GSIPM

The issue of trade has been a hot topic recently and is weighing heavily on the minds of President Obama and congressional leaders. MIIS GSIPM professor of trade and development, Robert Rogowsky, recently published an editorial in the Washington Examiner concerning trade and the role of the United States.

Professor Rogowsky’s editorial, “Trade politics and the decline of American leadership”, focuses on the historic role the U.S. has played over the last 70 years in liberalizing trade policies along with the importance of upcoming trade policies.

Refugee Education Challenge is now accepting ideas to improve education opportunities for children in refugee camps.

“Now is the chance to share an idea you have for how to improve education for refugees. We’ve partnered with UNCHR and UNICEF – so even if you aren’t able implement your idea yourself, there’s an opportunity you to submit a winning idea that could be implemented through partnerships with organizations already working with UNICEF and UNHCR.

Winning ideas on our shortlist will attend a design support bootcamp hosted by IDEO.org designers, where participants will learn how to apply human-centered design to their challenge idea. A handful of these ideas will be selected to receive a share of $500,000 in funding and design support.”

Design Principles for Refugee Education:

• Focus on what we can do now
• Design for gender equality
• Keep resource limitations in mind
• Design for uncertainty
• Take an inclusive approach
• Be culturally sensitive

Click to find out more about OpenIDEO and to submit an idea!

Thursday, May 7th 6:30-8:30pm

Venue to be announced

Come listen to students present on their Spring Break Immersive Trip to East Asia! They will cover topics including history and territorial disputes between Japan and China, nationalism, soft power, trade policies, international education policies in Japan and China, their roles in the Chiang Mai Initiative and emerging regional trade frameworks, and partnership with Brazil!

San Jose, CA – April 30th, 2015

“Join us for lunch and a one-of-a-kind, fast-paced, multi-media seminar on the history of global trade that will guide you though the seven decades-long odyssey that has come to be known as ‘globalization’. ‘Making Hay’ presents the convergence of historical events and undeniable factors that drove the U.S. to become a ‘Consumption Society’.

This seminar traces the process of global trade and globalization, as well as its impact on U.S. manufacturing and service industries. A careful examination of the past six decades reveals that global trade has had both positive and negative impacts on the U.S. economy, creating jobs in some areas while losing them in others.

‘Making Hay’ is presented by Dan Gardner, President and co-founder of Trade Facilitators, Inc. (TFI). An author of four books on global trade, Dan Gardner’s ‘Making Hay’ is one of the most interesting and entertaining seminars ever presented on global trade and should be a necessary requirement for professionals and students alike to experience.

The seminar concludes with a series of suggestions and interactive Q&A on how the U.S. can compete more effectively in the Age of Globalization.” – retrieved from flyer

WHERE: 

3 Flames Restaurant & Banquet

1547 Meridian Ave., San Jose, CA 95125

WHEN: April 30th, 2015; 11:30am; – Lunch: Noon-12:30pm; Conference: 12:30-2:30pm

Online Registration: $55 (including lunch) ; Deadline: April 29th, 5:00pm

@Door: $10 surcharge

Visit: http://www.mbita.org/events/makinghay.html for more information, Registration, & sponsorship opportunities!

MIIS Faculty, Dr. Jeffrey Lewis, recently had an interview with Max Fisher of Vox on – “What everyone gets wrong about Iran nuclear negotiations.”

He touches on a variety of topics including safeguards, dual use goods, the NPT, automatic enforcement mechanisms, breakout calculations, uranium stockpiles, and much more!

Excerpt from the interview:

“We have this crazy situation right now where the IAEA has basically no access to the places where the centrifuges are made. And so Iranian put those centrifuges on a truck, and if they drive them to [a publicly declared nuclear site such as] Natanz and install them there, then they’re safeguarded. But, if they, you know, drive them to some hole in a mountain then, no, they’re not safeguarded, we don’t see them.”  – Dr. Lewis

To read the full article and interview, follow this link: What everyone gets wrong about Iran nuclear negotiations

Dr. Lewis is the Director of the East Asia Nonproliferation Program at MIIS.

Click to check out Jeffrey Lewis’s MIIS Faculty Profile

Students from all MIIS Programs are encouraged to Apply!

