Pictured Above: The St. Petersburg Conference on World Affairs will host notable speakers virtually on topics including American foreign policy.
Courtesy of The St. Petersburg Conference on World Affairs
By Catherine Hicks
The St. Petersburg Conference on World Affairs is returning virtually to USF from Feb. 23 to 26.
The conference will “provide global perspective and insight into historic turmoil,” according to the headline of a USF announcement on Feb. 16.
Panel discussions spread over three days will “convene diplomats, military officials, academic experts, journalists and thousands of community members to provide a global perspective on some of the most pressing and consequential issues facing our world,” the announcement said.
Topics have been organized under six themes: health, humanity, culture, economics, environment and international relations.
All discussions will be addressing three overarching issues: COVID-19 and its impacts, systemic racism and social protests, and American foreign policy, focusing on the impact of America’s disengagement from the world during the Trump administration and re-engagement under President Biden.
Dr. Thomas Smith, co-founder of the conference and political science professor at USF St. Petersburg, told The Crow’s Nest that the conference made an effort to include discussions on contemporary and local issues and debates.
“We’re presenting our usual panoply of topics, such as foreign affairs, international law and human rights,” Smith said. “But we’ve also tried to reflect this unique moment, with a focus on the pandemic as well as panels on authoritarianism, police and protest and civil unrest in Tampa Bay.”
Despite the challenges associated with changing a large event into a virtual one, the organizers took the opportunity to invite speakers who otherwise would not have been able to attend.
“The virtual format allows us to port in speakers we wouldn’t ordinarily be able to bring,” Smith said. “We have several speakers from Africa, for example, as well as a number of Europeans who will be joining us remotely.”
Notable speakers include Paul Farmer, a medical anthropologist and physician who received the $1 million Berggruen Prize in 2020 for profoundly shaping human understanding; and Lee Weiner, one of the original members of the Chicago Seven who were charged with conspiracy to riot by the federal government, an event that was portrayed in a recent Netflix film.
Another panel will consist of Africans from across the continent, discussing their vision for Africa and the role America can play in achieving these roles.
In an attempt to increase student interaction during the event, several USF classes will be taking advantage of the virtual platform to participate in or attend panel discussions.
“We’re pulling out the stops to increase student involvement in the conference,” Smith said. “Since the Q&A will happen through the chat, students should preface their question with ‘I’m a student at USF… ’ ”
One noticeable perk of the virtual platform is the ability to record and share panel discussions following the conference.
“Being able to record all these sessions of the conference is going to be an unbelievable resource, allowing us to grow our audience exponentially,” said Diane Seligsohn, President of the St. Petersburg Conference on World Affairs, in the Feb. 16 announcement.
As of Feb. 16, nearly 2,000 people had registered for a virtual ticket to the conference.
Ticket information can be found on the St. Petersburg Conference on World Affairs website.
