Society and Culture – Project for the Study of the 21st Century

Upcoming Event 2nd June – Recalibrating external missions to the Sahel: NOW WITH PODCAST RECORDING

May 22, 2021June 29, 2021Posted in Events, Politics, Society and Culture, UK Foreign Policy, US Foreign PolicyTagged International Relations, Society, UK politics, US politicsLeave a comment

Wednesday 2nd June, 6:30PM BST

PS21 is excited to be partnering with Saferworld and the War Pod to bring you a regional focus event on ‘Recalibrating external missions to the Sahel: Is no intervention better than these interventions?’

Following the second coup in Mali in less than a year, the assassination of Chadian President Déby and an attempted coup in Niger, the situation in the Sahel region of West Africa has never been more tense. European, U.S. and French forces are intervening alongside the regional Joint Force and UN Peacekeeping mission MINUSMA (which hosts British troops) to tackle the security challenges in the region and defeat armed groups, but Sahelian security forces, often trained by intervening missions, are complicit in violence against civilians and the political elites do not appear willing to address abuses.

Podcast recording here

Moderators

Abigail Watson – Conflict and Security Policy Coordinator at Saferworld.

Delina Goxho – independent security analyst and PhD candidate at Scuola Normale Superiore and Scuola Superiore San’Anna.

Speakers:

Ornella Moderan – head of Sahel Programme at the Institute for Security Studies in Bamako

Dr Nina Wilen – Africa Director at Egmont Institute in Brussels

Get your free ticket here.

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Book Launch – Remote Warfare: Interdisciplinary Perspectives

May 13, 2021May 28, 2021Posted in Events, Politics, Society and Culture, UK Foreign Policy, US Foreign PolicyTagged International Relations, Society, UK politics, US politicsLeave a comment

Wednesday 26th May, 6:30PM BST

PS21 is delighted to be partnering with the WarPod to help launch: Remote Warfare: Interdisciplinary Perspectives

Modern warfare is becoming increasingly defined by distance. Instead of deploying large numbers of boots on the ground, many Western and non-Western states have limited themselves to supporting the frontline fighting of local and regional actors.

To counter non-state armed groups like Boko Haram, al-Shabaab and Islamic State, states have engaged mostly through the provision of intelligence, training, equipment, airpower and small deployments of specific forces.

This is remote warfare, the dominant method of military engagement employed by states in the twenty-first-century.

This event brings together experts to discuss what the remote warfare approach means for contemporary conflict, what its risks are and its future is.

Contributions will be based on E-IR published book ‘Remote Warfare Interdisciplinary Perspectives’ – which can be accessed and purchased here: https://www.e-ir.info/publication/remote-warfare-interdisciplinary-perspectives/

Moderators:

Abigail Watson – Conflict and Security Policy Coordinator, Saferworld

Delina Goxho – Independent security analyst and PhD candidate at Scuola Normale Superiore and Scuola Superiore San’Anna.

Speakers:

Camilla Molyneux – Research consultant and Policy Advisor at the AllParty Parliamentary Group on Drones. Previous Human Rights Officer at the Norwegian Embassy to Saudi Arabia.

Jennifer Gibson – Human Rights Lawyer and Head of Assassinations Project at Reprieve.

Bara’a Shiban – Middle East and North Africa Caseworker at Reprieve. Political consultant to the Yemeni Embassy in London

Lauren Gould – Assistant Professor in Conflict Studies at the Centre for Conflict Studies at the History of International Relations section of Utrecht University. Co-founder and the project leader of The Intimacies of Remote Warfare programme.

Jolle Demmers – Professor in Conflict Studies, co-founder of the Centre for Conflict Studies and the Director of the History of International Relations section of Utrecht University. Co-founder of The Intimacies of Remote Warfare programme.

Get your free ticket here.

War in the 2020s – NOW WITH PODCAST RECORDING

May 8, 2021May 28, 2021Posted in Events, Politics, Society and Culture, UK Foreign Policy, US Foreign PolicyTagged International Relations, Society, UK politics, US politicsLeave a comment

Tuesday 25th May, 6:30PM BST

From vaccine nationalism, restlessness in the South China Sea, the effects of climate change and rising territorial disputes the 2020s look to be one of escalating tensions, join our panel as we discuss what conflicts will be the ones to define the coming decade?

Speakers:

Peter Apps (moderator) – Reuters global affairs commentator. Executive Director, PS21

Dr Ziya Meral – British and Turkish researcher. Senior Resident Fellow at the Centre for Historical Analysis and Conflict Research, Senior Associate Fellow at the Royal United Services Institute and Director of the Centre on Religion and Global Affairs.

