PAST EVENT FROM OUR
SUMMER-FALL 2026 ZOOM SERIES
Kate Byrnes
Ambassador (ret.) Kate Marie Byrnes brings more than three decades of frontline diplomatic experience to a timely conversation on geopolitics, democracy, and transatlantic security. Now Principal of KMB Strategies LLC in Sarasota and a Distinguished Fellow at the University of Tennessee’s Baker School of Public Policy, she advises leaders navigating today’s complex global landscape.
During her 32-year career in the U.S. Foreign Service—largely focused on Europe—Ambassador Byrnes developed deep expertise in U.S.-European relations, political-military cooperation, and strategic communications. As U.S. Ambassador to North Macedonia (2019–2022), she led efforts to advance the country’s integration into NATO and the European Union, earning a Presidential Rank Award for her leadership.
Her long-standing connection to Hungary—including service in Budapest and work across NATO, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, and U.S. European Command—gives her a unique lens on democratic backsliding and regional security dynamics. With additional postings in Greece, Spain, Afghanistan, Bolivia, and Türkiye, Ambassador Byrnes offers a rare blend of on-the-ground insight and strategic perspective on the challenges shaping Europe—and their implications for the United States.
Bob Gary
Robert Gary brings a rare, hard-earned perspective to the study of democracy—shaped not just by theory, but by a lifetime at the intersection of law, public service, and lived experience. Trained at New York University School of Law and seasoned in the U.S. Department of Justice, he built a career confronting organized crime, protecting citizens, and navigating the real-world tensions between power and accountability. His later work—from advising state leadership in Ohio to representing victims and pensioners—deepened his focus on justice as a cornerstone of democratic systems.
But it is Gary’s global lens that gives his voice particular urgency. From crossing Soviet-era Berlin at Checkpoint Charlie to traveling across Eastern Europe and the Middle East, he has witnessed firsthand how governments can either serve their people—or control them. These experiences inform both his teaching and writing, including Protecting Your Pension for Dummies and his cross-cultural work I Am the Other, co-authored with Imam Subedar.
In this Zoom discussion on Hungary, Gary connects these threads—law, history, travel, and faith—to explore how democracies erode, how authoritarianism advances, and, critically, how democratic resilience can still be strengthened and sustained.
James Talarico
James Talarico is an American politician, Presbyterian seminarian, and former educator who has served since 2018 as a member of the Texas House of Representatives.
A member of the Democratic Party, Talarico is its nominee in the 2026 U.S. Senate election in Texas.
Born in Round Rock, Texas, Talarico graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Arts in government in 2011, and from Harvard University with a Master of Education degree in education policy in 2016.
Before entering politics, Talarico was a middle-school English teacher and an executive director for an education nonprofit.
He is serving his fourth term in the Texas House of Representatives, having first been elected in 2018. While serving in the Texas House, Talarico earned his Master of Divinity at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary.
As a Presbyterian and a progressive, Talarico has championed gun control, abortion rights, increased education funding, and a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, gaining national recognition for framing progressive policies through his Christian faith.
In 2025, he announced his candidacy for the United States Senate in 2026
Simon Rosenberg
Simon Rosenberg is a highly regarded political strategist and commentator with more than 30 years of experience in national politics and television news. Simon has advised elected officials and campaigns (including the Dukakis for President Campaign) at all levels of government and across the country.
He was the founder of New Democrat Network (NDN), a centrist think tank and advocacy group based in Washington, D.C. Rosenberg shuttered NDN in March 2024.
He has built a new home for his political analysis, commentary, and live political discussions at Hopium Chronicles, an engaging project on the Substack media platform.
Simon Rosenberg was born in New York City. He attended the Walden School (New York City) and then public schools in Wilton, Connecticut. He is a graduate of Tufts University, Boston.
Sheila Markin Nielsen
Sheila Markin Nielsen is a former social worker and attorney (Temple, 1977) whose career spans public service, law, nonprofit leadership, and executive coaching.
She served as a prosecutor in Philadelphia and Chicago, and later as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Seventh Circuit, where she led investigations, trials, appeals, and a major grand jury vote fraud case.
She transitioned from legal practice to leadership of a nonprofit focused on work-life balance for attorneys, and in 1990 founded Nielsen Career Consulting. She has since coached more than 6,000 professionals nationwide, authored books and articles on career development, and spoken at major legal organizations.
Nielsen is also deeply engaged in civic and political work, supporting reproductive rights and progressive causes through organizations such as Personal PAC, Planned Parenthood of Illinois, and the ACLU. She has helped raise millions for candidates and advocacy efforts.
Her blog, The Markin Report, launched in 2016, grew out of concern over misinformation and threats to democratic norms. Combining legal insight with an accessible, opinion-driven voice, the blog now reaches millions, offering fact-based analysis and fostering dialogue—particularly among readers seeking clarity in a complex political environment.
Her weekly series, The Zoom Where It Happens, [background]
Ms. Nielson obtained her MSW from Bryn Mawr and her JD from Temple University