Life & Letters Magazine

U.S. soldiers from the Fighting 69, a New York National Guard unit, shut down Route Irish, the highway between Baghdad International Airport and central Baghdad, on a mission to search for possible Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs)
Securing the Front Line: U.S. soldiers from the Fighting 69, a New York National Guard unit, shut down Route Irish, the highway between Baghdad International Airport and central Baghdad, on a mission to search for possible Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs).

Global Safeguards: Practical Solutions

By

Robert S. Strauss Center for International Security and Law

The Robert S. Strauss Center for International Security and Law brings together the best minds in academia, government and the private sector to develop practical solutions to the pressing problems of an increasingly globalized world.

Randy Diehl, dean of the College of Liberal Arts, serves on the governing board of the Strauss Center whose fellows, including faculty members from across the university, are creating a world-class think tank in the heart of Texas.

The Liberal Arts Fellows who research, write, teach and engage in public discussion about pressing issues in global affairs at the Strauss Center are:

  • Zoltan Barany, Government
  • Catharine Boone, Government
  • James Galbraith, LBJ School of Public Affairs
  • George Gavrilis, Government
  • Terri Givens, Government
  • Clement Henry, Government
  • Mark Lawrence, History
  • Ami Pedahzur, Government/Middle Eastern Studies
  • Peter Trubowitz, Government

The center was made possible by a $7.5 million gift from alumnus Ambassador Bob Strauss and the law firm of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP.

“The Strauss Center is the centerpiece of the university’s effort to expand, broaden and improve our cutting-edge research and public outreach in our increasingly interdependent global environment,” President William Powers Jr. says.

Since its establishment almost two years ago, the Strauss Center has welcomed international policy leaders to campus to analyze the world’s most challenging issues, including nuclear threat, the global automotive and energy markets, and the legal landscape of the post-Guantanamo era.

Visit the Robert S. Strauss Center for International Security and Law and learn more about Francis Gavin, the Tom Slick Professor of International Affairs at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs, who recently has been named the center’s new director.

Salam Fayyad: A Vision for Peace in the Middle East

Salam Fayyad (Ph.D. Economics, ‘86) was appointed prime minister of the Palestinian National Authority as part of President Mahmoud Abbas’ emergency government in 2007.

The former World Bank official has led the PNA through a series of sweeping economic and political reforms and is regarded in international circles as one of the best hopes for peace between Palestine and Israel.

During the fall, Texas Exes honored Fayyad with its Distinguished Alumnus Award. Last year, he spoke at the university, emphasizing the importance of working out a peace plan that not only addresses the long-term political issue of creating an autonomous Palestinian state, but also provides for the immediate needs of the Palestinian people.

View the Webcast, including a conversation with James Steinberg, former dean of the LBJ School who was named U.S. Deputy Secretary of State.