Stanford University

Security

FSI scholars produce research aimed at creating a safer world and examing the consequences of security policies on institutions and society. They look at longstanding issues including nuclear nonproliferation and the conflicts between countries like North and South Korea. But their research also examines new and emerging areas that transcend traditional borders – the drug war in Mexico and expanding terrorism networks. FSI researchers look at the changing methods of warfare with a focus on biosecurity and nuclear risk. They tackle cybersecurity with an eye toward privacy concerns and explore the implications of new actors like hackers.

Along with the changing face of conflict, terrorism and crime, FSI researchers study food security. They tackle the global problems of hunger, poverty and environmental degradation by generating knowledge and policy-relevant solutions. 

CISAC launches seed grant program for security research

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Stanford’s Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC) has established the Security Research Seed Grant Program, which is designed to provide small grants for early-stage, security-related doctoral research at Stanford.

The program offers grants ranging from $1,000 to $5,000 each year in an effort to engage a broader pool of doctoral students in CISAC activities and to foster interdisciplinary connections across engineering, humanities and the sciences and social sciences.

Eligibility: Stanford University doctoral students in any department or field conducting research relevant to one of CISAC’s six core research areas is eligible:

• Nuclear Security and Risk

• Cybersecurity

• Biosecurity and Global Health

• Terrorism, Insurgency, and Homeland Security

• Governance, Organizations, and Security

• Migration and Transnational Flows

Proposals should clearly state the research question to be addressed, the methods to be used, and the policy relevance of the project. CISAC will award of total of $10,000 each year to individual researchers as well as research teams. Awards may cover a range of expenses, including (but not limited to):

• Travel for field studies, archival research

• Undergraduate research assistance

• Experimental or survey design costs

• Books and other research materials

Requirements: Winners must write a short report on the use of grant funds and present their work at a CISAC workshop or reading group within a year of receiving the grant.

Applications: Send a short project proposal of no more than 1,000 words, a budget and CV(s) to Shelby Speer (sspeer@stanford.edu) by Sept. 15. Grants will be awarded by Nov. 1 for the 2014-2015 academic year.

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CISAC fellow Rebecca Slayton and former science fellow Sonja Schmid. | Rod Searcey
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Hegghammer explores the motivations behind ISIS demand for Islamic state

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CISAC Consulting Professor Thomas Hegghammer writes in this Lawfare Foreign Policy Essay: Calculated Caliphate that the move by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) to declare itself an Islamic State with a caliphate as its leader is a "bold and unprecedented" move.

Hegghammer, director of terrorism research at the Norwegian Defence Research Establishment and a leading scholar of the jihadist movement, explores the motivations, both strategic and ideological, behind the recent ISIS revelations in Iraq.

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Directors' Seminar Series

CISAC Seminars showcase Stanford faculty and researchers, as well as policy makers and visiting scholars from all over the country. Speakers typically cover general topics on international security and present the policy implications of their research or their years of experience in government. CISAC Seminars are free and usually open to the public. Directors' Seminars are held on certain Thursdays, from 3:30 - 5:00 PM in the William J. Perry Conference Room, Encina Hall, 2nd floor. At speaker’s request, some events may be by invitation only.

Aid Under Fire: Development Projects and Civil Conflict

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Governments and multi-lateral donor organizations are increasingly targeting development aid to conflict affected areas with the hope that this aid will help government efforts to reduce conflict and stabilize these areas. 

The expectation is that implementing development projects such as roads, schools, and hospitals will increase popular support for the government – effectively  “winning hearts and minds” of the people- and reduce popular support for insurgents making it more difficult for them to recruit rebels and carry out attacks.

Joe Felter, a Senior Research Scholar at CISAC, with Benjamin Crost at the University of Illinois and Patrick Johnston from the RAND Corporation published Aid Under Fire: Development Projects and Civil Conflict in the June edition of the American Economic Review that challenges this conventional wisdom.

In this article, Felter and his coauthors provide evidence that a “winning hearts and minds” strategy can backfire in some cases. When insurgents believe that that the successful implementation of government sponsored development projects will lead to an increase in support for the government and undermine their position they have incentives to attack or otherwise sabotage them thus exacerbating conflict in the near term.  

Ironically, increases in violence associated with government sponsored development efforts can in some cases be interpreted as an indicator that these efforts are targeting insurgent vulnerabilities effectively.

This article adds to Felter’s previously published research on the challenges of stabilizing conflict areas through development aid and economic assistance. See

Modest, Secure and Informed: Successful Development in Conflict Zones with Eli Berman, Jacob Shapiro and Erin Troland in American Economic Review Papers and Proceedings 2013

Can Hearts and Minds be Bought? The Economics of Counterinsurgency in Iraq with Eli Berman and Jacob Shapiro in the Journal of Political Economy 2011

Do Working Men Rebel? Insurgency and Unemployment in Afghanistan, Iraq and the Philippines with Eli Berman, Jacob Shapiro and Michael Callen Journal of Conflict Resolution 2011.

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The USAF Weapons School and the B-52H: Integrating Legacy and 5th Generation Platforms in order to Inspire and Transform

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Abstract: Weapons School is the premier USAF tactical school producing advanced air, space and cyberspace leaders/tacticians capable of transforming and inspiring the nation’s joint combat power. The school is constantly pushing the tactical envelope.  In contrast, the B-52Hs flying today are 53 years old and slated to remain in active service beyond 2040. They represent the most visible portion of the nuclear triad with a legacy of devastating conventional attacks in Vietnam, Iraq, Bosnia and Afghanistan. 

The talk begins with a brief history/mission overview of the Weapons School followed by B-52 capabilities, roles, and missions. Then Lt Col Schendzielos interweaves personal experience to highlight how the USAF’s top warriors prepare for and conduct combat while making sure the B-52H remains a potent force in tomorrow’s fight. 

Speaker Bio: Lieutenant Colonel Schendzielos is a CISAC National Defense Fellow, Weapons Instructor, Electronic Warfare Officer, Strategist, and former Orbital Analyst.   He recently commanded the 340th Weapons Squadron, the Weapons School’s B-52 squadron. He led a cadre of Weapons Instructors teaching a graduate-level 5 ½ month training and integration course consisting of 427 academic hours, 348 flying hours, 19 sorties, and 1,107 weapons.  Lt Col Schendzielos served previously as Director of 13th Air Force Commander’s Action Group; Strategy Division Deputy Director; Weapons and Tactics Flight Commander; Bomb Wing/Operations Group Executive Officer; and Space Control Analyst/Orbital Analyst, deploying three times accumulating over 270 combat flight hours. He graduated Air War College, Army School of Advanced Military Studies, Army Command and General Staff College, Air Command and Staff College, USAF Weapons School, Squadron Officer School and the USAF Academy. He holds a Master of Military Arts and Sciences in Military Space Application, Master of Military Arts and Science in Theater Operations and Bachelor of Science in Political Science.

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Kurt Schendzielos USAF National Defense Fellow, CISAC Speaker
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