What ’ s Going On ?
… in global development ?
“ When I sensibly take a break from the daily news feed and think about larger trends , I am optimistic . I have spent my career developing tools and nurturing ecosystems to harness science and technology to improve human development and national security , which I see as two sides of the same problem . When I started my career , the threat from countries such as North Korea was top of mind . I think it ’ s fair to say this problem is no better today than 20 years ago — little progress to show from enormous investments in innovation in counterterrorism technologies . On the other hand , in a similar time frame , modest investments in innovation for human development have seen tremendous progress : in 20 years the world has halved under-5 infant mortality and reduced the number of those living in absolute poverty by a third . Over the next 20 years , imagine if we tilted investments in innovations for security toward innovations for development — this possibility makes me an optimist .”
Steven Buchsbaum , MS ’ 83 , PhD ’ 90 , MPIA ’ 97 , is Deputy Director of Discovery & Translational Sciences for the Gates Foundation .
… in the U . S . State Department ?
▶ “ Not many people know that the State plays a significant role in combating terrorism . Since 9 / 11 , the terrorist landscape has grown more complex , fluid and dangerous , with terrorist groups proving themselves resilient , determined and adaptable . Groups such as ISIS , al-Qa ’ ida and their affiliates have become more dispersed and clandestine , turning to the Internet to inspire attacks by distant followers . As a result , they have made themselves less susceptible to conventional military action . The U . S . response to this threat requires flexibility while also employing a comprehensive , whole-of-government effort . However , we cannot do it alone . We are working with our friends and partners around the world to meet the evolving global terrorist threat — building the political will and counterterrorism capacity of foreign partner governments and engaging regional and multilateral bodies to leverage the international community to counter terrorist travel and violent extremism and strengthen border security and the rule of law .”
Hillary Batjer-Johnson , MPIA ’ 99 , is Deputy Coordinator for Homeland Security , Screening , and Designations in the U . S . State Department ’ s Bureau of Counterterrorism .
… in Korea ?
▶ “ It ’ s a very interesting and dynamic time in the Republic of Korea ( ROK ), with inter- Korean Summits and the historic Singapore Summit . The situation is quite different from the summer of 2017 with its heightened provocations and a very tense security situation . In our organization , we continue to conduct security cooperation and assistance to ensure that the ROK Defense establishment acquires and develops the right capabilities now and in the future .”
— Jason Kim , MAS-IA ’ 12 , is Lieutenant Colonel and U . S . Army Deputy Chief of the Joint- U . S . Military Affairs Group at the U . S . Embassy in Seoul , Korea .
… in clean technology ?
▶ “ What ’ s exciting in the world of clean technology is that electric grids around the world are adopting greater levels of renewable generation ( such as wind and solar ) because these technologies have become cheaper than conventional forms of energy generation . However , a major barrier to scaling deployment of renewables is that their energy is available only when the sun shines or when the wind blows , which does not always match when we use energy . To address this challenge , energy storage plays a pivotal role in helping renewables become flexible .”
— Candice Wang Yu ’ 09 , MIA ’ 10 is Business Development Manager at Stem , Inc ., which helps solar companies deploy projects with AI-powered energy storage .
School of Global Policy and Strategy ( GPS ) 30 th Anniversary Events :
SAVE THE DATE :
GPS 30th Anniversary Weekend Celebration April 26-27 , 2019
Or come see us on the road : Feb . 21 | San Francisco March 26 | New York March 28 | Washington , D . C . May 17 | Los Angeles
Learn more at gpsucsd30 . com / events
28 TRITON | WINTER 2019