Past Council Events
Voices from Laos: Legacies of War, History, Healing & Hope
Despite its neutral status during the Vietnam War, Laos became the most heavily bombed nation per-capita on earth. Join us for an evening of presentation and discussion about our shared legacy of unexploded ordinance (UXO) that remains in Laos today. Read More ››
Will This Be China's Century? A Skeptic’s View
Challenging the widespread view that China will rival or displace the United States as the world’s leading power, Gurtov explores China’s domestic and international strengths, revealing a country with serious shortcomings as the next global leader. Read More ››
Revolution and the New Middle East
The Arab Spring two years later: What does the road ahead for reform look like? Cited as one of “150 Women Who Shake The World,” by Newsweek, Egyptian-born Mona Eltahawy is an activist and award-winning columnist-commentator (for Reuters, the Washington Post, the Guardian, PBS Frontline, CNN, and others). Read More ››
PLAY READING: The Coleman Family Omission by Claudio Tolcachir
Experience Argentine playwright Claudio Tolcachir’s dark comedy about an eccentric family living on the edge in Buenos Aires, in a new English translation by Jean Graham-Jones and Elisa Legón. Copresented with Boom Arts and Portland Playhouse Read More ››
Rethinking Money: How New Currencies Turn Scarcities into Prosperity
Could an outmoded monetary system built on bank debt that perpetuates scarcity and greed be what is perpetuating the global financial crisis? Is it possible to overhaul the system, attain sufficiency, while also reaching the inherent human goals of cooperation, community and even contentment? Read More ››
Bonsai in the West CANCELLED
The Japanese horticultural art known as Bonsai has come a long way from its origins in the imperial courts of ancient China in the 1200s before migrating to Japan in the 18th century. How has this ancient art adapted and changed over time and how did Bonsai find its way to our western shores? Read More ››
Great Decision Series: Gauging Threats to the United States
How can the United States address the challenges of a weak economy, homegrown terrorism and nuclear proliferation? What threats and opportunities are presented by the ascendancy of China and by regime change in the Middle East? Read More ››
Dispatches from the Lost Country of Mali
What happens when a country suddenly splits in two? In 2012, Mali, once a poster child for African democracy, all but collapsed in a succession of coups and countercoups as Islamist rebels claimed control of the country’s north, making it a new safe haven for al Qaeda. Read More ››