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The Conference on World Affairs鈥� annual tradition lives on.

After March 11, when conference organizers announced the cancellation of its in-person event in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the CWA program committee scrapped their original panel list and started fresh.

The committee 鈥� made up of students and community members 鈥攈ad three weeks to invite panelists to virtually discuss topics related to the pandemic. Usually, the process takes a year.

鈥淭o riff on the old adage, this was a case of demand, together with necessity, being the mother of invention,鈥� said John Griffin, CWA director.

The effort paid off.

The 72nd conference had 11,360 views during the week of April 6鈥�10. Nearly 4,000 of them were live.

Panels focused on the economic impacts of the virus, our health post-pandemic and how to find humor in difficult times. Speakers included Simpsons writer Mike Reiss, social epidemiologist Margot Witvliet and National Jewish Health pulmonologist Irina Petrache, among many others.

A panel on historical pandemics was most popular, with more than 6,500 views during the week.

鈥淲e are all experiencing the same historical event alone, together,鈥� said Hardcore History podcaster Dan Carlin (Hist鈥�89) in the virtual discussion. 鈥淚鈥檓 trying to get my mind around how fascinating that is.鈥�

Watch the panels here.

Photo courtesy CWA听

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