The 65th Annual Conference on World Affairs, sponsored by the University of Colorado at Boulder, begins Monday, and offers a wide array of panels, plenaries and performances that address multiple issues, including issues of concern for women. The Conference was originally founded in 1948 as a forum on international affairs, yet it quickly grew to include many issues that are of public concern, such as technology, human rights, medicine, the arts, and much more. This year’s theme, originally conceived by long time participant Roger Ebert, is “Everything Conceivable,” and if you attend, you will discover just that in the 100 participants and 200 sessions being offered over the course of five days. According to Ebert, “Why is this week like lifeblood for me? Once we settle into our life’s careers, most of us charge the line with our heads down. I have a tendency, for example, to think the world revolves around movies. Once a year at the Conference, I am forced to think on subjects not of my own choosing. I get to talk to people from other worlds” (University of Colorado).
Sessions of particular interest to women include:
- April 8, 1:00 – 2:20 pm, When Binders Full of Women Vote, UMC East Ballroom, panelists Janet Breslin-Smith, Mary V. Hughes, Jurek Martin, Mark Strand
- April 8, 3:00 – 4:20 pm, Investing in Women and Girls Will Change the World, UMC East Ballroom, panelists Anne Lynam Goddard, Carrie Hessler-Radelet, Judithe Registre, Alicia Robb
- April 9, 12:30 – 1:50 pm, Women and Islam, UMC 235, panelists Janet Breslin-Smith, Anne Lynam Goddard, John Tirman, G. Willow Wilson
- April 9, 2:00 – 3:20 pm, Gender Based Violence: Disturbing Global Trends, ATLAS Black Box, panelists Zulfiqar Ahmad, Nina Alvarez, Sarah Holewinski, Judithe Registre
- April 10, 11:00 am – 12:20 pm, Miss Representation: Portrayal of Women by the Media, UMC East Ballroom, panelists Scott Flanders, Judithe Registre, Alicia Robb, G. Willow Wilson
- April 10, 1:30 – 2:50 pm, Republicans Ravage Reproductive Rights, UMC Center Ballroom, panelists Monika Bauerlein, Guy Benson, Lou Dubose, Mary V. Hughes
- April 11, 9:35 – 11:05 am, Men and Women of the Future: Roles and Responsibilities, Boulder High School, panelists Michael Franc, Ross Haenfler, Carrie Hessler-Radelet, Judithe Registre
- April 11, 12:30 – 1:50 pm, Make Love, Not Porn, UMC 235, panelists Scott Flanders, Claire Muireann Murphy, Evelyn Resh, Howard Schultz
- April 11, 12:30 – 1:50 pm, Women in Science: Outnumbered and Outearned, ATLAS Black Box, panelists Leah Buechley, Charles Love, Vivian Siegel
- April 11, 3:30 – 4:50 pm, Gays, Immigrants and Women in the Military, Old Main Chapel, panelists Gordon Adams, Dave Grusin, Steve Sauer
- April 12, 11:00 am – 12:20 pm, The Women’s Movement Stalled, UMC East Ballroom, panelists Leah Buechley, Claire Muireann Murphy, Abby Rapoport
The conference runs April 8th – April 12th. All conference sessions are free and open to the public. While there is very limited conference parking on campus, you can park for free on the second level of the Macy’s parking structure on Twenty-Ninth Street and take the free HOP bus to the conference. For more information, visit the conference site at www.colorado.edu/cwa.
