vi

The Coronavirus Is Iran’s Perfect Storm

The COVID-19 crisis has no silver lining, and the virus is unresponsive to the instruments of power that the Islamic Republic has amassed.




vi

Building Solidarity: Challenges, Options, and Implications for COVID-19 Responses

In this white paper, authors Melani Cammett and Evan Lieberman try to shed light on what social solidarity is, how it might affect attitudinal and behavioral change; and given its desirable properties, what strategies impede and which facilitate the building of solidarity, particularly given the unique circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic.




vi

Jihadists from Ex-Soviet Central Asia: Where Are They? Why Did They Radicalize? What Next?

Thousands of radicals from formerly Soviet Central Asia have traveled to fight alongside IS in Syria and Iraq; hundreds more are in Afghanistan. Not counting the fighting in those three war-torn countries, nationals of Central Asia have been responsible for nearly 100 deaths in terrorist attacks outside their home region in the past five years. But many important aspects of the phenomenon need more in-depth study.

This research paper attempts to answer four basic sets of questions: (1) Is Central Asia becoming a new source of violent extremism that transcends borders, and possibly continents? (2) If so, why? What causes nationals of Central Asia to take up arms and participate in political violence? (3) As IS has been all but defeated in Iraq and Syria, what will Central Asian extremists who have thrown in their lot with the terrorist group do next? And (4) do jihadists from Central Asia aspire to acquire and use weapons of mass destruction? If so, how significant a threat do they pose and who would be its likeliest targets?




    vi

    Lessons for Leaders: What Afghanistan Taught Russian and Soviet Strategists

    The following is a selection of military-political lessons gleaned mostly from the recollections of Soviet strategists who were involved in making and executing the fateful decision to send troops to Afghanistan, as well as from writings by some of post-Soviet Russia’s prominent military analysts. Where possible, the author made an effort to relay these strategists’ analysis of the failures and successes of the intervention because he felt that such assessments, based on first-hand experience, are not always given their due in English-language literature on the subject. 




    vi

    Environmental Insights Interview with Nick Stern

    An exclusive interview with Lord Nicholas Stern, one of the world’s foremost experts on climate change.

     




    vi

    Study Group on Energy Innovation and the Transition to a Low-Carbon Economy: Advising Fortune 500 Companies

    This study group will explore the role of the private sector in evolving energy systems, and how corporations might change in a climate constrained world. 




    vi

    Harvard Business School Professor Rebecca Henderson Outlines Ways Organizations are Changing in Response to the Coronavirus Pandemic and Climate Change in New Edition of "Environmental Insights"

    Rebecca Henderson, the John and Natty McArthur University Professor at Harvard University, shared her perspectives on how large organizations are changing in response to the coronavirus pandemic and climate change in the newest episode of "Environmental Insights: Discussions on Policy and Practice from the Harvard Environmental Economics Program," a podcast produced by the Harvard Environmental Economics Program. Listen to the interview here. Listen to the interview here.




    vi

    Organizational Responses to COVID-19 and Climate Change: A Conversation with Rebecca Henderson

    Rebecca Henderson, the John and Natty McArthur University Professor at Harvard University, shared her perspectives on how large organizations are changing in response to the coronavirus pandemic and climate change in the newest episode of “Environmental Insights: Discussions on Policy and Practice from the Harvard Environmental Economics Program.”




    vi

    Transatlantic Dialogue: The Missing Link in Europe’s Post-Covid-19 Green Deal?

    This policy brief emphasizes that the European Green Deal's effectiveness in a post Covid-19 world will require the involvement of strategic partners, especially the US. In the context of a potential US withdrawal from the Paris Agreement and the consequential vacuum, it will be even more important to engage the US in implementing the GD. In light of divergence between the US and the EU during past climate negotiations (e.g. Kyoto, Copenhagen, and Paris), we suggest a gradual approach to US engagement with GD initiatives and objectives.




    vi

    No, the Coronavirus Will Not Change the Global Order

    Joseph Nye advises skepticism toward claims that the pandemic changes everything. China won't benefit, and the United States will remain preeminent.




