Institute for Eastwest Studies Inc

“ROSS PEROT, JR., CHAIRMAN, AND SARAH PEROT, BOARD MEMBER, HAVE A FAMILY RELATIONSHIP. Olivia Fischer and Addison Fischer, Board Members, have a family relationship.”

“The organization requires all staff members to acknowledge a receipt of the staff handbook that contain written policies and procedures of conducting business activities. The offices are required to report the monthly financial activity and financial forecast to new york office. The brussels office representative is a member of the senior management team and other members of the team oversees moscow and san francisco offices. The senior management team review the progress of the projects that are conducted in each office on a monthly basis.”

“The form 990 is reviewed by members of the institute's finance department and by the institute's executive vice president before being presented for audit committee review. After form 990 is reviewed by the audit committee, the entire board of directors is sent a password protected link, which gives them access to form 990 on the institute's website prior to its filing with the irs.”

“The eastwest institute (ewi) distributes annually a conflict of interest questionnaire for ewi directors. All directors of the institute are required to complete, sign, date and return the form to the designated ewi staff member. Ewi staff maintains a spreadsheet noting which forms have been received and which remain outstanding. Efforts are made to obtain outstanding forms when the board of directors holds its board meetings. Efforts to receive completed forms are also made via e-mail. The institute's management team will provide additional support to the designated staff member to ensure 100% compliance from the directors in signing and returning to management the annual conflict of interest questionnaire. In addition, the institute's human resources department sends a staff handbook with code of business conduct and ethics (including conflicts of interest section) to ewi staff, including new hires and board members before appointment, and requests acknowledgment of receipt of the document. In 2018, all staff members acknowledged receipt of the staff handbook. In addition, the key employees completed a conflicts of interest questionnaire similar to the version that is distributed to ewi board members and will do so subsequently on an annual basis.”

“The compensation committee of the eastwest institute's independent board of directors annually reviews the fairness of the ceo's compensation and benefits and utilizes data from competent salary surveys in the not-for-profit industry. The ceo is not a member of the compensation committee. The committee works together with the human resources department. Comparable data from salary surveys of similar positions in the not-for-profit industry are reviewed, and the ceo and senior management team are advised of current standards and pay scales. The change of compensation is suggested to the compensation committee for approval. A copy of the approval or refusal by the compensation committee is put into the personnel file of the ceo and for payroll purposes submitted to the finance department. Hr summarizes the decision in a confirmation letter, which is given to the ceo. All documentation is prepared no later than 30 days after the approval. For employees with a salary less than $100,000 usd the process is as follows: first, the supervisor sends a request to hr, which includes the form "position change/new position information". Within this form, the requesting supervisor describes a justification in detail. Alongside this document, hr suggests a specific salary range, which is based on representative salary surveys in the not-for-profit industry. After all information is collected and verified, the vp making the request, the vp of finance and administration, and the ceo approve or decline the adjustment. For employees with salaries of more than $100,000 usd, and/or key employees (vps, directors, etc.), the process includes review and approval by the compensation committee. All documentation is filed in the personnel files and finance department, and a letter of confirmation is given to the employee.”

“The organization makes its governing documents, conflict of interest policy and financial statements available to the public upon request.”

“We forge new connections and build trust among global leaders and influencers, help create practical new solutions and take action through our network of global decision-makers. Independent and nonprofit since our founding in 1980, the institute maintains offices in New York, Brussels, Moscow, and San Francisco.”

“THE EASTWEST INSTITUTE IS A GLOBAL NETWORK OF INFLUENTIAL STAKEHOLDERS COMMITTED TO AND ENGAGED IN BUILDING TRUST AND PREVENTING CONFLICT AROUND THE WORLD. WE ENGAGE IN CONFLICT PREVENTION AND RESOLUTION, PROVIDING THOUGHT LEADERSHIP AND STRATEGIC COUNSEL TO GOVERNMENTS, THE PRIVATE SECTOR AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS WORLDWIDE. WE BRING CONFLICTING PARTIES TO THE NEGOTIATING TABLE, OFTEN FOR THE FIRST TIME, TO FIND COMMON GROUND. WE ANTICIPATE GLOBAL CHALLENGES AND DEVELOP SOLUTIONS RELEVANT TO POLICYMAKERS AND CORPORATE LEADERS. Form 990, Part III, Line 3: See Schedule N, Part III for details of distributions pursuant to liquidation and dissolution. See also verified petition for attorney general approval of the plan of dissolution and distribution of assets and Board of Directors resolution approving the plan of dissolution and distribution of assets attached to Form 990.”

