Non-profit NGO Expands Programmatic Offerings With New Educational Outreach As It Approaches Its 40th Anniversary
Washington, D.C.: The National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations (“National Council” or “Council”) is pleased to announce it is establishing a new Strategic Analysis and Research Program to supplement its existing programmatic efforts. The National Council’s new program will provide regular digital newsletters and other informational products to select Council supporters. The program furthers the Council’s role as a clearinghouse for analyses and assessments of the United States relationship with the Arab countries, the Middle East, and the Islamic world. Established in May 1983, the Council launches its new program months ahead of it celebrating its 40th anniversary.
The National Council’s mission is contained in a single word: education. The Strategic Analysis and Research Program will supplement the Council’s other programs, projects, events, and activities by providing a steady stream of information and insights to those who support the Council’s bridge-building efforts. With programs – both in Washington and, uniquely, in communities across the United States – reaching policymakers, educators, private sector practitioners, diplomats, and the next generation of leaders who will determine the course for the future of the U.S.-Arab relationship, the Council is well positioned to continue pursuit of its educational mission as it nears its fourth decade of existence.
National Council Founding President & CEO Dr. John Duke Anthony remarked that “The Council is embarking on a new chapter with the establishment of its Strategic Analysis and Research Program, but it is a familiar one. Since it was established, the Council has prided itself on providing unbiased, cutting-edge educational materials to promote knowledge and understanding of the Arab region. By enhancing the Council’s ability to provide timely information and insights about developments affecting U.S.-Arab relations, the new Strategic Analysis and Research Program will advance the Council’s vision for shared mutual benefit between America and the Arab region.”
The National Council’s Strategic Analysis and Research Program is being launched with assistance from Sandra Charles, who has recently closed her Middle East-focused international consulting and business development group, C&O Resources, after 30 years. She will advise the Council as the program is established and begins its operations. Charles will work alongside many of her former team members who are veteran foreign policy practitioners, scholars, and former government officials. These regional specialists – with decades of experience administering and shaping America’s relations with the Arab countries, the Middle East and the Islamic world – will generate materials critical to assessing the dynamic, multifaceted, and multilayered U.S.-Arab relationship.
Ms. Charles had a distinguished career in the United States Government, serving as White House National Security Council Director for the Near East and South Asia as well as Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Middle East and South Asia in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, International Security Affairs. Charles also previously served on the Council’s Board of Directors after leaving government.
Dr. Anthony noted that “producing the National Council Strategic Analysis and Research Program’s materials will be no small task. Yet, the project is vital to pursuing the Council’s vision of a relationship between the United States and its Arab partners, friends, and allies that rests on as solid and enduring a foundation as possible. By engaging seasoned specialists to assemble and disseminate content-rich and timely information, insights, data, opinions, and analyses, the program will advance the knowledge and understanding critical for enhanced Arab-U.S. cooperation and reciprocal respect. These are vitally needed to address the multifaceted challenges we face.”
About the National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations: Founded in 1983 and based in Washington, D.C., the National Council is an American non-profit, non-governmental, educational organization. The Council pursues its educational mission through a diverse array of programs, projects, events, and activities. Each is dedicated to enhancing American awareness and appreciation of the extraordinary benefits that the United States has long derived from its special relationships with countries in the Arab region – and vice versa.
At the center of the National Council’s efforts to advance American knowledge and understanding of Arab culture, societal dynamics, and systems of governance – and the nature and extent of their impact on U.S. national security, economic, and related interests – are the Council’s flagship education, training, and leadership development programs. These are designed to elevate the leadership skills and empirical Arab-centric educational experiences of the emerging generation of young Americans and Arabs. Upon their shoulders will rest the responsibility for ensuring that the relationships between the American and Arab peoples are continuously deepened, improved, and sustained far into the future.
Information about the Council can be found at ncusar.org.