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Securing a Safer World
The Record | The Challenge | The Plan | The Opportunity
THE RECORD
Science, engineering, and medicine often hold keys to resolving global security challenges and specific critical issues between nations and regions -- issues ranging from conflicts over scarce resources to the threat of chemical or nuclear warfare. By fostering international dialogues among scientists and between scientists and policymakers, the National Academies have put the universal language of science at the service of humanity’s search for global peace and stability.
Beginning with Cold War links to scientists behind the Iron Curtain and continuing in today’s geopolitical environment, the National Academies have worked with counterparts in other nations to help build a secure and stable international society. The Academies’ initiatives to secure a safer world include --
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- In 1959, just as they were publishing the first reports on the dangerous effects of nuclear radiation, the National Academies reached out to Soviet scientists with exchange programs and dialogue. Those efforts, reinvigorated in the 1980s, resulted in recommendations that formed the back-bone of nuclear arms reduction treaties and proposals for disposing of excess weapons-grade plutonium in ways that do not increase the risk of proliferation. The Academies have also worked to assess the environmental and health impacts of international nuclear generation plant accidents and Cold War–era weapons testing.
- A scarcity of resources is a potent driver of violent conflict. The National Academies’ recent joint study in the Middle East -- designed to promote sustainable regional approaches to water usage -- has created ongoing ties between the Israeli, Jordanian, and Palestinian scientists, encouraging cooperation on water policies and further joint studies in that region.
- The worldwide HIV/AIDS epidemic has dramatized the global danger posed by emerging infections. The Academies’ 1992 report, Emerging Infections: Microbial Threats to Health in the United States, stimulated federal agencies to develop strategies for dealing with new and resurgent infectious diseases.
- The danger of crime and sabotage using information technologies was the focus of a landmark project by the National Academies that assessed encryption systems and identified how computer systems and data can be made more secure around the world.
- To prevent future catastrophes such as the World Trade Center and Oklahoma City bombings, the Academies have brought specialized expertise to bear on the civilian construction of bomb-resistant buildings.
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THE SECURITY CHALLENGE
Scientists, engineers, and health care professionals must play a more active role in a world where dozens of countries and political factions could acquire nuclear, chemical, or biological weapons -- or other means of terrorism and disruption -- and where “local” conflicts may affect global stability and derail regional development efforts.
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THE PLAN
Science is a powerful human enterprise with methods, norms, and values that are shared worldwide. By creating networks of connections that join international science, engineering, and medical communities, the National Academies are making an investment for the future -- promoting democracy and helping to guide nations toward prosperity and peace. For example --
- The world needs a credible nongovernmental system for providing independent, unbiased scientific and technical advice to international organizations. The National Academies have spearheaded the creation of the InterAcademy Council, an international version of the National Research Council built around 15 academies and equivalent organizations from major nations.
- In addition to HIV/AIDS, public health threats such as tuberculosis, malaria, and the Ebola virus demand international surveillance and control. A permanent Forum on Emerging Infections will address crucial issues associated with emerging infections worldwide, including their potential threat to public health in America. A “global early-warning system” and new mechanisms for public and professional education will also be high priorities.
- Novel interdisciplinary projects will identify strategies for protecting society against new threats, such as chemical or biological terrorism, or cyber attacks against essential information systems and computer-managed critical systems.
- A new program on Security and Development will promote studies that support improved food and energy security and assist the efforts of war-torn countries to move toward post-conflict sustainable development.
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THE OPPORTUNITY TO SHAPE THE FUTURE
The National Academies need your assistance to implement their plans for meeting the Security challenge. You might consider --
- Funding work with the InterAcademy Council, the international counterpart of the National Research Council formed through the efforts of the National Academies ($100,000 annually).
- Supporting a senior scholar who will lead studies and international outreach efforts focused on the growth and implications of megacities across the globe ($100,000 annually).
- Underwriting an annual forum for international health and policy leaders, designed to help the Academies identify and define the most significant emerging global health challenges ($50,000 annually).
As the defined needs change and our programs evolve, so too will your opportunities to help. To learn about more ways you can shape the future through the work of the National Academies, visit the Giving Opportunities page or contact us at giving@nationalacademies.org. We welcome your ideas, too.
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_______________ T h e . P l a n . f o r . t h e . F u t u r e _______________
Providing Information for a Free Society
Educating Our Children
Protecting the World's Resources
Promoting Quality Health Care for All
Prospering in the 21st-Century Economy
Guiding Science, Engineering, and Medicine 
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