United States Publications

Educating for Democracy: The Taube Discussion Series on Teaching American Values

Mar 05, 2013
What are core American values, and how should they be taught in the nation's classrooms? Four lectures on the subject were presented by the Hon. Sandra Day O'Connor, Dr. Donna E. Shalala, Prof. Erwin Chemerinsky, and Prof. Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot. The lightly edited version of their talks provides thoughts about both basic values and the approaches most likely to be successful with K-12 students. more

Trends in American and European Press Coverage of Synthetic Biology: 2008 – 2011

Mar 01, 2013
Press coverage of synthetic biology in the United States and Europe increased significantly between 2008 and 2011. This report builds on the project’s earlier study of press coverage in the United States and Europe during the 2003-2008 period. The new report finds an increase in the sheer number of articles about synthetic biology. It further finds that this coverage is driven by high-profile events and that there are growing similarities in how the technology is covered in the United States and Europe. This report also highlights key recommendations from recent reports focused on the press and public engagement. more

U.S. Ambassadors to Mexico: The Relationship Through Their Eyes

Feb 26, 2013
What emerges in this publication is a nuanced portrait of the individuals who have been tasked with serving as the key link of the U.S. government with Mexico. Dolia Estévez's effort to bring their memories and their perspectives to light helps illuminate a little known part of the political relationship between the two countries. It also chronicles a changing relationship between these countries from "distant neighbors" to "intimate strangers," who are deeply dependent on one another and yet are only still getting to know one another well enough to manage the relationship. more

Changing Energy: Canada and the United States

Feb 07, 2013
Americans are generally surprised to learn that more of the energy that the United States imports comes from Canada than from any other country. Really, you say? The United States imports 2.7 million barrels of crude oil and refined products from Canada every day, representing 24 percent of total petroleum imports—about twice what is imported from Saudi Arabia. more

How Should America Respond to Economic Opportunities in Africa?

Feb 07, 2013
U.S. policy toward Africa has been on autopilot for much of the past four years, following a laundry list of good intentions that established priorities for Africa’s well-being and U.S. security interests. However, a truly sustainable and forward-looking U.S. policy toward Africa should refocus attention on Africa’s opportunity as an economic powerhouse of the future, a strategy that combines both domestic self-interest and an opportunity to help Africa move forward. more

North Korea and the American Radical Left

Feb 06, 2013
NKIDP e-Dossier no. 14, "'Our Common Struggle against Our Common Enemy': North Korea and the American Radical Left," is introduced by Benjamin R. Young and features ten documents from the personal papers of Eldridge Cleaver, a former Black Panther Party leader, which describe Cleaver's fascination with and travels to the DPRK during the "long 1960s." more

Strengthening Health Systems in North and Central America: What Role for Migration?

Feb 01, 2013
As the demographics, epidemiological profiles, and migration patterns of El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and the United States change, there is rich opportunity to explore how the effective management of migration across these countries might help meet the demand for health care services. Using a comparative case study, this report looks at health care services and human resources in all five countries to identify constraints on health care capacity. Nursing personnel are the focus of the report. more

Ripe with Change: Evolving Farm Labor Markets in the United States, Mexico, and Central America

Feb 01, 2013
This report contributes to the Regional Migration Study Group's vision for human-capital infrastructure development in the United States, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador by assessing trends in agriculture and their implications for farm labor markets. Such implications include demand for skills and requisite education and workforce development. more

Process Gimmicks Can't Replace Policymaking

Jan 24, 2013
It is often said that process is policy; that he who makes the rules controls policy outcomes. But in recent years, process has often been used to avoid tough policy choices, especially when it comes to getting government spending under control, writes Don Wolfensberger. more

Manufacturing in the United States, Mexico, and Central America: Implications for Competitiveness and Migration

Jan 01, 2013
The economies of Mexico, and to a lesser extent, Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador, have benefited from aggressive manufacturing-attraction strategies. At the same time, the achievements of the maquiladora development strategy have masked important flaws that threaten to stymie the promise of even greater economic growth. more

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The Wilson Weekly

Dialogue

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Way of the Knife

May 22, 2013May 29, 2013

This week on Dialogue at the Wilson Center our guest is Mark Mazzetti, a Pulitzer Prize winning reporter for The New York Times. He is the author of the new book, “The Way of the Knife: The CIA, a Secret Army, and a War at the Ends of the Earth.” We also spoke with Curtis Brainard, Editor of The Observatory, the Columbia Journalism Review’s “lens on the science press,” to survey the landscape of science journalism.