“REGIONAL SECURITY - The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is undergoing unprecedented, historic, complex and rapid transformations. The results are violent and in some cases peaceful shifts, reshaping of state-society as well as inter-state relations and changes to the balance of power, fragmentation, polarization, and contests for power and influence among regional rivals. EWI's MENA Program is recognized for its role as a bridge-builder between conflicting parties. It has been providing a platform and safe environment for influential, well-connected experts and officials from the region and beyond to engage in confidential, complex, and constructive conversations that aim at achieving common ground and developing practical solutions for some of the key crises that destabilize the region: 1) Assisting Iraq to become the center of regional cooperation rather than being a theater for proxy wars, 2) Iran-Saudi regional rivalry, 3) Lack of inclusive governance & power sharing in Northeast Syria, 4) Weak economic relations between Algeria and Morocco, 5) Maritime security and preventing incidents at Sea in the Gulf region, and 6) Stemming ISIS & terrorist financing. Current Projects: Iraq and Its Neighbors: Enhancing Dialogue and Regional Integration in West Asia - The project aims at assisting Iraq to transform from being a theater for proxy wars to become a bridge-builder and center for regional interdependence through improved bilateral and multilateral relations with its key five neighbors: Saudi Arabia, Iran, Jordan, Turkey and Kuwait. Key policy ideas will be developed for regional and bilateral cooperation in the areas of security, politics, people-to-people relations, economy, energy and environmental cooperation. Iran-Saudi Dialogue - Over the course of the past five years, we have been building trust between a core group of Iranian and Saudi experts that jointly develop policy solutions in very specific areas including 1) challenges and opportunities for cooperation in the "post-oil" economic era, 2) identifying potential avenues of cooperation in the field of climate change, 3) the role of academic exchange in mitigating conflict, 4) contours of a "non-aggression pact" between both countries and 5) the role of media narratives and discourses in igniting conflicts, portraying and stereotyping "the other,how these narratives could play positive roles in creating change of perspectives. Dialogues on Governance and Security in Northeast Syria - Disagreements between the two main Syrian Kurdish political blocs-the Democratic Union Party (PYD) and the Kurdish National Council (KNC)-and between Kurdish authorities and non-Kurdish communities in Northeastern Syria are negatively affecting efforts to reach a sustainable, peaceful solution in the war-torn country. This project aims to facilitate common understandings between these groups on issues affecting security and stability in the region, including inclusive governance and power sharing. Algeria-Morocco Business Dialogue - This project focuses on multiple business sectors with the aim of overcoming obstacles to bilateral trade between the two neighbors. The dialogues will engage pragmatic business leaders from both countries during a series of high-level conferences. Discussions will center on topics vital to successful entrepreneurship in Algeria and Morocco such as food security, agriculture, healthcare, the impact of digitalization and new technologies and energy-with a particular focus on how to attract quality investment, ensure environmental protection and empower businesswomen. EWI successfully convened the second Algeria-Morocco Business Dialogue on "Women's Empowerment and Entrepreneurship: Challenges and Opportunities," in cooperation with its partner organizations, the German Algerian and German-Moroccan Chambers of Industry and Commerce. The webinar brought together four high ranking female business leaders, two each from Algeria and Morocco, to take pa”

“Networking & communications - the organization's networking and communications is an essential link between ideas and policy. The communications department works to disseminate the organization's commentaries, publications and other innovations to policymakers and opinion leaders around the world. It works with new and traditional media channels to ensure that its ideas reach and engage decision makers and help forge collective action for a safer and better world.”

