The Great Decisions 2015 lecture series will kick off Thursday, Feb. 5 at Isothermal Community College’s Polk Center in Columbus. Offered nationwide, the series is dedicated to promoting better understanding of crucial world issues that affect the foreign policy of the United States. Topics for the series are selected by the non-partisan nonprofit Foreign Policy Association of America, and are intended to provide a local forum for discussion on current political and economic issues of the day.

The lecture series will meet each Thursday from 2–4 p.m. through March 12 at ICC’s Polk Center with each weekly topic being addressed by a different distinguished speaker.  On Thursday, Feb. 5 Nora Nassri, PhD candidate in political science at the University of South Carolina will speak on Syria’s refugee crisis.

Subsequent topics include Brazil’s metamorphosis, privacy in the digital age, Russia and the near abroad, India changes course, and sectarianism in the Middle East. Great Decisions 2015 is sponsored by Isothermal Community College in cooperation with the World Affairs Council of Western North Carolina. For more information or to register, call the Polk Center of Isothermal Community College at 828-894-3092.

-Submitted by Mike Gavin