World Affairs Forum

Provides International Perspective

By Nancy K. Crevier

Newtown resident George Paik was recently elected to a second term on the board of directors of the World Affairs Forum, a nonprofit membership organization devoted to educating people and providing insight on international topics through speaker programs.

Currently the managing director at the New York investment firm LCP Capital, LLC, Mr Paik served worldwide in the US Foreign Service between 1988 and 1995.

“We moved to Pittsburgh after I left the Foreign Service,” said Mr Paik, “and that was where I first became involved in the World Affairs organization. I joined because I wanted a way to keep my finger on what was going on in world events, as this is my area of interest.”

When he moved to Newtown in 2004, one of the first things he looked for was another World Affairs Forum group, which he found in Stamford.

The Stamford World Affairs Forum, one of dozens of independent chapters of the World Affairs Council of America, was founded 65 years ago. Three membership levels are open to all: World Affairs Forum ($95 individual), the Forums Plus Series Membership ($325), and the Ambassador’s Round Table ($575). Speaker series are open to the public for a nominal fee, said Mr Paik.

“The goal of World Affairs is to educate the public and students on our world affairs and disseminate an understanding of international events,” said Mr Paik. “I have gotten heavily involved because it is my natural bent, but also because I think there are many groups in Fairfield County that focus on local events, but this is the only group dedicated to world affairs,” he said. World Affairs Forum is the only world council serving Fairfield and Westchester Counties.

The world is evolving in many different directions, said Mr Paik. “We are interacting in new and different ways, and more intimately with events outside our own borders,” he said. “These event find their way right next door.”

Because even the most intelligent people find it difficult to digest all that is going on internationally, groups like World Affairs Forum are more important all the time, Mr Paik said, in order for people to get hold of knowledge. “World Affairs Forum is strictly nonpartisan. It is intended for understanding world events,” he said.

Speakers at World Affairs Forum cover a broad range of topics, all with question and answer periods, and some that include discussions. The speakers are often current researchers or high level, or former high level, policy makers. “It gives you a new perspective on how things work when you hear these speakers,” said Mr Paik.

In the last six months, speakers have included former ambassador to Africa John Campbell; Sterling Professor of Law and Political Science at Yale University Bruce Ackerman; US Army Colonel and Vice Dean for Education, US Military Academy, Daniel Ragsdale; Brazilian expert Jeffrey Cason from Middlebury College; and former Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, Ambassador Marc Grossman.

Mr Paik’s background in Foreign Service makes him avidly interested in these kinds of speakers, but Mr Paik said that even those not in the field of foreign affairs find the events of great interest. “It is one thing to read about issues, it is another thing to understand what is going on, and to hear about world events straight from the horse’s mouth,” he said. Special lecturers during the year include an endowed travel lecturer, an event that is appealing to anyone who likes to travel abroad, Mr Paik said.

The variety of speakers and expertise touches on many subjects, he said, and it is hard to pinpoint any one area that would be considered pressing. “The big thing is, the world is changing in so many ways. What is the most important subject in today’s world? It’s hard to say. Is it the European Union’s financial wrangling? What about Arab Spring? What about the earthquake in Japan and the nuclear question? And everyone knows — or thinks they know — about China and India. Then there is the environment, and how that relates to us, to China, to Brazil, to the world. This is probably why I think a group dedicated to world affairs is so important,” Mr Paik stressed.

What he takes away from the World Affairs Forum are not just ideas that he keeps to himself, Mr Paik said. “I do bring it back to the community, in a sense that it is informal. I bend people’s ears at work from time to time, talk with friends, and belong to a local discussion group. I mean, how does awareness spread?” he asked. World Affairs Forum helps people to gain a perspective of the world that will become necessary to function, Mr Paik said, and however it is carried back to the public meets the goal of the organization.

World Affairs Forum also works to educate youth through various study abroad scholarships for college and high school students, book awards for high school students in international studies or foreign language programs, the Future Global Leaders Awards $10,000 Merit Scholarship Program, World Affairs Forum internships that expose students to foreign cultures and international issues, and the Academic WorldQuest, a national high school team quiz competition.

“We are always welcoming new members, and encouraging people to join,” Mr Paik said. “So much plays out outside of the United States. If you don’t disseminate the process, that stuff gets a life of its own.”

To find out more about World Affairs Forum, visit worldaffairsforum.com.