Events

What do Africa and the Arctic have in common? Join the Belfer Center’s Africa Futures Project and the Arctic Initiative for an interactive discussion and community networking event that will explore parallels between these seemingly disparate regions.

Drs. Zoe Marks and Jennifer Spence will provide an overview of shared dynamics in both regions, including great power competition, extractive industries, and the energy transition. The remarks will lay the foundation for small group discussion on other misconceptions, commonalities, and cautionary tales. Participants will have an opportunity to connect with Harvard's Africa and Arctic networks and insights generated from their discussions that will inform topics for future Africa + Arctic dialogues.

Refreshments will be served. 

Dr. Zoe Marks is a Lecturer in Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School and Co-Chair of the Africa Futures Project.

Dr. Jennifer Spence is the Project Director of the Arctic Initiative

Join us for an Energy Policy Seminar featuring Wake Smith, Research Fellow at the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government and Lecturer at the Yale School of the Environment. Smith will give a talk on "Frosted Tips: An Alternative Rationale for Solar Geoengineering." Q&A to follow. Buffet-style lunch will be served.

Registration: RSVP required. A Harvard University ID is required for in-person attendance; all are welcome to attend via Zoom.

Recording: The seminar will be recorded and available to watch on this page (typically one week later). Those who register for this event will automatically receive a link to the recording as soon as it becomes available.

Accessibility: To request accommodations or who have questions about access, please contact Liz Hanlon (ehanlon@hks.harvard.edu) in advance of the session.

Sponsors: The Belfer Center's Environment and Natural Resources Program, the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government, the Harvard University Center for the Environment, the Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability

Join us for an Energy Policy Seminar featuring Todd Stern, nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. In a fireside chat with Professor Joseph Aldy, Stern will give a talk on "Reflections on Global Climate Change Policy." Q&A to follow. Buffet-style lunch will be served.

Registration: RSVP required. A Harvard University ID is required for in-person attendance; all are welcome to attend via Zoom.

Recording: The seminar will be recorded and available to watch on this page (typically one week later). Those who register for this event will automatically receive a link to the recording as soon as it becomes available.

Accessibility: To request accommodations or who have questions about access, please contact Liz Hanlon (ehanlon@hks.harvard.edu) in advance of the session.

Sponsors: The Belfer Center's Environment and Natural Resources Program, the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government, the Harvard University Center for the Environment, the Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability

Join us for an Energy Policy Seminar featuring Emily Grubert, Associate Professor of Sustainable Energy Policy and of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences at the University of Notre Dame. Grubert will give a talk on "Planning the Mid-transition for Just and Sustainable Decarbonization." Q&A to follow. Buffet-style lunch will be served.

Registration: RSVP required. A Harvard University ID is required for in-person attendance; all are welcome to attend via Zoom.

Recording: The seminar will be recorded and available to watch on this page (typically one week later). Those who register for this event will automatically receive a link to the recording as soon as it becomes available.

Accessibility: To request accommodations or who have questions about access, please contact Liz Hanlon (ehanlon@hks.harvard.edu) in advance of the session.

Sponsors: The Belfer Center's Environment and Natural Resources Program, the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government, the Harvard University Center for the Environment, the Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability

In his latest book, Our Fragile Moment, award-winning climate scientist Michael E. Mann explores innovative approaches to combating climate change by examining Earth’s climate history and how the planet has coped with - and survived - extreme events in the past. Climate variability has at times created new opportunities for innovation. Mann argues that the greatest threat to meaningful action today is not denialism but despair among those who feel it is too late to do anything about rising temperatures and seas resulting from fossil fuel consumption. While the window is narrowing, he believes there is still time to take significant political, societal and technological steps to avert catastrophic global climate change.

Henry Lee, Director of the Belfer Center's Environment and Natural Resources Program, will provide introductory remarks. Cristine Russell, ENRP Senior Fellow, will moderate. Q&A to follow. Lunch will be provided (please arrive at 11:45). 

RSVP required. This event will be held in a hybrid format. A Harvard University ID is required for in-person attendance; all are welcome to attend via Zoom.

Sponsors: The Environment and Natural Resources Program and the Arctic Initiative at the Belfer Center; the Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability; the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics, and Public Policy; the HKS Climate, Energy, and Environment Professional Interest Council

For questions, please contact Elizabeth Hanlon (ehanlon@hks.harvard.edu). 