Hayat Alvi – Ph.D. Associate Professor in National Security Affairs, US Naval War College

Charlotte Bratby – Army officer, Royal Signals. Outreach and engagement lead, Wavell Room

Missed the event?

Listen to the podcast recording of it here: https://anchor.fm/projects21

Where is 2021 going? NOW WITH PODCAST RECORDING

April 20, 2021May 8, 2021Posted in Events, Politics, Society and Culture, UK Foreign Policy, US Foreign PolicyTagged International Relations, Society, UK politics, US politicsLeave a comment

Tuesday 27th April, 6:30PM BST

It may be hard to believe for those who have barely made it to the pub yet once, but 2021 is almost a third over. From a new US administration to rising tensions with Russia and China, global vaccination and turmoil in the world of football, there is a lot yet to digest.

Join us for a free-flowing topical discussion as we discussed where the year is going, what it might bring next and what hope there might be that anyone in authority learns from it.

Speakers:

Peter Apps (moderator) – Reuters global affairs commentator. Executive Director, PS21

Victoria Mackarness – Account Director at CMS Strategic, Defence and current affairs commentator

Ana Bozovic – Geopolitics and financial specialist & founder of Analytics Miami

Joe Stockman – Former Strategic Communications Manager, Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, New Zealand

Sir Michael Leigh – Academic Director, European Public Policy, Johns Hopkins University, SAIS-Europe; Senior Fellow, Bruegel, Brussels. Former Director-General for Enlargement at the European Commission.

Missed the event?

Listen to the podcast recording of it here: https://anchor.fm/projects21

What next for Russia and Ukraine?

April 8, 2021April 14, 2021Posted in Events, Politics, Society and Culture, UK Foreign Policy, US Foreign PolicyTagged International Relations, Society, UK politics, US politicsLeave a comment

Tuesday 13th April, 7:00PM BST

With Russian troops massing on Ukraine’s border and international media speculating on another conflict in the Donbass, what might this summer bring? PS21 will be discussing that – and what it tells us about the geopolitics of 2021 and changing nature of international confrontation – in a virtual discussion with regional experts.

Speakers:

Peter Apps (Moderator) – Reuters global affairs commentator. Executive Director, PS21

Alex Kokcharov – Russia, Ukraine and Belarus country risk analyst, IHS

Beatrice Godefroy – Europe Director, Civilians in Conflict

Nikolas Gvosdev – Professor of national security studies at the U.S. Naval War College, editor of Orbis and senior fellow at FPRI and the Carnegie Council

Get your free ticket here.

Boots to Bots: From Cyber To The Grey Zone

February 22, 2021March 24, 2021Posted in Events, Politics, Society and Culture, UK Foreign Policy, US Foreign PolicyTagged International Relations, Society, UK politics, US politicsLeave a comment

Tuesday 23rd March, 10:00 – 17:00 GMT

We face a world where the unexpected happens overnight, technology is changing, enemies are unorthodox and virtual conversations have real-world impact. How can Western militaries adapt to a world where international players are manipulating cyberspace, using proxies to warp the information environment in ways that shape operations?

Join the Project for the Study of the 21st Century, the Wavell Room, and the British Army Cyber Association for a one day conference about the changing face of warfare. Sessions will include presentation and discussion of recent trends in cyber, high-tech, information and other forms of confrontation.

Boots to Bots – From Cyber to the Grey Zone

1000 – Introduction (Army Cyber Association/PS21)

1005 – Delivering in an Uncertain Age

Lt Gen Sir Graeme Lamb – Former UK Director Special Forces and Command the Field Army

Liisa Past – Former National Cyber Risk Officer, Estonia. Head of Cyber Security Development, Cybernetica

1050 – The Future in Practice – Operating in the Grey Zone Today

Dr Ivo Juurvee – International Centre for Defence and Security, Tallin, Estonia

Lt Col Chris Fogarty MBE– Commanding Officer 14th Signal Regiment (Electronic Warfare)

Lt Col Anthony Neylan – Army Information Directorate, Army Headquarters

James Athow-Frost – Major, Parachute Regiment. Founder, Wavell Room

Ruaridh Arrow – Former Harvard Fellow, BBC journalist and open source specialist. Army Reservist.

