-
SOAS Alumni Receptions in North America
Key information
- Date
- to
- Venue
- Chicago | Washington DC | New York | Toronto
- Event type
- Alumni reception
About this event
This October, join Vice Chancellor Professor Adam Habib and fellow SOAS alumni across North America for a series of exclusive events.
Together, we’ll explore the socio-economic implications of the Iran War. These evenings offer a chance to reconnect, hear updates from SOAS, and engage in timely conversations about global change.
We will be sharing more information about the discussion themes, speaker lineup, and alumni panellists in the coming days. Places are limited, so we encourage you to register early for your chosen city using the links below. If you have any questions in the meantime, please contact us at alumni@soas.ac.uk.
Whether you live or work in Chicago, Washington DC, New York or Toronto, we would be delighted to meet you on one or more of these dates:
- Chicago: Wednesday 7 October; Chicago Council Conference Center, 130 E Randolph Street, Chicago, IL 60601. See below for more details on this event.
- Washington DC: Monday 12 October; venue to be announced soon
- New York: date to be announced soon; The Watergate Hotel, 2650 Virginia Ave NW Washington, District of Columbia 20037
- Toronto: date to be announced soon; InterContinental Toronto Centre by IHG, 225 Front St W Toronto M5V 2X3
Chicago - 7 October
Africa and the New Global Order
Professors Adam Habib and Leslie Vinjamuri will join international affairs expert Frances Brown to explore how African countries are navigating shifting geopolitical dynamics and building new strategic partnerships. This event is organised by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs in partnership with SOAS.
Africa’s role in global affairs is evolving as countries across the continent navigate an increasingly competitive and multipolar world. With a growing range of economic and diplomatic partners, African countries are diversifying their relationships to create more choice and potentially more leverage. But engagement with great powers—including China, the United States, and Russia—may create as much constraint as opportunity.
How are African countries navigating this changing landscape? Can they leverage multilateral institutions to their advantage, or is this a lost cause? And is there a shared African vision for the future international order, or is the continent more divided than aligned? Join Frances Brown and Adam Habib in conversation with Leslie Vinjamuri on Africa’s place in a changing global order.
About the Speakers
Frances Z. Brown
Frances Z. Brown is vice president for studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, where she oversees programs on Africa, American statecraft, democracy, conflict, and governance, and Carnegie California.
Adam Habib
Adam Habib is vice-chancellor of SOAS University of London and a professor of political science. Previously, he served as vice-chancellor and principal of the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg and as deputy vice-chancellor at the University of Johannesburg.
Leslie Vinjamuri
Dr. Leslie Vinjamuri joined the Chicago Council on Global Affairs in 2025 as the president and chief executive officer, after previously serving as director of the US and the Americas program at the Royal Institute of International Affairs, known as Chatham House, in London. She is Professor of Practice in International Studies and Diplomacy at SOAS University of London.
Sign up here.
Header image credit: rudi1976 via Adobe Stock
