Public Policy Network, Great Decisions Connect
Episcopal News Service. January 17, 1985 [85010]
NEW YORK (DPS, Jan. 17) -- Great Decisions, a 31-year-old program of the Foreign Policy Association, and the Episcopal Church's Public Policy Network have teamed up in a model program to disseminate information on major foreign policy issues facing the United States.
According to Nancy Deppen, Public Policy Network coordinator at the Episcopal Church Center here, the network was looking for ways to educate its members on current issues. The Foreign Policy Association was looking for ways to reach people with its information. When the Association contacted the Church, the pieces began to fall into place for an arrangement which, Deppen says, is being seen as a model for interaction with other churches.
In its 1984-85 Annual Report, the Foreign Policy Association states its belief that "in a democratic system, an essential element in achieving a responsible foreign policy is a concerned and informed citizenry" and that "constructive dialogue between the citizens of this nation and their elected leaders" is an important part of the process. Great Decisions is one way of facilitating this.
Since its founding in 1954, Great Decisions has been endorsed by every American President and every Secretary of State. The program, currently involving about 250,000 people, is based on a 96-page briefing book which makes a non-partisan, non-political analysis of eight critical foreign policy issues. For 1985, the topics are: Revolutionary Cuba; Soviet Leadership in Transition; Iran-Iraq War; Budget Deficit, Trade and the Dollar; The Philippines; Population Growth; Future of the Atlantic Alliance; and U.S. Intelligence. A new feature this year is a series of eight half-hour programs, moderated by Edwin Newman, which will examine these issues. They will be offered to all public television stations via WESTAR satellite beginning Sunday, Feb. 10.
Episcopalians from New Jersey, eastern Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, and Washington, D.C. who are involved in peace and justice issues got a chance to attend a workshop on implementing the Great Decisions program Oct. 23 in Philadelphia. Sponsored by the Foreign Policy Association and the Philadelphia World Affairs Council, the agenda included a description of the Great Decisions program, lunch, a speaker, and a discussion, during which the leader acted to encourage interaction between those attending and to enable them to examine all sides of the topic -- in this case, the Soviet Union. This was provided under the auspices of the sponsoring organizations and at no cost to the Church.
Evaluations from participants at the training session were generally positive. Most felt that they would be able to use the program, though the ways they would use it varied: in community groups, as a convocation event, in chaplaincy work, at church meetings, with the diocesan peace commission, as a Lenten program, and in an adult forum.
When asked about the wide-spread enthusiasm for Great Decisions, Deppen attributed it to the method used, saying, "It's seen as fairly presenting various points of view and not coming down on or promoting any particular point of view." She also noted that an important part of the program is the opinion ballots sent in by participants. These are tabulated and results are forwarded to the White House, Departments of State and Defense, and to members of Congress, as well as being distributed to the nation's media and interested members of the public.
Following up on the success of the Philadelphia event, at least two more regional workshops are in the planning stage. In anticipation of this and the television series, a letter enclosing Great Decisions materials is being sent by the Rev. Charles A. Cesaretti, public issues officer at the Episcopal Church Center, to those chairing diocesan peace commissions.