“RUSSIA AND U.S. - EWI continues to bridge the strategic divide between Russia and the United States by promoting cooperative engagement between the two countries on issues of mutual interest. In recent years, as Russia's relations with the West have deteriorated, EWI has helped to fill the void in disrupted bilateral governmental channels by sustaining U.S.-Russia dialogue talks on a number of critical issues, including counterterrorism and counternarcotics efforts in Afghanistan and cybersecurity. Even in this challenging political climate, EWI continues to engage key policymakers, experts and business leaders and experts in both Russia and the United States to keep open channels of communication, achieve breakthroughs and deliver policy impact. Recognized as a trusted convener, EWI engages policymakers, business leaders and experts to achieve breakthroughs and deliver policy impact in critical areas affecting the bilateral relationship. In the context of Russia's G8 Presidency in 2006, for instance, EWI launched a series of international public-private consultations on countering terrorism. In 2009, EWI brought together top Russian and American scientists for the first-ever Joint Threat Assessment, which focused on Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile potential. The success of this project led to the creation of similar EWI joint working groups addressing other critical issues of mutual concern, such as cyber security and Afghan narcotrafficking. Since 2017, the Joint U.S.-Russia Working Group on Counterterrorism in Afghanistan has convened American and Russian experts in Moscow, Washington, D.C., Brussels and Vienna to assess the impact of terrorist and insurgent groups on Afghanistan's security and stability. Through the efforts of the Working Group, EWI seeks to bridge the gap in current U.S.-Russia diplomatic engagement and help build trust-even if gradually and incrementally between governments and the political establishments of both countries. In June 2019, EWI convened a fourth and final meeting of the Joint U.S.-Russia Working Group on Counterterrorism in Afghanistan in Vienna, Austria. Against a backdrop of dynamic changes in Afghanistan, American and Russian experts came together to assess major developments in the bilateral relationship; the current security and political situation in Afghanistan; border management concerns; terrorist recruitment and radicalization; and the role of economic development in contributing to a safe and stable Afghanistan. In the framework of the meeting, Ambassador Thomas Greminger, secretary general of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), addressed the Working Group, speaking on regional approaches to counterterrorism in Central Asia and Afghanistan. These deliberations contributed to the publication of Terrorism in Afghanistan: A Joint Threat Assessment, in May 2020, which provides policymakers with an independent assessment of the terrorist threat in Afghanistan and explores the counterterrorism agenda in the broader geopolitical context of U.S.-Russia relations. Together with Russian and European partners, EWI's Russia and Cyber programs in August 2020 released an analytical report on the application of norms of responsible behavior of states in the ICT environment. In Fiscal Year 2020, the report was submitted to the United Nations to inform ongoing expert discussions. In late 2020 EWI began a military-to-military dialogue involving retired general officers from the U.S. and Russian armed forces. Two initial virtual meetings focused on developing a mutual understanding of the concept of strategic stability as it relates to regional conflicts.”

“Cybersecurity initiative - the objective of the global cooperation in cyberspace program is to reduce conflict, crime and other disruptions in cyberspace and promote stability, innovation and inclusion. Global cooperation is essential to successfully address existing and emerging conflicts-both in cyberspace and across all areas of human endeavor. To this end, the eastwest institute began its cyber work in 2009 as the pioneer organization that initiated a global dialogue on cyberspace security, diplomacy and deterrence. Past successes have helped shorten repair times for damaged undersea cables, reduce spam on a global basis, promote balanced encryption policies, build bilateral confidence and trust between east and west to improve crisis response and combat malicious hackers, and develop norms of responsible behavior in cyberspace. In 2020, the program will continue to develop and advocate for recommended changes in national and corporate policies and procedures. The principal means of developing these recommendations is through the work of five collaborative breakthrough groups, composed of decision-makers from key sectors around the world: - increasing the global availability and use of secure ict products and services - secure, resilient cities and the internet of things - systemic risk and cyber insurance - promoting norms of responsible behavior in cyberspace - ubiquitous encryption and lawful government access as recommendations mature, ewi leads the preparation of reports detailing and supporting the conclusions. The latest report, weathering technationalism: a security and trustworthiness framework to manage cyber supply chain risk, was released in may 2020. The report provides a framework to overcome the trust gap between ict buyers, vendors, and operators and their respective governments instead of relying on "technationalism"-measures that favor ict products and services sold by companies headquartered domestically or in allied states-to improve overall ict security. Ewi cyber hosted its second virtual roundtable on technology nationalism on june 24, 2020 to foster dialogue among chinese, european, indian, japanese, malaysian, singaporean and u.s. Experts, with a focus on current developments in asia. The successful roundtable was hosted by hon. Michael chertoff and had 35 participants. It followed the may 18 release of cyber's latest report, weathering technationalism: a security and trustworthiness framework to manage cyber supply chain risk. The report proposes a practical risk mitigation framework for assurance and transparency to enhance global ict trustworthiness. Ewi cyber hosted the first virtual meeting to support its dutch-funded global south project in august 2020. This project will feed into ongoing un processes in an effort to build capacity for cyber norms implementation in the global south and emerging markets. This meeting, which focused on southeast asia, discussed emerging technologies, un norms processes, cyber capacity building and public-private partnerships. Hosted in partnership with the cyber security agency of singapore and s. Rajaratnam school of international studies, the meeting featured participants from governments, businesses, civil society organizations, and universities from both within asean and around the world. In fiscal year 2020, ewi cyber hosted a second virtual meeting, this time in pretoria, south africa. Total expenses: $7,211. Total revenue: $0.”