 Description of Responsibilities 

Leadership term lasts early May 2015 to early May 2016

For more information check out the Team El Salvador Blog or email any questions to teamelsalvadormiis@gmail !

Send Resume & Cover Letter to teamelsalvadormiis@gmail.com by Sunday, April 14th!

Check out current IPSS fellow and International Policy Studies student at MIIS, Aileen Yang’s blog article featured on LinkedIn.  Aileen is spending her last semester at MIIS as an intern at the World Trade Organization (WTO) as a distinguished IPSS fellow.  She is blogging about her experience in Geneva, relevance of MIIS classroom simulations, and life at the WTO.

You can check out the story here, https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/from-simulations-reality-interns-reflection-aileen-yang?trk=hb_ntf_MEGAPHONE_ARTICLE_POST

At the Sustainable Brands Conference 2015 San Diego, nearly 2,000 thought leaders, brand innovators, designers, and global business leaders will gather to explore various topics and issues pertinent to sustainability. Whether through plenaries, workshops, the Activation Hub, the Innovation Open, or networking events, this conference has been designed to benefit everyone from NGOs and small business owners, to CEOs and global brand leaders. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to join them in discovering how to tap emerging innovations to successfully scale sustainability Now.

Check out the website here, http://events.sustainablebrands.com/sb15sd/about

All MIIS students can receive conference funding as well!

Summer and Fall Applications Invited

In January several students applied for this grant but none were awarded. In every case the requests were for the summer because there was little time for anyone to prepare a travel grant proposal for the spring immersive learning programs.

The result is that all the money available for travel grants is now available for summer and fall travel for research on social change in Africa. The research must be conducted in Africa for a duration of at least 2 and a half months.

To receive this grant students must submit a research design that focuses on a social condition in Africa of the applicant’s choosing; e.g., poverty, environment, crime, armed violence, gender inequality, conflict, disease, education, refugees, etc., with the goal of making policy/program recommendations that can change that condition.

The application must include the following elements:

1. Dates of research
2. Location of research, to include a letter of support from an organization which is hosting or assisting you with your project.
3. A two page statement that includes a complete research design, to include a research question, a literature review that shows a need for this research, evidence generation methods, and its potential impact on the social condition.
4. A description of the deliverable and date of completion.

Applications must be received between now and 1 April. A committee of faculty judges will evaluate all applications and determine the recipients of the award by 15 April. Awards will be given as reimbursement for travel to Africa. Only enrolled students may receive a travel grant. If two students will be conducting the research together, the award will be split between the two students with a cap of $1500 per award. Travel will not be awarded for an internship, unless appropriate research will be conducted as part of the internship.

If you have any questions or wish to discuss the eligibility of your planned research for this award, please make an appointment with Professor Ed Laurance at elaurance@miis.edu. He can also be reached at 831-402-2631.

These awards are made possible by a continuing donation from the family of Sarah Meek, a MIIS alum of 1996 whose life was cut short while working to improve social conditions in Africa.

Development Practice and Policy: One Program, Two Degree Options 

(Source: DPP Facebook Event Page) 

So, you’ve probably heard a lot of buzz about the DPP program – and now you can finally get the full scoop!

DPP will be hosting a wine & cheese mixer at the McCone Atrium (outside Irving Auditorium) on Wednesday, March 4th, at 5:00PM. If you are MPA, IPS, or IDP, you are now part of the larger umbrella of DPP. Join us at the mixer to hang out with DPP colleagues and faculty and hear more about the program!

Date: Wednesday, March 4th

Time: 5:00PM-7:00PM

Location: McCone Atrium (Outside Irving Auditorium)

RSVP on the Facebook Event! Or feel free to just show up!

And check out the MIIS DPP page for more information about the Program!

Looking for a summer internship opportunity in Africa? Check out ISLA – and feel free to join tomorrow’s info session from 12pm-1pm in Morse B206! http://www.isla-serve.org/

*MPAs – this could count for DPMI Plus!

Check out this great opportunity with the World Bank Group!

Practical and Inspiring Thought Leadership

A graduate course and high-profile speaker series featuring leaders and practitioners working to provide solutions to some of the world’s greatest challenges.

