home > the cfr think tank > experts > edward alden
Bernard L. Schwartz Senior Fellow
Contact Info:
Phone: +1-202-509-8474
E-mail: ealden@cfr.org
Location:
Washington
Media downloads:
High-resolution photo (JPG, 47K)
One-page bio (PDF, 54K)
Former Washington bureau chief at the Financial Times. Latest book, The Closing of the American Border, examines U.S. visa and border policies in the wake of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
Expertise:U.S. economic competitiveness, U.S. trade policy, visa and immigration policy.
Honors:Society of Publishers in Asia, Award for Editorial Excellence in Explanatory Reporting for stories on China's RMB Revaluation in the Financial Times (2006); British Columbia Newspaper Award for General Excellence, "The New Face of Labor," Vancouver Sun (1997); Canadian National Magazine Awards, silver medal (1986), gold medal (1984); Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation Fellowship (1989); MacArthur Foundation Graduate Fellowship (1986); Mellon Fellowship in the Humanities (1986).
Related Links:
"Terrorism, immigration and security since 9/11" (video; UC Berkeley Conversations with History; November 21, 2008)
"How 9/11 transformed American immigration policy" (video; Zócalo Public Square; November 19, 2008)
"Welcome to America? Security and immigration in a post-9/11 United States" (audio; World Affairs Council of Northern California; November 17, 2008)
Current Research Projects
Past Research Project
June 8, 2009
Op-Ed
Wall Street Journal
Edward Alden argues, "the U.S. can't afford to keep turning away the best and the brightest."
See more in United States, Economics, Labor, Trade
April 23, 2009
Audio
Listen to Edward Alden, CFR's Bernard L. Schwartz senior fellow, and Richard D. Land, president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, discuss their work on the CFR-sponsored Independent Task Force on U.S. Immigration Policy, with a focus on human rights and public diplomacy, as part of CFR's Religion and Foreign Policy Conference Call series.
See more in Immigration, Religion
March 25, 2009
Academic Module
These teaching notes, by author and CFR Senior Fellow Edward Alden, feature discussion questions and additional projects for The Closing of the American Border: Terrorism, Immigration, and Security Since 9/11. In this book, Mr. Alden examines the complicated interplay between the United States’ need for homeland security and economic openness in the wake of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
February 25, 2009
Op-Ed
Canada Watch
Edward Alden writes that the quest for perfectly secure borders premised on plugging vulnerabilities poses special, and possibly insurmountable, problems. The United States needs some way to distinguish serious threats from minor ones, and to calculate the costs of trying to counter those threats.
See more in Canada, Mexico, Defense/Homeland Security, Border and Ports
February 19, 2009
Audio
Listen to CFR experts examine U.S. foreign policy toward Asia, the global economy, and the challenges and opportunities that fill the new administration's inbox.
See more in Asia, Economic Development, Trade
February 19, 2009
Video
Watch CFR experts examine U.S. foreign policy toward Asia, the global economy, and the challenges and opportunities that fill the new administration's inbox.
See more in Asia, Economics, Economic Development
February 19, 2009
Transcript
Embarking on her first international trip later this month, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will travel to Japan, South Korea, China, and Indonesia to reinforce President Obama's commitment to active engagement and discuss the global financial crisis. Join CFR experts Edward Alden, Caroline Atkinson, and Elizabeth C. Economy to discuss U.S. foreign policy toward Asia, the global economy, and the challenges and opportunities that fill the new administration's inbox.
See more in United States, Asia, China, Economics, Business & Foreign Policy, Emerging Markets
February 6, 2009
Audio
Listen to CFR experts Jagdish Bhagwati and Edward Alden discuss the "Buy American" provision in the stimulus bill.
February 6, 2009
Op-Ed
Forbes Online
The "buy American" provisions in the stimulus bill presented President Obama with the first test of his trade philosophy. In this Forbes article, Edward Alden and Jeremy Haft write that Obama has passed this test. The apparent compromise over these provisions is reassuring.
See more in United States, China, Economics, International Organizations
February 5, 2009
Transcript
In this CFR conference call, Jagdish Bhagwati, Senior Fellow in International Economics, discusses the trades issues relating to the "Buy American" provision in the stimulus bill.
