The ICD Annual Conference on Cultural Diplomacy in the USA
"Options on the Table": Soft Power, Intercultural Dialogue and the Future of US Foreign Policy

Conference Speakers
We are privileged to include as speakers many world leaders and distinguished experts from the fields of international politics, economics, diplomacy, the private sector, and civil society; these speakers will include a number of individuals from the ICD Advisory Board. The ICD is grateful for their contributions to this important event. To learn more about the ICD Advisory Board please click here.The following are among the Speakers for the Conference:
The Hon. Dr. Ali Ahmad Jalali ICD Advisory Board Member; Former Interior Minister of Afghanistan |
Amb. András Simonyi ICD Advisory Board Member; Former Hungarian Ambassador to the United States |
Prof. Dr. Andrew Bennett Professor, Department of Government, Georgetown University |
Andy Shallal Iraqi-American Artist, Activist and Restaurateur; Proprietor of the Busboys and Poets restaurant chain in the Washington, DC area |
H.E. Amb. Arif Havas Oegroseno Ambassador of Indonesia to the European Union |
Cameron M. Chisholm President, International Peace & Security Institute |
Carla Perlo Founder & Director, Dance Place |
Prof. Dr. Christianna N. Leahy Chair, Department of Political Science and International Studies, Professor of Comparative Politics, McDaniel College |
Prof. Dr. Craig Hayden Assistant Professor, School of International Service, American University |
Amb. Dr. Cynthia P. Schneider ICD Advisory Board Member; Distinguished Professor of Diplomacy, The School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University; 61st Ambassador of the United States to the Kingdom of the Netherlands |
Prof. Dr. Daryl Harris Professor, Political Science Department, Howard University |
David Soul ICD Advisory Board Member; Celebrated American Actor; best known for his Role as Detective Kenneth "Hutch” in the television program Starsky and Hutch (Video Lecture) |
Prof. Dr. DeWayne Wickham Distinguished Professor of Journalism and Chair Communication Studies, Morgan State University (tbc) |
H. E. Amb. Elin Suleymanov Ambassador of Azerbaijan to the United States |
Emira Woods Co-Director of Foreign Policy In Focus at the Institute for Policy Studies |
Esther Aguilera President & CEO, Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute |
H.E. Amb. Houda Nonoo Ambassador of Bahrain to the USA |
Ian Gillan Lead Singer and Lyricist for Deep Purple (Video Lecture) |
Jennifer Cover Payne President, Cultural Alliance of Greater Washington |
Prof. Dr. John Feffer Codirector of Foreign Policy in Focus at the Institute for Policy Studies |
Amb. John R. Malott President and CEO, Japan-America Society of Washington DC |
Prof. Dr. Jon B. Gould Director, Washington Institute for Public and International Affairs Research, American University |
Dr. Karen E. Donfried National Intelligence Officer for Europe on the National Intelligence Council, US Government |
Kingsley Smith Program Director, National Public Radio (NPR) |
Leena El-Ali Director of Muslim-Western Relations and Middle East and North Africa Programs, Search for Common Ground |
Prof. Lenneal J. Henderson Distinguished Professor, School of Public and International Affairs, University of Baltimore |
Linda Donavan Harper Executive Director of Cultural Tourism DC |
Lucian Perkins Award-winning American Photojournalist |
Prof. Dr. Marcus D. King Director of Research, George Washington University's Elliott School of International Affairs |
H.E. Amb. Marina Kaljurand Ambassador of Estonia to Washington DC |
Mark Lagon International Relations and Security Chair at the Master of Science in Foreign Service Program at Georgetown University |
Prof. Mark Vlasic Senior Fellow, Institute for Law, Science & Global Security, Georgetown; Principal, Madison Law & Strategy Group PLLC, Adjunct Professor of Law |
Prof. Dr. Max Paul Friedman Associate Professor, Director of Graduate Studies, Department of History, American University |
Meral Duran Managing Director, International Relations Consulting Network and Lobbying |
Michael Mandelbaum Christian A. Herter Professor and Director of American Foreign Policy at The Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies |
Prof. Dr. Muhammad Quibria Professor, Department of Economics, Morgan State University |
Nora McGann Editor-In-Chief, Georgetown Journal of International Affairs |
Prof. Dr. Onwumechili Chuk Professor of Communications, Howard University |
Prof. Dr. Paul T. McCartney Profesor, Political Science Department, Towson University |
Paul Smith Director, British Council USA |
Peter Mollema Deputy Chief of Mission, Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to the USA |
H.E. Amb. Petr Gandalovič Ambassador of the Czech Republic to the USA |
Prof. Dr. Robert Albro Professor, International Communication, School of International Service, American University |
Prof. Dr. Robert J. Lieber Professor of Government and International Affairs, Department of Government, Georgetown University |
Robert Satloff Executive Director, The Washington Institute for Near East Policy |
Prof. Dr. Sheri L. Parks Associate Dean for Research, Interdisciplinary Scholarship and Programming College of Arts and Humanities, University of Maryland |
Amb. Spencer Boyer Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs |
H.E. Amb. Stuart E. Eizenstat Former Deputy Secretary of the Treasury; Former Under Secretary of State for Economic, Business, and Agricultural Affairs; Former Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade at the International Trade Administration; Former United States Ambassador to the European Union |
Under Secretary Tara D. Sonenshine Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, US State Department |
Prof. Dr. Tom Palmer Executive Vice President for International Programs, Atlas Network, and Senior Fellow, Cato Institute |
Yasemin Elmas General Manager, Theabridge |
