CSR Announces New Staff, Internal Moves
Continued Capacity-building at CSR’s Core
Continuing a trajectory of rapid growth, the Council on Strategic Risks is pleased to announce a new round of hires across its programs and role changes for existing staff.
The Center for Climate and Security (CCS) added expertise across its portfolios, bringing on Tom Ellison, Patricia Parera, and Michael Zarfos to advance progress in addressing security threats posed by climate change, and to analyze growing ecological security risks. The Converging Risks Lab also welcomed Lily Boland as a new team member.
Ellison joins CCS as Deputy Director after a decade of informing policymakers on the security and foreign policy implications of climate change as a Senior Analyst for the US government. Increasing leadership capacity, Ellison will drive strategy and program development to accelerate progress on the Center’s work at the nexus of foreign policy and climate security.
Parera previously served as Associate Director for Partnerships and Global Initiatives at Virginia Tech where she also was a lecturer on sustainable development. At CCS, she will lead research at the intersection of climate change and food security as a Senior Fellow.
Dr. Zarfos will be tackling complex, converging risks caused by ecological change as an Ecological Security Research Fellow. He is also a postdoctoral researcher with the Dovciak Lab at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY ESF), examining how human-induced environmental change impacts forest ecosystems.
CSR was also thrilled to bring on Lily Boland as a Strategic Foresight Fellow to develop security foresight tools and lead analysis of long-term consequences of nuclear weapons use for the Converging Risks Lab. Boland joins from the Sciences Po Paris School of International Affairs and the War Studies Department at King’s College London where she studied intelligence and international security.
Internal Moves
Yong-Bee Lim, previously a Deputy Director and Fellow at the Nolan Center, has now transitioned to a new role as the Deputy Director of the Converging Risks Lab where he will address cross-cutting security issues.
Andrea Rezzonico, previously the Deputy Director at the Converging Risks Lab, is now the Program Lead, Ecological Security at the Center for Climate and Security.
EVENT: Climate Security in NATO’s Backyard: A Discussion with Young Leaders
By Elsa Barron
On April 21st, the International Military Council on Climate and Security (IMCCS), supported by the U.S. Mission to NATO, will host the webinar, “Climate Security in NATO’s Backyard: A Discussion with Young Leaders” from 9:30-10:15 am Eastern Time (3:30-4:15 pm Central European Time).
NATO’s most recent polling data shows that the risks of climate change and extreme weather are top of mind for NATO country citizens, with 32 percent ranking it as their greatest concern, above the risk of war, terrorism, or political instability.
As NATO develops its climate security ambition while simultaneously navigating an ongoing conflict in Europe, engaging meaningfully with young leaders is critical for future sustainability and security. The Alliance has much to gain from young leaders’ innovative and systematic ideas for addressing globalized and interconnected challenges such as climate change and conflict.
IMCCS Director Erin Sikorsky and IMCCS Secretary General Sherri Goodman will welcome the U.S. Permanent Representative to NATO Julianne Smith and NATO 2030 Young Leader Katarina Kertysova for a conversation on a future vision for peace and security. The conversation will then transition into a discussion moderated by CCS Research Fellow Elsa Barron featuring young leaders from across ten countries, including:
- Pau Alvarez Aragones, Spain
- Virginia Bertuzzi, Italy
- Selma Bichbich, Algeria
- Jackson Blackwell, United States
- Diana Garlytska, Ukraine (based in Lithuania)
- Marieke Jacobs, Netherlands
- Kostian Jano, Albania
- Sofia Kabbej, France
- Andrej Mitreski, North Macedonia
- Michelle Ramirez, United States
- George Tavridis, Greece
- Ytze de Vries, Netherlands
Briefer: India’s Lithium Resources in Kashmir Highlight Conflict Risks Around Critical Minerals
By Tom Ellison
On February 9th, the Geological Survey of India announced1 it had discovered 5.9 million tons of lithium, a metal in high demand for electric vehicle batteries and other low-carbon energy technologies. Though the findings are preliminary, if borne out, the discovery would put India among the world’s top holders of lithium, with significant implications2 for India’s own electric vehicle (EV) deployment, environmental management, and energy independence. However, the potential reserves’ location in Jammu and Kashmir state—heavily militarized territory disputed by Pakistan—underscores the security challenges associated with critical mineral wealth. These challenges highlight the urgent need to prepare for the potential negative security repercussions of expanded mining in India and elsewhere, including via improved mining governance, new technologies, reduced lithium demand, and conflict resolution.
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We’re Recruiting: 5-month Consultant for CSR’s Work Examining Climate/Ecological Security and Emerging Diseases
The Council on Strategic Risks (CSR) is seeking an independent consultant with a strong background in climate change and ecological issues, and knowledge or eagerness to learn about how these issues are affecting the risk of disease spillover. The consultant will contribute to exciting, multidisciplinary work to shape policies and practices for reducing this risk.
Background and Details for Applicants
CSR is currently conducting a research project that explores the safety and security considerations associated with pandemic prevention research in sites at high risk for zoonotic disease spillover. The team is interested in understanding the role that conservation and ecological interventions can play in quelling/preventing outbreaks at the source, and how these practices can be optimally integrated into pandemic prevention. This project also seeks to enhance the connectivity between the ecological security and biological security fields in order to maximize the utility of pandemic prevention research while minimizing risks.
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