ABOUT US

Forum Mission

The Forum is dedicated to sustainable development and democratic governance, locally and globally.  The Forum on Democracy & Trade is a registered, publicly-supported, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

Forum Board

• Bev Perry, Chair, former mayor, Brea California
• Senator Spencer Coggs,  Milwaukee, Wisconsin
• Heidi Heitkamp, former North Dakota Attorney General and Tax Commissioner, Mandan North Dakota
• Representative Sheryl Allen, Bountiful Utah, IGPAC Member
• Kay Wilkie, Director for International Policy, NY State Department of Economic Development, IGPAC Chair
  

Forum Staff

• Dana Eidsness, Director (based in Vermont)
• William Waren, Policy Director (based in Washington, D.C.) 
• Research Associate Mike Palmedo, Program on Information Justice and Intellectual Property, American University Washington College of Law
  

Leading Academic Partners

• Professor Robert Stumberg, Director, Harrison Institute, Georgetown University Law Center (D.C.)
• Associate Professor Sean Flynn, Associate Director, PIJIP, Washington School of Law, American University (D.C.) 
• Senior Fellow, Matthew Porterfield, Harrison Institute, Georgetown University Law Center
  

Support Services

The Forum is a national network of state and local officials and an international network of public officials and policy experts concerned about trade policy and sustainable development.   Participants in this network:

• Work with peers on trade issues of mutual concern
• Exchange ideas regarding economic development and local democratic governance
• Engage the public and the press in the trade policy debate
• Communicate to policymakers at the local, national, and international levels
  

Forum staff activities include

• Building an international  network of  public officials and policy experts concerned about trade policy
• Speaking at seminars, legislative and agency hearings, and meetings of associations of public officials  
• Providing technical assistance and conducting workshops on trade issues 
• Identifying leadership opportunities for network participants 
• Preparing  in-depth technical and legal analyses of trade policy issues 
• Preparing short, plain language issue briefs and updates on trade issues
• Publishing articles for scholarly, professional, and popular journals
• Convening public meetings, briefings for public officials, and retreats to review trade policy issues