WILLIAMSBURG — The first installment of the League of Women Voters Great Decisions Lecture Series on Feb. 4 saw keynote speaker Professor Samantha Custer of William & Mary addressing U.S.-China Relations.
Custer is the Director of Policy Analysis for AidData, an international development research lab housed at W&M’s Global Research Institute.
Noting China is the world’s largest creditor, a rising political power, information power and military power, the organization said Custer helped the audience understand the foreign policy objectives and showed possible approaches.
“It was great to be able to step back from the everyday news and to think strategically about these issues,” said attendee Richard Schauffler.
The organization said Custer discussed the tradeoffs of several strategic pathways and then presented the risks and rewards of those choices.
The presentation was followed by questions from the audience. “It was one of the best Q & A sessions we’ve ever had,” attendee Johanna Solomon said.
“I was blown away by the knowledge of the presenter,” added first-time attendee Margaret Blakely.
Professor Eric Brown, a senior research scientist at William & Mary’s Global Research Institute who writes and teaches on China, geopolitics, and U.S. national security, will discuss AI and American national security on Feb. 11. Learn more about the series on its website.
