questions. We are currently four MIIS alumni because the fourth rejoined in March. They can take credit for having made my stay here so comfortable and relaxed. The first day, we went out to a local market and despite signs of a culture shock for me, my friend’s nonchalant demeanor made walking the streets of Phnom Penh almost normal. Thanks to them, I have come to love Phnom Penh very quickly.

Cambodia is host to a plethora of NGOs, both local and international. Any non-Khmer person you meet on the streets introduces him/herself as “I am working for XYZ.” There is an obvious “invasion” of French people in Cambodia, and then, of course, the Aussies who openly call Southeast Asia their backyard. Honestly, however, Australia is the backbone of many projects here and the biggest donor. If it wasn’t for their support, many things in Cambodia would still not work very well. Not to advocate donor dependency or dismiss foreign aid as something inherently bad, the work that’s being done in Cambodia is incredible. The country is changing rapidly, economically and socially. Just the structure is still limping and has not caught up yet.

My work for TAF (yes, acronyms and abbreviations are not just a MIIS specialty!) is very challenging and inspiring. The first-hand experience of the “real thing” is amazing. The NGO field is so diverse and development has many facets. Networking is fantastic and I have met so many interesting people with very diverse backgrounds. It is an eye opener for the different possibilities and niches out there.

I will be working on a project on Intimate Partner Violence which is quite severe in the Asia-Pacific region with current studies indicating very high prevalence rates. Going beyond the nominative aspects of focusing on attitudes towards acceptance of violence against women, I will support a project that will look at the macro-level. I already participated in a workshop from the Ministry of Women’s Affairs,
experiencing the dynamics between donors and recipients. I am very excited to work on a project that is contributing to tackling such a serious problem.

Coming from a strictly academic and research heavy background, I have not been oblivious to the technical hurdles of policy design, implementation and evaluation, but working with people in this field makes the rather abstract discussions in a Policy Analysis class a lot more tangible. That being said, I have finally made my way to
Asia after all these years and, as my wonderful Australian coworker put it the other day, I am “finally becoming important.”

I am growing on many levels with IPSS. It is a good start for navigating the abyss of career development, applying knowledge and learning to know who you are.

GSIPM is pleased to introduce a new blog series – One Change (#onechange).  The series will be a collection of multimedia stories featuring staff, faculty, and students, all given their answer to the question “If I could make one change in the world, it would look like this….”

Our first GSIPM faculty member to be a part of this series is Kent Glenzer, the Associate Professor (MPA/MBA) and Acting Program Chair for Master’s in Public Administration.  After many years working with non-profits all over the world, Kent became an instructor so that he could, “help students avoid the mistakes my generational colleagues and I made.”  In this #onechange video, Kent highlights the importance and effectiveness of long-term goal setting for organizations.

Please be sure to add your reactions to Kent’s video in the comments section below!

Do you have one change in mind? Submit your #onechange stories to: professional.dev@miis.edu

MPA students will present their capstone projects during an innovative 2-hour poster fair in the McCone Atrium on Thursday, May 8, 12-2pm. Presenters will offer up new ideas and share key takeaways in their quest to provide creative solutions for pressings issues – in our local Monterey neighborhoods and in various corners of the world.

Featured MPA Capstone Projects include:

Crowdfunding Campaign Design and Management

Implementing a Successful Innovation Center in Salinas

Integrating Social Wealth Indicators into Monterey County Performance Measures

Promoting Entrepreneurship in Afghanistan

Click here to download a complete list of excellent work on showcase.

The 2014 MPA capstone class invites the entire MIIS community as well as interested local community members. Guests are encouraged to ask questions, share feedback, join the dialog.

A reception will follow the showcase fair starting at 2:00 PM at the Digital Learning Commons accessible at 411 Pacific Street, Monterey CA, 93940. Light snacks and drinks will be provided.

The MPA Showcase Fair is an informational networking opportunity open to the public. Interested friends and colleagues are welcome. Support our amazing student achievements by helping us to spread the word and most importantly – be there!

Please send inquiries to: mbaimyrz@miis.edu

A new Summer Business Boot Camp will be offered at MIIS from August 8-18, 2014. The training (ECPR 8550 Business Fundamentals) is designed to introduce non-MBA students to fundamental concepts to enhance business acumen and boost professional confidence.

