Norway and U.S. Lead Climate Change Studies According to Norwegian and U.S. scientists, the Arctic is melting. Climate change is no longer a matter of “if” or even “when”—it’s already in our Arctic backyard. “The Artic is a kind of bellwether, a warning signal, for the whole globe,” said Norwegian Ambassador Knut Vollebaek, speaking during a conference hosted by the Royal Norwegian Embassy and the Carnegie Institution from Oct. 2 to 4. “Norwegians are very concerned. It is very important that we use all our resources, connecting our institutions to your institutions, working together for the best answers. We are only 4.5 million [people] but you are more than 262 million. When this one ocean is affected in one part, all of us are affected.” The conference highlighted the rapid Arctic warming and included leading scientists such as Nobel Prize laureate Peter Agre of Duke University and other dynamic speakers such as journalist and award-winning author Andrew Revkin, a renowned science reporter for the New York Times and, most recently, author of “The North Pole Was Here.” Revkin said, “Al Gore’s book [on global warming] is still urgent, crucial,” and the self-acclaimed “sunny-clime lover” added, “I have extra responsibility writing about a subject so important. We’re playing with powerful stuff.” This husband of a science teacher feels that the complex but compelling story about global warming is “a great teachable moment” for scientists and teachers to reach out to the public. Local Washington meteorologist Joe Witte in particular listened as Revkin urged local TV weather reporters to do their part too. This Fourth Transatlantic Research Conference, opened by Richard A. Meserve, president of the Carnegie Institution, and Ambassador Vollebaek, is a key observation post for global climate change, emphasizing the importance of cooperative transatlantic research as a basis for policy initiatives. The conference comes as the governments of the United States and Norway are set to sign the continuation of a bilateral cooperation agreement on space exploration, and as we look ahead to the International Polar Year in 2007, which was proclaimed by International Council for Science and the World Meteorological Organization (a U.N. agency) to focus scientific study on climate change in the polar regions. From left, Norwegian Ambassador Knut Vollebaek, Norwegian Embassy Science Counselor Berit Johne, Carnegie Institution’s External Affairs Director Susan Garvey, and Administrative Director of Norges Forskningsrad in Norway Arvid Hallen attend the Global Warming Conference co-sponsored by the Royal Norwegian Embassy and the Carnegie Institution. Front page: Science Counselor of the Royal Norwegian Embassy Berit Johne, left, and New York Times reporter and best-selling author Andrew Revkin attend the Global Warming Conference co-sponsored by the Royal Norwegian Embassy and the Carnegie Institution. photos: Gail Scott Hungary’s 50th Commemoration Throughout the fall, the Hungarian Embassy and Hungarian Ambassador András Simonyi are hosting a series of events to remind everyone that it was Hungary’s freedom fighters “who first cracked the wall of Soviet oppression 50 years ago this year” during the famed 1956 Hungarian Revolution. To make sure the celebrations not only include everything from opera and rock to classical and experimental—courtesy of this rock guitar-playing ambassador—Zoltán Fehér, the embassy’s savvy political officer and its new “chief creative officer” has helped to create a diverse program with so many events, it’s almost impossible to attend them all. Please refer to the embassy Web site at www.huembwas.org for specifics, and be sure to check out the Hungarian ambassador’s profile in the upcoming November issue of The Washington Diplomat. From left, wife of the Hungarian ambassador Nada Simonyi, Charles Simonyi and Hungarian Ambassador András Simonyi will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of the 1956 Hungarian uprising this month with various programs and events. photos: Gail Scott Russia’s Shostakovich National Symphony Orchestra cellist and storyteller extraordinaire Yvonne Caruthers gave members of the Smithsonian Associates a wonderful day of musical memories during a Sept. 29 gathering at the Russian Embassy in honor of the Shostakovich Centennial Festival. Russian Ambassador Yuri Ushakov warmly welcomed the more than 125 participants to this program celebrating Dmitri Shostakovich, a musical prodigy and prominent 20th-century Russian composer “whose work absorbed all the hardships and contradictions of that time,” according to the ambassador. Shostakovich, also the subject of a Kennedy Center Festival