Advanced Policymaking Seminar (APS)
This one-week seminar is designed to help participants to expand their knowledge in security and defense policy formulation processes. The seminar will be offered one time per year to each of four sub-regions within the hemisphere. The seminar operates at theoretical and applied levels to expand competence in analytical, planning, forecasting, evaluation, and managing tools used to address the key questions facing defense decision makers today. It will introduce participants to the advanced concepts and analytical tools for designing the defense establishment for the 21st Century with a focus on adaptation, modernization, and transformation of security and defense capabilities. A realistic (yet hypothetical) role playing interagency exercise will help students apply concepts that involve the formulation of policy guidelines for future changes in defense systems and the rationale with which the actors explain and justify their decisions.
The course participants will be primarily selected among applicants from each sub-region who have graduated from the Defense Planning and Resource Management and other CHDS Washington resident courses. Experienced civilian, military, and policy officers who are not CHDS graduates but who are professionally engaged in defense or security issues in their countries may also be selected to join the program on a case-by-case basis. Candidates must hold a university degree or equivalent practical experience. Military and police personnel must have completed a command and staff course or equivalent. CHDS makes a final selection of participants based on academic, professional, and demographic criteria.
» APS Miami: May 19 - 22, 2009
The APS will be held to permit participants to analyze and compare the nature and scope of different perspectives on security and defense issues in the Caribbean, and to envision ways to increase regional cooperation in response to threats and challenges confronting the region. This event will focus on Caribbean perspectives related to these issue, but will also include selected U.S. inputs. The APS is designed for a multi-country audience and will emphasize "whole of government" and multinational views.
The specific APS objectives include:
• Gather information about current defense and security issues in the region to foster enhanced policy understanding
• Explore concepts that may generate novel initiatives toward enhanced regional cooperation
• Promote and exchange ideas with alumni
• Identify trends in educational needs for capacity building.
The broad thematic subjects to be addressed during the APS are as follows:
• Global Environment
• Threats in Caribbean
• Small Arms Smuggling
• Drug Trafficking
• Regional Cooperation
• Legacy of World Cricket Cup
• MINUSTAH
• Disaster Relief
• Interagency Cooperation (CHDS Panel)
• Concept of Inter-Agency Cooperation
• Experience and Challenges for United States
• Experience and Challenges in the Caribbean
• Public-Private Partnership
• SOUTHCOM
• CARICOM
• NGOs
Participants will include civilians, military personnel, and/or from the country’s security forces and should be associated with organizations responsible for security and defense matters in their countries.
» Previous Advanced Policymaking Seminars
May 2005 - El Salvador
Feb 2005 - Bahamas
August 2004 - Paraguay
May 2009 - Miami
