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In the midst of searching for a glimpse of a moose or awaiting the awe-inspiring sight of the Old Faithful geyser erupting, it might prove hard to keep the plight of millions of refugees on the forefront of a trip to Jackson Hole, Wyoming.  But as the board members, special guest speakers and supporters of Refugees International gathered for our 6th annual Jackson Hole Circle Event, it was clear that there would be no shortage of thoughtful interchange.

George Packer, staff writer for the New Yorker, and his wife, the writer Laura Secor, along with RI board member Sam Waterston headlined an evening of conversation on Iran, Iraq and Afghanistan.  Moments after the introduction, Sam opened the discussions to floor questions and things got started quickly.  Hands were flying to ask the next question and there was clearly some disappointment that the conversation couldn’t have gone on longer. 

Collectively the panelists presented a pretty bleak picture of the political situations in the three countries, and the audience pleaded with them to provide some glimpse into the future. There were also questions about how small-scale relief and development efforts might work or not given the level of political strife. RI acting president Joel Charny wrapped up the conversation bringing the focus back to the human beings who are affected by the geopolitical challenges and the specific work that Refugees International does to protect them.

At the outset of the evening the arrival of former Vice President Cheney, his wife Lynne and daughter Liz brought some perspective of its own.  Other guests, arriving at the same time as the Vice President, thought they might have come to the wrong event.  As it turns out, the former Vice President and our own President, Ken Bacon, have a friendship that goes back almost four decades.  Most telling about this particular friendship is that it has never affected RI’s objective analysis and critique, and support in some cases, of the Bush/Cheney Administration’s policies regarding refugees.

The issues facing refugees are heartbreaking and the numbers of refugees, internally displaced people, and the stateless are staggering. But Sam Waterston had my favorite quote of the evening, and encompassed why RI does the work that it does when he said, “We all need to find paths of hope and the work RI does has a real impact on people who are suffering.”