Welcome to the School of Policy and International Affairs

It gives us great pleasure to welcome you, whether you are a student, staff, faculty or visitor, and to invite you to browse our web site for programs and offerings of our School.  This website aims to give you an overview of activities sponsored and initiated by SPIA, including conference programs and special events.  SPIA also brings together faculty across campus in interdisciplinary mode to advance research and education on issues of critical importance in today’s global society.

RECENT EVENT:

February 6, 2012
Topic: Lessons From the “Reconstruction” of Iraq
Speaker: Mr. Peter Van Buren, Fmr. State Department Iraq PRT leader; Author, ‘We Meant Well: How I Helped Lose the Battle for the Hearts and Minds of the Iraqi People‘

Note: Peter Van Buren gave a nearly identical presentation with the same title earlier in the day at the Mid-Coast Forum on Foreign Relations at Point Lookout Resort & Conference Center in Northport, ME.  To listen to this talk, please click here.

If you prefer to download the MP3 audio file to your computer for later listening, right click here, then “Save Target As” or “Save Link As”. Please note that the downloadable file will be quite large and may take a long time to download depending on the speed of your connection to the internet.

Also, Van Buren and SPIA Assistant Director, Jim Settele, joined The Pulse Morning Show with Pat LaMarche & Don Cookson (103.1 FM) for an in-studio interview.  Click here to stream the discussion, and here to download (note that the segment is 50 minutes long and begins at around 01:02:00).

[Disclaimer: Mr. Van Buren's views were  solely expressed in his capacity as a private citizen and did not in any way represent the views of the Department of State, the Department of Defense, or any other entity of the U.S. Government. His remarks were not approved, endorsed, or authorized by The Department of State.]

LATEST CONFERENCE:

 - Islam and the West: A Civilized Dialogue
May 16-17, 2011
Conference sponsored by the The Emirates Center for Strategic Studies and Research (ECSSR), in cooperation with SPIA and the University of Maine.
Location: Abu Dhabi, UAE (Program)