News & Announcements

Belfer Center Fellow Syra Madad, an internationally  recognized leader and epidemiologist in public health and special pathogens preparedness and response, has been named to the National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity (NSABB). The NSABB is a federal advisory committee that addresses issues related to biosecurity and dual use research at the request of the U.S. government. The board has 25 voting members selected for their expertise in areas that range from biosecurity, molecular biology, and animal and plant health to infectious diseases, biodefense, law enforcement, scientific publishing, and other related fields.

The existing global political-economic order has been ruptured by the rise of China, a broad backlash against globalization, uncertainties about the U.S. commitment to a rules-based system, and most recently, the Covid-19 pandemic. What form(s) might a future world order take, and what principles should guide efforts to construct it? The Future World Order event series will address these questions by examining individual topics ranging from traditional security issues such as arms control to newer, relevant issues such as digital trade. Professors Dani Rodrik and  Stephen M. Walt will moderate individual sessions.

Nobel Prize–winning economist Joseph Stiglitz, University Professor at Columbia University, shared his thoughts on carbon pricing, the post-pandemic economic recovery, and green economy transition during a virtual forum on September 8 sponsored by the Harvard Project on Climate Agreements, and hosted by Robert Stavins, A.J. Meyer Professor of Energy and Economic Development at Harvard Kennedy School.

The dean of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University highlighted both the opportunities and potential pitfalls for green energy transitions as countries of the world recover from the economic calamities wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic. Rachel Kyte spoke Wednesday (August 19) on the topic of “Using the Pandemic Recovery to Spur the Clean Transition” during a virtual forum sponsored by the Harvard Project on Climate Agreements.

The World Bank named Harvard University professor Carmen Reinhart as its chief economist, tapping an expert in the history of debt and financial crises as the global economy suffers its deepest downturn since the Great Depression.

Report by former members of President Obama's Committee of advisors on Science and Technology on recommendations for the national strategic pandemic stockpile.

A summary of the work the Belfer Center and its members have been doing working on issues related to the coronavirus. 

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.

Experts say international cooperation is critical to combat COVID-19. But as more and more countries close their borders, global leadership is also retreating behind national walls. 

Columbia University Professor Scott Barrett assessed the massive global efforts underway to address COVID-19 and the potential impacts of the pandemic on our lives in the future in a special 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.