Michael Collins, ambassador of the Republic of Ireland to the United States, will give a talk on “Ireland and the Euro Crisis” Sept. 7 at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The free public lecture will begin at 3:30 p.m. in the Nelson Mandela Auditorium at the FedEx Global Education Center.
Michael Collins, ambassador of the Republic of Ireland to the United States, will give a talk on “Ireland and the Euro Crisis” Sept. 7 at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The free public lecture will begin at 3:30 p.m. in the Nelson Mandela Auditorium at the FedEx Global Education Center.
The Irish ambassador is the first dignitary to visit UNC in conjunction with the new “Ambassadors Forum,” organized by the Richard M. Krasno Distinguished Professorship, the Center for European Studies and the department of history in the College of Arts and Sciences.
The forum will bring to campus prominent diplomats, politicians and business leaders who will give public lectures and conduct seminars and workshops for graduate students. Students will have the opportunity to engage first-hand with international leaders and obtain insights into the practical application of their study of history, political science, European studies and international relations
Collins, a native of Dublin, was born in 1953 and attended Blackrock College and Trinity College, Dublin. Collins’ diplomatic career spans almost 40 years and has led him to a number of world regions. In 1974, he entered the Department of Foreign Affairs as a third secretary, and his diplomatic postings from the 1970s through early 1990s included Rome, New York and Washington. Ambassador Collins later served as Ireland’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates from 1995-99. He was then posted in Central and Eastern Europe from 1999-2001 as ambassador to the Czech Republic and Ukraine. In 2007, Collins assumed his current position as ambassador to the United States. The Los Angeles World Affairs Council named Collins “Diplomat of the Year” in 2008.
Event contacts: Erica Edwards, associate director, UNC Center for European Studies, (919) 962-6765, eedwards@unc.edu; Klaus Larres, Richard M. Krasno Distinguished Professor, department of history, (919) 962-8079, larres@email.unc.edu.
Media contact: Katie Bowler Young, director of global relations, UNC Global, (919) 962-4504, kbowler@unc.edu