BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//wp-events-plugin.com//7.4.0.1//EN TZID:America/New_York X-WR-TIMEZONE:America/New_York BEGIN:VEVENT UID:75@portsmouthathenaeum.org DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260312T173000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260312T183000 DTSTAMP:20260630T201101Z URL:https://portsmouthathenaeum.org/events/2026-current-event-series-what- world-leaders-forget-about-world-politics/ SUMMARY:2026 Current Event Series: "What World Leaders Forget about World P olitics" DESCRIPTION:Why do even the most powerful leaders make decisions that seem to ignore history\, human nature\, or hard-earned lessons of the past? Wha t blind spots repeatedly shape foreign policy—and what do they mean for the rest of us?\n\nJoin us for a thought-provoking moderated Q&\;A with Stephen M. Walt\, one of the world’s leading scholars of international relations\, as he unpacks the enduring truths of world politics that leade rs too often overlook. Drawing on decades of research and real-world examp les\, Walt will challenge common assumptions about power\, alliances\, and global leadership—offering clear insights into why good intentions so o ften lead to unintended consequences.\n\nThis timely conversation will mov e beyond headlines to explore the deeper forces shaping today’s global l andscape\, from great-power competition to regional conflicts and shifting alliances. Most importantly\, it will help participants better understand how decisions made at the highest levels of government ripple outward\, a ffecting everyday lives around the world.\n\nWhether you closely follow in ternational affairs or simply want to make sense of a rapidly changing wor ld\, this event offers a rare opportunity to hear from a leading thinker a nd engage directly through audience Q&\;A.\n\nAbout the Speaker\n\nStep hen M. Walt is the Robert and Renée Belfer Professor of International Aff airs at the Harvard Kennedy School\, where he served as Academic Dean from 2002 to 2006. He previously taught at Princeton and at the University of Chicago\, where he was Master of the Social Sciences Collegiate Division a nd Deputy Dean of Social Sciences. He is a Contributing Editor at Foreign Policy magazine\, Co-chair of the editorial board of International Securit y\, and Co-editor of the Cornell Studies in Security Affairs book series. He was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in Ma y 2005 and received the International Studies Association’s Distinguishe d Senior Scholar award in 2014. His books include The Origins of Alliances \, which received the 1988 Edgar S. Furniss National Security Book Award\, and Taming American Power: The Global Response to U.S. Primacy\, which wa s a finalist for the Lionel Gelber International Affairs Book Award and th e Arthur Ross Book Prize. His book The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Polic y (Farrar\, Straus &\; Giroux\, 2007\, co-authored with John J. Mearshe imer) was a New York Times best seller and has been translated into more t han twenty foreign languages. His most recent book is The Hell of Good Int entions: America’s Foreign Policy Elite and the Decline of U.S. Primacy (Farrar\, Straus &\; Giroux\, 2018).\n\nA light reception will follow t he discussion for in-person participants.\n\nThe World Affairs Council of New Hampshire and the Portsmouth Athenaeum present this global conversatio n to their members for free. Not-yet-members of either organization can pu rchase a $15 ticket to attend in-person. Everyone can watch the livestream of the event for free on the WACNH homepage.\n\nYou must register for the event via the World Affairs Council of New Hampshire.\n\n\n\n \; ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://portsmouthathenaeum.org/wp-content/uploa ds/2026/02/What-World-Leaders-Forget-About-World-Politics.png CATEGORIES:Current Event Series,Discussions LOCATION:Portsmouth Athenaeum\, 9 Market Square\, Portsmouth\, NH\, 03801\, United States GEO:43.07725;-70.75778 X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=9 Market Square\, Portsmout h\, NH\, 03801\, United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=100;X-TITLE=Portsmouth Athen aeum:geo:43.07725,-70.75778 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/New_York X-LIC-LOCATION:America/New_York BEGIN:DAYLIGHT DTSTART:20260308T030000 TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT END:DAYLIGHT END:VTIMEZONE END:VCALENDAR