BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//The World Affairs Council of Greater Reading - ECPv6.16.3//NONSGML v1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-WR-CALNAME:The World Affairs Council of Greater Reading X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://wacreading.org X-WR-CALDESC:Events for The World Affairs Council of Greater Reading REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H X-Robots-Tag:noindex X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/New_York BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20250309T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20251102T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20260308T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20261101T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20270314T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20271107T060000 END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260420T083000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260420T173000 DTSTAMP:20260616T043417 CREATED:20260311T153013Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260227T143729Z UID:8525-1776673800-1776706200@wacreading.org SUMMARY:Excursion 2026: Two Treasures of Harrisburg DESCRIPTION:EXCURSION 2026\nTWO TREASURES OF HARRISBURG\nMonday\, April 20\, 2026 \nFeaturing the Pennsylvania State Capitol & National Civil War Museum \nThe Capitol Experience \nOur day begins at the Pennsylvania State Capitol\, where Senator Judith Schwank willhost our group for an inside look at state government in action. \nHighlights include: \n\nGuided tour of the historic Capitol\nLunch at the Capitol Café\nEscort to the Senate chamber for the opening of session\n\n  \nThe National Civil War Museum\nAfter lunch\, we will travel a short distance to the National Civil War Museum\, a Smithsonian-affiliated institution known for its balanced and comprehensive presentation of America’s defining conflict. \nOur visit includes: \n\nA special presentation by CEO Wayne Motts • Free time for a self-guided\ntour of the museum\n\n  \nItinerary \n8:30 a.m. – Depart from Walmart\, Wyomissing\n10:00 a.m. – Arrival at Capitol (go through security)\n11:00 a.m. – Capitol tour\n11:45 a.m. – Lunch at Capitol Café\n12:30 p.m. – Senate chamber session\n1:30 p.m. – Depart Capitol\n2:00 p.m. – Arrive at Civil War Museum\n4:00 p.m. – Depart for Wyomissing \nAbout Senator Judith Schwank\nSenator Schwank has represented Pennsylvania’s 11th District since 2011 and has devoted her career to public service. Her work focuses on agriculture\, food systems\, and the health and well-being of women and children. She previously served in leadership roles with the Penn State Cooperative Extension\, where she helped establish the Master Gardener Program. \nShe made history as the first woman elected Berks County Commissioner\, securing major renovations for Berks Heim and strengthening community services. She has also served as Dean of Agriculture and Environmental Services at Delaware Valley College. \nSenator Schwank holds both a B.S. and M.Ed. from Penn State and completed the Executive Leadership Program at Harvard University. She currently serves as Democratic Chair of the Senate Agriculture & Rural Affairs Committee and sits on the Appropriations\, Game & Fisheries\, and Health & Human Services Committees. \n  \nAbout Wayne Motts\nWayne Motts is a nationally recognized Civil War historian\, museum leader\, and author. Before joining the National Civil War Museum\, he served as President and CEO of the Gettysburg Foundation\, where he played a key role in preserving and enhancing Gettysburg National Military Park. \nHe holds a B.A. in Military History from Ohio State University and an M.A. in American History from Shippensburg University. Motts has written extensively on Civil War history and is a frequent speaker\, educator\, and media contributor. His leadership has strengthened public understanding of this pivotal period in American history. \n  \n  \n  \n\nCost \n(includes transportation\, coffee\, snacks\, lunch & special programs) \n\nMembers: $120 per person\nAmbassadors/Benefactors: $110 per person(Spouse at member rate)\nStudents: $65 (limited to 3)\n\nSeating is limited to 25 participants(per request of Senator Schwank)\nReservations required by March 31\, 2026 – First come\, first served \nTo reserve your seat\, please contact:\nKristina Prislin\, Treasurer\, 610-376-2240 URL:https://wacreading.org/event/excursion-2026/ LOCATION:Harrisburg\, PA END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260513T113000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260513T130000 DTSTAMP:20260616T043417 CREATED:20250820T183033Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260404T135905Z UID:8363-1778671800-1778677200@wacreading.org SUMMARY:Middle East Tensions with Michael O'Hanlon DESCRIPTION:Michael O’Hanlon is a senior fellow\, and director of research\, in Foreign Policy at the Brookings Institution\, where he specializes in U.S. defense strategy\, the use of military force\, and American national security policy. He co-directs the Security and Strategy Team\, the Defense Industrial Base working group\, and the Africa Security Initiative within the Foreign Policy program\, as well. He is an adjunct professor at Columbia\, Georgetown\, and Syracuse universities\, and a member of the International Institute for Strategic Studies. O’Hanlon was also a member of the External Advisory Board at the Central Intelligence Agency from 2011-2012. \nO’Hanlon’s latest books include: The Senkaku Paradox: Risking Great Power War over Limited Stakes (Brookings\, 2019); Beyond NATO: A New Security Architecture for Eastern Europe (Brookings\, 2017); The Future of Land Warfare (Brookings\, 2015); and Strategic Reassurance and Resolve: U.S.