1130 – Break

1140 – Imagining war in 2030

Dr Christopher Ankersen – former Canadian Army officer, Clinical Professor, New York University

Harry Porteous – former British Army Officer, now working on AI and UAVs

Delina Goxho – Complete specialist focusing on remote warfare in the Sahel

1210 – Breakout Groups on “Hybrid and Cyber in 2030”

1245 – Lunch Break

1400 – International Approaches to Cyber and the Grey Zone

Kristen Hajduk – Former Operations Director, US Department of Defense National Security Innovation Network

Nigel Inkster – Former Deputy Chief, UK Secret Intelligence Service

Nina Jankowicz – Disinformation Fellow, Wilson Center, author of “How to Lose the Information War”

1455 – Break

1500 – GCHQ After 9/11: Lessons for Today

John Basset – Former senior GCHQ official

1510 – 10 Things I’ve Learned in Public Sector Cyber Security

Owen Pritchard – Cyber Lead, Local Government Association.

1520 – Breakout Groups on “What UK Defence Must Do to Adapt”

1545 – Beyond The Integrated Review

Abigail Watson – Conflict and Security Policy Coordinator, Saferworld

Nick Reynolds – Land Warfare Associate, Royal United Services Institute

Dr. Larry Lewis – Director of the Center for Autonomy and Artificial Intelligence at CNA

1630 – Ending

Don’t wait – claim your ticket now

Get your free ticket here.

GDPR notice: By signing up for this event, you are giving PS21 and the Wavell Room consent to add you to our events mailing list, from which you can unsubscribe at any time. If you have any queries or would prefer not to be added, please contact ps21central@gmail.com.

The Geopolitics of the Post-COVID-19 and Biden era

February 10, 2021March 16, 2021Posted in Events, Politics, Society and Culture, UK Foreign Policy, US Foreign PolicyTagged International Relations, Society, UK politics, US politicsLeave a comment

Tuesday 23rd February, 7:00PM BST

As the world moves from the Trump era and pandemic to that of the Biden administration and the post-Covid reality, what will define its geopolitics? How have Russia and China take advantage of the crisis, and how are middle powers playing the new fast changing world. PS21 will be talking to several leading experts, asking what will characterise the next decade and where the risks might lie.

Speakers:

Ali Wyne (Moderator) – Senior analyst for Global Macro at Eurasia Group, nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, nonresident fellow at the Modern War Institute

Nikolas Gvosdev – Professor of national security studies at the U.S. Naval War College, editor of Orbis and senior fellow at FPRI and the Carnegie Council

Maha Aziz – NYU Professor, World Economic Forum Global Future Council Risk Expert. Cartoonist & Author of upcoming book ‘A Global Spring: The Covid-19 Effect in the 2020s’

Champa Patel – Director, Asia-Pacific Programme at Chatham House. Previous Regional Director & Senior Research Advisor for South Asia and South East Asia and Pacific Offices for Amnesty International.

Get your free ticket here.

Climate Change & The Future of Defence

February 3, 2021February 21, 2021Posted in Events, Politics, Society and Culture, UK Foreign Policy, US Foreign PolicyTagged International Relations, Society, UK politics, US politicsLeave a comment

Thursday 18th February, 15:00 BST

Come to the Wavell Room’s and the Project for Study of the 21st Century keynote and panel on the future of British defence in the face of the most important issue of our time: climate change and sustainability.

Learn how the UK Defence world is thinking about and planning on tackling climate change, climate security, resilience, and more.

Ask questions of a panel with representatives from the Ministry of Defence, Royal Navy, British Army, Royal Air Force and Kings College London about how we will build a more sustainable force for the future.

Featuring

Lead Keynote Speaker

Lt Gen Richard Nugee CB CVO CBE, Climate Change and Sustainability Strategy Lead

and

A Panel With

RAdm Andrew Burns OBE, Director Develop (Royal Navy)

Maj Gen David Southall CBE, Director Army Basing and Infrastructure (British Army)

Gp Capt Maurice Dixon, DACOS ASTRA Sustainability (Royal Air Force)

Leslie-Ann Duvic-Paoli, Senior Lecturer in Environmental Law at King’s College London

Chaired by

Thammy Evans (Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council)

with moderation by Charlotte Bratby (Engagement Lead for the Wavell Room)

Get your free ticket here.

GDPR notice: By signing up for this event, you are giving PS21 consent to add you to our events mailing list, from which you can unsubscribe at any time. If you have any queries or would prefer not to be added, please contact ps21central@gmail.com.

