(Washington) – The United States Senate confirmed Stephen Hadley’s appointment for a second term to the board of directors of the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP) yesterday. Hadley, former national security advisor for President George W. Bush, currently serves as senior advisor for international affairs at USIP.

(Washington) – Ethan Kapstein and Stephanie Kleine-Ahlbrandt, recognized experts in international economic relations and Asian affairs respectively, will join the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) this fall, the Institute announced today.

(Washington) – The Unites States Institute of Peace (USIP) has been asked by the Department of Defense to facilitate the work of the 2014 Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) National Defense Panel (NDP).  The Institute also facilitated the work of the 2010 QDR Independent Review Panel.

(Washington)—In A Crucial Link: Local Peace Committees and National Peacebuilding, a new volume published by the U.S. Institute of Peace, Andries Odendaal contends that local peacebuilding is a necessary aspect of a national peacebuilding strategy. Peace forged at the national level can be strengthened by community-level peacebuilding efforts, and investment at the local level lays the foundation for social cohesion and effective governance.

George A. Lopez, long-time professor at the University of Notre Dame’s Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies and a sought-after expert on international economic sanctions, has been named vice president of the U.S. Institute of Peace’s Academy for International Conflict Management and Peacebuilding, the Institute announced today.

Education & Training;  Education & Training

Peter Loge, an experienced strategic communications and legislative professional, has been named vice president for external relations for the U. S. Institute of Peace, the Institute announced today.  Loge will lead the outreach and public communications strategy of the Institute and will oversee the public affairs, public outreach, congressional affairs, and intergovernmental affairs portfolios.

The U.S. Institute of Peace will welcome the Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, His Excellency Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, for his first public speaking engagement with the Washington policy community since his election to a third term as prime minister in June 2013.

The United States Institute of Peace will welcome Iraqi Prime Minister Noori al-Maliki for public remarks and a discussion on U.S.-Iraq relations, and the current challenges facing Iraq and the region.