SAIS Events – The SAIS Observer

Smash for Coffee

Published on April 12, 2018 in SAIS Events/SAIS Life/SAIS Matters by The SAIS Observer Staff

By: KHUN NYAN MIN HTET Nanjing – “You know hips don’t lie!” exclaimed Christian Flores, a second-year MAIS student. He wasn’t referring to Shakira’s famous song “Hips Don’t Lie,” but Princess Peach’s ability to knock her opponents off the stage using her hips in Super Smash Brothers. A group of Super Smash Brothers enthusiasts came together to participate in the first ever Smash Tournament at the Hopkins-Nanjing Center. With a 100 RMB gift card to the HNC coffee shop at stake, HNC smashers brought their A-game and used their favorite characters during the competition. Spectators livened up the competitive arena with fun comments such as “He plays like an economist!… Well, I mean, he did go to the University of Chicago!” and “That game between Wolf and Toon Link … is like Little Red Riding Hood, except that Riding Hood (Toon Link) has a sword and a shield!” Andrew Rankin, a…

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A Hopkins-Nanjing Halloween

Published on November 5, 2017November 27, 2017 in SAIS Events by The SAIS Observer Staff

By: KELSEY HAMILTON NANJING – Halloween came early this Saturday at the Hopkins-Nanjing Center with a night-long celebration for the students and staff. The event featured music, a live band and a gift card raffle. Costumes were mandatory for attendance and did not disappoint. Highlights included a full-piece Winnie the Pooh costume, Daenerys Targaryen, and Rorschach from Watchmen. Attendees voted on awards such as “scariest costume” and “funniest costume” for a Center-wide costume contest. Winning “most creative” were Sun Yi and Anneliese Gegenheimer for their pairing of Frozen’s Anna and Elsa. Gegenheimer explains, “Sun Yi had never done Halloween before and wanted to dress up. I wanted something where we were sisters because we’re roommates, and was trying to think of something she’d know that’s also famous in China. I said Frozen, and it just worked.” The Hopkins-Nanjing student band took the stage at 9 p.m. The set-list featured seven…

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Interview with Marie-Lucie Spoke, founder of the CSR Consulting Company “Community Roots China”

Published on March 29, 2017March 29, 2017 in Faculty/Experts/SAIS Events by The SAIS Observer Staff

by: ANNA WOODS NANJING–Community Roots China works with underprivileged children in 12 provinces around China. Their programmes include the One Heart Gift Bag, which gives bags to primary aged children, the Bookworm programme, which provides books for schools, and the Educational Sponsorship, which pays the fees for students to attend high school or university. Marie-Lucie Spoke speaking at the HNC. Source: author Anna: Hello Marie-Lucie. To start, I wanted to ask you about how you became interested in the social welfare or non-profit sector? Was there an event or experience in your life that convinced you that this was what you wanted as your career? Marie-Lucie: I started doing charity on my own. We were in Brasilia [where Spoke’s husband was a diplomat for the Canadian government] and everyone had a seamstress, because there were no stores to buy ready-made clothes. I helped my seamstress, I helped her to build a house,…

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Irene Khan Visits SAIS Europe to Discuss Law, Human Rights and the Migrant Crisis

Published on October 22, 2016October 30, 2016 in SAIS Events by The SAIS Observer Staff

BY UTPALA MENON A few years ago, Irene Khan was invited by Amnesty Spain to visit a cemetery in Tenerife. She was asked to visit the graves that were stacked on top of each other, a common burial practice in the region. However, what was particularly haunting about that sight was the fact that they were nameless. Khan, the former head of Amnesty International, spoke with SAIS Bologna students last week as a part of the International Migration series for the Bologna Institute for Policy Research. She started the conversation with that anecdote, illustrating to the gathered students the gravity and anonymity facing migrants in the midst of crisis. Irene Khan has had a long and impressive career. She began her time with the United Nations at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), where she spent nearly two decades. She was then appointed to serve as the Secretary…

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Italian PM Urges Students to Elevate Political Discourse

Published on October 19, 2016October 25, 2016 in SAIS Events by The SAIS Observer Staff

BY PATRICK KELLEY Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi implored SAIS students to advance political dialogue in the face of rising global populism during his speech Wednesday morning at SAIS’s Washington, D.C. campus. The speech came as part of his official state visit, including what was likely President Obama’s final state dinner. During his hour-long visit, Renzi called on students to “help us to surpass the politics of 140 characters,” and warned of the dangers of nationalism and isolationism driving populist movements in America and Europe, and leading to what he described as “verbal violence.” Renzi’s visit to SAIS came weeks ahead of Italy’s Dec. 4th constitutional referendum, when Italians will vote on whether to shrink the size of the senate with the aim of reducing political gridlock in Rome. Renzi has tied his premiership to the vote, saying he will step down as Prime Minister should the country vote against…

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Ratna Kapur Discusses Indian Constitutional Law and the Role of Hinduism in Its Practice

Published on October 16, 2016October 17, 2016 in SAIS Events by The SAIS Observer Staff

