National Security in a Transformed World: A Conversation with Avril Haines
In-person, Open to the Public
Thursday, April 2, 2026 | 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM ET
The rapid evolution of the global landscape has placed U.S. national security at a critical turning point. Recent military operations in Venezuela and the intensifying conflict with Iran demonstrate how the U.S. is actively redefining the models of global security through its own strategic choices. As the U.S. sets this course, it must navigate the ripple effects of these actions across a volatile international system where traditional alliances and power structures are being tested. With these new battlegrounds, what threats to national security have emerged? How are U.S. national security institutions evolving to meet shifting global realities? What are the long-term implications of these strategic choices for the future of international relations?
Join us on Thursday, April 2 from 6:30 to 8:30 PM ET at Macaulay Lecture Hall, 35 West 67th Street, New York, New York, 10023 for an in-person discussion with Avril Haines, former U.S. Director of National Intelligence and current Carnegie Distinguished Fellow at Columbia SIPA, to explore the future of national security and the impact of U.S. strategy on the global stage.
This event is co-hosted by Network 20/20 and Macaulay Honors College.
THIS SESSION IS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
SPEAKER:
Avril D. Haines
Avril D. Haines, is the former US Director of National Intelligence. As a member of President Biden’s cabinet, she led the US Intelligence Community and served as the President’s principal intelligence adviser.
Haines has held senior roles across government, including principal deputy national security advisor, deputy director of the Central Intelligence Agency, legal adviser to the National Security Council, and deputy chief counsel to the US Senate’s Committee on Foreign Relations. She has also worked in academia, having served as a senior research scholar at Columbia University and a senior fellow at Johns Hopkins University. She is currently a visiting fellow at All Souls College at Oxford University.
Haines received her Bachelor of Arts in Physics from the University of Chicago and a Juris Doctor from Georgetown University Law Center. She served as a law clerk for Judge Danny Boggs on the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit and founded and ran a bookstore café for five years while engaged in community service in Baltimore. In 2017, President Obama appointed her to the National Commission on Military, National, and Public Service. She has also served on several boards and advisory groups over the years.
THIS SESSION IS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
NOT YET A NETWORK 20/20 MEMBER?
Apply today to enjoy all exclusive briefings with high-profile speakers
Image credit: Photo by Wesley Tingey on Unsplash
