The Carnegie Corporation of New York awarded the George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs with a two-year grant of $2.4 million to support four research programs relating to international security. This follows a $2 million award from the Carnegie Corporation to the Elliott School in 2011.
The newest grant will fund the Project on Middle East Political Science (POMEPS), the Program on New Approaches to Research and Security in Eurasia (PONARS Eurasia) and two programs focused on nuclear policy and security. One program assesses U.S. nuclear strategy toward China, while the other works to promote a bipartisan consensus on nuclear security issues in the U.S.
“GW's Elliott School of International Affairs is proud to partner with the Carnegie Corporation of New York on these important programs, and we are grateful for Carnegie's tremendous support,” said Elliott School Dean Michael E. Brown. “The Elliott School is exceptionally well-positioned to build global networks of scholars and generate cutting-edge scholarship on real-world policy problems. This grant will enable us to take great strides in the years ahead."
The grant allows the Elliott School to expand POMEPS, a collaborative international network of scholars specializing in the Middle East. POMEPS was launched in 2010 with the goal of strengthening the field of Middle East political science and increasing the impact of scholarship on policy. It is led by Marc Lynch, director of the Institute for Middle East Studies, and has been supported by Carnegie Corporation since its inception.
The award also supports PONARS Eurasia, an international network of scholars that promotes policy engagement and scholarly work on issues of security and politics across Russia, the Caucasus, Central Asia and East Europe. PONARS Eurasia publishes more than 50 policy memos a year, as well as working papers and online commentary. It convenes workshops in the Eurasian region and one major annual policy conference in Washington, D.C.
Two projects focused on international security issues will also benefit from the Carnegie grant. The first, led by Director of the Institute for Security and Conflict Studies Charles Glaser, examines U.S. nuclear policy toward China. As China modernizes and enlarges its nuclear and conventional forces, this project will frame and analyze the resulting security issues and disseminate its findings to a variety of audiences.
The second project aims to encourage and sustain productive bipartisan discourse on nuclear security. The project is run by Research Professor Janne Nolan. It was established with Carnegie funds in 2009 and brings together an influential group of defense and national security experts to work with administration officials, congressional leaders and other opinion-leaders to increase support for initiatives that reduce nuclear dangers.