AMERICAS
AP Photo
April 25, 2013
"The New Normal?"
Op-Ed, Boston Globe
By Juliette Kayyem, Lecturer in Public Policy
"...[E]very aspect of the week's events from the security precautions taken at the finish line of the Marathon to the way the manhunt was conducted will provide new standards for public safety entities who learn from each other. Giving the task of performing such an evaluation to an independent assessor without past ties to Massachusetts law enforcement is essential. Public confidence will benefit because, before we know it, there will be another Marathon next year. A formal process of determining lessons learned, while memories are fresh, is part of an effective feedback loop."
April 2013
"The Role of Forests in a Future Climate Agreement"
Policy Brief
By Donna Lee
Forests can play a significant role in helping to avoid dangerous climate change, and a global agreement under the UNFCCC would be uniquely placed to support efforts in this regard. The rising global demand for agricultural and other land-based products means that pressures on land are increasingly cross-border, and there is an accelerating expansion of the deforestation frontier. Smart domestic policies are critical to solving the deforestation challenge, and recent private sector interest in "sustainable agriculture" is encouraging. However, global agreements that value standing forests and provide incentives that positively impact land use change decisions can be an equally important tool.
April 20, 2013
"Russia, US may face a shared threat"
Op-Ed, Boston Globe
By Simon Saradzhyan, Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
As evidence emerges, more is becoming known about Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the brothers suspected of carrying out the Boston Marathon attacks, writes Simon Saradzhyan. "They were reportedly devout Muslims who were born into a family of ethnic Chechens, lived in the Central Asian republic of Kyrgyzstan, and studied in Russia’s North Caucasus, before coming to the United States as children. Over time, the older brother, Tamerlan, became a more radical figure. Whatever his motivation, he was following a similar path to that of some insurgents in the North Caucasus, who once focused on achieving secular independence for their homeland, but went on to become intertwined in international jihadist networks that share a belief that their number one enemy is America."
April 23, 2013
"Boondock Nation"
Op-Ed, The Huffington Post
By Charles G. Cogan, Associate, International Security Program
"...[T]he president might just as well have railed against our undemocratic, eighteenth-century system of government. From the era when a second legislative chamber was created to hold back the masses, we have a situation whereby Montana, with a population of just over one million has the same number of senators — two — as New York, with a population of almost 20 million."
April 22, 2013
"Panetta to Hillary: 'You're Flat Wrong'"
Op-Ed, The Huffington Post
By Charles G. Cogan, Associate, International Security Program
"The issue was who was in charge of the drone program being conducted over Pakistan, the ambassador, Cameron Munter (who was present by video link) or the Station Chief. Specifically, Munter wanted to have approval power over the drone strikes. Hillary agreed. Panetta insisted otherwise."
April 21, 2013
"Nation's Challenge: Terrorist Next Door"
Op-Ed, Philadelphia Inquirer
By Marisa L. Porges, Research Fellow, International Security Program
"Active support from and cooperation with American Muslims will be one of the most effective ways to thwart future terrorist attacks. As Saudi counterterrorism officials continually remind me, the friends and family of potential jihadists are the best form of defense against radicalization. This approach works in America, too."
Rex Features via AP Images
April 18, 2013
"After the Boston Marathon bomb attacks: What we've learned"
Op-Ed, GlobalPost
By Nicholas Burns, Professor of the Practice of Diplomacy and International Politics, Harvard Kennedy School
Amid the shock, grief and anger, what can we learn? Nicholas Burns dissects this week's Boston Marathon bombings.
April 18, 2013
"Resilient Bostonians Must Regroup, Learn, and Adapt"
Op-Ed, Boston Globe
By Juliette Kayyem, Lecturer in Public Policy
"Those actions by authorities were the product of a constant process of learning from horrors in the past. The lessons learned from the terrorist attacks on 9/11 prompted the quick reactions of first responders in Boston. The skills that soldiers mastered in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan created competencies that saved lives, and limbs, at the bomb site. The plea for public participation came from a government that has learned that an insular national security apparatus is limited in its capacities."
AP Photo
April 16, 2013
"A Spectator Event with No Doors"
Op-Ed, Boston Globe
By Juliette Kayyem, Lecturer in Public Policy
"The speed of evacuation, and the intensity of the response, were the products of months of planning for the Marathon. Public-safety officials were on high alert because any event with lots of people around is sure to have safety issues. But no marathon can ever be totally secure."
April 15, 2013
"Marathon Misery"
Op-Ed, Boston Globe
By Juliette Kayyem, Lecturer in Public Policy
"When the race is over, there will be talk of endurance and determination, of personal bests and getting past the proverbial wall, of Heartbreak Hill (it's actually a bunch of hills — there is no forgetting that) and the finish line. Visitors will praise the hospitality of this city whose residents pass around water and cheer athletes onward."
