Baker Institute panels to highlight major issues of campaign season 2016

MEDIA ADVISORY

David Ruth
david@rice.edu
713-348-6327

Jeff Falk
jfalk@rice.edu
713-348-6775

Baker Institute panels to highlight major issues of campaign season 2016

HOUSTON – (Feb. 4, 2016) – Two panels hosted by Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy will explore hotly debated issues of the 2016 presidential campaign in advance of Super Tuesday (March 1),  when Texas and 13 other states will hold primary elections. The first panel, Feb. 10, will focus on international affairs, followed by a Feb. 16 panel on domestic issues.

Both panels will take place from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in Baker Hall’s Doré Commons, 6100 Main St. Registration for the public is now closed. Media are welcome to cover the panels but must RSVP to attend.

The Feb. 10 panel will feature the following topics and Baker Institute experts:

Middle East policy: Joe Barnes, the Bonner Means Baker Fellow.
Trade policy: Russell Green, the Will Clayton Fellow in International Economics.
Immigration: Tony Payan, the Françoise and Edward Djerejian Fellow for Mexico Studies and director of the institute’s Mexico Center.
Environmental policy: Ronald Sass, fellow in global climate change.

The panel will be moderated by Allen Matusow, the Baker Institute’s director of academic affairs and the William Gaines Twyman Professor of History at Rice. Baker Institute Director Edward Djerejian will give welcoming and introductory remarks.

A live webcast will be available at the event webpage: http://bakerinstitute.org/events/1769.

The Feb. 16 panel will feature the following topics and Baker Institute experts:

Tax reform: John Diamond, the Edward A. and Hermena Hancock Kelly Fellow in Public Finance.
Jobs and business policy: Edward Egan, fellow and director of the institute’s McNair Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.
Health policy: Vivian Ho, the chair in health economics and director and of the institute’s Center for Health and Biosciences.
Drug policy: William Martin, the Harry and Hazel Chavanne Senior Fellow in Religion and Public Policy and director of the institute’s Drug Policy Program.

The panel will be moderated by Mark Jones, fellow in political science and the Joseph D. Jamail Chair in Latin American Studies at Rice. Djerejian will give welcoming and introductory remarks.

A live webcast will be available at the event webpage: http://bakerinstitute.org/events/1770.

Members of the news media who want to attend must RSVP to Jeff Falk, associate director of national media relations at Rice, at jfalk@rice.edu or 713-348-6775.

For a map of Rice University’s campus with parking information, go to www.rice.edu/maps. Media are advised to park in the Central Campus Garage.

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Founded in 1993, Rice University’s Baker Institute ranks among the top five university-affiliated think tanks in the world. As a premier nonpartisan think tank, the institute conducts research on domestic and foreign policy issues with the goal of bridging the gap between the theory and practice of public policy. The institute’s strong track record of achievement reflects the work of its endowed fellows, Rice University faculty scholars and staff, coupled with its outreach to the Rice student body through fellow-taught classes — including a public policy course — and student leadership and internship programs. Learn more about the institute at www.bakerinstitute.org or on the institute’s blog, http://blogs.chron.com/bakerblog.