A  new 10 day business certificate program for non-MBA students

The boot camp was designed with the Non-MBA in mind as a way to build business acumen and gain the competitive edge for a managerial role in human or financial resources or in freelance contracting services such as interpretation or translation.

Course Schedule

All classes are scheduled from 9am to 5:30pm with a one hour lunch break in between.

Course Requirements and Related Fees

For the August 8 – 18, 2014 Summer Business Boot Camp, the fee is $850. This is a one-time only discount to celebrate the inaugural boot camp.  The 2015 Summer Business Boot Camp training fee will be $1,600 USD.

Participants will be required to complete the online MBAMath.com training by August 6^th. The MBAMath.com costs $149 and will help students to brush up on basis quantitative skills and excel use.

Fun Fact:  several complimentary happy hours will offer students a way to mingle with top MIIS instructors and build new connections with peers.

Please send inquiries to Lauren Patron: lpatron@miis.edu.

To learn more or to apply, visit: http://www.miis.edu/academics/programs/mba/bootcamp 

GSIPM DEAN’S SEMINAR SERIES #23

Don’t miss Dr. Itamara V. Lochard, THIS WEEK, discuss how a digitized 21st century and the word “Cyber” impact your field of study (Tuesday, April 29).

Please join Dr. Lochard with the Monterey Cyber Security Initiative (MCySec) to learn how they address the role of information and computer technology on hard security, development, state and non-state actors, ethics, social media, linguistics and languages, business and economics, peace and stabilization, the environment and other fields of studies that interest MIIS students and faculty.

Dr. Itamara V. Lochard is the Director of MCySec.

When: Tuesday, April 29 @12:10 PM

Where: McGowan 100

For more information on MCySec and how to join click here! 

– Application deadline EXTENDED to April 29 – 

Team El Salvador Practicum 2014-2015 Call for Leadership Applications

Team El Salvador (TES) is seeking three student leaders to lead the Team El Salvador 9 Practicum during its 2014-2015 program year.

Do you want to gain skills in leadership? International Development? Environmental policy and natural resource management? Survey creation? Improving your Spanish proficiency and communication?

TES leadership is open to all MIIS students, from all departments and fields of study!

How to apply? Please send resume and cover letter to: teamelsalvadormiis@gmail.com by Tuesday, April 29th. Visit us at: http://blogs.miis.edu/teamelsalvador

Team El Salvador provides a unique, professional opportunity for MIIS students to develop and apply practical skills and enhance language proficiency and multicultural competency in a dynamic international setting.

Team leaders will cultivate a variety of professional skills while gaining real world experience. The ideal candidate has a passion for international development, strong leadership skills, and a willingness to facilitate and manage a variety of program elements, including communication and outreach, program development, fundraising, updating and developing website content and social media sites, event scheduling and management, meeting planning and travel logistics and community engagement.

Ideal Candidates will:

• Speak, write and read Spanish at a 400 level
• Understand the mission and goals of Team El Salvador and
El Salvadoran history and culture
• Have strong communication and organizational skills
• Have experience living and working in rural communities of Latin America (or other developing
countries)
• Have a lucid understanding of the unpredictable nature of development work
• Be personable, dynamic, patient, flexible and adaptable to changing program and project
demands
• Have experience with fundraising
• Develop and deliver compelling presentations to MIIS faculty, prospective team members, etc.
Executive management and staff

Tonight at 6:00pm Steve Hawkins, the Executive Director of Amnesty International, will speak to MIIS students. Don’t MIIS this amazing event! Reception to fallow in the McCone Atrium

“Bringing Human Rights Home”

Before joining Amnesty International USA as its Executive Director, Steven W Hawkins was the Executive Vice President and Chief Program Officer of the NAACP. He is a nationally renowned attorney and grassroots advocacy leader at the forefront of social justice issues, including death penalty abolition, criminal justice reform and defending civil liberties. As an attorney, he brought litigation that led to the release of three teenagers wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death row in Tennessee. He was also a law professor in South Africa during apartheid, teaching black lawyers who faced discriminatory treatment in the courts. Steven obtained his undergraduate degree from Harvard College and New York University.

