Gustavus Adolphus College will host Dr. Meghan O’Sullivan as this year’s Lindau Resident in Conservative Thought. O’Sullivan is the Jeane Kirkpatrick Professor of the Practice of International Affairs and the Director of the Geopolitics of Energy Project at Harvard University’s Kennedy School and previously worked as the Bush administration’s Deputy National Security Advisor.
O’Sullivan will engage the campus in dialogue regarding U.S. energy policy, environmental sustainability, and foreign relations. She will meet with nine different class and student organizations at Gustavus and offer a free, public forum on Energy Policy and the Global Impact in the Jackson Campus Center Banquet Rooms at 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 8.
Dr. Meghan O’Sullivan
“Dr. O’Sullivan has several areas of expertise to offer us, including her work on the geopolitics of energy, her work in policy formulation as a Deputy National Security Advisor, and her work in negotiation in Northern Ireland. She is also an active writer in international affairs, with several books and many articles, scholarly and popular, to her credit,” said Gustavus political science professor Mimi Gerstbauer.
During her tenure as Deputy National Security Advisor, O’Sullivan worked alongside former President George W. Bush to assist with multiple strategic policy reviews in Iraq and Afghanistan. Along with strategic policy, O’Sullivan has been involved in negotiations of the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) and the Transitional Administrative Law in Iraq. Serving as the Vice Chair of the All Party Talks in Northern Ireland also added to O’Sullivan’s expertise in negotiation.
“Dr. O’Sullivan will be able to share with students a vast amount of experience in real-world, high-stakes politics. She has been at the center of decision making and consensus building in very divisive situations,” said Gerstbauer.
Beyond strategy and negotiation, O’Sullivan is involved widely in non-profit organizations such as the German Marshall Fund, UK-based Friends of Inter Mediate, and veterans service organization The Mission Continues. She was awarded the Distinguished Public Service Medal, the Defense Department’s highest honor for civilians, and was one of Esquire Magazine’s most influential people of the century in 2008.
“The Lindau Residency is designed to bring a conservative thinker to campus for a few days to interact with students in classes and other settings. Sometimes these speakers are able to bring ideas that aren’t always prominent on college campuses and are important for us to consider,” Gerstbauer said. “The Lindau family has generously provided the opportunity to bring a high-profile speaker for this residency, so this is not one to miss.”
The Lindau Residency in Conservative Thought hosts a prominent conservative thinking on campus for two to three days, with the planning and hosting duties rotating between the Departments of Political Science, Economics and Management, and Religion. The focus of the Lindau Residency is creating an engaged learning environment with the scholar-in-residence with the goal of facilitating intentional and meaningful interactions with students.
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Media Contact: Director of Media Relations and Internal Communication Luc Hatlestad
luch@gustavus.edu
507-933-7510