Former Foreign Service officer to speak at Ripon College Sept. 5

Former Foreign Service officer and diplomat Thomas Hanson will speak about foreign policy during a talk at Ripon College Tuesday, Sept. 5. “U.S. Foreign Policy, Past and Present Trends” will address challenges facing the current administration. The talk will begin at 4:30 p.m. in Kresge Little Theatre, East Hall. A reception will follow the event. The talk is sponsored by the Center for Politics and the People.

Hanson currently is in his eighth year as diplomat in residence with the Royal D. Alworth Institute for International Studies at the University of Minnesota-Duluth. He is a former U.S. Foreign Service officer with the Department of State whose diplomatic postings included East Germany, France, Norway, the Soviet Union, Sweden and the former Soviet Republic of Georgia.

He also participated in the opening of new U.S. embassies in Mongolia and Estonia, worked on the Foreign Relations Committees of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, and served as director for NATO and European Affairs at the Atlantic Council of the United States in Washington, D.C.

The Center for Politics and the People at Ripon College was created to promote constructive political debate, analyze public policy and foster the engagement of citizens and their government. Every year the Center hosts speakers and panels to foster discussion surrounding current events and policy objectives.