UPDATE – SATURDAY MARCH 14

In light of ongoing developments surrounding the Coronavirus, the Northern Slant team have taken the decision to postpone our panel discussion “The U.S. and us – The Next Chapter in Northern Ireland’s Transatlantic Relationship”, which was due to take place on Monday 23 March as part of this year’s Imagine! Festival of Ideas & Politics.

Whilst disappointed, our main priority is always the well-being of our participants, volunteers, and guests.

We welcome the Imagine! Festival’s plan to move many of its events online, and host those conversations in a virtual format. From a practical point of view, however, we judged that this would not work for our event. We plan to hold the discussion at a later date, hopefully with our same excellent panel.

We are issuing full refunds and you’ll receive an email message from the Imagine! Festival and Eventbrite ticketing system within the next 1-2 days to confirm your refund has been issued. At that point, it will take approximately 5 working days for these funds to be deposited in your account.

We’d like to say a massive thanks to our panel, to The Dark Horse bar in Belfast and to the Imagine! Festival for their continued support. We’re looking forward to working with you again soon.

If you have any comments or queries then please let us know via our Contact Us page.

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The U.S. and us: The next chapter in Northern Ireland’s transatlantic relationship

Venue: The Dark Horse, 30-34 Hill Street, Belfast, BT1 2LB

Date: Monday 23 March 2020

Time: 6.30pm – 8.30pm

Event description

The island of Ireland has long been a gateway for political, business and cultural ties on both sides of the Atlantic. In Northern Ireland specifically, we’ve benefited from determined diplomatic and financial investment by the United States.

In the rapidly changing geopolitical landscape – not least with the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union and U.S. President Trump’s ‘America First’ approach – what does it all mean for Northern Ireland’s place in the wider world? Amidst uncertainties, what are the political and economic opportunities, particularly now that power-sharing government at Stormont is back up and running? With both societies having experienced varying degrees of political polarization, how can we learn from each other to promote positive discourse in politics and society?

What might a second-term Trump presidency, or a Democrat successor’s election, mean for transatlantic relations? Can Northern Ireland gain from a post-Brexit trade deal with the U.S.? How can our relationship with America help NI pitch itself as a great place to live and do business? Join Northern Slant and a panel of commentators as we try to make sense of an unpredictable world and how it will affect us.

Our excellent panel will be:

Stuart Anderson, Senior Policy Adviser, the Confederation of British Industry in Northern Ireland

Chris Buckler, BBC Washington Correspondent

Julia Flanagan, Northern Slant 

Dr Julie Norman, Lecturer in politics and international relations, University College London.

There will be closing remarks from the US Consul General to Northern Ireland, Elizabeth Kennedy Trudeau.

How to follow the Imagine! festival and Northern Slant online

Thanks to the Imagine! festival for their continued support of our work. The festival website can be found here – stay tuned for the full events programme. You can also follow updates on Twitter @ImagineBelfast.

Don’t forget to follow Northern Slant on Twitter @Northernslant and on Facebook.

In case you missed them – here are some previous Northern Slant events

Making Sense of #GE2019 – December 2019 

A couple of days ahead of the most recent Westminster general election, this discussion focused on what the opinion polls were saying and what the election might mean for Northern Ireland. Steve McGookin’s report is here.

Politics Beyond Politicians – March 2019

Who are political leaders? How does politics happen? What are the opportunities to do politics differently in Northern Ireland and how can we, as citizens and not just voters, bring about positive change? This panel discussion was held on the opening day of this year’s Imagine! festival in Belfast. Steve McGookin’s report is here.

E-book launch: Exploring Aspects of the Northern Ireland Troubles – January 2019

When Northern Slant author Vicky Cosstick launched her e-book Don’t Mention the War: Exploring Aspects of the Northern Ireland Troubles, we chaired a discussion about her work, considering the long-term impacts of the Troubles and what it will take to move NI’s frozen peace process forward. Michael Avila’s report is here.