ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
Dr. Daniel Twining
Dr. Daniel Twining joined the International Republican Institute as president in 2017. He leads IRI’s team of global experts to link citizens and governments, motivate people to engage in the political process, and guide politicians and government officials to be responsive to citizens. Previously, Dr. Twining served as counselor to the president and director of the Asia Program at the German Marshall Fund, as a member of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice’s Policy Planning Staff handling Asia during the George W. Bush administration, as the foreign policy advisor to US Senator John McCain, and as a staff member of the US Trade Representative.
Dr. Tamara Cofman Wittes
Dr. Tamara Cofman Wittes became the fourth president of the National Democratic Institute in 2024. Before joining the Institute, she served as director of Foreign Assistance in the US Department of State. Previously, she led the Russia sanctions effort for the State Department's sanctions coordination office. Dr. Wittes also served in the State Department from 2009 - 2012 as deputy assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, coordinating US policy on democracy and human rights in the Middle East during the Arab uprisings. Dr. Wittes spent nearly twenty years as a foreign policy scholar at the Brookings Institution, including as director of its Center for Middle East Policy.
Leslie Vinjamuri
Leslie Vinjamuri is president and CEO of the Chicago Council. She joined the Council from the Royal Institute of International Affairs, known as Chatham House, in London, where she served as director of the US and the Americas program and previously as dean of the Queen Elizabeth II Academy for Leadership in International Affairs. With more than 20 years of experience in international affairs, research, policy, and public engagement, she has authored more than 30 publications, and is a regular media commentator, contributing to The New York Times, The Washington Post, Financial Times, and appearing on CNN, Bloomberg, and the BBC, among others.
DETAILS
When
Where
