It’s that time again – early in the semester when we all feel rested and hopeful. New classes are a fresh start and we all agree it’s going to be a great semester – manageable courseloads, exciting lectures, the formation of new study groups and ambitious plans to conquer the research for those final papers by the end of February (all in addition, of course, to regular exercise schedules, pub trips with friends and consistent attention to our summer internship options). Come March, we’ll all be at the end of our wits in midterms and looking for jobs and research funding, cursing our workloads and bleary-eyed from lack of sleep; but, for now, optimism reigns.

My semester is off to a nice start. I had a great break with warm enough weather for some hiking on the coast of Maine (thanks El Nino?) and some excellent time spent museuming and cooking and pubbing with important friends. Indeed, the return of coursework has come as a bit of a jolt, not the least because my first order of business was to read Thucydides’ The Peloponnesian War – all of it.

One of my fields of study at Fletcher is Political Systems and Theories, and so when Professor Daniel Drezner this semester offered a new class called, “Classics of International Relations” in which students will read the entirety of the major foundational texts of IR, it seemed like a pretty easy choice – a course that will force me to read the books that I know I’m probably supposed to in my career.

Despite Professor Drezner explaining at shopping day that the fact that he’d make students read Thucydides was an excellent reason not to take the class, I’ve got to say, aside from some rather tedious sections about weather and some of the smaller battles, I found myself really enjoying the book. Aside from compelling (and disturbingly contemporary at times) speeches, maneuvers, theories and policies, Thucydides was an incredibly compelling writer in conveying defeat and honor and nationalism. In one section, he describes the last moments of Athens’ defeat by the Syracusans. The desolate Athenian soldiers, desperate for drink, run to the water under a shower of Syracusan arrows. They die, poisoned by the water filling with their own blood – the water from the sea by which their empire dominated for generations.

It gives me chills, just as any truly good text on politics should do, I think. Can’t wait for class discussion tonight.

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We wrapped up the first week of classes here at Fletcher with the Fares Center for Eastern Mediterranean Studies‘ annual conference. The topic was The War on Terrorism: Where Do We Stand? By my count, that title alone includes three contestable words and a wholly unanswerable question. As a result, the Conference presenters lacked cohesion and purpose, but that was really the only weakness of the event, which was well-attended, well-organized, and really provided a nice introduction to the Hall of Flags – the main lobby and entrance to Fletcher’s building that was under construction for the entire first-semester and was nicely outfitted with a screen, speakers and live feed of the presentations from the packed auditorium upstairs.

Some themes of the conference and issues that sparked my interest:

*Terrorism is a technique, utilized throughout history to break the will of citizens – clearly, Al Qaeda are not the only contemporary terrorists
*’Expecting to eradicate terrorism is as naïve as expecting to eradicate crime’
-Hisham Melhem
*Islamic terrorism against the west is all about the occupation of Arab lands
*It’s not all about occupation
*It’s about poverty
*It’s not about poverty
*Iraq is a catastrophe, mistake, and catalyst for terrorism.
*Afghanistan is a growing catastrophe – reminiscent of Iraq, in late 2003
*Robespierre got a lot of coverage, as did 19th century Russian anarchists, and inter-war European radicals – was not expecting this, but was definitely enlightened.

Some of the best speakers stressed the dangers of viewing terrorists and specifically Al Qaeda as a monolithic bunch with a shared set of motivations for their acts and provided examples of the vast and diverse network of individuals, groups, and states that participate and have participated in acts of terror (the definition of which was obviously talked about by many speakers as well).

Personally, I was pleased to hear many of these academics, journalists and policy makers (though the latter was lacking) consider the import role of communications technologies in modern-day terrorist networks. Professor Shultz in particular raised the fascinating concept of Internet space as the current sanctuary for Al Qaeda, having lost Afghanistan. On the conceptual level, I find this very interesting: the Web is transnational, just like Afghanistan in the late 90s when Jihadists from around the world converged and organized; the Web is literally a networking space, which successful terrorism requires – especially when carried out by non-state actors; the Web is a space where vital transactions and even trainings can be protected and carried out in secret.

Professor Shultz also considers the Internet to be an ungoverned space, much like the sanctuaries of parts of Sudan, Somalia, Afghanistan, and Pakistan where Al Qaeda has previously thrived. This is a brilliant way of looking at Al Qaeda’s relationship with the Web, but I agree with the last point to a much lesser extent and I think it’s important to realize that the Internet is in fact governable (especially in terms of policing terrorists), but its governance depends on massive international cooperation and creative technological solutions that may or may not inhibit our current freedoms (or at least perceived freedoms) on the Web.

Ok, have to close this post with the most memorable quote from the conference:

‘He hates the country for all the things that brought me here in the first place’

- Hisham Melhem, Washington correspondent for An-Nahar, on Osama Bin Laden’s view of the U.S.

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Over winter break, while the rest of the Fletcher students were vacationing in both tropical and frigid places, spending hours away from their studies and the classroom, I found myself in the midst of teh Harvard environment and negotiating the days away. I enrolled in a winter course at the Kennedy School of Government (KSG) at Harvard University, called “Advanced Workshop in Multiparty Negotiation and Conflict Resolution”. The professor, Brian Mandell, is a wonderful Canadian practitioner of mediation and negotiation, who has held several prestigious positions with the government and in academia.

The workshop was only two weeks, but the days lasted from 9am to 7pm, and sometimes ran as late as 9pm. Katy Bondy (another illustrious and prolific blogger) and I were the only Fletcher students in a classroom of 65 KSG students. As KSG is the main rival of Fletcher, we were prepared to encounter a hostile and unfriendly environment, but found ourselves pleasantly suprised. The students were warm and welcoming, and the professor, Brian Mandell, is one of the best that I have ever had the pleasure of studying with.

A typical day in this workshop including one or more simulated exercises, either involving multiparty negotiation or mediation. We would be given the appropriate background material, asked to prepre individually and often within a group, and then guided into the simulated exercise. The exercises simulated real-life scenarios of labor negotiations, mediation in the Israel-Palestine conflict, international negotiations over an oil pipeline with multiple stakeholders, and other high-stakes exercises. Each simulation included a debrief at the end, where Professor Mandell would discuss the elements involved in each exercise, and frame them in the context of the wider academic discourse.

This course was, hands down, one of the best courses that I have ever taken. The end of the each day found me exhausted and ready to climb in bed after relaxing with a glass of pinot noir, only to rise again after a few short hours. The work was often emotionally challenging, and the exercises allowed me to analyze how I respond in a variety of situations and under different types of pressures (time pressure in terms of a “death clock”, pressure from another team member to give up demands, pressures from an opponent in terms of threats, etc,). I gained a tremendous amount of practical knowledge in this class, and also met quite a few KSG students that I hope to stay in touch with. In addition, it means one less class this spring, which I am clearly very saddened by…

But now it’s time to return to the Fletcher scene, where a whole new selection of theory and academic awaits me. I am excited for this coming semester, and looking forward to explore some new options in my last few months at this school. I will let you know how the explorations go, hopefully within the next few days.

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Ok, a couple of possibilities for how your Reflections bloggers spent their winter break:

1. Conducting research in a conflict ridden nation and making serious contributions to our knowledge of semistates, not to mention his resume.

2. Conducting not-so-serious internet-based research (aka reading blogs, watching YouTube, and catching up on email) from his back with his knee well-iced and elevated above the heart.

The latter category more closely defines my vacation, which was occupied by a knee surgery and subsequent recovery. Thankfully, both went well and blog reading is severely underrated – did wonders for my knowledge of the conflict in Somalia, which was also elevated over the holidays thanks to battles between the Ethiopian military and the de facto Somali government known as The Union of Islamic Courts.

Seriously, in a region that has lacked an official government, significant contributions from international development orgs, and any reliable global news sources for over a dozen years, bloggers and regional experts were really the only decent sources for opinions and information from the ground. Meanwhile, the mainstream cable news coverage of the conflict was basically: Ethiopia swoops in to protect internationally backed government from terrorists and Islamic fundamentalists. But there is so much more to this conflict. To begin with, Ethiopian troops have probably been in the country for at least the last four months, there is something to be said for the stability the UIC was able to provide a previously lawless country, and the degrees to which terrorists would have been able to effectively establish themselves in Somalia are not certain.

The saddest part of the events in the horn of Africa over the last month is that they mark the end of an opportunity for the international community to broker a compromise between the de jure government (the transitional government established by the UN) and the de facto government (the UIC). For now, Somalia has returned to a chaotic state (not even a semistate) where political compromises seem unlikely and is, in part, grounds for proxy battles between Ethiopia and Eritrea (oppressive regimes in their own rights) and US assassinations of suspected terrorists. While Ethiopian troops are beginning to withdraw from this chaos and there is a chance for some stability under the new government, one has to wonder if the violence of the last month could have been avoided through a little bit of political will, aided by more accurate coverage of the conflict and its players.

Oh yeah, back at school too…and walking…with a limp. Classes are looking like a good mix of communications policy, international law, and development economics. Working on getting into a class at Harvard law school: Internet, Politics, and Law. I’m thinking my winter break research will give me a definite leg-up.

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It’s great to have so many of my classmates back at Fletcher, but I actually returned a few weeks ago for a Jessup moot court boot camp. For two weeks, I spent much of my life in the Ginn Library doing research on “creeping expropriation” and examining the privileges and immunities attributed to international organizations. It’s a big relief to have completed our written memorials. I’m looking forward to preparing for our upcoming oral arguments.

The physical space of Fletcher has been transformed since the fall term. Renovations are (mostly) complete and the entire facility seems much more open and cheerful.

I’m quite excited about my spring courses. I’ll be taking mainly law courses – two with Professor Glennon and one with Professor Salacuse. I’m also taking another course with Professor Shultz on terrorism and intelligence. Fletcher really does have a remarkably accomplished faculty in the fields of law and national security.

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Shopping day begins tomorrow for my fourth and final semester at Fletcher. It’s hard to believe–three semesters have already gone by so fast. Knowledge has been acquired, lots of work has been accomplished and great friends have been made. While I will be sad to leave, there is of course part of me that is eager to return to the working world where I won’t have to study on weekends and can watch tv on weeknights.

But my second semester has actually already started. Last week I began a January course at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard. These January courses last for two weeks, but have an intensive format, starting at 9:00 a.m. and ending around 6:00 or 7:00 p.m. It’s one of the great things about going to either Fletcher or KSG as students are allowed to cross-register into either school at no extra cost. I’ve actually never taken a class at KSG before, but so far it’s been a very positive experience.

I first started with an Inclusive Security course taught by Ambassador Swanee Hunt, which focused on the role of women in peacebuilding in conflict environments. Through the course, Amb. Hunt provided us with feedback on our presentation and public speaking skills, which served as a great reminder of how to effectively make public presentations.

But a few days later I was able to switch into the Advanced Multiparty Negotiation Workshop with Professor Brian Mandell. As it’s one of my fields of study, I was very excited to strengthen and hone my negotiation skills, which I’m hoping will at least help me negotiate the price of car one day, but may also be useful in helping me gain future employment. Professor Mandell is a fantastic teacher and he skillfully uses negotiation exercises and simulations, lecture, videos and group work to capture our attention throughout the long day. It’s a class I’d highly recommend. Be warned, however, there’s often a waiting list to get into it. Sometimes you may even have to negotiate to get a spot….at least I did, but it’s well worth it.

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