this fall, is having a renaissance, and anyone who’s familiar with his music knows how versatile he was—not only writing for chamber groups and full orchestras but for films, operas and simple songs for peasants. According to music historian Caruthers, Shostakovich had a cheerful early youth, but as a young boy of 11, he saw the start of the Russian Revolution. “He had a prophetic vision. Soon, tragic themes took over his work. You could hear the ‘nightmare of oppression,’ and he was telling the whole world about the coming terror, long before it took place,” she said. Miraculously, his life was spared even, although he had many close calls. But many family members and close friends disappeared around him daily. “One of his ways of surviving was through shock and sarcasm,” Caruthers said. For instance, “he wrote a worker’s song entitled ‘Let’s Drink to Life Not Getting Any Better.’” From left, National Symphony Orchestra members Zino Bogachek (violin), Natasha Bogacheck (violin), Yvonne Caruthers (cello), and Eric DeWaardt (viola) performed a concert as part of the Shostakovich Centennial Festival. Front page: Russian Ambassador Yuri Ushakov, left, and National Symphony Orchestra cellist extraordinaire Yvonne Caruthers hosted a discussion as part of the Shostakovich Centennial Festival. photos: Gail Scott The Art of Diplomacy Turkish Ambassador Nabi Sensoy has an extra advantage in this competitive diplomatic post: His wife Gülgün comes from the Cultural Ministry and is very knowledgeable and keen on leading cultural events. Her expertise was on full display on Oct. 4 when Julian Raby, director of the Freer and Sackler art galleries and a former member of Oxford’s Oriental Studies Faculty, led a discussion on the art of diplomacy during the 16th century in Istanbul and Venice. Calling it “the theater of the magnificent,” Raby explained how the sultans of the Ottoman Empire craved the golden threads and blown glass of Venice. “They loved the huge pageants of Venice and colorful processions and wanted to create this kind of excitement in their court,” he said. Through all these exchanges of art and artifacts, fancy clothing and incredible jewelry, as well as meat and spices, “there was danger but opportunity, threat and temptation,” Raby said. “Diplomatic gifts sealed the relationships,” he concluded, “not just in the value of the actual present, but the process by which the gift was given…. It was amazing what a few yards of silk will buy you” in this powerful tug of war. From left, wife of the Turkish ambassador Gülgün Sensoy, Julian Raby, and Turkish Ambassador Nabi Sensoy attend a discussion on the art of diplomacy during the 16th century in Istanbul and Venice. photos: Gail Scott International Diplomacy and Rotary International New Zealand Ambassador Roy Ferguson, a proud Rotarian himself, and his wife Dawn recently welcomed to their chancery fellow New Zealander Bill Boyd, the president of Rotary International, and his wife Lorna. Boyd leads this “global network of community volunteers” consisting of 1.2 million businessmen and women in 32,000 clubs in more than 200 countries and geographical areas around the globe. Almost 300 local Rotarians attended the event. “In the true spirit of service to the community,” explained Ambassador Ferguson, “we combined our reception with a silent auction to raise funds for a cause where Rotary International has made a huge contribution: Polio Plus, whose goal is to eradicate the last vestiges of polio anywhere in the world,” he explained, noting that “the New Zealand government has committed $3.4 million over the last four years to this worldwide effort.” Perhaps what was most endearing was the presence of Heloisa Sabin, widow of the late Dr. Albert Sabinn, who created the oral polio vaccine. From left, Rotary International President Bill Boyd and his wife Lorna, and Mrs. and Ambassador of New Zealand Roy Ferguson attend a reception for local Rotarians hosted by the ambassador. photos: Gail Scott Nicaragua’s Welcome Mat Nicaraguan Ambassador Salvador Stadthagen and his wife Analia have opened their embassy doors for a nonstop cultural series of events from Oct. 20 to Nov. 2. This cultural festival will showcase the best of Nicaraguan visual arts, dance, literature and folklore. All events are free of charge but seating is limited and on a first-come, first-serve basis. For more information, please call (202) 939-0113 or (202) 939-6546. Nicaraguan Ambassador Salvador Stadthagen and his wife Analia are hosting a variety of cultural events from Oct. 20 to Nov. 2. SPONSOR THE WASHINGTON DIPLOMAT P.O. Box 1345 Wheaton, MD 20915-1345 Tel: 301.933.3552 • Fax: 301.949.0065 www.washdiplomat.com