Sept. 14: The Great Decisions program, Peacebuilding and Conflict Resolution, will be presented by Dr. Cynthia Combs, a professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Dr. Combs teaches courses on political violence, defense and national security and international law.
U.S. campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan have shown that military force alone cannot ensure peace in all conflicts. How can the U.S. successfully integrate the tools of peacebuilding into its statecraft? At what point do poverty, disease and climate change threaten national security? What role can non-governmental actors play in supporting government-led efforts?
Sept. 21: “Transcending the Tragic” will be presented by Dr. Richard Tedeschi, professor of psychology at UNC-Charlotte.
Dr. Tedeschi will review what we have learned from people who have reported personal growth and transcendence in the aftermath of major life traumas such as combat, life-threatening illness, bereavement, and natural disasters. Members will also have an opportunity to participate in ongoing research into this phenomenon.
Sept. 28: Cape Horn and Square-Rigged Sailing Ships. Bill Parish, who retired from the U.S. Coast Guard after spending time on the seas south of Cape Horn, will present a program on the complexity and danger of sail-handling on a square-rigged sailing ship and give us a personal view. He will also talk about the history of square-riggers sailing around Cape Horn – the most dangerous era in man’s seafaring.
Oct. 5: John Boyer, president and CEO of Bechtler Museum of Modern Art. The Bechtler Museum of Modern Art is dedicated to the celebration and analysis of the strongest aspects of mid-century modernism as reflected in the holdings of the Bechtler Collection. The collection presented includes works by the most important and influential artists of the mid-20th century, including Miró, Giacometti, Picasso, Calder, Hepworth, Nicholson, Warhol, Tinguely, Ernst, Le Corbusier, Chillida and many others. Only a handful of these artworks have been on public view in the United States. Until now, the collection was privately held by the Bechtler family of Switzerland