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Below you will find a chronological list of current Council research projects. You can search by issue or region by selecting the appropriate category. In addition to this sorting control, you can search for specific subjects within the alphabetical, regional, and issue categories by choosing from the selections in the drop-down menu below.
Each project page contains the name of the project director, a description of the project, a list of meetings it has held, and any related publications, transcripts, or videos.
April 2009—Present
| Director: | Paul Lettow, Adjunct Senior Fellow |
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This meeting series is sponsored by the CFR's Program on International Institutions and Global Governance and made possible by a generous grant from the Robina Foundation.
February 2009—Present
| Staff: | Prem G. Kumar, International Affairs Fellow in Residence |
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May 13, 2009—Present
| Director: | Daniel Senor, Adjunct Senior Fellow for Middle Eastern Studies |
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May 12, 2009—New York, NY
| Director: | Sebastian Mallaby, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies and Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics |
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This symposium discusses the implications of the economic crisis from multiple perspectives. The first session focuses on geopolitics, the second on financial regulation, and the third on the macroeconomic outlook.
This symposium was made possible through the generous support of Stephen C. Freidheim.
Symposium Summary Report (PDF, 83K)
March 30, 2009—New York, NY
| Director: | Amity Shlaes, Senior Fellow for Economic History |
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"History is an argument without end. That is why we love it so."
These words come from the late scholar of the New Deal, Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. Schlesinger in turn was quoting a colleague, the historian, Pieter Geyl. It is in Schlesinger's collegial spirit that the Council on Foreign Relations and NYU/Stern host scholars to discuss findings new and old about the single most important economic event in America's history, the Great Depression. What caused the Depression? What was the role of financial institutions in panic and recovery? What was the New Deal's role in this crisis? What lessons can we take away for dealing with our current crisis? Given the current challenges to the economy, a second look at that most relevant period becomes crucial. Nobel Prize winning economists, scholars, historians, writers, and policymakers will converge from across the country to both "get granular" and begin to draw broad conclusions in this day-long inquiry.
Cosponsor of this symposium is Dean Thomas Cooley of the Leonard N. Stern School of Business, New York University.
The conference is also supported by a special grant from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.
Symposium Summary Report (PDF, 160K)
May 7 and 8, 2009—New York, NY
| Director: | Stewart M. Patrick, Senior Fellow and Director, Program on International Institutions and Global Governance |
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From the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression to the dangers of nuclear proliferation, from the specter of global warming to the threat of mass atrocities, the United States and the world community confront an array of global challenges requiring robust cooperation. Yet many multilateral frameworks have failed to keep pace with tremendous changes in world politics. Shifts in the global distribution of power, the emergence of influential non-state actors, and the rise of new transnational issues to the top of the global agenda now cloud the utility and effectiveness of international institutions and structures that in some cases date back to the Second World War. On May 7-8, 2009, the Program on International Institutions and Global Governance (IIGG) hosted its first annual conference. Over the course of six sessions the symposium explored the efficacy and strucutre of international institutions and their role in helping U.S. policymakers confront the challenges of the day.
This event was supported by a grant from the Robina Foundation.
Symposium Summary Report (PDF, 137K)
| Introductory Speaker: | Richard N. Haass, President, Council on Foreign Relations |
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| Speakers: | R. Nicholas Burns, Former Under Secretary for Political Affairs, U.S. Department of State; Professor of the Practice of Diplomacy and International Politics, Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University |
| Ellen Laipson, President and Chief Executive Officer, Henry L. Stimson Center | |
| David F. Gordon, Head of Research, Eurasia Group | |
| Moderator: | Stewart M. Patrick, Senior Fellow and Director, Program on International Institutions, Council on Foreign Relations |
Full Video
Top Takeaway:
"I don't think it's sustainable for the United States to continue to think that we can essentially dominate the international landscape -- the way we certainly did during the unipolar moments that we had during the Cold War, say, 9/11. We need other countries to resolve nearly every issue on our top agenda. We just can't exist alone anymore.
So, it's a reflection of reality...it's smart politics for us, but also a reflection that we have to govern and lead in a more consensual way."
