WWAC will host a panel of former USAID staff and experts in international development on January 23
One year ago, the Trump administration ceased all foreign aid and refugee resettlement and subsequently closed the US Agency for International Development (USAID). Halting donations from the world’s biggest provider of development aid was a shock to the international development system and has had far-reaching effects in many countries of the world. At that time, Windham World Affairs Council (WWAC) convened a members + friends salon with local residents affected by these funding cuts.
On Friday, January 23, 6:30 pm, at 118 Elliot, WWAC revisits this earlier discussion by hosting a panel of former USAID staff and experts in international development. The loss of aid on this scale has had global ramifications: people were stranded on international exchanges, support for basic subsistence of refugees ended, critical humanitarian aid and medical interventions stopped, and thousands of people around the world became unemployed. Even more alarming, a study published in The Lancet medical journal predicts that the USAID funding cuts will lead to over 14 million deaths by 2030, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, especially in Africa.
Not only have these executive actions destabilized the international development system, they have also impacted organizations, programs, and individuals in the community. This panel will discuss the process of USAID’s closure, global impacts of the closure, and new initiatives that have arisen to pick up the pieces.
The panel includes:
Michelle Barrett, of the Detroit area, MI, has led large, high-visibility initiatives in public service and global development across Africa, the Caribbean, Eastern Europe, and Asia. Most recently Barrett served as deputy regional director of USAID’s West Africa regional office in Accra, Ghana, until closing down operations in August 2025.
Jim Levinson, of Marlboro, began a lengthy USAID career in the 1960s in India, served as USAID’s director of nutrition and was invited to testify on behalf of USAID before the House of Representatives Hunger Committee. He’s also worked with multiple international agencies in Asia and Africa, and served as chair of the independent review panel of the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition. Levinson was a faculty member at MIT and Tufts and headed those school’s international food and nutrition centers, and at the Boston University School of Public Health.
Siena Fleischer, of Chesterfield, NH, has worked for over 20 years in global education and development, including leading cross-sectoral research initiatives at USAID that most recently engaged a 3,700-member consortium across 86 countries to inform policy and improve research uptake in the Global Development Lab. Fleischer has served at missions in Macedonia, Nepal, and Guatemala, focusing on inter-ethnic education, school-based gender-based violence and workforce training of indigenous youth. Before serving at USAID, Fleischer worked with the World Learning/SIT.
Merrill Sovner, of Brattleboro, is board chair of the WWAC. Sovner is also managing a new initiative, Alternative Resourcing for Change and Solidarity (ARCS) roundtable, a space for NGO and philanthropy practitioners to explore how human rights and social justice organizations can transition from dependency on international grants to small donations, for-profit income, solidarity economics, and impact investing, providing flexible funding to pursue missions.
Registration to attend live is appreciated: https://USAID.eventbrite.com
The event is free and open to the public with a suggested donation of $10. Use this Zoom registration link to attend virtually: https://tinyurl.com/WWAC-USAID.
NOTE: At 5:30 pm, before the panel, there will be a social hour with former USAID and state staff, grantees, and contractors. The time is envisioned as a space where those directly affected by these changes can network, problem-solve, and think outside the box. Refreshments will be served.
The Windham World Affairs Council was founded in 1961 to bring the world to Windham County. It is the smallest of the World Affairs Councils of America and has an all-volunteer board. It hosts lectures, films, and other events on global topics, as well as a monthly Members’ Salon, where members and their guests gather informally to discuss topics of the day. For further information about future events, or if you would like to consider joining the board, visit https://windhamworldaffairscouncil.org/.
