home > the cfr think tank > experts > michael a. levi
David M. Rubenstein Senior Fellow for Energy and the Environment and Director of the Program on Energy Security and Climate Change
Contact Info:
Phone: +1-212-434-9495
E-mail: mlevi@cfr.org
Location:
New York, NY
Media downloads:
High-resolution photo (JPG, 1000K)
One-page bio (PDF, 61K)
CV (PDF, 41K)
Author of On Nuclear Terrorism, released November 2007. Directed the recent Council-sponsored Independent Task Force on climate change.
Expertise:Climate change; energy policy; weapons of mass destruction; homeland security; arms control and proliferation; technology and foreign policy; science and technology in the Islamic world.
Experience:Fellow for Science and Technology, Council on Foreign Relations (2006-2008); Nonresident Science Fellow, Foreign Policy Studies, Brookings Institution (2003-2004); Director, Strategic Security Project, Federation of American Scientists (2001-2003); Deputy Director, Strategic Security Project, Federation of American Scientists (2001).
Selected Publications:Confronting Climate Change: A Strategy for U.S. Foreign Policy (director, Independent Task Force report, Council on Foreign Relations Press, June 2008); On Nuclear Terrorism (Harvard University Press, 2007); Untapped Potential: U.S. Science and Technology Cooperation with the Islamic World (coauthor, Brookings Institution Press, 2005); The Future of Arms Control (coauthor, Brookings Institution Press, 2005).
Related Links:
CFR's International Institutions and Global Governance Program
Current Research Projects
Past Research Projects
November 2, 2009
Academic Module
This module features teaching notes by CFR Senior Fellow Michael A. Levi, author of Deterring State Sponsorship of Nuclear Terrorism, along with other resources to supplement the text. In this Council Special Report, Dr. Levi assesses the state of nuclear security in several vulnerable countries and examines how different deterrent threats would affect the dynamics of cooperation and competition to improve nuclear security.
October 19, 2009
Transcript
A panel discussion on China's global rise, as part of the Council on Foreign Relations China 2025 Conference.
See more in China, Economic Development, Trade
October 19, 2009
Video
Watch experts as they examine China's future global outlook.
This session was part of a CFR symposium, China 2025, which was cosponsored with the Project 2049 Institute.
See more in China, International Peace and Security, Grand Strategy
October 19, 2009
Audio
Listen to experts as they examine China's future global outlook.
This session was part of a CFR symposium, China 2025, which was cosponsored with the Project 2049 Institute.
See more in China, International Peace and Security, Grand Strategy
October 5, 2009
Interview
CFR's Michael Levi says the Obama administration faces tough negotiations on a global climate change agreement at the December Copenhagen meeting without clear support from Congress. But he says Obama has other legislative options.
See more in Energy/Environment, Climate Change
September 25, 2009
Interview
CFR's Michael Levi says the disclosure of a clandestine uranium enrichment plant in Iran heightens suspicions the country is seeking a nuclear weapons capability, and raises new pressure for tougher sanctions.
See more in Iran, Proliferation
September 16, 2009
Audio
Listen to Michael Levi, CFR's senior fellow for energy and the environment, address the deadlock in climate change negotiations and argue that the world urgently needs a "Plan B" for Copenhagen.
See more in Energy/Environment, Climate Change
September 16, 2009
Transcript
CFR Senior Fellow Michael A. Levi and CFR.org Editor Robert McMahon discuss the deadlock in global climate negotiations and the upcoming UN Copenhagen Summit in December 2009.
See more in Climate Change, International Organizations
August 12, 2009
Op-Ed
The Boston Globe
Michael A. Levi argues that the inclusion of carbon tariffs in cap-and-trade legislation would be economically damaging.
See more in Energy/Environment, U.S. Strategy and Politics
Updated: June 27, 2009
Expert Brief
The main U.S. bill on confronting climate change should adjust the way it proposes cushioning some vulnerable U.S. industries to avoid stirring protectionist fears, writes CFR's Michael Levi.
See more in United States, Economics, Energy/Environment
June 19, 2009
Article
Slate
Michael A. Levi argues that a price on carbon would provide the United States energy security and prod the Canadian oil sands industry to clean up its emissions act.
See more in North America, Energy Security
May 8, 2009
Transcript
What will be the most effective forums for international cooperation in regulating the global commons, and what leadership role should the United States play on these issues? What are the prospects for a climate change agreement at Copenhagen in 2009, and what role should the United States play? What are the prospects for "mini-lateral" cooperation-especially between the United States, European Union, China, and India-among major emitter countries?
