The Young Initiative invites foreign policy experts and guest speakers to campus to engage in discussions on international relations and the global political economy with students and faculty.
Past Young Initiative Speaker Events
Young Initiative speakers give students and faculty an opportunity to expand their understanding of global issues. The Young Initiative sponsors several speakers each academic year highlighting particular aspects of global affairs and the global political economy. The Young Speakers program is devoted to highlighting the work and success of eminent international affairs experts and Oxy alumni in public service and academia.
On September 30, the John Parke Young Initiative on the Global Political Economy held its annual Young Grant Showcase in Morrison. Four students and one faculty member presented research and internship projects funded by Young grants over the past year. The projects spanned four continents and fields from housing policy to climate finance.
On September 17, 2026, the John Parke Young Initiative welcomed Dr. Sergii Glebov to Choi Auditorium to discuss the Russia-Ukraine war and its implications for European security. Glebov is an Associate Professor at I.I. Mechnikov Odesa National University in Odesa, Ukraine, and a Visiting Professor at UC Irvine through their Scholars at Risk network.
On September 3, 2026, the John Parke Young Initiative on the Global Political Economy hosted Ambassador Virginia E. Palmer in Fowler 302 for an introduction and open Q&A. Palmer joins Occidental as the Stuart Chevalier Professor of the Practice in Diplomacy & World Affairs and Ambassador in Residence, following thirty-nine years in the Foreign Service that included ambassadorships to Ghana and...
Dr. Kelebogile Zvobgo spoke to an audience on April 7, 2026—eight years after her first visit to Occidental College, at the invitation of Professor Anthony Chase—to discuss her recently published book Governing Truth: NGOs and the Politics of Transitional Justice. Zvobgo opened with a note of both advice and warning for students: the research questions you pursue as an undergraduate can follow you...
On Wednesday, April 15th, 2026, the Young Initiative had the privilege of hosting the 2025 Young Initiative Fellow, Rachel Tan for a student-focused brown bag lunch discussion on "Life and Labor in the Making of Global AI." Tan, a fourth-year PhD candidate in the Department of Political Science at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, shared insights from her ongoing dissertation research on the...
On February 23, 2026, Mr. Eric Garcetti, former Mayor of Los Angeles and Ambassador to India, returned to Occidental College’s campus, where he taught in the Diplomacy & World Affairs department before being elected to the Los Angeles City Council.
On February 19th, 2026, the Young Initiative had the privilege of hosting the inaugural Young Initiative Fellow, Ankushi Mitra, for a student-focused event that allowed for discussion of research, grad school, and broader impact.
On December 3, 2025, the Young Initiative hosted the “State of the World 2025” talk, joined by Ambassador Derek Shearer and Diplomacy and World Affairs (DWA) Professor Anthony Chase.
Ambassador Derek Shearer came to Occidental College’s campus on November 6th, 2025 to present a talk on sports diplomacy drawing on insights from his article “To Play Ball, Not Make War” published in the Harvard International Review in 2014. He is a former practicing sports diplomat, and the Director of the McKinnon Center for Global Affairs at Oxy.
On November 4, 2025, the Young Initiative hosted a talk by Dr. Srinivas “Chinnu” Parinandi on “Current Trends and Challenges in U.S. State Energy Policy.”