The Young Initiative invites foreign policy experts and guest speakers to campus to engage in discussions on international relations and the global political economy with students and faculty.
Annually: United Nations Week
With the William and Elizabeth Kahane United Nations Program, the Young Initiative supports the annual United Nations Week at Occidental College, each spring. We are passionate in maintaining students involvement and engagement in sustainable development. Our students choose topics that link Global Political Economy, Social Justice, and Sustainable Development.
One Day Conference - Data and the Feminist City Conference - September 30, 2025
The Young Initiative will host invited representatives from city governments from around the world for a one-day conference on the Oxy campus. Attendants will share experiences and best practices on reporting mechanisms to gather data, identify gaps in data collection, and help develop strategies for data-driven, actionable solutions.
Ongoing Young Speakers Events
Young Initiative speakers give students and faculty an opportunity to expand their understanding of global issues. The Young Initiative sponsors several speakers each academic year highlighting particular aspects of global affairs and the global political economy. The Young Speakers program is devoted to highlighting the work and success of eminent international affairs experts and Oxy alumni in public service and academia.
Brad Feld visited campus today to talk to DWA 151 about his work as an early stage investor and entrepreneur. Brad has been an early stage investor and entrepreneur since 1987.
Politics, Diplomacy and World Affairs, and the McKinnon Center for Global Affairs presents this Brown Bag Series.
During his 38-year-career in Canada's public service, Bob Fowler was the foreign policy advisor to Prime Ministers Trudeau, Turner, and Mulroney; the Deputy Minister of National Defense, Canada's longest-serving ambassador to the UN, the ambassador to Italy, sherpa for the Kananaskis G8 Summit, and the personal representat
Moi Enomenga, tribal leader of the Huaroani peoples in the Ecuadorian amazon, visited campus on September 25, 2013 to speak about the current issues facing his peoples' region today. Enomenga was visiting the United States as part of a trip to appeal to the United Nations to protect the still-uncontacted peoples of the Amazon.
On Monday, October 17, 2023, the Young Initiative at Occidental College hosted a thought-provoking talk by Professor Jaimie Bleck from the University of Notre Dame, centering on Mali's current crossroads.