Wartime and Conflict Diplomacy with Ambassador Harry Thomas

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Though diplomacy is often thought of as an alternative to war, diplomats and international institutions play a critical role on the front lines of an armed conflict. Beyond the central focus on maintaining peace and multilateral relations, diplomats must prepare for conflict when it is unavoidable, deploy resources and humanitarian support, and work with stakeholders to restore stability when a conflict is resolved. Diplomatic efforts have been crucial to international peace-keeping amidst Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.

Join WorldDenver to hear Ambassador Harry Thomas, former Director General of the Foreign Service and former Ambassador to Zimbabwe during Mugabe's regime in conversation with Greg Dobbs, Emmy-award winning journalist and former ABC News War Correspondent, discuss the evolving role of diplomats, the State Department, and the United Nations in preventing and responding to war and conflict. Presented in partnership with the Tattered Cover.

We are also thrilled to welcome emerging European entrepreneurs from the Young Transatlantic Innovation Leaders Initiative (YTILI) program who will be spending four weeks in Denver working with local businesses as professional fellows, collaborating with their business counterparts in Denver, and engaging in professional learning and cultural exchange.

Event Agenda:
5:30 p.m. Registration, networking with YTILI fellows, and hors d'oeuvres
6:00 p.m. Program & Q&A
7:30 p.m. Speaker Series concludes
7:30 p.m. Meetup with Amb. Thomas hosted by Young Professionals at Milepost Zero Food Hall**
9:00 p.m. Networking concludes

**Following the speaker program, join our Young Professionals for a networking meetup with Ambassador Thomas to continue the conversation on his expertise and distinguished career in the Foreign Service. This will also be an opportunity to further engage with and welcome the YTILI professional fellows and learn more about working and serving abroad. 

Tickets:
$45 for non-members
$30 for WorldDenver members
       Be sure to log into your account!
$15 for WorldDenver Young Professionals

**All tickets include access to the meetup hosted by the WorldDenver Young Professionals at the Milepost Zero Food Hall

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About Our Speaker:

Ambassador Harry K. Thomas Jr.
Speaker

Ambassador Harry K. Thomas Jr. is a Senior Kissinger Fellow at Yale University’s Jackson Institute and a Senior Strategic Advisor at Special Operations Command, a private business consultant and an international affairs lecturer.  Over his 34-year Foreign Service career, he represented the United States abroad as Ambassador three times and served in senior positions at the State Department and the White House. He retired in March 2018 with the rank of Career Minister.

He served as ambassador to Zimbabwe, the Philippines and Bangladesh. Ambassador Thomas also served as the State Department’s Executive Secretary and Special Assistant to Secretary Rice, Director General of the Foreign Service and Director of Human Resources, Director for South Asia at the National Security Council and Director of the Operations Center. 

Ambassador Thomas speaks Spanish, Hindi, Bengali and conversational Tagalog.  He is a graduate of the College of the Holy Cross and holds a master’s from Columbia University.  Ambassador Thomas holds Honorary Doctorates from the College of the Holy Cross, Loyola University of Maryland and Angeles University Foundation of the Philippines and was the Commencement Speaker at these institutions.  

He is a member of the College of the Holy Cross, The Asia Foundation and Care for the Homeless Board of Trustees and Chairperson of the Winter4Kids Board of Trustees.  He is a Fellow of Yale University’s Berkeley College. Ambassador Thomas is the recipient of the Secretary of State’s Distinguished Service Award; the Arnold L. Raphel Memorial Award for Mentoring; the Senior Foreign Service Presidential Award and several Superior Honor and Meritorious Honor Awards; the Order of Sikatuna of the Philippines for Exceptional Service and the In Hoc Signo Vinces Award from the College of the Holy Cross.  

He is married to Mithi Aquino-Thomas and has three adult children.  They reside in Tampa, Florida. He is a fervent fan of New York sports teams, enjoys snorkeling, golf and connecting with social media friends in the global community.

Note: As a nonpartisan convener of global affairs programming, WorldDenver provides an unbiased forum for experts, world leaders, diplomats, and representatives from the public and private sectors to share their expertise and views on a broad spectrum of issues that matter to the world. We aim for our events to inspire curiosity and further reading, discussion, and civic engagement among our members and the Denver community on the global issues that we present.