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ABOUT THE TOPIC - U.S. Engagement of Africa
Africa’s geopolitical - economic role is growing: What lessons can the U.S. learn from China’s presence there? How might it strengthen ties, especially with leading nations like Nigeria? What tools of statecraft might the U.S. bring to its engagement with Africa? What about the transition from aid to trade?
ABOUT OUR SPEAKER - Katherine Ntiamoah, Indiana University
Katherine Ntiamoah is the Director of Policy Engagement and Strategic Partnerships at Indiana University’s Hamilton Lugar School. A distinguished U.S. diplomat and IU alumna with nearly two decades of experience, Katherine leads the school’s mission to connect academic expertise with international decision-making.
Her career spans assignments in Brunei, Benin, Ghana, Pakistan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, where she advised ambassadors and briefed cabinet-level officials. Katherine’s work focuses on redefining global engagement by prioritizing high-stakes strategic and commercial partnerships. Most recently, she supported Vice President Kamala Harris’ historic 2023 tour of Africa, managed the strategic narrative for a $500 million MCC/Millenium Challenge Corporation infrastructure compact, and brokered creative economy partnerships between Hollywood and Benin’s emerging film sector.
A first-generation Ghanaian-American and Affiliate Faculty member with the Indiana University's African Studies Program, Katherine also served as Deputy Spokesperson for the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, representing $3.5 billion in U.S. humanitarian policy. She holds a M.A. from the Josef Korbel School of International Studies and writes Still, I Notice Everything, a Substack analyzing the intersection of power, language, and culture.
ABOUT OUR MODERATOR - Donald L. Cassell, Jr., Sagamore Institute
Donald L. Cassell, Jr., as Sagamore Senior Fellow and Director of the Liberian Initiatives, including Africa Rising, in the Africa portfolio, he has spearheaded several projects, including a case study on the Liberian Philanthropy Secretariat, a database listing connections between the State of Indiana and Africa, the annual publication of the newsletter-journal Marketplace Liberia, various papers on African growth and development, and a book he edited entitled National Development as an Aesthetic Project: A Policy Collection, another book he recently published entitled “Liberia Country Profile: An Experiment in Statecraft”.
He conducts annually the ISOKO Leadership Workshop in Liberia.
Mr. Cassell is an architect in Indianapolis. He is a member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and Construction Specification Institute (CSI). A native of Liberia, Mr. Cassell graduated from Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston, Massachusetts where he took undergraduate degrees in Architecture Engineering Technology. Mr. Cassell also studied at Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he received his Master of Divinity.
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GREAT DECISIONS BRIEFING BOOK - ORDER: Books | ICWA (indianaworld.org)
GREAT DECISIONS BRIEFING BOOK: Corresponding Chapter: U.S. Engagement in Africa
FOREIGN POLICY ASSOCIATION - TOPIC RESOURCES, INCLUDING GLOSSARIES: Topic Resources - Foreign Policy Association (fpa.org)
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02-27-26