What is NAFAC

Since 1960, the U.S. Naval Academy has hosted a gathering of undergraduates from around the United States and the world who come together in the spring to discuss a theme from current global affairs.

The Naval Academy Foreign Affairs Conference (NAFAC) has grown to be the leading undergraduate conference in the country. It has welcomed delegates from thirty countries in each of the last five years and has heard speakers as notable as President George Bush and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates.

This conference provides an outstanding opportunity for the Midshipmen to come to understand the global forces that may project them into duty around the world because good officers need a sophisticated understanding of current affairs.

The Naval Academy Foreign Affairs Conference has grown in reputation but not in size. It is kept small – no more than one hundred fifty delegates–in order that the discussion groups which are at the heart of the conference retain a good seminar atmosphere. These round table discussions include ten university delegates, two or three foreign delegates, two Midshipmen delegates, a Midshipman moderator, and two senior advisors.

Please see this article from the 2026 Director of Academics, Jack Anderson, for more information about the history and future of NAFAC.