Procession marking the kickoff of the 67th annual Conference on World Affairs makes its way down the flag-draped walkway at Norlin Quad (2015).
The 69th Conference on World Affairs begins Monday, April 10. For those new to campus, the conference is a one-of-a-kind, week-long ideas festival featuring thought leaders from around the world and every field of endeavor.
One hundred invited speakers take part in 200 panel discussions and performances that attract an audience of 70,000 to campus. Topics include climate, politics, the future of food, activism, space, human rights and many more.
What: Conference on World Affairs
When: Monday, April 10, to Friday, April 14
Where: Across campus
It’s free and open to students, faculty, staff and the general public—including community members and alumni. (Students receive priority access to all sessions.)
The Conference on World Affairs (CWA) is a great manifestation of our campus imperatives to develop tomorrow’s leaders, be the top university for innovation and positively impact humanity.
The CWA helps us develop tomorrow’s leaders by pairing each of our 100 speakers with a student ambassador studying in the speaker’s area of expertise. The student has lunch with the speaker, attends as many of their sessions as possible, invites their friends and fellow students to attend, as well, and joins one of the evening speaker dinners to network.
Our hope is that these "ambassadorships" offer significant professional mentoring opportunities for our students that will continue for years to come.
In addition, new and alternative session formats are available this year including speed chatting, an opportunity to sit and chat with speakers for 10 minutes at a time. There also are sessions after 5 p.m. to accommodate students with busy class schedules as well as working professionals.
Please refer to the schedule for these unique opportunities.
In the realm of innovation, a new-and-improved, free CWA app allows questions to be submitted live during a session from anywhere in the world for the moderator to share with speakers.
The conference also features a panel on innovation, "Nurturing Innovation: How and Where," 11 a.m. Tuesday at the ATLAS Black Box.
When it comes to impacting humanity, the conference’s "Hometown Conversations" pairs local experts with out-of-town speakers in dialog on issues of local concern including affordable housing and sanctuary cities.
The CWA also will hold facilitated post-panel discussions with a small group of interested audience members to develop actionable next steps after several problem-oriented panels.
Since 1948, the Conference on World Affairs has been relevant to our times, the community and our university. Our vision at CU Boulder is to be a leader in addressing the humanitarian, social and technological challenges of the 21st century, and this conference certainly personifies that. I hope you can attend.
Philip P. DiStefano,
Chancellor
