Boston Commitee on Foreign Relations

The Boston Committee is a member organization established in 1946 in cooperation with the American Committees on Foreign Relations. Its sole purpose is to encourage enlightened discussion of international affairs and U.S. foreign policy. It takes no policy positions and is open to members of all political views. The BCFR has about 300 members, drawn from the local diplomatic corps and the leadership ranks of the region’s business, financial, academic and legal communities. Now more than ever, Americans need to understand developments overseas. Upheaval in the Arab world, the ongoing war in Afghanistan, China’s emergence as an economic and political superpower, the spread of nuclear weapons, the global financial crisis, failed and failing states in South Asia and Africa, Islamic terrorism, the never-ending impasse between Israel and Palestine, and global warming, all have the potential to affect our lives and our fortunes. To understand how best we as individuals and as a country should respond to these events, and to anticipate changes as they evolve, we need deeper knowledge than provided in newspapers and television. The Boston Committee on Foreign Relations provides this knowledge through off-the-record meetings with experts and government leaders from around the world.