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Once international forces finally vacate Afghanistan in 2014, the hope for the country will lie solely with its people. Peter Eichstaedt's new book, 'Above the Din of War, Afghans Speak about Their Lives, Their Country, and Their Future-and Why America Should Listen', illuminates the people of Afghanistan and how they have lived, and will continue to live, in a country that has been at war for 30 years. After spending 2004 in Afghanistan working for the non-profit Institute for War and Peace Reporting and helping build Afghanistan's first independent news agency, Peter Eichstaedt returned to Kabul in 2010. As he worked with Afghan journalists to document their history and collective struggles, he realized that although Kabul itself appeared cleaned up, the optimism of the freshly liberated capital had faded under the rise of insurgency. The war in Afghanistan is often examined from the perspective of a foreign correspondent, political analyst or US soldier. In 'Above the Din of War', Eichstaedt provides a forum for the everyday people of Afghanistan to be heard. Peter Eichstaedt is a veteran journalist who has reported from locations worldwide, including Slovenia, Moldova, Afghanistan, Albania, Armenia, and Uganda. He worked most recently as the Afghanistan Country Director of the Institute for War and Peace Reporting in The Hague, during which time he managed six journalism development programs, including the Afghan Investigative Journalism Fund, a one-year project to build investigative journalism reporting capacity. He is the author of 'Consuming the Congo', 'First Kill Your Family', 'If You Poison Us', and 'Pirate State'. He lives in Denver, Colorado. More information on the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council can be found here.