-R. Nicholas Burns
| Speakers: | Charles D. Ferguson, Philip D. Reed Senior Fellow for Science and Technology, Council on Foreign Relations |
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| Christopher A. Ford, Director, Center for Technology and Global Security, Hudson Institute | |
| Paul Lettow, Adjunct Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations | |
| Moderator: | Henry Sokolski, Executive Director, Nonproliferation Policy Education Center |
Full Video
Top Takeaway:
We do have a very tremendous enforcement problem, and the international community has a miserable track record of late. The Iranian enrichment effort which began as part of a weapons program, continues. The North Korean program continues. Their defiance of the international community, in many respects, continues. The international community cannot afford to have a fifty percent track record in fighting nuclear weapons proliferation. That's not acceptable.
-Christopher Ford
| Speakers: | Sebastian Mallaby, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies, Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics, and Deputy Director of Studies, Council on Foreign Relations |
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| Steven Dunaway, Adjunct Senior Fellow for International Economics, Council on Foreign Relations | |
| Daniel W. Drezner, Professor of International Politics, The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University | |
| Moderator: |
Michael J. Elliott, Editor, Time International |
Full Video
Top Takeaway:
"If you're thinking about stimulus globally, stimulus works when you give it to people who need it and are going to spend the money, and poor people really need it. If you're giving money to poor countries, you're going to get more stimulus."
-Sebastian Mallaby
| Speakers: | Paula J. Dobriansky, Senior International Affairs and Trade Advisor, Baker & Hostetler LLP and former Under Secretary, Democracy and Global Affairs, U.S. Department of State |
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| Michael A. Levi, David M. Rubenstein Senior Fellow for Energy and the Environment, Council on Foreign Relations | |
| William John Antholis, Managing Director, The Brookings Institution | |
| Moderator: | Jessica T. Mathews, President, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace |
Full Video
Top Takeaway:
"...we will move forward, we will act, but we also believe for the end result, having a treaty and agreement, that others have to move forward as well and make commitments. Because if you only have a certain percentage of countries globally, you're not going to be effectively reducing greenhouse gas"
-Paula J Dobriansky
| Speakers: | Matthew C. Waxman, Adjunct Senior Fellow for Law and Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations |
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| John B. Bellinger III, Adjunct Senior Fellow for International and National Security Law, Council on Foreign Relations | |
| David J. Scheffer, Professor of Law, Northwestern University | |
| Moderator: | Jeffrey Toobin, Staff Writer, The New Yorker |
Video Highlight
Full Video | Transcript | Audio
Top Takeaway:
"I think the focus should be more on how do we structure our policies within widely accepted traditional frameworks of international law, but develop an approach to it such that if we are in non-compliance with that law, rather than trying to change it so that the law says you are in compliance now for doing X, Y, and Z, we have enough political capital internationally to be able to say to the rest of the world: 'Today we actually understand that your perspective is that we're not in compliance with international law. We may even agree with you on that point. But you know what we've done to get to this point. We had to do this, we think, to save the lives of 30,000 people at risk in northern Sri Lanka, or wherever it might be. And we'll accept the risk politically of how you view our action today.'"
-David J. Scheffer
| Speaker: | Laurie A. Garrett, Council on Foreign Relations |
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| Presider: | James Traub, New York Times Magazine |
Full Video
Top Takeaway:
"...if we're really serious about protecting humanity we need to better integrate the sort of veterinary side, the animal and wildlife side, of our surveillance, our investigation, our monitoring and our response, with the public health side"
-Laurie A. Garrett
April 2009—Present
| Fellow: | Micah Zenko, Fellow for Conflict Prevention |
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The UN Roundtable meeting series seeks to organize high-level discussions with senior UN officials, including officials from member states and regional organizations, on timely issues related to conflict prevention, peacekeeping, and international security. A core group of selected invitees from member state governments, the private sector, and nongovernmental communities will participate in these discussions. The goal of these not-for-attribution meetings is to raise awareness of the role of the UN in addressing critical issues of peace and security. The UN Roundtable meeting series is cosponsored by the Center for Preventive Action and the Program on International Institutions and Global Governance.
