The Office of International Programs at UNC Charlotte coordinates Great Decisons. This lecture series is a national program organized by the Foreign Policy Association (FPA). Each year, FPA  publishes a Great Decisions Briefing Book, which highlights eight of the year's most significant foreign policy issues. As the state coordinator of Great Decisions, UNC Charlotte has the unique opportunity to facilitate a discussion with faculty experts as they provide additional perspective on the topics of interest. Each event will end with time for a Q&A. 

On Tuesday, Jan. 31, join Dr. Peter Schwarz as he speaks on Energy Geopolitics.

Lecture topic: "Energy security and geopolitics The year 2022 upended energy geopolitics, with the Russian invasion of Ukraine using energy as a weapon by threatening to withhold oil and natural gas supplies from the EU, along with attacking Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, with large parts of Ukraine doing without heat and electricity. At the same time, climate change continued to be on the front-burner, with the U.S. passing the Inflation Reduction Act, more accurately an act to accelerate carbon-free renewable energy. There is a conflict between the need to find new sources of fossil fuels while trying to reduce greenhouse gasses. The balancing act requires consideration of benefits and costs of continued use of fossil fuels while accelerating the use of renewables."