Harold Trinkunas Appointed as Interim Co-Director of the Center for International Security and Cooperation
Trinkunas, whose research examines issues related to foreign policy, governance and security, particularly in Latin America, will lead the center along with FSI Senior Fellow Rodney Ewing.
The Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies (FSI) at Stanford University is pleased to announce that Harold Trinkunas has been appointed as interim co-director of the Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC). The appointment follows the U.S. congressional confirmation of the former co-director, Colin Kahl, as the under secretary of defense for policy.
Trinkunas previously served as deputy director of CISAC, providing oversight of the center’s core operations. As interim co-director, he will be responsible for maintaining CISAC’s leading position as a hub for researchers tackling the world’s most pressing security and international cooperation issues.
"Harold is an excellent choice to serve as the interim co-director, and I look forward to working with him,” said FSI Senior Fellow Rodney Ewing, who also serves as the co-director of CISAC. “No one knows CISAC better than Harold, so we will be able to move forward without losing a beat."
Trinkunas joined CISAC in 2016 from the Brookings Institution, where he was the Charles W. Robinson Chair and senior fellow as well as director of the Latin America Initiative in the Foreign Policy program. Trinkunas is the co-author of “Militants, Criminals and Warlords: The Challenge of Local Governance in an Age of Disorder” (Brookings Institution Press, 2017), “Aspirational Power: Brazil’s Long Road to Global Influence” (Brookings Institution Press, 2016), and authored “Crafting Civilian Control of the Military in Venezuela” (University of North Carolina Press, 2005). He has also co-edited and contributed to many other works on emerging powers and the international order, ungoverned spaces, terrorism financing, borders, and information operations.
Born and raised in Venezuela, Trinkunas earned his doctorate in political science from Stanford in 1999; he was also a predoctoral fellow and later a visiting professor at CISAC. His first exposure to CISAC took place when he served as a teaching assistant to Scott Sagan in 1992.
“I’ve loved CISAC ever since I first started participating in center activities in the 1990s," said Trinkunas. "I’m really excited to have a chance to serve the community in this new capacity.”