See more in Climate Change
May 8, 2009
Video
Watch experts discuss how the United States should be addressing climate change and the need for global cooperation on the issue.
This session was part of the CFR conference: The United States and the Future of Global Governance, which was made possible through the generous support of the Robina Foundation.
See more in Climate Change, Global Governance
May 8, 2009
Audio
Listen to experts discuss how the United States should be addressing climate change and the need for global cooperation on the issue.
This session was part of the CFR conference: The United States and the Future of Global Governance, which was made possible through the generous support of the Robina Foundation.
See more in Climate Change, Global Governance
May 2009
Council Special Report No. 47
Council Special Report
The Canadian oil sands present an important challenge to policymakers: they promise energy security benefits but present climate change problems. Michael A. Levi assesses the energy security and climate change effects of the oil sands and makes recommendations for U.S. policymakers within the context of broader bilateral relations with Canada.
See more in Canada, Climate Change, Energy Security
Spring 2009
Article
Issues in Science and Technology
Michael A. Levi reviews Will Terrorists Go Nuclear? by Brian Michael Jenkins.
See more in Proliferation, Weapons of Mass Destruction, Terrorism
March 13, 2009
Academic Module
This module features teaching notes by CFR Senior Fellow Michael A. Levi, author of On Nuclear Terrorism, along with other resources to supplement the text. In this CFR book, Dr. Levi examines one of the greatest national security threats of our time: terrorist groups armed with nuclear weapons, and argues that only a broad-based and multi-layered defense can be effective in confronting it.
March 9, 2009
Academic Module
This module features teaching notes by Michael A. Levi, director of the CFR-sponsored Independent Task Force report, Confronting Climate Change: A Strategy for U.S. Policy, along with other resources to supplement the text. This report lays out a U.S. negotiating proposal for a global climate accord, including what the United States should be willing to offer and what it should expect others to do in order to confront climate change.
See more in Climate Change, Energy, U.S. Strategy and Politics
March 4, 2009
Op-Ed
Slate
Michael Levi warns that if we try to find a single solution for our economic and energy challenges in the form of "green jobs", we might fail to deliver on both fronts.
See more in Economics, Climate Change
December 12, 2008
Op-Ed
Huffington Post
The sooner the new administration lays out the contours of the agreement it wants on climate change, the better the odds that it will be able to deliver. In this Huffington Post article, Michael Levi suggests a 5 point strategy for UN climate negotiations.
See more in Energy/Environment, International Organizations
Explore the international finance regime with a new interactive from CFR's program on International Institutions and Global Governance.
Identifying international threats and acting on them may be the most difficult job for U.S. policymakers. This report
provides an actionable road map for managing international threats before they erupt into crises and makes a strong case that preventive action is not a luxury but a necessity.
For more than a decade, the United States has mostly watched from the sidelines as Asian countries organize themselves into an alphabet soup of new multilateral groups. In this report, the authors review the relationship between pan-Asian and trans-Pacific institutions and suggest policy guidelines for a new U.S. approach to this new Asian landscape.
Complete list of Council Special Reports
Start-Up Nation addresses the trillion-dollar question: How is it that Israel—a country of 7.1 million, only sixty years old, surrounded by enemies— produces more start-up companies than large, peaceful, and stable nations like Japan, China, India, Korea, Canada, and the UK? With the insights of geopolitical experts and investors, the authors examine this nation’s adversity-driven culture to answer this question and offer prescriptions for a global economy on the rebound.
In Forces of Fortune, Vali Nasr presents a paradigm-changing revelation that will transform the understanding of the Muslim world at large. He reveals that there is a vital but unseen rising force in the Islamic world—a new business-minded middle class—that is building a vibrant new Muslim world economy and that holds the key to winning the cold war against Iran and extremists.
In Cuba: What Everyone Needs to Know, Julia E. Sweig presents a remarkably accessible portrait of Cuba's unique place on the world stage over the past fifty years, including its internal politics, its often fraught relationship with the United States, and its shifting relationship with the global community.
Complete list of CFR Books
For more information on the David Rockefeller Studies Program, contact:
James M. Lindsay
Senior Vice President, Director of Studies, and Maurice R. Greenberg Chair
+1.212.434.9626 (NY); +1.202.509.8405 (DC)
jlindsay@cfr.org
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Deputy Director of Studies Administration
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jhill@cfr.org
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