Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens Memorial Lecture Series
About the Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens Memorial Lecture Series:
The Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens Lecture Series was established in 2013 by UC Law SF and the Stevens family to honor the memory, life, and work of Chris Stevens, a member of the UC Law SF class of 1989. Chris spent his career in the foreign service building bridges of understanding and mutual respect between the people of the United States and the people of the Middle East. This lecture series brings foreign policy thought leaders to campus to explore how law and public policy are used in practice to advance global understanding and peace. “Gathering experts to discuss law and foreign policy in the promotion of global understanding presents a fitting opportunity to further the legacy of Chris’s style of diplomacy and his life’s work,” said Tom Stevens, Ambassador Stevens’ brother.
Remembering Chris StevensWatch the 2021 Lecture Recording: “The Need for More Chris Stevenses”
American international engagement is at a crossroads. A significant amount of attention and debate is given to the structures and processes needed to recruit, retain and motivate a new generation of American women and men to pursue public service careers in the national security civilian workforce. As the Biden Administration considers how best to revive the foreign service, reinvigorate the State Department and other national security agencies and institutions, and recalibrate US foreign policy for the intertwined domestic and international challenges we currently face, the human elements of international engagement remain of fundamental importance. Former Assistant Secretary Wilson and Ambassadors McFaul and Abercrombie-Winstanley draw upon their own extensive experience in foreign policy – and on initiatives in which they are currently involved – to address these issues and to reflect on how Chris Stevens’ life and service exemplified both the challenges and the imperative of personal relationships in international engagement.
Listen to the 2019 Lecture Recording on the Lawfare Podcast
The 2019 lecture featured a panel discussion with Cofman Wittes and Egan, moderated by Professor Chimène Keitner, on U.S. law and policy in the Middle East. The conversation takes a step back from current events to look at the broader strategic landscape following the U.S. withdrawal from Syria.