Opening Session: Crossing Divides
Setup
The festival kicks off with thought leaders sharing fresh ideas about bridging divides, having better conversations, and encouraging creativity. A conversation with Saudi Arabia’s Ambassador to the United States will follow, and the program concludes with a discussion on the late-breaking developments in Russia. Doors open at 4:30 pm.
Speakers
-
Mónica GuzmánSenior Fellow, Braver Angels -
Walter IsaacsonHistory Professor, Tulane University -
Deb RoyMedia Arts and Sciences Professor, MIT -
Andrea MitchellChief Foreign Affairs and Washington Correspondent, NBC News -
HRH Ambassador Reema Bandar Al SaudSaudi Arabian Ambassador to the United States -
Catherine PriceAuthor and Science Journalist
Explore More
World
Many more Americans are struggling to survive and make ends meet than is typically portrayed in the media and public policy debates. And when poverty is depicted, harmful and...
Relations between the United States and China have become increasingly tense over the past few years. Trade wars have escalated, and U.S. national security experts are bracing...
America’s “second founding” came on the heels of the Civil War, when the architects of the 13th, 14th and 15th amendments thought long and hard about how to enshrine civil rig...
It’s been decades since the United States has updated its immigration policies in any sort of comprehensive way, and the problems and suffering at the southern border have per...
Three people whose lives have been irrevocably changed by the Israel-Palestine conflict share their stories of profound loss, grief and forgiveness.
Whether they publicly tout it or not, U.S. technology companies play a powerful role in politics, cultural issues and the way we live. Founder and investor Peter Thiel is one...
The 2024 presidential election is only months away, and the past few weeks alone have brought shocking headlines that change the political ground we stand on — an attempted a...
Sizable electorates around the world are flocking to populist candidates who promise power, domination and a return to better times. The global experiment in liberalism seems...
Conflict and suffering can bring out the worst in people, but it can also bring out the best. This is one of the lessons New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof has learned...
The war in Ukraine continues to reshape European security and global alliances, while the war in Gaza raises urgent questions about humanitarian aid and international interven...
The federal right to abortions in the United States has been overturned, access to contraception and IVF services are threatened in many states, and the gender wage gap persis...
The grim stream of news from the Middle East has been making it more and more difficult to hold onto hope for peace. When and how will the conflict in Gaza end? And could war...
The Supreme Court has issued another series of controversial and consequential decisions this term, fueling discussion on the current state of the judicial branch. Recent poll...
As one of the foremost reporters of his generation, Nicholas Kristof has been witness to century-defining events and atrocities around the world. How has he managed to weaponi...
The rollback of reproductive rights, the push to end no-fault divorce, and gun laws that allow domestic abusers to own a firearm are turning the clock back on women’s rights....
Americans feel more polarized than ever, but two governors from opposite sides of the aisle have made it their mission to show otherwise.
Former Senators Bill Nelson and Kay Bailey Hutchison discuss the bipartisan work that defined their careers, suggest ways for today’s elected officials to find common ground,...
As the Supreme Court concludes another contentious term, it is once again reshaping the legal landscape. With cases on abortion, gun rights and social media — and potentially...
Two billion people worldwide are set to vote in elections this year, amid global conflict, societal mistrust, broken information ecosystems — and the truth-destroying disrupti...
