This Week in DC: Events

Monday, March 24

World Tuberculosis Day 2014

World TB Day is an opportunity to raise awareness about the burden of tuberculosis (TB) worldwide and the status of TB prevention and control efforts. The Day is also an occasion to mobilize political and social commitment for further progress.

Bioethics TED-style talks
Date: March 19, 7:00pm
Location: Georgetown University, Gaston Hall, 37th and O St. NW, Washington, DC 20007

March 24th focuses on bioethics and justice in the global context, looking beyond the clinic to explore the global disease burden, difficulties in distributing scarce health resources fairly, and the health of our environment itself — as well as how environmental concerns like climate change and GMOs impact human health on a global scale. Each talk will be followed by audience Q&A. Ask a compelling question, and that thought might reach a global audience

Tuesday, March 25

China Defense and Security Conference 2014
Date: March 25, 8:30am – 4:30 pm
Location: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Root Room, 1779 Massachusetts Ave NW, Washington DC 20036

On March 25, The Jamestown Foundation will hold its Fourth Annual China Defense and Security Conference in Washington, D.C. The conference will be a unique opportunity to hear about cutting-edge research on Chinese thinking from Jamestown analysts, who will introduce fresh evidence and perspectives to challenge conventional wisdom about the strategic planning of the PRC. Experts, many of whom rarely visit the capital, will be flying in from England, Taiwan, Honolulu and Australia. The agenda, and tickets, are now available online.

While conferences and events covering China have proliferated in recent years, Jamestown’s conference remains unique in its rigorous coverage of developments in Chinese security and foreign policy, deeply grounded in Chinese sources and beginning from examinations of Chinese interests as they are understood and expressed by analysts and policymakers in Beijing.

Radiological and Nuclear Detection Symposium, An Industry Discussion with Government
Date: March 25, 8:30am – 5:30pm, and March 26, 8:30am – 5:00pm
Location: The Mason Inn, 4352 Mason Pond Drive, Fairfax, VA 22030

Attend this two day conference to facilitate discussion and interaction so the industry can better understand the needs of the government and for the government to better understand the capability the industry can deliver.

Hear from government experts and stakeholders regarding the policy, operations, acquisition, and technical challenges associated with nuclear and radiological threats facing the United States. Also hear from Academic and Industry Experts who are fielding solutions that could meet these challenges.

Anticipated Topic Areas Include: Radiological and nuclear detection related briefs for policy, operations, and end-user organizations; Near neighbor mission areas to rad/nuke detection (e.g. explosives and chemical weapons); Technology capabilities, with associated readiness level (related to policy and operational needs); Acquisition, program, and contract opportunities.

Free tickets for University students. Call Jim Traweek, at 703-498-2288 to reserve a space or email jimtraweek@vipglobalnet.com.

Transatlantic Solutions to Government Surveillance
Date: March 25, 12:15pm
Location: New America Foundation, 1899 L Street NW, Suite 400, Washington DC 20036

Last year, revelations about the National Security Agency’s digital surveillance created a breach of trust between the United States and close international allies. European citizens, in Germany in particular, remain concerned about the state and scope of both NSA activity as well as the online spying activity of their own governments. An individual’s right to privacy is now outside the power of a single nation state to protect. As the globalization of communications continues, increased international coordination between governments is needed in order for trust to be restored and individuals to feel secure online. What is the path forward?

Join this event co-sponsored by New America’s Open Technology Institute and the Heinrich Boell Foundation, a German think tank, as we seek to start the discussion, “how do we modernize international privacy policy to account for the power of digital surveillance?” The event will feature European elected officials and political leaders who are working to improve privacy laws, both in Germany and the E.U.  They will provide updates on their work as well as share thoughts on how transatlantic dialogue could be structured and what international solutions to the problem of government surveillance could look like.

Promoting Resilience or Repression: Support for Central Asian Security Forces
Date: March 25, 12:30pm
Location: Open Society Foundations, 1730 Pennsylvania Ave NW, 7th floor, Washington DC 20006

The role of the Central Asian states in support of ISAF military operations in Afghanistan has been crucial, and the regimes have received unprecedented levels of external military assistance over the years. With the end of operations in Afghanistan, what will the long-term impact of this assistance be? Has foreign military assistance left local armed forces more capable of withstanding external threats, or merely provided them with new means to suppress internal dissent?

The Open Society Foundations hosts a discussion of these issues with Dr. Dmitry Gorenburg, author of the working paper “External Support for Central Asian Military and Security Forces,” a joint publication of the Open Society Foundations and the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

TB Silent Killer: FRONTLINE Documentary and Panel Discussion
Date: March 25, 2:00pm
Location: Kaiser Family Foundation, 1330 G St NW, Washington, DC 20005

Tuberculosis (TB) remains one of the world’s deadliest diseases, with more than 8 million new cases each year and 1.4 million dying from the disease. The emergence and spread of TB strains that are highly resistant to standard drug treatments has become a major global health challenge. In recognition of World TB Day on Monday, March 24, the Kaiser Family Foundation will convene a public forum on Tuesday, March 25 at 2 p.m. ET to take stock of the global health challenge presented by TB, to examine the limitations and challenges of current treatment options, and to discuss the search for new and better TB drugs and other tools.

