The University of Chicago’s Institute of Politics will mark its 10-year anniversary with an event on Jan. 20 featuring Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
Founding IOP Director David Axelrod will sit down with Blinken for a discussion of the Biden administration’s approach to foreign policy. The event will be at 3:15 p.m. at the Rubenstein Forum. Register to attend here.
A former deputy national security advisor for President Barack Obama, Blinken has been at the center of foreign policy issues facing the Biden administration. From human rights and the war in Ukraine to competing with China and building coalitions to address ongoing crises with food insecurity and climate change, Blinken has prioritized diplomacy as a tool for taking on the many challenges facing the world.
Also at the event, new IOP Director Heidi Heitkamp will speak with UChicago alumni about the many pathways to making a difference. She will speak with Abdul Dosunmu, AB’13, the founder and chief strategist of the Young Black Lawyers’ Organizing Coalition; Erin Simpson, AB’15, program officer for tech and society at the Ford Foundation; Maira Khwaja, AB’16, director of public strategy at the Invisible Institute; Dylan Wells, AB’19, campaign reporter at The Washington Post and Devshi Mehrotra, AB’19, the co-founder and CEO of JusticeText.
Since opening in January 2013, the Institute has welcomed more than 2,000 speakers, hosted more than 175 Pritzker Fellows as part of its resident and visiting fellows program, supported more than 2,5000 student internships around the globe and helped nearly 1,500 students participate in civic engagement projects.
Speakers at the IOP have included Obama, former Vice President Mike Pence, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, U.S. Sen. Mitt Romney and former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley.
On Jan. 21, UChicago alumni, current students, faculty and staff will join the IOP for a day of service to celebrate the anniversary. Please register here to participate.
—Prof. Jacqueline Stewart
