SCUSA-Lobe

Alliances and Multilateral Organizations - In a world with nationalism and far-right political parties on the rise, there is growing level of disenfranchisement and anger directed towards the globalization that occurred during the later half od the 20th century. These sentiments have the potential to undermine the current liberal world order and are a major cause for concern. It is crucial that global intuitions, trade deals, and strategic alliances continue to be strong an effective. At the SCUSA Conference we discussed many of these alliances and organizations that deal with a multitude of issues from economic power to martial strength and cultural influences. NATO is a prominent example of a current alliance that is under threat. The alliance which once helped end the Cold War is now a struggling contingent of disagreeing states. Russia's power is on the rise ad it is essential that the U.S. and its NATO allies work together to minimize Putin's influence and land holdings in Eastern Europe. While the conference addresses the benefits of having alliances and being part of multilateral organizations. These reasons are fairly straightforward and include economic benefits, military allies, and allows countries to stay relevant in a globalized world with only a few superpowers. However, we also discussed the surrounding being a member of either. Many organizations do not have equal representation, do not form plans with unanimous support, and at times suffer economically from certain trade deals. We need to ensure that all this reorganizations from the WTO to the UN are fair, impartial, and equitable to all the countries represented.; West Point SCUSA Conference - I was lucky enough to attend the US Military Academy's Student Conference on US Affairs in the fall of 2019 as a representative of Union College. I was assigned to the Trade, Jobs, and Globalization roundtable where we ultimately formulated a foreign policy recommendation to be sent to Secretary of State Michael Pompeo. It was a unique and enlightening experience to negotiate with other students from different universities, backgrounds, and even nationalities. We were eventually successful in creating a strategy to further global efforts in renewable energy and technological innovation strategies by creating a quasi-TPP system. Our ultimate goals were multifaceted which included the creation of a clean energy and innovative-friendly free-trade agreement, seeking to incentivize nations to reform their economic structures in order to gain accession, typically through pro-market and neoliberal adjustments. The result of such an agreement would further deepen the integration of global value chains, resulting in mutually beneficial outcomes and socioeconomic development worldwide, as well as the popularization and institutionalization of economic values including reciprocity, multilateralism, and free-trade.; Student Conference on Foreign Affairs at West Point - I participated in a conference at West Point that focused on different aspects of US foreign policy. The purpose of the conference was to have both civilian and military perspectives on how the US should deal with future US foreign policy. I was selected to participate in the trade team where we were tasked with looking at the intersection of domestic and global policy as it pertains to trade, jobs, and globalization. As a group, we wrote a memo that argued for less confrontation with China economically and creating an institutional framework that allowed for global innovation with clean energy. Our group, along with every other group, gave keynotes to all of the attendees of the conference. Some of the attendees also included high-ranking members on the West Point campus. One of the best parts of this conference was interacting with the cadets. We all got to stay in the barracks with the cadets for the nights and I got to have great conversations with the roommates that I was staying with. We got to see all of the routines that the cadets go through each day. We got to listen to several panels that featured high-ranking members of the military and got to hear their perspectives on foreign policy and some of the implications of what the Trump administration is currently working on in regards to the Middle East. The current ambassador to NATO, Kay Bailey Hutchison, was one of the speakers at our conference.