草榴社区

aerial view of Western's campus at night, with golden lights surrounded by dark trees

草榴社区鈥檚 Munro Seminar for Civic Education Set for Oct. 23 and 24; keynote to discuss trade with China

Western Washington University鈥檚 Ralph Munro Institute for Civic Education will host the annual Munro Seminar on Oct. 23 and 24; this year鈥檚 theme is former Washington Secretary of State, 草榴社区 alumnus and former 草榴社区 trustee Ralph Munro鈥檚 legacy in international affairs.

Programs will highlight Munro鈥檚 role in stimulating trade between Washington and the Far East, and his humanitarian work in East Africa.

The keynote speaker will be David Bachman, professor of Political Science at the Jackson School of International Studies at the University of Washington.

Bachman will talk about US-China trade relations during the Trump presidency in his keynote presentation, 鈥淐hina and the United States: Trade and Security Tensions in the Era of Trump.鈥 His lecture will be held in the Walton Room of the Mount Baker Theatre on Tuesday, Oct. 23 at 7 p.m. The Mount Baker Theatre is located at 104 N. Commercial St. in Bellingham.

The seminar will also feature panels in the Wilson Library Reading Room on Western鈥檚 campus on Wednesday, October 24 from 2:30-6 p.m.

The panel on Global Citizenship will begin at 2:30 p.m. Panelists include the Bellingham Chapter of Engineers without Borders, Liz Mogford of Western鈥檚 Sociology department, and Lauren McClanahan of the Bellingham Sister Cities Association and Western鈥檚 Secondary Education department. Vicki Hamblin, the executive director for the Institute for Global Engagement at Western, will moderate the panel.

The Global Citizenship panel will last until 4 p.m., when a half-hour intermission with complimentary snacks will be introduced.

The Trade Policy under the Trump Presidency panel will begin at 4:30 p.m. Laurie Trautman, the director of the Border Policy Research Institute at Western, will moderate the panel. Panelists will include Louis Mingo, an economic affairs officer for the Mexican Consulate, and Christopher Sands of the School of Advanced International Studies at John Hopkins University. Jason Query from Western鈥檚 Economics department and Stan Sorscher, the president of the Washington Fair Trade Coalition are also panelists.

For more information, go to or contact Vernon Johnson, Western political science professor and director for the Ralph Munro Institute for Civic Education at vernon.johnson@wwu.edu.

Munro seminar set for Oct. 23 and 24