The event will begin with a screening of a short segment of a new FRONTLINE television documentary, TB Silent Killer, premiering Tuesday night, March 25, on PBS. The documentary focuses on the Southern African nation of Swaziland, the country with the world’s highest incidence of TB, and delivers a portrait of the people living at the pandemic’s epicenter. The forum will then move to a discussion with a panel of experts: Jezza Neumann,producer, writer and director of TB Silent Killer; Josh Michaud, associate director for global health policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation; Christine F. Sizemore, chief of the Tuberculosis, Leprosy and other Mycobacterial Diseases Section at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health; andJonathon Gass, monitoring and evaluation specialist at Ariadne Labs, who worked as an epidemiologist for Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders. Penny Duckham, executive director of the Foundation’s Media Fellowships Program, will make introductory remarks and moderate the panel discussion.

Register here.

Are Health Partnerships the Future of Diplomacy?
Date: March 25, 6:30pm
Location: The Embassy of France, 4101 Reservoir Road NW, Washington DC 20007

Health has become a growing area for international engagement in the 21st century. In the Asia-Pacific, NGOs are sending “floating hospitals,” refitted ships that host hundreds of medical personnel, to treat populations throughout the region, reaching new and unprecedented levels of cooperation with major governments. In the Middle East, and elsewhere, governments are coming together to tackle global health challenges in ways that reinforce national security and may contribute to a nation’s soft power.

In the wake of the launch by the Obama administration of a new Global Health Security Agenda in February 2014, the Next Generation Foreign Policy Network is pleased to invite you to a conference on health partnerships in the 21st century.

Register here.

Wednesday, March 26

Ensuring Security in Health IT
Date: March 26, 7:30am
Location: Ronald Reagan Building, Rotunda, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington, DC 20004

Government agencies dealing with health infrastructure must protect highly sensitive information critical to the well-being of many. But as these same agencies adopt electronic records and move to become more efficient, vulnerabilities in the security of this information have surfaced. The risks, which vary in scope and source, stem from the rapid implementation of the Affordable Care Act, digitization of physicians’ records, and data breaches of both private and public providers.

How can agencies work within existing privacy laws to maximize their security? What can they learn from other actors in cybersecurity to protect some of the most valuable personal data available? On March 26th, we will discuss solutions to current and potential risks with industry analysts and government professionals. Learn about: Making security matter to health records infrastructure, Best practices for preventing breaches, and Scaling and testing for future security architecture.

Register here.

Overcoming Pakistan’s Nuclear Dangers
Date: March 26, 10:00am
Location: International Institute for Strategic Studies, 2121 K Street NW, Suite 801, Washington DC 20037

Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal – the fastest growing in the world – sparks various concerns on many grounds, including the real potential for a nuclear war, possibly triggered by another large-scale terrorist attack in India as in the 2008 Mumbai atrocity, this time followed by an Indian Army reprisal. Mark Fitzpatrick will evaluate the potential nuclear dangers and argue that Pakistan should be offered a formula for nuclear legitimacy, tied to its adopting policies associated with global nuclear norms.

Register here.

Implications on Deterrence Stability and Escalation Control of Tactical Nuclear Weapons in S. Asia
Date: March 26, 12:30pm
Location: Stimson Center, 1111 19th Street NW, 12th Floor, Washington, DC 20036

Moderator: Michael Krepon, Stimson Co-founder and Director, South Asia program. Speaker: Dr. Jeffrey McCausland, Distinguished Visiting Professor of Research and Minerva Chair at the Strategic Studies Institute, U.S. Army War College

Jeffrey McCausland is a retired Army Colonel with more than 30 years of military experience. He has served in a variety of operational and staff positions, including command of a field artillery battalion during Operations Desert Shield and Storm. During the Cold War, he was assigned to numerous units equipped with tactical nuclear weapons and participated in both training as well as planning for their employment. He has also served on the National Security Council Staff during the Kosovo crisis and in the office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations on the Army Staff in the Pentagon. His final Army assignment was as Dean of Academics at the US Army War College. He currently serves as a Visiting Professor at Dickinson College and is also the Distinguished Visiting Professor of Research and Minerva Chair at the Strategic Studies Institute, U.S. Army War College.  

Register here.

Safe and Surveilled: U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey on the NSA, Wiretapping and PRISM
Date: March 25, 3:00pm
Location: George Mason University School of Law, 3301 Fairfax Dr., Arlington, VA 22201

The National Security Law Journal at George Mason University School of Law will be hosting a spring symposium featuring a keynote address by former U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey, who will speak on the NSA, wiretapping, and the data mining program known as PRISM.

A debate between Professor Robert Turner of the University of Virginia School of Law and ProfessorStephen Vladeck of American University’s Washington College of Law will follow Judge Mukasey’s keynote address. Professor Jeremy Rabkin of George Mason University School of Law will moderate the debate.

Space is limited and advance registration is required.

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