The Sedona Forum 2021
Thank you to our friends of the McCain Institute for a successful first-ever virtual Sedona Forum. With the theme of “Defending Democracy,” top experts, policymakers, humanitarians and business leaders from around the globe and on both sides of the aisle engaged in civil and thoughtful discussions about the issues facing the world today. This year’s conference featured the speaker of the House of Representatives, the Senate minority leader, 43 former and current elected officials, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the UN secretary general, two former heads of government, two former secretaries of state, two former secretaries of defense, two Academy Award winners, an NBA hall of famer, a future first-ballot NFL hall of famer, and many more experts, policymakers, humanitarians and defenders of democracy
from around the world
represented among speakers
#Sedonaforum21 Hashtag Stats
April 28, 2021
8:30 am – 8:45 am: Day Kickoff
Cindy McCain, Chairman, McCain Institute for International Leadership
Josette Sheeran, Executive Chairman, McCain Institute for International Leadership
Dr. Michael Crow, President, Arizona State University
Governor Doug Ducey, State of Arizona
9:00 am – 9:45 am: Defending Democracy
General Mark Milley, 20th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
In conversation with: · Andrea Mitchell, Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent & Anchor, NBC News
10:00 am – 10:45 am: American Leadership on Global Challenges:
Learned from COVID-19 and Preparing for the Next Pandemic
Introduction by David Miliband, President and CEO, International Rescue Committee
- Senator John Barrasso, U.S. Senator, Wyoming
- Dr. Tom Frieden, President and CEO, Resolve to Save Lives
Moderator:
- Hannah Vaughan Jones, Journalist & Broadcaster, CNN
10:00 am – 10:45 am: The Task Before Us: Rising to the China Challenge
Introduction Chris Brose, Head of Strategy, Anduril Industries
- Secretary Mark Esper, 27th U.S. Secretary of Defense, 23rd U.S. Secretary of the Army
- Representative Stephanie Murphy, Congresswoman, Florida’s 7th District, U.S. House of Representatives
- Senator Dan Sullivan, U.S. Senator, Alaska
Moderator:
- Josh Rogin, Columnist, Washington Post
10:45 am – 11:00 am: Defenders of Democracy: Global Voices from the Frontlines
- Nathan Law, Democracy Activist, Hong Kong
In Conversation with:
- David Kramer, Senior Fellow, Steven J. Green School of International and
Public Affairs Florida International University
11:00 am – 11:45 am: “A Cause Greater Than” Discussion
Introduction by Larry Fitzgerald, Wide Receiver, Arizona Cardinals
- José Andrés, Founder, World Central Kitchen
In conversation with:
- Senator Heidi Heitkamp, Former U.S. Senator, North Dakota
11:45 am – 12:00 pm: Impact of the Abraham Accords
- Princess Lalla Joumala Alaoui, Ambassador of Morocco, United States
12:00 pm – 12:45 pm: The Future of the Iran Nuclear Deal
Introduction by Fran Townsend, EVP, Corporate Af airs, Corporate Secretary and Chief
Compliance Of icer, Activision Blizzard
- General John Allen, USMC (Ret.), President, Brookings Institution
- Representative Michael McCaul, Congressman, Texas’ 10th District, U.S.
House of Representatives
- Senator Chris Murphy, U.S. Senator, Connecticut
Moderator:
- Brian Hook,Former, US Special Representative for Iran
12:00 pm – 12:45 pm: Countering White Supremacist Violence
Introduction by Katrina Mulligan, Acting Vice President for National Security and
International Policy, Center for American Progress
- Senator Dick Durbin, U.S. Senator, Illinois
- Elizbeth Neumann, Former Assistant Security, Counter Terrorism and Threat
Prevention, Department of Homeland Security - Representative Elissa Slotkin, Congresswoman, Michigan’s 8th District, U.S.
House of Representatives
Moderator:
- Brette Steele, Senior Director for Preventing Targeted Violence, McCain
Institute for International Leadership
1:00 pm – 1:30 pm: Defending Democracy
Introduction by Wai Wai Nu, former political prisoner and the founder and Executive Director
of the Women in Peace Network in Myanmar
- Angelina Jolie, Special Envoy, UNHCR
- Hamdi Ulukaya, Founder and CEO, Chobani
Moderator:
- Senator Chris Coons, U.S. Senator, Delaware
1:45 pm – 2:00 pm: Impact of the Abraham Accords
- Shaikh Abdullah bin Rashid Al Khalifa, Ambassador of the Kingdom of
Bahrain, United States
2:00 pm – 2:45 pm: Containing Putin
Introduction by General H.R. McMaster, USA (Ret.) Fouad and Michelle Ajami Senior Fellow,
Hoover Institution
- Senator Bob Menendez, U.S. Senator, New Jersey
- Vladimir Milov, Founder and President, Institute of Energy Policy
- Representative Adam Kinzinger, Congressman, Illinois’ 16th District, U.S.
