Beth Whitaker, an associate professor in the Department of Political Science and Public Administration, will discuss “Refugees and Global Migration” as the second speaker for the 2019 Great Decisions Lecture Series. This free, public presentation is scheduled for 6:30 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 6, at UNC Charlotte Center City.
Whitaker’s extensive research includes migration and security issues in Africa, such as African international relations; refugee policy; and diaspora engagement in homeland politics. She has conducted fieldwork in Kenya, Tanzania and Botswana and is the recipient of the Minerva Initiative grant by the U.S. Department of Defense. Through this grant, Whitaker and colleagues launched the Resources and Conflict Project to examine how rebel groups’ illicit funding strategies influence the dynamics of civil conflict. As a Fulbright Scholar in Kenya, she conducted research on U.S.-African counterterrorism cooperation.
Whitaker is co-author of “Africa’s International Relations: Balancing Domestic and Global Interests,” and her articles have appeared in various academic journals: Political Research Quarterly, Journal of Conflict Resolution, Journal of Peace Research, African Studies Review, Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, International Migration Review, Third World Quarterly and Journal of Refugee Studies, among others.
Whitaker served as chair of the African Politics Conference Group (2010-12). She has worked at the Brookings Institution and the American Council on Education and has consulted for the U.S. Department of State, the Social Science Research Council, the United Nations Foundation and Save the Children Fund. She completed a Ph.D. in political science from UNC Chapel Hill.
The Office of International Programs coordinates the annual Great Decisions lecture series for the Charlotte community to discuss foreign policy issues selected as pressing by the Foreign Policy Association. The series is coordinated in collaboration with Charlotte Country Day School, International House of Charlotte and the World Affairs Council of Charlotte.
Amal Khoury, assistant professor of international studies, will discuss the Middle East on Wednesday, Feb. 13.
Click here for more details on the 2019 Great Decisions Lecture Series.