The Arab Spring: 10 years on

January 27, 2021February 10, 2021Posted in Events, Politics, Society and Culture, UK Foreign Policy, US Foreign PolicyTagged International Relations, Society, UK politics, US politicsLeave a comment

Tuesday 9th February, 6:30PM BST

2011 saw the citizens of the Arab world mobilise to the streets to demand change from their regimes ruled by autocrats and riddled with corruption. It was a movement that ricochet from country to country throughout the region and gave hope to many that things were about to change.

10 years on, and what happened to the revolutionary movement? What were the implications and what of the sentiment remains?

Join our panel of experts as they reflect back and discuss the impacts of this revolutionary moment and what to expect from the region in future.

Panelists to include:

Ari Ratner (Moderator) – Founder and CEO of Inside Revolution. Former US State Department official

Hayat Alvi – Ph.D. Associate Professor in National Security Affairs, US Naval War College

Ruaridh Arrow – former BBC journalist, Harvard fellow, film-maker and author of ‘Gene Sharp: How to Start a Revolution’

Sulome Anderson – Freelance journalist and author of ‘The Hostage’s Daughter: A Story of Family, Madness, and the Middle East’. Based out of Beirut, Lebanon and New York City.

Get your free ticket here.

What has COVID-19 done to us?

January 19, 2021February 5, 2021Posted in Events, Politics, Society and Culture, UK Foreign Policy, US Foreign PolicyTagged International Relations, Society, UK politics, US politicsLeave a comment

Tuesday 2nd February, 7:00pm BST

With the Covid-19 pandemic just over a year old, PS21 explores the effect it has had on individuals, society and the world. We’ll be discussing the massive immediate impact on everyday lives, the successes and failures of policy and messaging in the long-term lessons, implications and potential trauma.

Tariq Jenner – NHS Accident and Emergency doctor based in London

Helen Bang – Relationship counsellor and life coach

Lucy Cogdell-Brooke – NHS psychologist working in the Scottish care sector. British Army reservist.

Joe Stockman – Former Strategic Communications Manager, Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, New Zealand

Asha Castleberry – Former U.S. Army officer and 2019 Democratic primary contender in upstate New York.

Get your free ticket here.

Creating Innovation in Defence

January 9, 2021January 26, 2021Posted in Events, Politics, Society and Culture, UK Foreign Policy, US Foreign PolicyTagged International Relations, Society, UK politics, US politicsLeave a comment

Thursday 21st January, 7:00pm BST

PS21 is delighted to be partnering with the Wavell Room, the UK’s premier peer-to-peer led defence and professional military education community to bring you ‘Creating Innovation in Defence’.

How are we in the UK going to build a culture of innovation in defence? Join PS21 and the Wavell Room to examine and discuss techniques and habits to create innovation at all levels of defence.

Learn:

* How to successfully inculcate innovation into your work

* What are common blockers to innovation in defence

* How to use those blockers as paths forward

This event will include both a panel discussion and breakout groups, bringing together a range of practitioners and experts from the defence sector and beyond.

Bring ideas, bring thoughts and bring your own refreshments (it is, after all, on Zoom).

Participants will include:

James Athow-Frost – Founder, Wavell Room (Moderator)

Helen Davies – Communications Specialist; former RAF officer

Shana Carp – Digital Startup Marketing Consultant; Growth & Ops, Wavell Room

Manish Tayal – Associate Editor, Wavell Room

Asha Castleberry – Former U.S. Army officer and 2019 Democratic primary contender in upstate New York.

Kristen Hajduk -Director of Operations, National Security Innovation Network

Get your free ticket here.

A new America? The US in the world after Trump

December 28, 2020January 19, 2021Posted in Events, Politics, Society and Culture, UK Foreign Policy, US Foreign PolicyTagged International Relations, Society, UK politics, US politicsLeave a comment

Tuesday 12th January, 6:30pm BST

After a tumultuous, controversial, devastating four years, Trump is out and Joe Biden returns to the White House, this time as President. But what can the world expect from a Biden administration? Will Biden be able to return the USA and global politics to the way things were pre-Trump? Join us as we discuss the next steps for the USA in 2021.

Speakers to include:

Christine Mikolajuk (Moderator) – Management consultant, freelance writer and media contributor

Stafford Palmieri – Strategy and growth consultant, previously a member of Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal’s senior team

John Raines – Principal Global Risks Adviser and Head of North America, Economics & Country Risk, IHS Markit

John Basset – former head of GCHQ’s London Office, Served at the US Embassy between 2007 and 2010, and involvement in observing the 2008 Presidential election and working with the transition team.

Ari Ratner – Founder and CEO of Inside Revolution. Former US State Department official

Get your free ticket here.