“Asia pacific - since 2006, ewi's east asia (formally asia-pacific) program has focused on convening constructive, high-level dialogues that engage key american and regional stakeholders from government, business and military sectors to address important security issues, aiming to enhance greater mutual understanding and prevent conflicts. The program has strengthened trust and developed original policy ideas, which are receiving attention in washington, beijing and tokyo. Dialogues and impacts: ewi's u.s.-china high-level political party leaders dialogue (p2p) is the only u.s.-china dialogue process involving sitting officials from the communist party of china and the u.s. Democratic and republican national committees. Launched in 2010, the dialogue builds trust and understanding among political leaders from the u.s. And china through an exchange of views on domestic governance and foreign policy issues. Since 2008, the u.s.-china sanya initiative has regularly assembled retired u.s. And chinese four-star generals and admirals to build greater military-to-military understanding between the two countries and to mitigate the chance of escalation and miscalculation. Delegations have discussed a wide spectrum of strategic security issues, including north korea, maritime disputes in the south and east china seas, china's military reform and counterterrorism. The u.s.-japan military-to-military dialogue, launched in 2017, demonstrates ongoing efforts to integrate more players from the indo-pacific into programmatic initiatives and outreach. These dialogues have facilitated exchange among four-star generals and admirals from the japanese and u.s. Militaries on issues of critical concern to both countries. The east asia program will seek to broaden this exchange to include both india and china, to enrich the discussion of evolving issues in the indo-pacific region. During fiscal year 2020, ewi engaged in detailed planning activities for future dialogues to take place online and in person in calendar year 2021. Total expenses: $4,005. Total revenue: $0.”

“Balkans initiative - eastwest institute has launched the balkans program in response to an urgent need for inclusive and open, high-level dialogue concerning pressing security challenges threatening the western balkans and europe. In partnership with the munich security conference and the belgrade fund for political excellence, the initiative aims to increase and deepen understanding of key issues while building trust between representatives of the various geopolitical interests present in the region today. The program's work centers on the balkan dialogues initiative-a series of dialogues in different capitals in europe and the u.s. That provide a platform for policymakers and experts to discuss and debate key areas where competing interests collide and produce recommendations for defusing existing tensions. Dialogues and impacts: the first of the balkans dialogues took place in march 2019 in belgrade. Decision-makers and experts from the six countries of the western balkans (wb6), including albania, bosnia and herzegovina, kosovo, macedonia, montenegro and serbia, along with the european union, united states, russia and china met to reassess strategic goals in the region, resulting in several policy recommendations. Participants included amb. Cameron munter; amb. Wolfgang ischinger; amb. Frank wisner; erhard busek; pierre mirel; amb. Kai eide, ivan krastev and aleksandar vucic, president of serbia, along with many other stakeholders and experts. The second balkan dialogues event convened in berlin in december 2019, gathering 57 participants (heads of state, dignitaries and experts) along with 30 observers from 19 countries for a two-day working session focused on the future of eu expansion and the unresolved kosovo-serbia crisis. Participants put forward ideas to prevent future conflict, unblock the negotiations between serbia and kosovo and make the eu enlargement process more efficient and attractive for both the eu and the balkans. The program's third balkan dialogues meeting occurred during the munich security conference in march 2020. The event attracted an impressive number of high-level participants and fostered a lively and impassioned discussion among its active participants, including five prime ministers, five presidents, the eu high representative for foreign policy, german state secretary, u.s. Assistant secretary of state, secretary general of osce, seven ministers of foreign affairs and defense and several current and former ambassadors. In july 2020, ewi's balkan program organized a digital meeting on the "kosovo serbia agreement: beginning with the end in mind"-the fourth session in its balkan dialogues series. In august 2020, the balkan dialogues team, in partnership with belgrade fund for political excellence, completed a cycle of four dynamic and focused expert discussions addressing key elements of the future agreement between serbia and kosovo: 1) the future status of cultural heritage and sacred religious objects belonging to orthodox church in kosovo; 2) the status of associated serb municipalities; 3) economy, property and energy governance; 4) and the future status of kosovo under international law in the context of a comprehensive agreement. Each session produced a detailed report covering key recommendations and potential solutions. Beginning in october 2020, the team reviewed, edited and compiled these reports into a combined paper, which was presented to eu officials and experts from countries engaged in the negotiations process. Separately, the document was presented and disseminated to political leaders from serbia, kosovo and the eu, civil sector organizations, as well as diplomatic representatives across the region. These presentations formed the basis for ongoing negotiations in the areas at issue, which are expected to produce agreements in 2021. Total expenses: $526. Total revenue: $0.”