 

Click photo to enlarge.

Spring 2014 Colloquium at MIIS

The Global Problems and Solutions Colloquium is an unambiguous demonstration of the Monterey model for transformative professional education serving graduate students across the GSIPM degree programs. As we start a new year together, we are pleased to share an update from Professor Robert Rogowsky. As you may know, this year’s Colloquium is focused on Economic Diplomacy and Statecraft. The Colloquium is a semester-long course and guest speaker series that brings the world’s leading practitioners directly to the classroom. For special events and course participation questions, please contact GSIPM Special Programs Manager Erina McWilliam-Lopez via: emcwilliam@miis.edu.

Dear Colleagues,

I will be leading the 2014 Colloquium and hosting a series of high-profile guest speakers in the classroom to capture themes in international commerce and foreign policy  that cross several degree paths at the Institute including peacekeeping and nonproliferation, commercial diplomacy, environment, development, localization, and trade. Students pursuing various career paths will have the opportunity to come together and explore issues surrounding economic statecraft with some of the most renowned scholars and practitioners working in the field of economic diplomacy.

Economic statecraft is at the heart of American international relations and foreign policy.  It is, indeed, at the heart foreign policy for virtually all nations.  With this in mind, the Spring 2014 Colloquium Course–Economic Statecraft and Diplomacy–offers a superb opportunity to study of the most pressing and challenging issues facing the world today.

We live in an increasingly integrated global marketplace dominated by transnational commercial systems:  transnational corporations, deep trading agreements, long supply chains, international unions, global NGOs, international standard setting bodies. Foreign policy, national security, and hegemonic power strategies are increasingly tied to economic capabilities and interests. Territorial conflicts, such as in the South China Sea, are based on fishing and oil drilling rights. The Ukrainian crisis is a deep philosophical struggle based on whether to join an EU-FTA versus the Russian dominated Customs Union of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia. Governance in this complex G-Zero world depends on economic diplomacy and highly sophisticated commercial and economic statecraft.  Economic tools such as sanctions, subventions, and trading arrangements are the foundation of modern power.  As governing structures continue evolve over the next decade, economic diplomacy will be the key to avoiding military conflict.

Scheduled speakers include (click links to view media coverage and biographic details): 

Professor Evan Hillebrand, Patterson School of Diplomacy and International Commerce, University of Kentucky.

Rufus Yerxa, former Deputy Director, WTO.

Demetrios Marantos, former Deputy USTR, Senior Counsel, Square Inc.

Sean Thornton, Senior Counsel, Financial Regulatory Enforcement, Skadden Arps; Former Chief Counsel, U.S. Dept of Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

Don Lewis, (Stanford Law School). Click here to recent latest media coverage.

Steve Pifer, Director, Arms Control and Non-Proliferation Initiative, Brookings Institute.

Ann Rollins, Director of Government Relations at Apple Inc.

Jennifer Sanford, Senior Manager, International Trade & Energy Policy at Cisco, Inc

Skip Jones, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Trade Agreements and Compliance, Department of Commerce.

Dr. Shusong Ba, Deputy Director General of Financial Research Institute at the State Council of China, and Chief Economist of China Banking Association. Currently Senior Visiting Scholar at the Columbia Business School.

Jeri Jensen, Consultant to the Millenium Challenge Corp. and Senior Partner in Business Driven Development.

Dennis Fleming, Director of the Niger Project, Chevron Corp. Click here to view related news.

Francis Fukuyama, Olivier Nomellini Senior Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies (FSI), and a resident in FSI’s Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law.

Throughout the semester, the Colloquium will hold a select number of speaker receptions offering students an opportunity to network with guest presenters. Registered students will also have the opportunity to interact with speakers through classroom discussion.

How to register: The course can be taken this spring as a course or seminar for 2 or 4* credits. Classes will meet from 6-9pm on Mondays in room MG102*. Register for IPSG 9593 – A with CRN: 20553.  *Seminar credits require a supplemental deliverable as described in course syllabus.

We hope to see many of you join us for another excellent Colloquium series!

Cheers!

Professor Rogowsky

Please share this opportunity with your networks – we thank you in advance for spreading the word!