Cooperative Nonproliferation
PREVENTING THE SPREAD OF NUCLEAR, BIOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL WEAPONS
The Cooperative Nonproliferation Program offers innovative, functional approaches to address the most significant threat to international security today: the spread of weapons of mass destruction. It seeks to bridge the gap between traditional "hard" security (proliferation) and "soft" security objectives (capacity-building, global development and public health). We partner with the public and private sector--an under-exploited resource--to achieve mutual security and development objectives. Only by exploring and leveraging all available means to address the growing threat of proliferation can we begin to treat its causes rather than its symptoms. READ MORE »
Current Research
THE NEXT 100 PROJECT: IMPLEMENTING UNSCR 1540 » UN Security Council Resolution 1540 provides an innovative platform to pair states in need with donor capacity to deal with a spectrum of hard and soft security threats. The Next 100 Project aims to apply the tools of cooperative nonproliferation beyond the original seven states to develop scalable, sustainable, and replicable models that pragmatically pair the next 100 states in need of assistance with those states capable of offering it. READ MORE »
LEVERAGING THE NATIONAL LABORATORIES' S&T CAPABILITIES FOR 21ST CENTURY SECURITY » Providing a strategic framework for leveraging the diverse scientific knowledge at the US Nuclear Weapons Laboratories would not only help overcome political barriers to rationalizing the US nuclear footprint, but also help to meet the country’s broader national security needs. This project will convene a senior-level task force to formulate an R&D strategy for achieving a 21st century national security enterprise. READ MORE »
THE BIOTEK PROJECT: MANAGING DEADLY PATHOGENS » Advances in biotechnology have fundamentally altered the course of human discovery. But the growth of the biologics industry also presents new opportunities for bioterrorism. The Cooperative Nonproliferation Program works closely with industry to examine the challenges emerging from the misuse of biologics in our country and around the globe. READ MORE »
PARTNERS IN PREVENTION: Mobilizing the Private Sector to Identify Illicit Networks » Companies are the first line of defense in detecting and thwarting illicit WMD networks. Contingent upon their internal business practices, they can either be part of the solution, or part of the problem--even if unwittingly. Our goal is an innovative public-private partnership to counter the proliferation threat. READ MORE »
SCIENTIFIC COOPERATION TO MEET GRAND CHALLENGES » Just as the military build-up of the Cold War encouraged innovation in the US--microwave ovens, smoke detectors, and the internet--47 years of competition also left the former Soviet states with a huge, highly trained, and comparatively inexpensive pool of underutilized scientific talent. While that community continues to represent a proliferation challenge, it also presents tremendous—though poorly understood—commercial opportunities for the private sector and humanitarian resources for the world. READ MORE »