The following reflections have been written by PCJ students that participated in the 2017-2018 Centre for the Study of the President & Congress Fellows program upon their return from Washington, D.C. in April 2018.
Ivana Vujeva
Tea, Ivana, Natalie, and Brazilian masters student Isabella met Bernie Sanders by chance near Capitol Hill
On Wednesday, the fellows got the opportunity to take in some of Washington, DC’s greatest sights by taking a tour of the US Capitol with former Congressman Glenn Nye. Former Congressman Nye’s previous experience as a member of the House of Representatives allowed the fellows to access parts of the US Capitol Building otherwise forbidden to visitors, and allowed for an exciting behind the scenes look at this hallowed US institution. Moreover, Nye’s experience served as a plethora of information throughout the tour, and his personal anecdotes from his time in Congress supplemented his explanations of the Capitol’s various rooms and spaces. A particular highlight of the US Capitol tour was the opportunity to sit in the balcony of the House Floor, where the state of the union address is given, and listen to a few of the morning’s one minute speeches from both Democrat and Republican lawmakers.
Also on the agenda that day was a visit to the Library of Congress. Throughout the visit, the fellows were able to sign up for readership privileges for the Library’s reading room, which allowed us access to not only enter the historic room but also use its materials and research space for our own research endeavours—a privilege available only to those who physically visit the library. Our tour also included the chance to view some of the library’s numerous exhibitions, including Thomas Jefferson’s original collection of books that were donated to the Library of Congress upon its establishment. The fellows also got to view the exhibition Exploring the Early Americas, a selection of the Library’s collection of maps, documents, paintings and artifacts associated with the exploration of the Americas by early European explorers, as well as the indigenous cultures they encountered. The exhibition ended up being a great reminder of America’s early history, and allowed us international fellows to examine our place as foreigners interacting with American culture and politics and similarly reporting our findings for use by others.
Natalie Boychuk
We were also fortunate enough to hear seasoned professionals in US politics and foreign policy. Congresswoman Debbie Dingell, who represents the 12th District in Michigan, spoke to us about the Mark Zuckerberg trial, the “Me Too” era and what it means for women’s public health, and the importance of working across the aisle to pass legislation.
The International Fellows visited the State Department with CSPC CEO Glenn Nye and Senior Vice President Dan Mahaffee
It was a beautiful day in Washington after we met with Congresswoman Dingell on the Hill. As any Canadian who doesn’t have regular access to Shake Shack would, we decided to go for a walk and buy milkshakes before the evening speakers. While walking through a park about ten minutes from the Hill, we saw Bernie Sanders just off of our path, speaking into a camera with an employee. While we were shy to approach such a busy man, he was incredibly friendly, asking us where we were from and saying, “I want a picture with you!” Our chance meeting with a man who could have been the Democratic nominee for president, spoke to a full house at Convocation Hall this past fall, and is a well-known advocate for healthcare access and equality was a highlight of our time in Washington.
Along with Congresswoman Dingell, we also heard from Chris Lu, a former cabinet secretary and assistant for former President Barack Obama. Chris also oversaw President Obama and Vice President Biden’s transition into the White House and acted as Deputy Secretary of Labour. He spoke to us about his experiences working on prominent campaigns and about the importance of grit as we begin our careers. In particular, Chris identified that an ability to keep a positive attitude while doing less glamorous tasks is often the marker of someone who is passionate about their work and the larger goals they are hoping to achieve.
No trip to Washington in April 2018 would have been complete without more in-depth discussions on data privacy, given that the Zuckerberg trial was taking place nearby. Tim Sparapani, who acted as Public Policy Director for Facebook from 2009-2011 and previously advised Zuckerberg on data ethics, spoke to us in detail about the changing landscape around data. It was particularly interesting to speak about equity in data privacy, as there is an evolving conversation around how ability to pay for services will impact how people from lower-income contexts are forced to give up their data privacy.
Tea Cimini
Going to Washington D.C. once again in the spring semester was a terrific experience and a fantastic way to coronate my four year at the University of Toronto. Similarly to the fall conference, International fellows arrived early to engage in a series of educational and cultural activities in the U.S. capital. I especially enjoyed touring the Georgetown campus and learning about campus traditions. While at Georgetown, we had a chance to attend a private lecture with Dr. Anthony Arend the Dean of the Georgetown School of
Tea, Ivana, and Natalie toured the Georgetown campus with the cohort of International Fellows, as well as CSPC Senior Vice President Dan Mahaffee and Snior Advisor Michael Stecher, both of whom are Georgetown alumni
Foreign Service who discussed the state of current international affairs. We also took part in a book launch with two Former White House Social Secretaries, Lea Berman & Jeremy Benard, who discussed their experience organizing events in the White House. Our academic activities did not stop at Georgetown! We were also able to have a private meeting with Robert W. Gerber the Chief of Staff at Bureau of Economic & Business Affairs for U.S. Department of State. During the lecture, we discussed current issues in trade policies and economic relations, very topical issues! Additionally, seeing that we were in the D.C. while the Zuckerberg hearing was ongoing, we had the incredible opportunity of talking with Tim Sparapani a privacy and online security expert who also used to work for Facebook.
The second part of the spring conference was specifically dedicated to discussing our papers’ findings. My research paper focused on the provision of social services as a preventative measure to radicalization in states with low state capacity. Discussing my conclusions with members of the CSPC team and other fellows was an incredibly enriching experience and helped me further develop my paper. I also greatly enjoyed hearing about other fellows’ research and discussing diplomatic, economic, and political issues from the prospective of countries other than the U.S. and Canada.
Being an international presidential fellow at the Centre was a fantastic opportunity to transpose the skills and knowledge I have acquired in the Peace, Conflict and Justice program into a formal research opportunity abroad. I am very grateful to the Trudeau Centre for providing us with this opportunity!