    vi

    New Committee to Advise Bacow on Sustainability Goals

    Harvard University has created a Presidential Committee on Sustainability (PCS) to advise President Larry Bacow and the University's leadership on sustainability vision, goals, strategy, and partnerships. The Harvard Gazette spoke with committee chairs Rebecca Henderson, the John and Natty McArthur University Professor; John Holdren, the Teresa and John Heinz Professor of Environmental Policy at Harvard Kennedy School; and Katie Lapp, executive vice president, about why it is so important to act now; the role of the PCS in developing collaborative and innovative projects; and how the campus community can get involved.




    vi

    Organizational Responses to COVID-19 and Climate Change: A Conversation with Rebecca Henderson

    Rebecca Henderson, the John and Natty McArthur University Professor at Harvard University, shared her perspectives on how large organizations are changing in response to the coronavirus pandemic and climate change in the newest episode of “Environmental Insights: Discussions on Policy and Practice from the Harvard Environmental Economics Program.”




    vi

    No, the Coronavirus Will Not Change the Global Order

    Joseph Nye advises skepticism toward claims that the pandemic changes everything. China won't benefit, and the United States will remain preeminent.




    vi

    Getting Smart on Pandemics: Intelligence in the Wake of COVID-19

    This episode of Horns of a Dilemma touches on whether the failure to properly anticipate and warn about the novel coronavirus constitutes an intelligence failure, what changes might be required in the intelligence community in the wake of the pandemic, and what type of investigation or inquiry might be appropriate in order to learn lessons and incorporate changes for both the intelligence community and the whole of government moving forward.




    vi

    Bruce Schneier on Cybersecurity in the Age of Coronavirus

    Is Zoom secure? What about your home computer? Cyber expert Bruce Schneier says that we all need to be aware of the things cyber criminals thrive on during the confusion caused by coronavirus.




    vi

    The Global Pandemic Has Spawned New Forms of Activism — and They're Flourishing

    The authors have identified nearly 100 distinct methods of nonviolent action that include physical, virtual and hybrid actions.




    vi

    This Virus Is Tough, but History Provides Perspective: The 1968 Pandemic and the Vietnam War

    Nathaniel L. Moir recounts the events of 1968: The war in Vietnam and extensive civil unrest in the United States — and yet another big problem that made life harder. In 1968, the H3N2 pandemic killed more individuals in the United States than the combined total number of American fatalities during both the Vietnam and Korean Wars.




    vi

    How COVID-19 is Testing American Leadership

    Joseph Nye suggests that a new U.S. administration might take a leaf from the success of the post-1945 American presidents that are described in Do Morals Matter? Presidents and Foreign Policy from FDR to Trump. The United States could launch a massive COVID-19 aid program like the Marshall Plan.




    vi

    The COVID-19 Cash Out

    Because hand-to-hand exchange of physical currency could transmit the coronavirus, countries around the world are being forced to reconsider the use of cash. In fact, COVID-19 might turn out to be the catalyst that finally brings digital payments fully into the mainstream. Not surprisingly, the digital-payments industry is already focusing on the opportunities created by the crisis.




    vi

    COVID-19's Painful Lesson About Strategy and Power

    Joseph Nye writes that while trade wars have set back economic globalization,  the environmental globalization represented by pandemics and climate change is unstoppable. Borders are becoming more porous to everything from drugs to infectious diseases to cyber terrorism, and the United States must use its soft power of attraction to develop networks and institutions that address these new threats.




    vi

    How Digital Service Teams are Responding to Covid-19

    David Eaves writes that the most significant lesson coming out of the COVID-19 crisis  is the importance of having a digital strategy and a technological infrastructure in place at both the national and local levels.




    vi

    An Interview with Bruce Schneier, Renowned Security Technologist

    Bruce Schneier discusses current security technology concerns with The Politic's Eric Wallach.




    vi

    Bruce Schneier on Cybersecurity in the Age of Coronavirus

    Is Zoom secure? What about your home computer? Cyber expert Bruce Schneier says that we all need to be aware of the things cyber criminals thrive on during the confusion caused by coronavirus.