-China Relations in the 21st Century (with Jim Steinberg\, Princeton University Press\, 2014). Previously\, he wrote Bending History: Barack Obama’s Foreign Policy (with Martin Indyk and Kenneth Lieberthal\, Brookings\, 2012); A Skeptic’s Case for Nuclear Disarmament (Brookings\, 2010); The Science of War (Princeton University Press\, 2009); Crisis on the Korean Peninsula (with Mike Mochizuki\, McGraw-Hill\, 2003); Winning Ugly: NATO’s War to Save Kosovo (with Ivo Daalder\, Brookings\, 2000); and Technological Change and the Future of Warfare (Brookings\, 2000)\, among others. \nO’Hanlon has written several hundred op-eds in newspapers including The Washington Post\, The New York Times\, The Los Angeles Times\, The Washington Times\, The Financial Times\, The Wall Street Journal\, The Japan Times\, USA Today\, and Pakistan’s Dawn paper. His articles have appeared in Foreign Affairs\, The National Interest\, Survival\, Washington Quarterly\, Joint Forces Quarterly\, and International Security\, among other publications. O’Hanlon has appeared on television or spoken on the radio some 4\,000 times since eptember 11\, 2001. \nO’Hanlon was an analyst at the Congressional Budget Office from 1989-1994. He also worked previously at the Institute for Defense Analyses. His Ph.D. from Princeton is in public and international affairs; his bachelor’s and master’s degrees\, also from Princeton\, are in the physical sciences. He served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Congo/Kinshasa (the former Zaire) from 1982-1984\, where he taught college and high school physics in French. Earlier\, he worked on a dairy farm in Upstate New York\, where he grew up\, and attempted (unsuccessfully) with a team of Princeton experimental physicists in the “Gravity Group” to disprove Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity. \nClick here to attend live \nClick here to register for this webinar now URL:https://wacreading.org/event/middle-east-tensions-with-michael-ohanlon/ LOCATION:McGlinn Conference Center\, 460 Saint Bernardine Street\, Reading\, PA\, 19607\, United States CATEGORIES:Luncheon Meeting ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://wacreading.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Screenshot-2024-08-30-at-1.05.07 PM.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260610T163000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260610T180000 DTSTAMP:20260616T043417 CREATED:20260323T212322Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260609T000013Z UID:8548-1781109000-1781114400@wacreading.org SUMMARY:The Pennsylvania German and the American Revolution DESCRIPTION:William W. Donner received his PhD in anthropology from the University of Pennsylvania. He is currently the Freyberger Professor of Pennsylvania German Studies at Kutztown University. He has been involved with the Pennsylvania German Cultural Heritage Center\, The Kutztown Folk Festival\, and other Pennsylvania German organizations for over 25 years. He has published about Pennsylvania Germans in numerous journals including\, Pennsylvania History\, Pennsylvania Magazine of Biography and History\, Yearbook of German American Studies and Sociological Inquiry\, among other journals. He has published a book about Pennsylvania German expressive culture\, Serious Nonsense: Groundhog Lodges\, Versammlinge\, and Pennsylvania German Heritage (2016\, Penn State Press). \n  \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Patrick Donmoyer is Director of the Pennsylvania German Cultural Heritage Center at Kutztown University\, a folklife museum and research center on the Kutztown Campus. An avid speaker of Pennsylvania Dutch\, Patrick’s research blends the study of folk art\, vernacular language\, rural architecture\, seasonal customs\, and healing traditions. In 2022\, Patrick received the American Folklore Society’s Archie Green Public Folklore Advocacy Award for significant contributions impacting folk traditions and their communities in the United States. Patrick is the author of numerous articles\, and four books\, including Hex Signs: Myth and Meaning in Pennsylvania Dutch Barn Stars (2013)\, Powwowing in Pennsylvania: Braucherei and the Ritual of Everyday Life (2018)\, and Painter of the Stars: The Life and Work of Milton J. Hill (2021). \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Registration is now closed. URL:https://wacreading.org/event/the-pennsylvania-german-during-the-american-revolution/ LOCATION:Reading Liederkranz\, 143 Spook Lane\, Reading\, PA\, 19606\, United States END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260909T113000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260909T131500 DTSTAMP:20260616T043417 CREATED:20260609T000617Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260609T001056Z UID:8586-1788953400-1788959700@wacreading.org SUMMARY:Islam: the Basics and Role in Today’s World DESCRIPTION:Dr. Natana J. DeLong-Bas is Professor of the Practice of Theology and Islamic Civilizations and Societies\, and the Director of the Theology and Interreligious Studies minor at Boston