The invasion of Ukraine constitutes a clear violation of international law, and threats of nuclear and cyber warfare dangerously escalate this conflict beyond the impacted territories. I pray for everyone working for a peaceful resolution, and for the safety of all ordinary people caught in the midst of this invasion -- especially our students and their families, our graduates, our research collaborators and the academic community more generally. At this moment, universities have a critical role to play. We can serve as global meeting places of thoughtful deliberation, where diverse points of view can be heard and solutions can be found. As a first step, Northwestern Buffett plans to convene a community conversation about the conflict led by some of our faculty experts from across the disciplines. We hope you can join us.