Upcoming Speakers
Kim Ghattas
October 19, 2026
Topic: The Best Kind of American: A True Story of Murder, War, and America's Undoing in the Middle East
Kim Ghattas is a Middle East expert, author, and Emmy-award-winning journalist. She’s a contributing writer for The Atlantic magazine, a contributing editor for The Financial Times, and a regular guest on CNN, MSNBC, and NPR. She was a Distinguished Inaugural Fellow at the Columbia University Institute for Global Politics. She previously reported for the BBC from the Middle East and Washington, DC. She is the author of Black Wave, a New York Times notable book on the Saudi-Iran rivalry, and of The Secretary: A Journey with Hillary Clinton from Beirut to the Heart of American Power, a New York Times bestseller. She splits her time between her hometown in Beirut and writing desks around the world.
Joel Wit
November 9, 2026
Topic: What to Do About North Korea: Past, Present and Future
Joel S. Wit is a Distinguished Fellow in Asian Security Studies at the Stimson Center. Wit is an internationally recognized expert on Northeast Asia security issues. As a U.S. State Department official, he helped negotiate the 1994 US-DPRK Agreed Framework and was subsequently in charge of its implementation until he left government in 2002, holding countless talks with North Korean officials, including the military and nuclear establishments.
Wit served as a Senior Fellow at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies US-Korea Institute from 2007-2018, a Senior Fellow at CSIS from 2002-2006. He has previously served a consultant to the National Academy of Science and an Adjunct Senior Researcher at Columbia University’s Weatherhead Institute for Asian Studies.
Wit is a co-author (with Robert Gallucci and Daniel Poneman) of Going Critical: The First North Korea Nuclear Crisis, the winner of the American Academy of Diplomacy’s 2004 prize for best book. He has written extensively in publications ranging from Foreignpolicy.com to the New York Times and is a regular expert guest on television shows (e.g. PBS Newshour, CNN’s The Situation Room and BBC) and radio (e.g. National Public Radio and BBC Radio).
Ambassador David Welch
December 14, 2026
Topic: US Security Interests in the Middle East: What it Means for US Diplomacy
Ambassador David Welch has a broad range of experience and knowledge in business and government. Welch was a member (2009-2019) of the corporate leadership team at Bechtel, America’s premier global engineering and construction firm, where he was a Senior Vice President and Partner, supervising international and government affairs; Bechtel’s regional representatives in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Latin America; its Washington D.C. office, including legislative relations; global corporate security; and internal and external corporate communications.
Ambassador Welch served 32 years (1977-2008) with the U.S. Foreign Service. He was nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate to senior positions in successive Democrat and Republican administrations. In 2008, he attained the lifetime rank, confirmed by the Senate, of Career Ambassador, equivalent to a four star military officer. When he retired from government, David was Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs (2005-2008), the senior-most U.S. diplomat for the Middle East region. He served as Ambassador to Egypt (2001–2005) and Assistant Secretary for International Organizations (1998–2001). He was also acting Chief of Mission in Saudi Arabia (1992-1994). David was on the National Security Council staff at the White House (1989-1991), and also served in Pakistan, Syria, and Jordan.
Ambassador Welch is a graduate of Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the American Academy of Diplomacy. Ambassador Welch serves on several corporate and non-profit boards. He is married to Gretchen Welch, also a retired Foreign Service Officer. David and Gretchen are active in philanthropies devoted to education, the arts, and diplomacy.
Admiral Gary Roughead
January 11, 2027
Topic: The Impact on the Military of the Changing World Order
Admiral Gary Roughead is a 1973 graduate of the United States Naval Academy. Among his six operational commands, Roughead was the first officer to command both classes of Aegis ships, having commanded USS Barry (DDG 52) and USS Port Royal (CG 73).
As a flag officer, he commanded Cruiser Destroyer Group 2, the George Washington Battle Group; and U.S. 2nd Fleet/NATO Striking Fleet Atlantic and Naval Forces North Fleet East.
Ashore, he served as commandant, United States Naval Academy, the Department of the Navy’s chief of Legislative Affairs, and as deputy commander, U.S. Pacific Command.
At the time he was on active duty, Roughead was one of only two officers to have commanded the fleets in the Pacific and Atlantic, commanding the U.S. Pacific Fleet and Joint Task Force 519, as well as U.S. Fleet Forces Command, where he was responsible for ensuring Navy forces were trained, ready, equipped and prepared to operate around the world, where and when needed.
Roughead’s awards include the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, Navy Distinguished Service Medal, Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Meritorious Service Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, and various unit and service awards. As his final assignment, Roughead became the 29th Chief of Naval Operations September 29, 2007.