Prof. Janice Stein

Part of the ongoing MGA Professional Development Workshop series, Prof. Janice Stein lead students in a hands-on workshop on negotiation skills.

MGA CAREER WEEK
Held November 2011

Marian Botsford Fraser is Chair of the Writers in Prison Committee for PEN International

PEN International is sometimes called the first freedom of expression organization in the world; it was founded in 1921 by a group of English writers disturbed by the post-war lack of civility between nations. Within several years, there were PEN centres in countries as farflung as Sweden, Japan and Canada; PEN (an acronym for poets, essayists and novelists)— although its centres carry either the names of nations, or the linguistic identity of a  group of writers in exile—has striven, often with difficulty, to transcend nationalism with “the ideal of one humanity living in peace in one world.”

The PEN charter, binding its members to the protection of freedom of expression and resistance to censorship, was one of the intellectual precursors for Article 19 of the International Declaration on Human Rights. When the United Nations was formed in 1949, PEN was granted formal consultative status. The Writers in Prison Committee, formed in 1960, was a model for Amnesty International, which started up the following year. So the history of PEN is deeply implicated in the evolution of global civil society instruments, networks and organizations.

Ninety years after its beginnings in the drawing rooms of London, strong currents are moving PEN away from its Eurocentric, male-dominated, elitist past. There are now centres in more than 100 countries worldwide—including Iraq, Malawi, Tunisia, Pakistan, Colombia and Haiti. There are centres for which the writers-in-prison work is the only reason to be part of  PEN. There are others for which the paramount issue is the protection of endangered languages and literatures. Another group of centres works to achieve consensus on objectives for peace from the scattered and shattered centres once from the former Yugoslavia, or with Israeli and Palestinian writers.

Human rights advocacy has become highly professionalized in recent years. How does PEN, still essentially a band of amateurs with an elected board of writers and a small secretariat of professional staff based in London, fit into the constellation of global civil society?

Jean‐Pierre has built a distinguished and productive election career in Canada and around the world that spans two decades, and serves as the Chair of Dominion Voting Executive Advisory Committee. Prior to his involvement with Dominion, Jean‐Pierre was the President and CEO of the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) in Washington D.C., and prior to that, he was Chief Electoral Officer of Canada for 17 years. His international experience includes serving as head of the international team observing the Iraqi legislative election in January, 2005 as well as head of another team accompanying the Haitian Presidential elections in 2006. In 2007, Jean‐Pierre was awarded the Mexican Order of the Aztec Eagle, the highest award the Mexican government bestows on foreign nationals. Jean‐Pierre was Head of Mission for the Organization of Security and Co‐operation in Europe (OSCE) to evaluate the elections in Portugal in September 2009 and the elections in the United Kingdom in May 2010.

The workshop will involve discussion of the whole notion of "solidarity" among democrats and aspiring democrats........are other peoples' democracies any of our business? Why are we seemingly always surprised by democratic insurrection?

You will discuss the global trend line between democratic aspiration and authoritarian pushback, as well as the changing nature of diplomacy, and the emphasis today on democratic diplomats connecting directly to local civil society. The role of information technologies and social networks: is it decisive in mobilizing support? Gaming the networks by authoritarian regimes: does it work? Country-case review is important: why did Tunisian protest succeed and Iran or Myanmar's fail? What is the role of foreign governments and diplomats in supporting democratic activists and human rights defenders? How to avoid accusations of "interference?" What works and doesn't work? Are there essential guidelines for democratic transition? Why did we fail expectations in Russia? What is the future?

If you have time to look over the Handbook, you should consult Chapter 2 particularly and notably p 22, 10 features of democratic transition. Depending on your own research interests, you can look at some of the case studies. China and Cuba are interesting, and Burma, Belarus, and Zimbabwe are still very current.

Jeremy Kinsman served as Canada's ambassador or high commissioner to 15 countries, including Russia, Italy, the United Kingdom and the European Union. He currently heads a program for democracy development at the Community of Democracies, which has just published a new edition of the Diplomat's Handbook for Democracy Development Support.

He is Resident International Scholar at the Institute of Governmental Studies, University of California, Berkeley, as well as Distinguished Visiting Diplomat, Ryerson University, Toronto.

Today's students, on average, have 60 or more additional years of their lives ahead of them.  Most will live most of that time in Canada.  The crucial questions are: in what Canada?  In what world? It is time for students not just to learn the past and understand the present but, like students in Egypt, Tunisia, Libya and many other countries, to begin thinking the future and creating the future.