    vi

    New Committee to Advise Bacow on Sustainability Goals

    Harvard University has created a Presidential Committee on Sustainability (PCS) to advise President Larry Bacow and the University's leadership on sustainability vision, goals, strategy, and partnerships. The Harvard Gazette spoke with committee chairs Rebecca Henderson, the John and Natty McArthur University Professor; John Holdren, the Teresa and John Heinz Professor of Environmental Policy at Harvard Kennedy School; and Katie Lapp, executive vice president, about why it is so important to act now; the role of the PCS in developing collaborative and innovative projects; and how the campus community can get involved.




    vi

    How COVID-19 is Testing American Leadership

    Joseph Nye suggests that a new U.S. administration might take a leaf from the success of the post-1945 American presidents that are described in Do Morals Matter? Presidents and Foreign Policy from FDR to Trump. The United States could launch a massive COVID-19 aid program like the Marshall Plan.




    vi

    Considering Public Purpose in the Time of COVID-19

    In this piece, we will look at the various public purpose considerations as they relate to the development of diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines for coronavirus. We explore the foreseeable risks to public safety of loosened regulation, ultimately arguing that even in times of crisis, accountable science and technology development is a choice we can make to protect the public and yield beneficial results, while considering both short- and long-term impacts. 




    vi

    Paradoxes of Professionalism: Rethinking Civil-Military Relations in the United States

    The U.S. military’s prevailing norms of military professionalism are poorly suited to meet today’s civil-military challenges. They undermine the military’s nonpartisan and apolitical ethos, weaken civilian leaders' control of military activity, and undercut the country’s strategic effectiveness in armed conflict.




    vi

    No, the Coronavirus Will Not Change the Global Order

    Joseph Nye advises skepticism toward claims that the pandemic changes everything. China won't benefit, and the United States will remain preeminent.




    vi

    Getting Smart on Pandemics: Intelligence in the Wake of COVID-19

    This episode of Horns of a Dilemma touches on whether the failure to properly anticipate and warn about the novel coronavirus constitutes an intelligence failure, what changes might be required in the intelligence community in the wake of the pandemic, and what type of investigation or inquiry might be appropriate in order to learn lessons and incorporate changes for both the intelligence community and the whole of government moving forward.




    vi

    The Global Pandemic Has Spawned New Forms of Activism — and They're Flourishing

    The authors have identified nearly 100 distinct methods of nonviolent action that include physical, virtual and hybrid actions.




    vi

    This Virus Is Tough, but History Provides Perspective: The 1968 Pandemic and the Vietnam War

    Nathaniel L. Moir recounts the events of 1968: The war in Vietnam and extensive civil unrest in the United States — and yet another big problem that made life harder. In 1968, the H3N2 pandemic killed more individuals in the United States than the combined total number of American fatalities during both the Vietnam and Korean Wars.




    vi

    How COVID-19 is Testing American Leadership

    Joseph Nye suggests that a new U.S. administration might take a leaf from the success of the post-1945 American presidents that are described in Do Morals Matter? Presidents and Foreign Policy from FDR to Trump. The United States could launch a massive COVID-19 aid program like the Marshall Plan.




    vi

    Maxwell Taylor's Cold War: From Berlin to Vietnam

    Nathaniel Moir reviews Maxwell Taylor's Cold War: From Berlin to Vietnam by Ingo Trauschweizer.




    vi

    Oil Markets Provide a Glimpse of the Post-Pandemic Future

    Henry Kissinger warns that many existing domestic and international institutions that have helped govern the past decades will not survive the Covid-19 crisis. He is surely correct.




    vi

    Coronavirus Crisis Shows Cracks in the U.S. Governing System, Analysts Say

    China’s autocratic system has performed better in some aspects than America’s democracy so far in responding to the coronavirus pandemic, but it is too early to write off the United States despite its many early missteps, analysts at a China Institute event said.




    vi

    Coronavirus Blame Game ‘a Childish Distraction’

    Since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, China and the US have been engaged in a wide spectrum of competition that has enhanced their rivalry. We have seen debates and arguments about China's one-party system versus the US democratic system, the China-US blame game, and the ideology-centered media war. How will the pandemic reshape China-US relations? Is cooperation still possible to address the unexpected global challenge posed by the virus? Global Times (GT) reporter Wang Wenwen talked to Graham Allison (Allison), professor at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard and author of Destined for War: Can America and China Escape Thucydides' Trap?, on these issues.




    vi

    China After Coronavirus – Should We Ever Trust Beijing Again?