Meets from March 26 – April 23, 4:30 pm – 5:45 pm ET (5 sessions)

About the Study Group

Africa is at a pivotal moment. As the continent experiences dynamic change, a timely opportunity emerges for the United States to recalibrate relations with the diverse nations across the continent by embracing partnerships centered on African realities. With youthful populations, abundant resources, and growing economic and technological capacity, Africa holds solutions to global challenges from food security to climate change. Yet inclusive, sustainable development in Africa largely depends on international cooperation. By moving beyond outdated policies, the United States can craft a foreign policy agenda that more closely aligns with Africa’s profound transformation through trade, investments in clean energy and health, and youth empowerment initiatives grounded in mutual understanding. The future of U.S.-Africa ties will impact our interconnected world. By exploring the powerful shifts shaping Africa’s 

Students will be given the voluntary option to prepare one policy memo on a topic related to one of the five sessions. The teaching team will review these memos and provide comments, and students will be invited to brief their memos to our expert guest speakers during the relevant session. 

Students will be given the voluntary option to prepare one policy memo on a topic related to one of the five sessions. The teaching team will review these memos and provide comments, and students will be invited to brief their memos to our expert guest speakers during the relevant session. 

We invite all interested individuals to join us in these thought-provoking discussions. The goal is to deepen our understanding of the political and policy-related challenges and opportunities in Africa today.

The study group will be facilitated by Dr. Gloria Yayra A. Ayee, HKS Adjunct Lecturer in Public Policy and Belfer Center faculty affiliate. 

Registration is required. Register HERE.

Join us for an Energy Policy Seminar series featuring Conleigh Byers, an Environmental Fellow hosted by the Harvard University Center for the Environment and the Belfer Center's Environment and Natural Resources Program. Byers will give a talk on “The Future of Resource Adequacy in a Decarbonized Grid.” Q&A to follow. Buffet-style lunch will be served.

Registration: RSVP required. A Harvard University ID is required for in-person attendance; all are welcome to attend via Zoom. 

Recording: The seminar will be recorded and available to watch on this page (typically one week later). Those who register for this event will automatically receive a link to the recording as soon as it becomes available.

Accessibility: To request accommodations or who have questions about access, please contact Liz Hanlon (ehanlon@hks.harvard.edu) in advance of the session.

Sponsors: The Belfer Center's Environment and Natural Resources Program, the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government, the Harvard University Center for the Environment, the Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability

Join us for an Energy Policy Seminar series featuring Leah Stokes, Anton Vonk Associate Professor of Environmental Politics at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Stokes will give a talk on “Making Climate Policy: Why the Inflation Reduction Act Passed.” Q&A to follow. Buffet-style lunch will be served.

Registration: No RSVP is required. Seating will be on a first come, first served basis. The seminar will also be streamed via Zoom. Virtual attendees should register using the button below; upon registering, attendees will receive a confirmation email with a Zoom link.

Recording: The seminar will be recorded and available to watch on this page (typically one week later). Those who register for this event will automatically receive a link to the recording as soon as it becomes available.

Accessibility: To request accommodations or who have questions about access, please contact Liz Hanlon (ehanlon@hks.harvard.edu) in advance of the session.

Sponsors: The Belfer Center's Environment and Natural Resources Program, the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government, the Harvard University Center for the Environment, the Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability

Speaker: David Kearn, Research Fellow, International Security Program/Project on Managing the Atom

The book project seeks to explain the divergence of views of within the strategic community after the signing of the SALT I Accords and the subsequent shift in U.S. strategic nuclear policy away from "assured destruction" to "nuclear warfighting" throughout the 1970s and culminating in the Reagan administrations "prevailing strategy."

Open to Harvard ID Holders Only: Admittance will be on a first come–first served basis. Coffee &Tea Provided.

Join us for an Energy Policy Seminar featuring Sarah Ladislaw, Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Climate and Energy of the U.S. National Security Council. Ladislaw will give a talk on "U.S. International Climate and Energy Policy." Q&A to follow. Buffet-style lunch will be served.

Registration: No RSVP is required. Room capacity is limited and seating will be on a first come, first served basis. The seminar will also be streamed via Zoom. Virtual attendees should register using the button below; upon registering, attendees will receive a confirmation email with a Zoom link.

Recording: The seminar will be recorded and available to watch on this page (typically one week later). Those who register for this event will automatically receive a link to the recording as soon as it becomes available.

Accessibility: To request accommodations or who have questions about access, please contact Liz Hanlon (ehanlon@hks.harvard.edu) in advance of the session.

Sponsors: The Belfer Center's Environment and Natural Resources Program, the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government, the Harvard University Center for the Environment, the Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability