Skip to main content

2010 Conference

Conference poster depicting an eagle engaging with a dragon over a body of water

2010 Conference

Press Release

CHINA-U.S. RELATIONS IS TOPIC OF 27TH ANNUAL FRANK CHURCH CONFERENCE OCT. 28 AT BOISE STATE

China and U.S. relations with the Asian economic, political and cultural juggernaut will be the focus of the 27th annual Frank Church Conference on Thursday, Oct. 28, hosted by the Frank Church Institute Boise State University.

Titled “Eagle and Dragon: The U.S. and China in the 21st Century,” the day-long conference will feature a number of China experts from around the nation who will discuss the past, present and future of ties between the U.S. and China, as well as the reasons behind the Asian giant’s success.

“This summer, China surpassed Japan as the world’s second largest economy,” said Garry Wenske, director of the Frank Church Institute. “Understanding the nature of our relationships with this vast nation, especially its accelerating economic power, is vital to America’s interests over the next century.”

David Shambaugh, director of the China Policy Program at the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University, will deliver the conference’s keynote address during the conference luncheon. Other speakers include Robert Oxnam, former president of the Asia Society; Ruan Zongze, minister counselor of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China; Jeff Snyder-Reinke, professor of Asian history at the College of Idaho, and Shelton Woods, professor of Chinese studies at Boise State.

The conference will run from 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. in Boise State’s Student Union Simplot Ballroom. With the exception of Shambaugh’s luncheon address ($35 fee, registration required), the conference is free and open to the public.

In conjunction with the conference, the Frank Church Institute and the Idaho Council on Economic Education, along with Boise State’s colleges of Education, Social Sciences and Public Affairs and Business and Economics, are sponsoring an International Economic Summit for Idaho college and advanced high school students. The competitive afternoon session, with a $1,000 award, will focus on international trade and economic issues between the U.S. and China. For information about the student economic summit, contact Leon Maynard, the Idaho Council on Economic Education, at (208) 426-1810 or LeonMaynard@boisestate.edu..

For more information about the Frank Church conference or to register for the luncheon speaker, contact Wenske at (208) 426-2941 or GarryWenske@boisestate.edu. . For more information about the Frank Church Institute, go to Frank Church Institute

Previous Conferences

Previous conferences include the following topics:

About the Institute Conferences

The Frank Church Institute, established in 1982 at the Frank Church Chair of Public Affairs at Boise State University, combines both an endowed professorship and an annual conference on the issues of the day. It brings together academic interests and practical politics by involving students, faculty, and the community with renowned leaders.

As stated at its founding, “Through the Chair, Boise State University will emphasize to its students those ideals which the Senator holds dear—a strong belief in the rule of law, eloquence firmly based on reason, and an unwavering faith in the American political system. The endowment will be used to fund lectures, symposia, and the Chair of Public Affairs.”

A long roster of distinguished participants include: former President Gerald Ford; former Vice Presidents Al Gore and Walter Mondale; former Senators Mark Hatfield, Slade Gorton, Edmund Muskie, and Gaylord Nelson; former White House Counsels Ted Sorensen, Leon Panetta, and Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.; and former Ambassadors Joseph Sisco, Andrew Young, and Paul Warnke.

The widely ranging conference subjects include:

  • War or Peace? The American Role
  • International Issues in the Middle East
  • Political Repression and Social Control
  • Americanism: Activism or Apathy?
  • Responding to Revolution: At Home and Abroad
  • Who Decides? The Domestic Sources of American Foreign Policy
  • Prospects for Peace
  • Our Public Lands
  • The New World: Changing U.S. – U.S.S.R. Relations
  • Earth in the Balance
  • The World After the Soviet Union
  • The Impact of Global Arms Sales
  • Troubled Waters: Preserving Life’s Most Precious Resource
  • What is National Security?
  • The Dragon Stirs: A New Dawn for China and the United States
  • Juggling Pragmatism and Principle: Interventionism and the Balkan Experience
  • The Presidency: Leadership and the Paradox of Power
  • Lights Out in the American West!
  • America’s Image Abroad
  • Freedom & Secrecy: Trading Liberty for Security?

The Frank Church Institute seeks to complete the funding of the first endowed professor, the continued Church Conferences, and the proposed Church Scholarships at Boise State.