Atlanta Council on International Relations

About Atlanta Council on International Relations

The Atlanta Council on International Relations (ACIR) is the successor organization to the Atlanta Committee on Foreign Relations (ACFR). Founded in the early 1950s, ACFR was one of a number of local committees of the Council on Foreign Relations, the pre-eminent foreign policy think tank in the United States at that time. The founders, Robert Summerville and Granger Hansell, a prominent businessman and lawyer, respectively, sought to bring to the Atlanta business, professional and academic communities exposure to issues relating to United States foreign policy. The Council on Foreign Relations sponsored visiting speakers with particular knowledge and expertise concerning international issues facing the United States. In the early 1990's the membership of ACFR voted to terminate its affiliation with the Council on Foreign Relations and form a new organization, ACIR, which would act independently through the organization of its own programs and speakers. Since its formation, ACIR has sought to provide an important platform for local experts, visiting diplomats, and academics for the discussion of significant international issues and matters relating to the foreign policy of the United States. Disclaimer: Views expressed are those of the author alone and do not necessarily reflect the position of the members of the Board of Directors or members of Atlanta Council on International Affairs, a non-partisan 501c.3. organization that seeks to educate the public on a wide variety of international issues from multiple points of view