Ken Dryden, MP and author of "Becoming Canada," will talk about how he sees Canada and what he believes such a vision of Canada promises for the future.  In the discussion that follows, students will be challenged to consider their primary areas of study in the context of "this Canada".  To imagine where we should go and what we should do in "this Canada."  To begin thinking the future, and to begin creating the future.

Member of Parliament Ken Dryden was first elected to the House of Commons in 2004 and re-elected most recently in 2008. Ken is well-known for his achievements as a goaltender for the Montreal Canadiens hockey team from 1971 to 1979, during which time the team won six Stanley Cups. In 1984, he was appointed Ontario's first Youth Commissioner. He is the author of four best-selling books: The Game, Home Game, The Moved and the Shaken, and In School.

The discussion will provide a brief outline of the legal framework of the evolution of UN and mission mandates including the Use of Force by peacekeepers.  The discussion will include examples of  some practical challenges UN staff face on the ground including in  the Balkans, East Timor and the Palestinian territory.  More generally, Lynn will highlight the challenge of conflicting UN mandates and the responsibility of international organisations.

Lynn Hastings is a lawyer with a Masters in International Law from the University of Edinburgh. She practiced law in Toronto for five years at Weir Foulds and McMillan Binch before moving to the international arena where she  first worked in the Balkans and East Timor. Since 2003, Lynn has served as the Chief of Staff and Senior Legal Advisor to the UN Special Coordinator to the Middle East Peace Process also working closely with the UN Humanitarian and Resident Coordinator in the Palestinian territory.  She was the UN representative to the Quartet Special Envoy, former World Bank President Jim Wolfensohn, during the Israeli disengagement from Gaza and a Senior Advisor to the UN Personal Representative of the UN Secretary General in Lebanon immediately after the 2006 Israeli – Lebanon war. She is currently a visiting fellow with the Munk School of Global Affairs researching issues of pre-trial detention in conflict and post conflict countries in collaboration with the UN Department of Peacekeeping.

Don is one of the world’s leading authorities on business strategy and innovation, and on how information technology changes business, government and society. Don is Chairman of Moxie Insight and directs several of Insight’s research and education programs, serving a marquee list of Global 2000 customers. He served as founder and chairman of the international think tank New Paradigm before its acquisition in 2007. Don has been named one of the 50 most influential living management thinkers in the world by Thinkers50. He is an internationally sought writer, consultant and speaker. His clients include top executives of many of the world’s largest corporations and government leaders from many countries. He is a fellow of the World Economic Forum and Adjunct Professor at the Joseph L. Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto. Don is the author of 14 widely-read books about information technology in business and society. His most recent book, Macrowikinomics: Rebooting Business and the World, (co-authored with Anthony Williams), was released in September 2010 to tremendous acclaim and is the follow up to 2007’s bestselling business book in the US, Wikinomics (also co-authored with Anthony Williams). Don’s other books include Paradigm Shift, The Digital Economy, and The Naked Corporation. His penultimate book, Grown Up Digital, was a sequel to his 1997 bestseller Growing Up Digital.

Sujeet Sarkar, Senior Regional Advisor, Governance and Civil Society with Aga Khan Foundation (AKF) will speak to the Afghanistan experience where innovative, bottom up approaches to strengthening democracy and governance are promising.

With support from the Canadian International Development Agency, and as part of the Government of Afghanistan’s National Solidarity Program (NSP), AKF in Afghanistan is improving local governance and socio-economic conditions for over 2.1 million people in some 1,250 villages in north eastern Afghanistan. Sujeet will outline how AKF is building local governance and enabling communities to form more sustainable institutions capable of realizing their development. The approach has yielded impressive results, and represents a model for other parts of the country. Lessons from this initiative are helping to shape future support to community level governance in Afghanistan and other conflict prone countries.

About the Speaker:
Sujeet Sarkar is the Senior Regional Advisor, Governance and Civil Society, at Aga Khan Foundation Afghanistan. He has supported the strengthening of civil society and local governance structures in India, Afghanistan, Mozambique, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. He has over 15 years experience in civil society and governance in Asia and East Africa. Sujeet holds a Master’s in Rural Management from Xavier Institute of Social Service, India, and has studied Global Excellence in Management with Case Western Reserve University in Washington D.C. and in Ohio.