2014 Lafayette Debates

Our students continue to succeed at the highest levels of debate in the United States, and distinguish themselves internationally:

Two University of Georgia students will attend the 2014 Lafayette Debates hosted by George Washington University and the French government April 11-13 in Washington, D.C.

Eilidh Geddes, a junior majoring in economics and math from Dunwoody, and Amy Feinberg, a junior studying public relations and international affairs from Canton, will represent UGA at the competition. Georgia Debate Union director and UGA professor Edward Panetta will join the students as coach.

"This is an opportunity for UGA students to debate important international political issues with a number of strong national and international debate programs," Panetta said.

...

The Lafayette Debates aspire to promote international civil society by engaging future leaders on timely topics of mutual interest to the U.S. and France. The topic selected for this year's debate addresses the impact of the ongoing process of globalization on culture and cultural industries. In exploration of this topic, students will research and debate the goals and objectives of the seminal international agreement on cultural preservation, the UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions.

Emphasis added. This is an important topic, and not just for debate purposes. But the discussion needs to begin somewhere, so kudos to UNESCO for their efforts as an international cultural force. And when we get very intelligent people like Geddes and Feinberg thinking about these issues, good things can happen.

Image: Amy Feinberg, left, and Eilidh Geddes. Photo by Jessica Luton for the Franklin College.