House of Representatives
Moderator:
- Bill Browder, CEO, Hermitage Capital Management
3:00 pm – 3:45 pm: The Future of Technology and Democracy
- Susan Wojcicki, CEO, YouTube
In conversation with:
- Senator Ben Sasse, U.S. Senator, Nebraska
3:45 pm – 4:00 pm: Defenders of Democracy: Global Voices from the Frontlines
- Bobi Wine, Member of Parliament, Kyadondo County East, Uganda
In Conversation with:
- Paul Fagan, Director of the Human Rights and Democracy Program, McCain
Institute for International Leadership
4:00 pm – 4:45 pm: America’s Global Soft Power Future
Introduction by Senator Tim Kaine, U.S. Senator, Virginia
- Mark Malloch Brown, President, Open Society Foundations
- Representative Liz Cheney, Congresswoman, Wyoming’s At-Large District,
U.S. House of Representatives - Representative Michael Waltz, Congressman, Florida’s 6th District, U.S.
House of Representatives
Moderator:
- Steve Biegun, Former U.S. Special Representative for North Korea
4:00 pm – 4:45 pm: Protecting Democracy
Introduction by Trevor Potter, founder and President of Campaign Legal Center
- Senator Roy Blunt, U.S. Senator, Missouri
- Senator Amy Klobuchar, U.S. Senator, Minnesota
Moderator:
- Ali Rogin, Foreign Affairs Producer, PBS NewsHour
April 29, 2021
8:45 am – 9:00 am Day Kickoff
Dr. Michael Crow, President of Arizona State University
Senator Kyrsten Sinema, U.S. Senator, Arizona
Senator Mark Kelly, U.S. Senator, Arizona
9:00 am – 9:45 am: The Need for a New International Technology Alliance
Introduction by Senator Mark Warner, U.S. Senator, Virginia
- Eric Schmidt, co-founder of Schmidt Futures and former CEO of Google
In conversation with:
- Dr. Michael Crow, President of Arizona State University
10:00 am – 10:45 am: Strategic Approach to Cyber
Introduction by Kiersten Todt, Managing Director, Cyber Readiness Institute
- Senator Mark Kelly, U.S. Senator, Arizona
- Senator Jack Reed, U.S. Senator, Rhode Island
- Senator Thom Tillis, U.S. Senator, North Carolina
Moderator:
- Siobhan Gorman, Partner, The Brunswick Group
10:00 am – 11:00 pm: Future of War
Introduction by General David Petraeus, USA (Ret.), Chairman, KKR Global Institute
- Representative Jim Banks, Congressman, Indiana’s 3
rd District, U.S. House
of Representatives - Senator Joni Ernst, U.S. Senator, Iowa
- Representative Seth Moulton, Congressman, Massachusetts’s 6th District,
U.S. House of Representatives
Moderator:
- Daniel Rothenberg, Co-Director, Center on the Future of War, Arizona State
University
10:45 am – 11:00 am: Impact of the Abraham Accords
- Yousef Al Otaiba, Ambassador of the UAE, United States
11:00 am – 11:30 am: Defending Democracy in a Digital Age
- Representative Will Hurd, Former Congressman, Texas’ 23rd District, U.S.
House of Representatives - Christopher Krebs, Former Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure
Security Agency, Department of Homeland Security
Moderator:
- Margaret Brennan, Moderator of Face the Nation, CBS News
11:30 am – 12:00 pm: One-on-One: Defenders of Democracy: Global Voices from
the Frontlines
- Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, President-Elect, Belarus
In Conversation with:
- Elise Labott, Columnist, Foreign Policy
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm: When a Human Trafficking Hashtag got Hijacked
Introduction by Ernie Allen, Human Trafficking Advisory Council, McCain Institute for
International Leadership
- Catherine Chen, CEO, Polaris
- Representative Tom Malinowski, Congressman, New Jersey’s 7th District,
U.S. House of Representatives - Ali Soufan, Chairman and CEO, The Soufan Group
Moderator:
- Kristen Abrams, Senior Director of Combatting Human Trafficking, McCain
Institute for International Leadership
1:00 pm – 1:30 pm: One-on-One – Leadership Discussion
- Representative Nancy Pelosi, Speaker, U.S. House of Representatives
In conversation with:
- Cindy McCain, Chairman of the Board, McCain Institute for International
Leadership
1:45 pm – 2:00 pm: John McCain Tribute
- Bob Schieffer, Political Contributor, CBS News
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm: How to Win the War Against Misinformation
Introduction by Sam Gill, President and CEO, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation
- David Axelrod, Director, University of Chicago Institute of Politics
- Lelah Ispahani, Managing Director, Open Society
- Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, U.S. Senator, Rhode Island
Moderator:
- Nick Thompson, CEO, The Atlantic
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm: U.S. Foreign Policy in the Era of Multilateralism