    The coronavirus has exposed even deeper fault lines in the increasingly acrimonious U.S.-China relationship. The U.S. is now taking appropriate measures to mitigate the risk to our national security of relying on China for critical technology, precious metals and medical supplies.




    vi

    No, the Coronavirus Will Not Change the Global Order

    Joseph Nye advises skepticism toward claims that the pandemic changes everything. China won't benefit, and the United States will remain preeminent.




    vi

    This Virus Is Tough, but History Provides Perspective: The 1968 Pandemic and the Vietnam War

    Nathaniel L. Moir recounts the events of 1968: The war in Vietnam and extensive civil unrest in the United States — and yet another big problem that made life harder. In 1968, the H3N2 pandemic killed more individuals in the United States than the combined total number of American fatalities during both the Vietnam and Korean Wars.




    vi

    How COVID-19 is Testing American Leadership

    Joseph Nye suggests that a new U.S. administration might take a leaf from the success of the post-1945 American presidents that are described in Do Morals Matter? Presidents and Foreign Policy from FDR to Trump. The United States could launch a massive COVID-19 aid program like the Marshall Plan.




    vi

    What Caused the COVID-19 Testing Deficit?

    As the divergent experiences of the US and South Korea show, testing can be the difference between disease containment and catastrophe. Rather than relying on national governments to ensure the rapid development, production, and deployment of diagnostics during outbreaks, the world needs a global coordinating platform.




    vi

    COVID’s Broader Impacts: Risks and Recommendations

    While the world’s health and economy are the clearest victims of COVID-19, the pandemic has impacted nearly every aspect of society – from national security to international relationships. We asked several of our experts to share their thoughts on risks and/or recommendations that policymakers and the public should consider in the coming weeks and months.




    vi

    Maxwell Taylor's Cold War: From Berlin to Vietnam

    Nathaniel Moir reviews Maxwell Taylor's Cold War: From Berlin to Vietnam by Ingo Trauschweizer.




    vi

    The COVID-19 Cash Out

    Because hand-to-hand exchange of physical currency could transmit the coronavirus, countries around the world are being forced to reconsider the use of cash. In fact, COVID-19 might turn out to be the catalyst that finally brings digital payments fully into the mainstream. Not surprisingly, the digital-payments industry is already focusing on the opportunities created by the crisis.




    vi

    COVID-19's Painful Lesson About Strategy and Power

    Joseph Nye writes that while trade wars have set back economic globalization,  the environmental globalization represented by pandemics and climate change is unstoppable. Borders are becoming more porous to everything from drugs to infectious diseases to cyber terrorism, and the United States must use its soft power of attraction to develop networks and institutions that address these new threats.




    vi

    How Digital Service Teams are Responding to Covid-19

    David Eaves writes that the most significant lesson coming out of the COVID-19 crisis  is the importance of having a digital strategy and a technological infrastructure in place at both the national and local levels.




    vi

    An Interview with Bruce Schneier, Renowned Security Technologist

    Bruce Schneier discusses current security technology concerns with The Politic's Eric Wallach.




    vi

    Bruce Schneier on Cybersecurity in the Age of Coronavirus

    Is Zoom secure? What about your home computer? Cyber expert Bruce Schneier says that we all need to be aware of the things cyber criminals thrive on during the confusion caused by coronavirus.




    vi

    New Committee to Advise Bacow on Sustainability Goals

    Harvard University has created a Presidential Committee on Sustainability (PCS) to advise President Larry Bacow and the University's leadership on sustainability vision, goals, strategy, and partnerships. The Harvard Gazette spoke with committee chairs Rebecca Henderson, the John and Natty McArthur University Professor; John Holdren, the Teresa and John Heinz Professor of Environmental Policy at Harvard Kennedy School; and Katie Lapp, executive vice president, about why it is so important to act now; the role of the PCS in developing collaborative and innovative projects; and how the campus community can get involved.




    vi

    How COVID-19 is Testing American Leadership

    Joseph Nye suggests that a new U.S. administration might take a leaf from the success of the post-1945 American presidents that are described in Do Morals Matter? Presidents and Foreign Policy from FDR to Trump. The United States could launch a massive COVID-19 aid program like the Marshall Plan.