The Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs is providing students with the chance to delve into pertinent issues through a series of three non-credit study groups this semester. These groups will examine topics within the current political climate, including the impact of the Trump administration, the rise of artificial intelligence, and the complexities of media censorship.
Established in 2018, the study groups are designed to help students translate theoretical knowledge and research into practical solutions for real-world challenges. According to Kathryn Dunkelman, the Watson Institute’s chief of staff and director of strategic operations and engagement, these groups also facilitate networking opportunities, connecting participants with mentors, guest speakers, and professionals in the political sphere. Each group meets for five to six 90-minute sessions each semester. Registration is capped at 25 students per group. The topics are purposefully selected to align with the Watson Institute’s core research areas—security, development, and governance—and to address contemporary policy issues, Dunkelman explained.
This semester’s study groups include “How to (not) Kill the Truth: Inside the Dictators’ Playbook of Propaganda, Censorship and Manufactured Hatred,” led by Vera Krichevskaya, a television director and workshop facilitator at the Watson Institute. This virtual workshop will dissect the strategies used by authoritarian regimes to control the press. “Trump 2.0 and the Revenge of Geopolitics,” led by Edward Luce, a senior fellow at the Watson Institute, focuses on the future of American democracy and foreign policy in a potential second Trump administration. Luce is currently an editor and columnist at the Financial Times. The third study group, titled “Human Rights and AI: Impacts, Risks and Opportunities,” will be led by Malika Saada Saar ’92, a human rights lawyer and former global head of human rights at YouTube, now a senior fellow at the Watson Institute. This group will explore the intersection of human rights and artificial intelligence.
Saada Saar, in an interview with The Herald, expressed her hope to ensure that the study group provides “exposure and mastery around these very pressing issues at the intersection of policy, law and tech.” She emphasized the value of exposing students to diverse backgrounds and career paths in the field, highlighting “a need for the diversity of backgrounds that students can bring with them.” Sonya Rashkovan ’27, who serves as a student liaison for Saada Saar’s study group, helps facilitate communication between the fellow and the student participants. Rashkovan said her experience in the study group and Saada Saar’s mentorship has cultivated both the self-confidence to pursue her dream career in human rights, as well as the necessary skills. Rashkovan added that she now has “someone to look up to” throughout her own career journey.
