The 2016 series of CIC Victoria’s pub nights (Politics in the Pub) continues on 21 March 2016, with a discussion of the prospects for continued cohesion amongst the nations of the European Union. Our expert resource speakers will be Valerie D’Erman and Marc Lortie (see biographical notes below).
On 21 March, each will speak for about 20 minutes on the state of relationships amongst the member nations of the European Union, following which they will engage in conversation with those attending. This will be an important opportunity to gain understanding of the political and economic issues affecting the cohesion of the EU, as well as trade, defence and other issues of concern for Canada.

Speakers’ Biography
Marc Lortie is a former Canadian diplomat. He studied Political Science (International Relations) at Laval University, and joined the Department of External Affairs in 1971. He served in Tunisia, 1973-75, and Washington, 1979-83, then was seconded to the Prime Minister’s Office in 1985 where he was in charge of relations with the international media until 1987 when he was named Press Secretary. In 1989, he returned to the diplomatic service and served in Paris as Minister-Counsellor for Political Affairs and as Personal Representative of the Prime Minister for La Francophonie. He served as Canadian Ambassador to Chile, 1993-1997, when he was nominated Fellow at the Centre for International Affairs at Harvard University. Mr. Lortie returned to Ottawa in September 1998 when he was appointed sherpa for the third Summit of the Americas. In 2001, Mr. Lortie was appointed Assistant Deputy Minister for the Americas. He was Ambassador of Canada to Spain, 2004-2007, and to France, 2007-2012.

Valerie D’Erman is a sessional instructor at the University of Victoria in the Department of Political Science. She has taught courses in European Integration, International Relations, Introduction to American Federal Government, and Comparative Politics and Governments of Europe, at UVic and at the University of Oklahoma. Her research interests include comparative political economy, European Integration Theory, International Relations, and Security Communities. She has published in International Politics, and in the Journal of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, and contributed to a co-authored book titled Protecting Our Ports: Domestic and International Politics of Containerized Freight Security, in 2010 with Ashgate Press. She completed her dissertation, “A Third Way of Productivity? The Europeanization of Industrial Relations in Ireland and Italy,” in 2012.

Date and Time
Monday March 21, 2016
5:00 pm to 8:00pm

Venue
Sticky Wicket Pub
Douglas and Courtney Street

Registration
Doors will open at 5pm on Monday, 21 March, and conversation will begin at about 5:30pm. An admission charge of $15.00 will include your first drink and access to a round of appetizers. Thereafter, food and drinks will be available to order throughout the evening.

Event Contact
Paula Skippon | cicvictoria@gmail.com