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The International Studies Association (ISA) is one of the oldest interdisciplinary academic organizations of its kind, but its 2021 annual convention, from April 6 to 9, was its first online conference ever, due to COVID-19

At this conference, typically attended by several thousand scholars from around the world, ���ϲ����� had impressive representation with four faculty and staff members presenting research, chairing sessions or serving as paper discussants.

Among those in attendance were Vanessa Bravo, associate professor of strategic communications; Baris Kesgin, associate professor of political science and policy studies; Sylvia Muñoz, associate director of the CREDE; and Joel T. Shelton, assistant professor of political science and policy studies. Their respective research papers were the following:

• “State-diaspora relations in El Salvador and Colombia from 2010 to 2020: Building legitimacy at home while trying to protect and “court” citizens abroad,” by Vanessa Bravo and Maria De Moya (DePaul University).

• “The Latinx factor in the “browning of America”: The higher education context,” by Vanessa Bravo and Sylvia Muñoz.

• “Pacific island countries’ leadership and global politics of climate change,” by Baris Kesgin, and,

• “Governing after COVID-19: Sadopopulism and the promise of statecraft,” by Scott Nelson (Virginia Tech) and Joel T. Shelton.

Additionally, Vanessa Bravo chaired the session “Branding and image building: The Public Relations-Public Diplomacy Connection” and Baris Kesgin served as paper discussant in the sessions “Methodological Innovations in Foreign Policy Analysis,” “Studies in Comparative Foreign Policy,” and “Personality and perceptions: How leaders influence international politics,” which he also chaired. This year, Baris Kesgin was also the program co-chair for the Foreign Policy Analysis Section of the ISA, the organization’s second largest section.

ISA is dedicated to the understanding of international, transnational and global issues. It focuses on a variety of disciplines, including political science, international relations, international communication, history, international law, public diplomacy and international education.

For more information about the annual ISA conference, visit www.isanet.org.