Portfolio

The hope in the West for a peaceful world order following the collapse of the Soviet Union has given way in the last years to a stark new reality. The post-Cold War security order has broken down at the same time that we see the fraying of the internal order of most states worldwide. We are looking at growing fragmentation within both individual states and the global community while inequality, retrenchment, protectionism, nationalism, and ideological extremism are on the rise. Twenty-five years ago, we believed major warfare would be highly unlikely; today it is no longer unthinkable. The consequences of new technologies are unclear, and we already seem to be in the early stages of cyber warfare. Inequality of wealth in the West pales in the face of even greater inequalities in the former Communist states of Russia and China, and where that might lead is hard to gauge. The aging of populations in the developed world will put new strains on economic systems and on the young. Many Arab nations are growingly dysfunctional, while magnet states are erecting ever tougher barriers to immigration and the flow of peoples. The temptation to retrench into tribalistic tendencies like populism, economic protectionism, extreme nationalism and fundamentalist beliefs is hard to counter.

With the help of experts in some of these areas, the Santa Fe World Affairs Forum’s 2017 Symposium will discuss these issues in depth in an effort to explore solutions to this increasingly challenging situation. 

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A day does not pass without reports of unprecedented flows of people who have abandoned their homes in hope of better lives in other countries. The most visible movements today are of people from war torn Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan struggling to Turkey and Greece in order to reach European nations where jobs are more plentiful and economies stronger. Elsewhere, Africans, Latin Americans, Southeast Asians and islanders of the Indonesian archipelago, fleeing failing countries, gang warfare, drug cartels and civil wars, also risk death to cross to countries that are closing doors and erecting fences in response to the influx.

The Symposium seeks an understanding of the origins, drivers, and cultural implications behind the news. It will search for explanations to all the complex questions: Who are these refugees?  How does today’s situation compare with human migration flows in the past? How are refugees handled? How many live in camps in neighboring countries, how are those camps organized and funded and how many of the refugees leave legally or illegally for the West?  How real are the claims that terrorists mingle within refugee communities? How do the major refugee organizations determine where refugees are to settle?  What kinds of support do cities and local organizations provide for these newcomers, And, finally, what are the plans for resettling refugees in Santa Fe and Albuquerque – both traditionally refugee-receiving cities.

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Scientific and anecdotal evidence tell us that the earth’s temperature is warming at rates not experienced in centuries. What exactly does this mean for the planet, for ourselves, for our children, for our children’s children? How can citizens and policy makers be made to understand that we’re all in this together? That means Washington—and Beijing, Berlin, Rio, Delhi and the Pacific Islanders. And loggers in the rain forests of Myanmar and Indonesia. And agribusiness in California. And large corporations headquartered in New York, London, Tokyo and Hong Kong. That means us, here, in New Mexico. (more…)

“In a world of complex threats, our security and leadership depends on all elements of our power – including strong and principled diplomacy. . .” – President Barack Obama, State of the Union Address, January 28, 2014.

Since 9/11, the Pentagon, the CIA and the NSA have held near total rein over US foreign policy.  But to what avail?  Hugely expensive military interventions in Iraq and Afghanistan have produced neither peace nor tranquility:  those wars (one of which we precipitated) continue.  Moreover, civil wars – the most common ones in the world today – are notoriously difficult to stop through foreign military intervention alone. Electronic eavesdropping and cyber warfare present other challenging and disturbing dimensions: but how much cell-phone snooping is counter-productive? Isolationism – especially in a globalized, high-tech world with porous borders and interrelated economies and serious environmental problems – has also proven bankrupt.

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An all-day program in cooperation with the Santa Fe Institute. (more…)

Most recent commentary on the state of the world deals with revolution in one country or turmoil in a single geographic or cultural area. The Santa Fe World Affairs Forum believes that it is time to examine these challenges and upheavals as part of a global phenomenon. This symposium presented views of the clash between change and status quo in Europe, China, Russia, and Mexico, asking how they differ, what they have in common.
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