Reshaping Trade in the Asia Pacific: What’s Next for the Biden Administration?

Please join us for an FPLC special event with Wendy CutlerVice President of Asia Society and Former Acting Deputy US Trade Representative.

Wednesday, April 28 at 12PM (Noon) EST

Wendy CutlerWendy Cutler is Vice President at the Asia Society Policy Institute (ASPI) and the managing director of the Washington, D.C. office. In these roles, she focuses on building ASPI’s presence in the nation’s capital and on leading initiatives that address challenges related to trade, investment and innovation, as well as women’s empowerment in Asia.

She joined ASPI following an illustrious career of nearly three decades as a diplomat and negotiator in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), where she also served as Acting Deputy United States Trade Representative. During her USTR career, she worked on a range of bilateral, regional and multilateral trade negotiations and initiatives, including the US-Korea Free Trade Agreement, the Trans Pacific Partnership, US-China negotiations and the WTO Financial Services negotiations. She has published a series of ASPI papers on the Asian trade landscape, and serves as a regular media commentator on trade and investment developments in Asia and the world.

Cutler received her master’s degree from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and her bachelor’s degree from the George Washington University.

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The Complicated Case of Iraq – An Inside Look into the Challenges of Democracy Building

What’s it like in Iraq today? How is it to live in the the Republic of Kurdistan and Erbil, thought by some to be the world’s longest continually inhabited city? Is democracy taking hold there as America considers continuing military withdrawal from the country?

Join us for a live discussion from Erbil, Kurdistan, Iraq with Steve Driehaus.

Wednesday, April 21 @ 12PM (Noon) EST

Steve DriehausSteve Driehaus is Resident Senior Director in Iraq for the National Democratic Institute (NDI). He manages 16 Iraqi and other nationals who design and implement programs to support Iraqi democracy. NDI focuses on strengthening political parties, professionalizing offices and staff of Parliament Members, empowering women and youth to engage in the political process, and election monitoring.

Before joining NDI, Steve was President of Good Government Group, LLC, a consulting firm in the intersection of public policy, community engagement and economic development.  Steve was Executive Director of Cincinnati Compass, a regional initiative advocating on behalf of immigrants. Previously Steve served as Country Director for the Peace Corps in Morocco, after 4 ½ year service for Peace Corps Swaziland, and 2 years in Senegal after graduation from Miami. Steve is a former U.S. Congressman (2009-11) and an 8-year Ohio Representative.

When not overseas, Steve and his wife, Lucienne, reside in Cincinnati, Ohio.

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Cyber Crime, Cyberwar, Hacking and What We Can Do

Please join us for an FPLC special event with Professor David Rapien, Information Systems Undergraduate Program Director at Carl H. Lindner College of Business, University of Cincinnati.

Wednesday, March 24 @ 6:30PM

David RapienSince Leon Panetta’s 2012 warning, we have been in an active global cyberwar. Countries, organized crime, hacktivists, and disgruntled employees have caused trillions of dollars of damage. We will discuss what types of attacks are being waged, who the players are, and what can our governments do to better protect our citizens.

David Rapien is a system architect and information flow analyst. As a founder of D&P Software, Schedule DR LLC, and Panther Productions, David was the mind behind Sports Scheduling Software, a global information systems solution that has been providing a scheduling engine for organizations worldwide since 1991.

David has also developed large scale bank forecasting systems, legal systems, insurance reporting systems, and student information systems, as well as a widely used systematic stock trading software. He has extensive teaching experience at the secondary and collegiate levels.

He has been an expert witness, a panelist and presenter for national conferences. Besides University of Cincinnati he also teaches at the Future University of Egypt in Cairo, and has worked with industry heads in various consultative functions.