College. Earning her Ph.D. from Georgetown University\, she is an internationally recognized expert on Islam and Christianity\, comparative ethics\, women and gender\, Islamic law\, environmental ethics\, and the Arabian Gulf. \nAs a leading voice in her field\, Dr. DeLong-Bas frequently serves as a consultant to the United Nations\, international media outlets\, governments\, and corporations. She is the Past President of the American Council for the Study of Islamic Societies (ACSIS) and holds several prestigious editorial roles\, including Co-Editor of the Journal of Ecumenical Studies and Editor-in-Chief of both Oxford Bibliographies Online – Islamic Studies and The Oxford Encyclopedia of Islam and Women. \nShe is a prolific author and editor whose notable works include Islam: A Living Faith\, Shariah: What Everyone Needs to Know\, and Wahhabi Islam: From Revival and Reform to Global Jihad. Notably\, Wahhabi Islam was translated into Arabic\, Russian\, and French\, and was named one of the top five books for understanding Islam by The Wall Street Journal. \nLive URL:https://wacreading.org/event/islam-the-basics-and-role-in-todays-world/ LOCATION:McGlinn Conference Center\, 460 Saint Bernardine Street\, Reading\, PA\, 19607\, United States ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://wacreading.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Natara_DeLong-Bas.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20261014T103000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20261014T131500 DTSTAMP:20260616T043417 CREATED:20260609T001038Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260609T001038Z UID:8589-1791973800-1791983700@wacreading.org SUMMARY:Dr. Oya Dursun-Ozkanca on Turkey DESCRIPTION:Dr. Oya Dursun-Ozkanca is the College Professor of International Studies (Endowed Chair) and Professor of Political Science at Elizabethtown College\, where she also serves as the Director of the Honors Program and the International Studies Minor. An internationally recognized political scientist\, her research expertise spans transatlantic security\, Turkish foreign policy\, the European Union\, the Eastern Mediterranean\, and peace operations. \nA distinguished and prolific scholar\, Dr. Dursun-Ozkanca has authored two recent books\, including Turkey–West Relations: The Politics of Intra-alliance Opposition (Cambridge University Press)\, which was recently translated and published in Turkey. She has also edited multiple volumes on the European Union and civil wars\, and her research frequently appears in leading peer-reviewed international relations journals. Additionally\, she serves on the editorial boards of several academic publications\, including Ethnopolitics and the International Review of Turkish Studies. \nDr. Dursun-Ozkanca’s work has been supported by prestigious fellowships and grants from institutions such as Georgetown University\, the London School of Economics\, the European Commission\, and the Mellon Foundation. In 2021\, she served as a Visiting Scholar at Harvard University’s Weatherhead Center for International Affairs. Highly regarded for her dedication to education\, she has taught at universities across the U.S.\, Turkey\, Poland\, Ukraine\, and Kosovo\, and has received Elizabethtown College’s highest honors for teaching excellence\, outstanding student service\, and research excellence. \nLive and Zoom URL:https://wacreading.org/event/dr-oya-dursun-ozkanca-on-turkey/ LOCATION:McGlinn Conference Center\, 460 Saint Bernardine Street\, Reading\, PA\, 19607\, United States ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://wacreading.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Oya_Dursun-Ozkanca.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20261209T113000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20261209T131500 DTSTAMP:20260616T043417 CREATED:20260609T001348Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260609T001348Z UID:8593-1796815800-1796822100@wacreading.org SUMMARY:Bret Schafer on AI DESCRIPTION:Bret Schafer is the Senior Director of Policy and Research for Information Operations at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD). A leading expert in state-backed information operations and tech policy\, he specializes in tracking foreign manipulation\, coordinated inauthentic behavior\, and the use of AI in online warfare. \nPreviously\, he served as a Senior Fellow at the Alliance for Securing Democracy\, where he created the Hamilton 2.0 dashboard to track Russian\, Chinese\, and Iranian state messaging. He regularly advises governments and international organizations\, and his expert commentary is frequently featured in major outlets like The New York Times\, The Wall Street Journal\, and CNN. \nBret holds a Master’s in Public Diplomacy from USC and a B.S. from Northwestern University. Beyond his national security work\, he brings a uniquely global perspective shaped by his past experiences as an intern at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow\, a radio host in Budapest\, and a semi-professional baseball player in Germany. \nLive URL:https://wacreading.org/event/bret-schafer-on-ai/ LOCATION:McGlinn Conference Center\, 460 Saint Bernardine Street\, Reading\, PA\, 19607\, United States ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://wacreading.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Brett_Schafer.jpg END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR