Wednesday, January 19, 2005

Jan. 19, 2005

Wilmington, N.C. – The Political Science Department of the University of North Carolina Wilmington, as part of its Great Decisions Discussion Program lecture series, presents Jonathan Weiler, an adjunct assistant professor of Russian and East European Studies at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. He will be discussing Russian reform under Vladimir Putin at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 1 in Cameron Hall auditorium. The lecture is free and open to the public, but seating is limited. Weiler's discussion topics include Russia's position of power in Europe and Asia and Putin's reshaping of Russia by centralizing authority within the federal government.

Weiler received his B.A. from the University of Michigan and his M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. His book, Human Rights in Russia: A Darker Side of Reform, was published in 2004. Weiler lived in Moscow from 1995-96 and has conducted extensive research on the reform process in Russia. Weiler has also been an international election observer for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) participating in the Bosnian and Ukrainian presidential elections.

The Great Decision Discussion Program is the longest standing and largest grassroots world affairs educational program of its kind. It is the core of the Foreign Policy Association’s civic education outreach efforts and works to bring millions of Americans together in communities across the country to discover discuss and decide their opinions on foreign policy issues. This lecture series presents experts in foreign policy on a variety of current global affairs.

Interested individuals should check the event Web site at www.greatdecisionsuncw.com for the most current information or contact Remonda Kleinberg, the advisor for the UNCW Great Decisions Discussion Program, at 910/962-4254 or kleinbergr@uncw.edu.