“Economic security - as one of the fastest growing and dynamic regions, south asia accounts for nearly one quarter of the world population and an increasingly greater share of the global economy. Yet owing to internal conflicts, territorial disputes and a history of deeply-rooted mistrust, the various regional stakeholders continue to struggle in collectively anticipating shared challenges and tapping into the myriad opportunities for growth and development. The eastwest institute's south asia program aims to advance knowledge and understanding of the region's underlying issues in order to generate sustained support towards greater intra-regional cooperation. To this end, the program brings together the most prominent and influential voices in south asia to: - establish multi-stakeholder platforms for shared economic, financial and geopolitical interests by bringing together media influencers, thought leaders, and business experts from within the u.s. And south asia. - pinpoint emerging shared security threats of overlapping interest and charting paths forward along avenues of cooperation, including joint action on issues stemming from water and food insecurity, and climate change. - cultivate channels of cultural diplomacy and people-to-people exchange as a tool for anticipating and preventing the escalation of conflicts and promoting stronger regional ties. - reinfuse rationality and keen diplomatic insight into the relationship between the u.s. And south asian member states, encouraging the reaffirmation of continued partnership on regional and global challenges. - examine interregional connectivity and china's growing regional presence, including the impact of the belt and road initiative and the china pakistan economic corridor and overall opportunities for integration, connectivity and stability. On march 2-4, 2020, the eastwest institute and konrad-adenauer-stiftung (kas), in concert with the institute of national security studies sri lanka (insssl) and consortium of south asian think tanks (cosatt), convened a high level dialogue entitled: "water security and disaster management in asia" in colombo, sri lanka. The dialogue, second in the project series, brought together experts from both the public and private sectors in india, pakistan, bangladesh, nepal, sri lanka and the maldives to jointly analyze threats to water security in asia in the face of worsening hydro-meteorological disasters due to climate change. The two-day dialogue consisted of six panel discussions on varied topics related to the politicization of water security, including the economic vulnerabilities of the water crisis and stakeholder engagement, among others. On august 12, 2020, the south asia program, in cooperation with corporate pakistan group (cpg), hosted a webinar discussion on "south asia's economic future in the post covid-19 world." the webinar brought together a distinguished panel of experts, including ewi president bruce mcconnell and board member ikram sehgal, to share their perspectives on the impacts of covid-19 on south asian economies and how the region can work towards improving its socio-economic conditions in the post covid-19 world. Previous webinars: - june 18, 2020: "the geopolitics and geoeconomics of covid-19: discerning the south asia-china nexus". The webinar featured dr. Parag khanna, founder and managing partner of future map, and dr. William j. Parker. - april 30, 2020: "navigating the geopolitics of covid-19" hosted in cooperation with the american pakistan foundation. In late 2020, in partnership with konrad-adenauer-stiftung |mdpd, the south asia program began constructing a dialogue on "international hydrodiplomacy-building and strengthening regional institutions for water conflict prevention." ewi and kas prepared a pre-conference study to inform that work. Examine interregional connectivity and china's growing regional presence, including the impact of the belt and road initiative and the china pakistan economic”

“Transfers to other organizations.........$(1,008,250.) Adjustment to accrued closure cost (see below explanation)....................513,968. Gain due to change in estimate................12,880. Foreign Translation Gain.........................342. Total....................................$ (481,060.) The audited financial statements for the year ending September 30, 2020 were prepared on the liquidation basis. As a result, total accrued closure costs were of $7,136,930 reported as an other change (i.e., decrease) in net assets (Form 990, Part XI, Line 9) in connection with the dissolution approved by the board and verified petition to the New York Attorney General. Form 990 for the final period ending August 31, 2021 reports compensation for the period that was previously included in the accrued closure costs for year ending September 30, 2020. As a result, Final Form 990 reports an adjustment to accrued closure costs as an increase in net assets. Adjustment to accrued closure costs................$513,968.”