Impact Investment is investment made with the intention to generate measurable social, environmental and financial return. Impact investing deploys multiple sources of capital – private, philanthropic and public to address pressing global challenges. Impact investing has the potential to unlock significant sums of commercial capital, but challenges to the commercialization of impact investing remain significant. The struggle, however, may shed light on how capitalism as we know of today can and will be transformed and leveraged for maximizing welfare and wealth creation. This course engages students with thinkers and practitioners in the impact investing sector who will share their perspectives and experiences in bridging the gap between commercial and impact investments, and explore and envision a better future.

Learn more: go.miis.edu/colloquium
Course Information: Register via Banner (IPMG 8593); 
2 or 3 Credit Option.

Timing and Location: March 12 – May 14, 2015 . Thursdays, 6-9pm, MG102

Featured Speakers

The International Professional Service Semester (IPSS) is excited to announce the placement of 30 Middlebury Institute of International Studies students to the distinguished semester-long assignment with premier international organizations around the globe.  Since the IPSS program’s inception in 2002, more than 200 students have served in over 150 organizations. 2015 is another promising year for many students and we wish them the best of luck in their semester long assignments. Below is a list of current fellows, the organizations they will serve, position location, and major.

Good luck Fellows!

Upcoming Application Deadline for Fellowship – January 27th, 2015

Great opportunity for those who are studying or who want to study less commonly taught languages such as Arabic, Chinese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, and Swahili – among MANY others. Boren Awards also has an African Flagship Languages Initiative, for those interested in studying Akan/Twi, French, Portuguese, Swahili, Wolof, or Zulu. Check out Boren Awards website for a complete list of languages as well as Country Preferences, fields of study, and length of study.

Boren Fellowships, an initiative of the National Security Education Program, provide unique funding opportunities for U.S. graduate students to study less commonly taught languages in world regions critical to U.S. interests, and underrepresented in study abroad, including Africa, Asia, Central and Eastern Europe, Eurasia, Latin America, and the Middle East. The countries of Western Europe, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand are excluded.”

“Boren Fellows represent a vital pool of highly motivated individuals who wish to work in the federal national security arena. In exchange for funding, Boren Fellows commit to working in the federal government for at least one year after graduation.” – Retrieved from Boren Awards Website

Not just national security:

Boren Awards views National Security  broadly, to include “the challenges of global society, including sustainable development, environmental degradation, global disease and hunger, population growth and migration, and economic competitiveness.” – Retrieved from Boren Awards Website

This is a great opportunity to study a unique or uncommonly taught language – perfect for MIIS Students!

For more information check out their Website: https://www.borenawards.org/boren_fellowship

Application Deadline: January 27th, 2015

On Tuesday, November 18 GSIPM will be holding our 2014 Fall Graduation Photo Session beginning at 11:45 a.m. The pictures will take place on the steps of City Hall, adjacent to Friendly Park. The photos that will be taken are group photos, so we are asking that you arrive as close to 11:45 a.m. as possible. Our photographer will not be taking any individual photos.

Due to professional courtesy, family and friends will not be permitted to take photographs while our photographer is working. Shortly after the photo session, GSIPM will follow up with an e-mail explaining ordering and payment options.

The dress code for this event will be business attire. So please be prepared to dress appropriately for the occasion.

IPS and MPA students

Join us tomorrow evening to learn more about the upcoming change to DPP and the alternative learning semester, Sprintensive!

Wine and Pizza reception will follow! 

Curious about Cuba? Spend J-Term with us!

Dr. Jan Black will host an info session about the practicum on Wednesday, October 22, 6:00 -7:30 pm in McGowan 100.

If you’re thinking about joining the J-Term trip to Cuba, please come to the info session to find out more. This opportunity is open to all current MIIS students.

If you’re not able to make it to the info session, but are interested in the trip, please email us for more details.

Contact persons:

Dr. Jan Black, jblack@miis.edu

Carolyn Taylor Meyer, carolyn.taylor@miis.edu

Molly Moreland,mmoreland@miis.edu

Please include all three of us in your email so we can get back to you as quickly as possible.

Hope to see you there!

Trade club brings MIIS Alum and Director of Europe and Middle East Affairs of the United States Trade Representative to campus.