About this Event
The Channel City Club Presents: Cold War Foreign Policy and Lessons for Today
With Former U.S. Ambassador Frank Lavin
Date: Thursday, October 29, 2026
Time: Registration at 3:15 PM | Presentation at 3:30 PM Followed by Reception
Location: The University Club of Santa Barbara
About the Topic
Cold War statecraft provided the blueprint for global stability and American leadership for nearly half a century. Today, as traditional alliances face friction and international consensus fragments, key questions re-emerge: Is global engagement still central to American security and prosperity, or have the costs begun to outweigh the benefits?
Drawing on key insights from his book, Inside the Reagan White House: A Front-Row Seat to Presidential Leadership with Lessons for Today, Ambassador Frank Lavin examines what worked during the Cold War, where strategy fell short, and how the core principles of that era can guide modern diplomacy in a changing world.
About the Speaker
Frank Lavin served on the National Security Council Staff and as White House Political Director under President Ronald Reagan and he later served as U.S. Ambassador to Singapore and Undersecretary of Commerce for International Trade.
His public service career spans appointments in the National Security Council, the State Department, and the Commerce Department across three presidential administrations. A Visiting Fellow at the Hoover Institution and a columnist for Forbes, Ambassador Lavin is the author of several books on history, international commerce, and national security, including Inside the Reagan White House.
Copies of Frank Lavin’s book will be available for purchase.
Questions? Contact [email protected]
Event venue & nearby stays
University Club of Santa Barbara, 1332 Santa Barbara Street, Santa Barbara, United States
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