Washington, D.C. - On April 14, the Truman Center for National Policy, the Office of the Mayor of Atlanta, and the Metro Chamber of Atlanta will host an event exploring how to maximize the benefits of the city’s diplomacy for all Atlantans and the role of Atlanta in American foreign policy. Atlanta’s place in the world is rapidly evolving. The city has grown into a global gateway and logistics hub, and is home to major Fortune 500 companies, global news outlets, and world-class academic institutions.

Atlanta’s international engagement is also anchored in its civil rights legacy, diversity, and thriving migrant and diaspora communities which drive the city’s innovation and creativity. This event will highlight findings from Truman’s City & State Diplomacy Task Force, co-chaired by Mayor Dickens, about how cities’ international engagement can deliver benefits for constituents and improve the United States’ global standing.

Atlanta is building an international engagement strategy connecting economic opportunity to the global fight for justice and equality. Driven by Mayor Dickens’ decision to combine the city’s offices focused on international and immigration affairs into an expanded Office of Immigrant and International Affairs.

The panel discussion will feature Andre Dickens, Mayor of Atlanta; Paige Alexander, CEO of the Carter Center; and Katie Kirkpatrick, President and CEO of the Metro Atlanta Chamber, and will be moderated by Jon Temin, Vice President of Policy and Programs at the Truman Center for National Policy.

Mayor Dickens is the 61st Mayor of Atlanta. A proud Atlanta native and a product of Atlanta Public Schools, Mayor Dickens is focused on bringing opportunity and equity to the city he loves. Mayor Dickens’ agenda is rooted in Moving Atlanta Forward, through improving public safety, increasing opportunities for the city’s young people, empowering neighborhoods, investing in housing and combatting homelessness, and fostering a culture of integrity in the City.

Paige Alexander joined The Carter Center as chief executive officer in June 2020. Alexander has had a distinguished global development career, with over two decades of experience spanning the government and nonprofit sectors. She has held senior leadership positions at two regional bureaus of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), covering missions and development programs in 25 countries.

Katie Kirkpatrick is the president and CEO of the 164-year-old Metro Atlanta Chamber (MAC). Kirkpatrick is known for her public policy prowess, courageous leadership, and more than a decade of driven impact through her work at MAC. Previously MAC’s chief policy officer, Kirkpatrick served as the link between the metro Atlanta business community and local and national government. She galvanized the public policy team’s priorities in the business climate, educated workforce, transportation, and sustainability – including water, energy, and the environment.

Jon Temin is the Vice President of Policy and Programs at the Truman Center for National Policy. Previously, he served as the Director of the Africa Program at Freedom House, overseeing the organization’s efforts to advance democracy and human rights across the continent. From 2014 to 2017, he was a member of the State Department’s Policy Planning Staff, providing strategic guidance and long-term thinking to the Secretary of State. Temin also served as director of the U.S. Institute of Peace’s Africa Program, leading the Institute’s efforts to help end conflicts and prevent new violence. He has written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Financial Times, Foreign Affairs, and Foreign Policy, and has testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and House Foreign Affairs Committee. Previously, he was a Fulbright Fellow in Ghana, Visiting Fellow at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, and a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He is currently a non-resident Senior Associate with the Center for Strategic and International Studies.