BY UTPALA MENON On Monday, October 10, Ratna Kapur joined SAIS students for a conversation on her area of expertise: the role of culture and tradition in law. The event was a part of the speaker series with the Bologna Institute of Policy Research (BIPR) and specifically addressed Indian Constitutional Law from a faith perspective. Titled “Secularism, Religion and Hindu Majoritarianism in Indian Constitutional Law,” the conversation explored the role of Hindutva in shaping the judgments passed by modern Indian Constitutional Law. Kapur has been a visiting professor at a number of international law schools including NYU School of Law, Georgetown University Law Centre and the United Nations Peace University. She has also been a visiting fellow at Harvard Law School and Senior Advisor to the United Nations Mission in Nepal. Her most recent book discusses the concept of freedom from illiberal perspectives. This topic was reflected in Monday’s event,…

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SAIS Students Make the Consulting Case

Published on February 17, 2016February 17, 2016 in On the Front Page/SAIS Events by The SAIS Observer Staff

BY RUI ZHONG WASHINGTON-On a cloudy, rainy November 3rd, forty-four SAIS students worked in teams to build a better school lunch. Their goal, assigned by consultants overseeing the task, was to advise the benefit corporation Revolution Foods on opportunities to expand social impact and profitability. At the end of thirty-six hours, the teams would turn in a completed slide deck. Five days afterwards, they would each prepare to pitch their ideas to improve Revolution Foods to a panel of judges from top consulting firms. The Deloitte Case Competition arrived at SAIS on November 3rd, and was a collaborative effort between the consulting conglomerate the student-run SAIS Consulting Club, and SAIS Career Services. MA Candidate Kaitlin Lavinder, who serves as SAIS Consulting Club President, credited her club’s efforts, enthusiasm by alumni working at Deloitte, and the guidance of Career services during the process. “A former SAIS Consulting Club Board member worked…

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MENA Happy Hour: Friday, November 13th, 2015

Published on November 12, 2015November 12, 2015 in SAIS Events/Student Life by The SAIS Observer Staff

BY LENA ABDIN, KIMYA ZAHEDI, AND ELIZABETH PARKER-MAGYAR WASHINGTON — On Friday, November 13th, the SAIS MENA club will be hosting its happy hour, with partial proceeds going to the Amal Fund, an initiative that supports refugee youth leaders in Jordan, both in Za’atari refugee camp and in urban areas. Attendees can expect Middle Eastern food from Iran, Syria and Egypt, as well as Middle Eastern music, auction items, and artwork by Syrian artists living in the Za’atari camp. As the Syrian refugee crisis becomes more and more protracted, Amal, which means hope in Arabic, provides tuition support for refugee leaders, most of whom have had their educations interrupted, to attend Jordanian universities, meeting the needs of Syrian students who pass high school examinations in Jordan but pay out-of-country fees at Jordanian universities. In addition to helping Syrian youth access tertiary educations, the fund also empowers them to participate in…

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Everything ‘Falls’ into Place for Mid-Autumn Festival Party

Published on October 27, 2015October 27, 2015 in SAIS Events by The SAIS Observer Staff

BY LOGAN PAULEY NANJING — Every year on the 15th day of the Han lunar calendar, China celebrates the Mid-Autumn Festival, a holiday that commemorates the changing of the seasons and the interrelationship between the coming harvest and the moon. While typical celebration involves the unabashed consumption of mooncakes (ramekin-sized pastries filled with anything from meat to sweet red bean paste to fruit) and carrying lanterns, the HNC marked the festival with a bilingual variety show. The spectacle took place on the center’s second-floor veranda, a venue fit for faculty, staff, and students all to appreciate the full moon and festivities. Unique to this year’s Mid-Autumn Festival party, the entirety of the show was held outside and encouraged participation and interaction from everyone in the crowd. Party MC Susan Wang reflected on her role running the show alongside classmate Quinn Campbell, avowing “…I wanted to make it not mundane for…

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Stephan Hadley Talks Foreign Policy at SAIS

Published on April 5, 2015April 5, 2015 in SAIS Events by The SAIS Observer Staff

Former U.S. National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley speaks with Ambassador Shirin Tahir-Kheli on March 9, 2015 in Kenney Auditorium on U.S. foreign policy. (Photo courtesy of SAIS Hopkins)

By WILLIAM YALE WASHINGTON–Last month on March 9, former U.S. National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley arrived at SAIS for a wide-ranging discussion on the Middle East, moderated by SAIS Foreign Policy Institute Senior Fellow, Ambassador Shirin Tahir-Kheli. Much of the conversation focused on the long-term, second- and third-order effects emanating from current crises in the Middle East, particularly the Islamic State’s violent attempt to establish a Caliphate and the potential of a diplomatic deal regarding Iran’s nuclear capability. Both Hadley and Ambassador Tahir-Kheli agreed that most policy discussions regarding the Islamic State focus on narrow tactical questions, such as whether to increase or scale back bombing of the Islamic State or whether to embed troops in Iraq. But the real challenge for both the U.S. government and for the policy community, Hadley said, is to construct a long-term political and economic development plan for a post-Islamic State Iraq and Syria. In…

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