December 2008—Present
| Director: | Shannon K. O'Neil, Douglas Dillon Fellow for Latin America Studies |
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This project will develop a framework for a Sustainable Energy Partnership for the Americas that goes beyond bilateral agreements and adopts a regional approach towards sustainable growth and clean energy. The objective of this project is to draft a blueprint that will explore, and ultimately define, pathways for collaboration among American states in order to deliver solutions to the region's energy challenges. The blueprint document will be presented at the Summit of the Americas which will take place in Trinidad and Tobago in April 2009 and will also be available on our website at that time.
This initiative is a collaboration between scholars and receives support from the Center for International Governance and Innovation, Canada; the Council on Foreign Relations, United States; Centro Brasileiro de Relações Internacionais, Brazil; and University of West Indies, Trinidad and Tobago.
At the Council on Foreign Relations, this project is part of the Latin America Studies Program and the International Institutions and Global Governance Program. It is made possible by the generous support of Ford Foundation, the Robina Foundation, and the Tinker Foundation.
December 9, 2008—New York, NY
| Director: | Paul B. Stares, General John W. Vessey Senior Fellow for Conflict Prevention and Director of the Center for Preventive Action |
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This symposium was made possible by the generosity of the Carnegie Corporation of New York.
Symposium Summary Report (PDF, 84K)
October 17, 2008—New York, NY
Experts discuss international justice and law at this three-part symposium, featuring speakers such as International Criminal Court prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo, General Wesley Clark, New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof, and UNHCR goodwill ambassador Angelina Jolie.
Session 3 Video: The Darfur Case
This symposium has been underwritten by the Jolie-Pitt Foundation.
June 12, 2008—June 12, 2008
| Directors: | Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy Laurie A. Garrett, Senior Fellow for Global Health |
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A discussion of maternal health as a foreign policy issue.
This symposium was made possible by the support of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
September 12, 2008—Present
| Fellows: | Julia E. Sweig, Nelson and David Rockefeller Senior Fellow for Latin America Studies and Director for Latin America Studies Shannon K. O'Neil, Douglas Dillon Fellow for Latin America Studies |
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This symposium was made possible by the generous support of the Ford Foundation and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.
October 2008—January 2009
| Director: | Paul B. Stares, General John W. Vessey Senior Fellow for Conflict Prevention and Director of the Center for Preventive Action |
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| Author: | Steven Pifer, Visiting Fellow, Brookings Institution |
September 2008—February 2009
| Author: | Jeffrey Mankoff, Adjunct Fellow for Russia Studies |
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July 2008—January 2009
| Director: | Paul B. Stares, General John W. Vessey Senior Fellow for Conflict Prevention and Director of the Center for Preventive Action |
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April 2008—October 2008
| Director: | Paul B. Stares, General John W. Vessey Senior Fellow for Conflict Prevention and Director of the Center for Preventive Action |
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| Author: | Anthony W. Gambino |
September 8, 2008—New York and January 22, 2009 - Washington, DC
| Director: | Laurie A. Garrett, Senior Fellow for Global Health |
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These meetings were made possible through the generous support of the Robina Foundation and Richard Brown.
May 27, 2008—Present
| Director: | Michelle D. Gavin, Adjunct Fellow for Africa |
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This roundtable series will meet periodically over the course of 2008 to explore changing political and security dynamics on the African continent, often with a special emphasis on U.S. policy options and responses. Extra effort will be devoted to drawing in new voices and perspectives on critical African issues.
October 2008—Present
| Director: | David G. Victor, Adjunct Senior Fellow for Science and Technology |
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May 5, 2008—Washington, DC
| Directors: | David G. Victor, Adjunct Senior Fellow for Science and Technology M. Granger Morgan, Head, Department of Engineering and Public Policy, Carnegie Mellon University John D. Steinbruner, Director, Center for International and Security Studies at Maryland Jay Apt, Distinguished Service Professor, Engineering and Public Policy, Executive Director, Carnegie Mellon Electricity Industry Center, Carnegie Mellon University |
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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
Janine Hill
Deputy Director of Studies Administration
+1.212.434.9753
jhill@cfr.org
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