The CIC is pleased to announce the appointment of Ben Rowswell as President and Research Director
Rowswell brings to the CIC 25 years of experience of contributing to Canada’s role in the world, having led diplomatic missions from Afghanistan to Venezuela. A pioneer in the practice of digital diplomacy, he is passionate about the importance of incorporating the voices of citizens in advancing Canada’s international relations.
The Hon. Bill Graham, a former Canadian foreign minister and defence minister, who is the Chair of the CIC said “Ben is a leading foreign policy practitioner. He has held senior challenging positions in the Arab world, Asia and Latin America. Ben is a wonderful communicator and a person who gets things done, we’re pleased, indeed honoured, that he’s our new President and Research Director.”
“These are ominous times as a new class of regimes openly challenge international norms of human rights and democracy” said Rowswell. “Around the world, populist leaders claim to speak on behalf of ‘the people’ while closing down opportunities for citizens to have their say. Canada is not immune from populism, and one way to inoculate our society is to listen to the voices of individual Canadians and feed them into our national debate.”
As President, Rowswell will lend support to a vibrant network of members through 15 city chapters across Canada. The CIC is Canada’s foreign relations council, founded in 1928. The CIC operates active research programs on the threat of populism and on national security and runs events to advance constructive dialogue on global affairs.
We encourage you to reach out to learn more about Rowswell’s experience in countering the threat of populism. You can reach him by email on ben@thecic.org and on Twitter at @benrowswell.