Introduction by Representative Tom Perriello, Executive Director, U.S. Programs, Open
Society Foundations
- Senator Chris Coons, U.S. Senator, Delaware
- Senator Mitt Romney, U.S. Senator, Utah
- Senator Jeanne Shaheen, U.S. Senator, New Hampshire
Moderator:
- Dean Pardis Mahdavi, Social Sciences, School of Social Transformation,
Arizona State University
3:00 pm – 3:30 pm: The Hero Code
Introduction by Jake Tapper, Chief Washington Correspondent, CNN
- Admiral William McRaven, USN (Ret.), 9th Commander, United States
Special Operations Command
In conversation with:
- Courtney Kube, Correspondent, NBC News
4:00 pm – 4:45 pm: Irregular Diplomacy
Introduction by Senator Deb Fischer, U.S. Senator, Nebraska
- Ambassador Derek Mitchell, President, National Democratic Institute for
International Affairs - David Pressman, Partner, Jenner & Block LLP
- General Joseph Votel, USA (Ret.), Former United States Central Command
Moderator:
- Steve Clemons, Editor-at-Large, The Hill
April 30, 2021
8:45 am – 9:00 am: Day Kickoff
Senator Jeff Flake, Former U.S. Senator, Arizona
Senator Jon Kyl, Former U.S. Senator, Arizona
Secretary António Guterres, Secretary General, United Nations
9:00 am – 9:30 am: Promoting Democracy
- Secretary Madeleine Albright, Chair, Albright Stonebridge Group
In conversation with:
- Jason Carter, Chairman of the Board, The Carter Center
9:45 am – 10:00 am: Defenders of Democracy: Global Voices from the Frontlines
- Juan Guaidó, President, Republic of Venezuela
10:00 am – 10:45 am: Preventing Future Attacks on Democracy
Introduction by Nicholas Rasmussen, Executive Director, Global Internet Forum to Counter
Terrorism
- Richard Aborn, President, Citizens Crime Commission of New York
- Vidhya Ramalingam, Co-Founder, Moonshot CVE
- Tony Sgro, Founder and CEO, EdVenture Partners
Moderator:
- Brette Steele, Senior Director for Preventing Targeted Violence, McCain
Institute for International Leadership
10:00 am – 10:45 am: The Future of Trans-Atlantic Relationships
Introduction by General James Mattis, USMC (Ret.), 26th U.S. Secretary of Defense
- Senator Kelly Ayotte, Trustee, McCain Institute for International Leadership,
Former U.S. Senator, New Hampshire - Representative Gerry Connolly, Congressman, Virginia’s 11th District, U.S.
House of Representatives - President Toomas Ilves, Former President, Estonia
Moderator:
- Dr. Kori Schake, Director of Foreign and Defense Policy Studies, American
Enterprise Institute
10:45 am – 11:00 am: Defenders of Democracy: Global Voices from the Frontlines
- Dr. Jaushieh Joseph Wu, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Taiwan
11:00 am – 11:30 am: The World Disorder: Facing the China Challenge - Dr. Henry Kissinger, Founder, Kissinger Associates
In conversation with:
- Senator Joe Lieberman, Former U.S. Senator, Connecticut
12:00 pm – 12:45 pm: Defense Position in the Indo-Pacific
Introduction by Ambassador Josette Sheeran, Executive Chairman, McCain Institute for
International Leadership
- Julie Bishop MP, Chancellor, Australian National University
- Admiral Harry Harris, USN (Ret.), Former Ambassador, U.S. Embassy in
Korea
Moderator:
- Dr. Dan Twining, President, International Republican Institute
12:00 pm – 12:45 pm: Eliminating Human Trafficking and Forced Labor In Global
Supply Chains: Whose Responsibility Is It?
Introduction by Cindy McCain, Chairman of the Board, McCain Institute for International
Leadership
- Dr. Genevieve LeBaron, Professor of Politics, University of Sheffield
- Rt. Hon. Theresa May, Former Prime Minister, United Kingdom
- Senator Rob Portman, U.S. Senator, Ohio
Moderator:
- Kristen Abrams, Senior Director of Combatting Human Trafficking, McCain
Institute for International Leadership
1:00 pm – 1:30 pm: One-on-One – Leadership Discussion
- Senator Mitch McConnell, Minority Leader, U.S. Senate
In conversation with:
- Senator Kelly Ayotte, Trustee, McCain Institute for International Leadership,
Former U.S. Senator, New Hampshire
1:45 pm – 2:00 pm: Impact of the Abraham Accords
- Senator Lindsey Graham, U.S. Senator, South Carolina
2:00 pm – 2:45 pm: Africa: Innovation, Investment, and Opportunity
Introduction by Dikembe Mutombo, President and CEO, Dikembe Mutombo Foundation
- Ben Affleck, Actor, Director, Writer & Co-Founder and Chairman, Eastern
Congo Initiative - Representative Karen Bass, California’s 37th District, U.S. House of
Representatives - Cindy McCain, Chairman of the Board, McCain Institute for International
Leadership
Moderator:
- Senator Jeff Flake, Former U.S. Senator, Arizona
2:45 pm – 3:00 pm: Cindy McCain Thank You/Wrap-up Video