See more in United States, Trade
January 20, 2009
Op-Ed
Vancouver Sun
In this Vancouver Sun op-ed, Edward Alden says that while gridlock has been the norm in Washington, there are precedents for outbursts of creative and energetic government. Still, Americans' expectations for Obama face long odds.
See more in U.S. Strategy and Politics, Presidency, U.S. Election 2008
January 8, 2009
Article
The Vancouver Sun
In this excerpt from The Closing of the American Border, Edward Alden writes that George Bush came to office as the most pro-immigrant president in modern U.S. history. Yet he presided over a war on terrorism that has been waged through anti-immigrant measures.
See more in Homeland Security, Immigration, Counterterrorism
January 3, 2009
Op-Ed
Ottawa Citizen
Seven years after the 9/11 attacks, Canada is still trying to cope with the new border regime that has been an enduring legacy of the terrorist attacks. In this Ottawa Citizen article, Edward Alden urges President-elect Obama to begin rebuilding trust on border issues with Canada.
See more in Border and Ports, Trade, U.S. Strategy and Politics, U.S. Election 2008
December 8, 2008
Video
Watch experts discuss U.S. trade policy at the final panel discussion in a series on the presidential transition co-hosted by CFR, the Economist, and New York University's Stern School of Business.
December 4, 2008
Audio
Listen to Edward Alden, the Bernard L. Schwartz senior fellow at CFR, discuss his book, The Closing of the American Border: Terrorism, Immigration, and Security Since 9/11, with students as part of CFR's Academic Conference Call Series.
See more in Homeland Security, Immigration
December 2, 2008
Audio
Listen to experts discuss U.S. trade policy at the final panel discussion in a series on the presidential transition co-hosted by CFR, the Economist, and New York University's Stern School of Business.
See more in United States, Trade
November 23, 2008
Op-Ed
Washington Post
In this Washington Post op-ed, Edward Alden writes that current immigration policy "was built in the wake of 9/11, but it will have to be reformed in the shadow of the economic crisis."
See more in Border and Ports, U.S. Election 2008
November 23, 2008
Op-Ed
San Francisco Chronicle
Since 9/11 and the creation of the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. immigration policy has been focused mostly on keeping out those we don't want. In this San Francisco Chronicle op-ed, Edward Alden argues that this single-mindedness has come with a high cost to our economy and reputation in the world.
See more in Border and Ports, Homeland Security
October 12, 2008
Op-Ed
New America Media
"The war on terror has come home to America. But when did the war on terror morph into a war on illegal immigration? Today it is much harder for a terrorist to enter the United States than it used to be, but according to Edward Alden, it's also much harder for everyone else."
See more in Border and Ports, Immigration
October 4, 2008
Op-Ed
The Globe and Mail
The next Canadian government must try to nudge the next U.S. administration back to the spirit of the 2001 Smart Border accords, which attempted to balance security and commerce concerns. Edward Alden writes that rebuilding trust between the U.S. and Canada over border issues will be critical for both countries.
See more in Border and Ports, U.S. Election 2008
Explore international efforts to curb nuclear proliferation with a new interactive from CFR's program on International Institutions and Global Governance.
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.
This report explores an important element of the maritime policy regime: the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Author Scott G. Borgerson examines the international negotiations that led to the convention, the history of debates in the United States over whether to join it, and the strategic importance of the oceans for U.S. foreign policy today.
Complete list of Council Special Reports
In War of Necessity, War of Choice, Richard N. Haass contrasts the decisions that shaped the conduct of two wars between the United States and Iraq involving the two presidents Bush and Saddam Hussein, and writes an authoritative, personal account of how U.S. foreign policy is made, what it should seek, and how it should be pursued.
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.
As Ray Takeyh shows in Guardians of the Revolution, behind the famous personalities and extremist slogans of Iran is a nation that is far more pragmatic—and complex—than many in the West have been led to believe.
Complete list of CFR Books
For more information on the David Rockefeller Studies Program, contact:
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Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for
Geoeconomic Studies, Deputy Director of Studies, and Paul A. Volcker Senior
Fellow for International Economics
smallaby@cfr.org
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Deputy Director of Studies Administration
+1.212.434.9753
jhill@cfr.org
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