James (Jim) Hirst

Jim Hirst got his start in citizen diplomacy as a member of Citizen’s Reach Out, an organization that told the stories of Iraqi Refugees who have made their way to the U.S. West Coast. These stories are direct interviews of Iraqi civilians who have survived the U.S. invasion of their country and show the ongoing effects of that war and our military first foreign policy.

Jim is retired after a long career in the U. S. Merchant Marine. A world-wide seagoing career where he saw first-hand the degradation of marine environments as well as…