Insights and impact

About the Council

The Atlantic Council promotes constructive leadership and engagement in international affairs based on the Atlantic Community’s central role in meeting global challenges. The Council provides an essential forum for navigating the dramatic economic and political changes defining the twenty-first century by informing and galvanizing its uniquely influential network of global leaders. Through the papers we write, the ideas we generate, and the communities we build, the Council shapes policy choices and strategies to create a more secure and prosperous world.

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Featured content

NATO 20/2020

Twenty bold ideas to reimagine the Alliance after the 2020 US election

More than two decades after NATO’s inspired decision to invite former adversaries to join its ranks, the Alliance is in need of equally captivating ideas. The essays in this volume are intended to push the Alliance to think boldly and creatively in the service of recapturing the public’s imagination.

Read our provocative essays on the future of NATO

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Explore the podcast series

NATO 20/2020 Podcast

NATO 20/2020 is a weekly podcast that explores 20 bold ideas to push NATO to be more visionary, more capable, and more self-evidently valuable to the security of more people.

Making a difference

Learn more about the Atlantic Council’s insights & impact through these stories of how our regional and thematic programs are making a difference not only in shaping how we view global issues but also in shaping their outcome.

Artwork by Peter Kuper

In the News

Dec 17, 2020

The Adrienne Arsht-Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Center partners with LEADERS Magazine to dedicate an entire issue to resilience

For its Fall/Winter issue of 2020, LEADERS Magazine, asked the Adrienne Arsht-Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Center to produce an issue dedicated to resilience. The Resilience Issue assembles a broad range of global thought leaders and experts who are currently tackling the challenges and crises facing the world from different perspectives.

Insights & Impact

Mar 3, 2020

Peering Around the Corner: The Geopolitics of Coronavirus

By Atlantic Council

On February 11, 2020 the DFRLab hosted "Peering Around the Corner: The Geopolitics of Coronavirus," a timely series of panels on the potential geopolitical and economic consequences of Coronavirus, and how misinformation about the crisis may influence its impact.

China Disinformation

Program Impact Story

Feb 6, 2020

US energy priorities abroad: A conversation with US Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette

By Global Energy Center

On Friday, February 7, 2020, the Atlantic Council hosted newly appointed US Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette for a public address and moderated discussion about US government energy priorities abroad.

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Latest commentary and analysis

EnergySource

Jul 17, 2026

Backlash against data centers could cost the US its AI edge

By Jeannie Salo

As the race for AI supremacy grows, the US is facing backlash while trying to keep up with China.

Energy & Environment Technology & Innovation

Podcast

Jul 17, 2026

What’s old and new in the US economy at 250?

By the GeoEconomics Center

Just as the US celebrates its 250th birthday, some age-old economic debates are back in the spotlight: industrial policy, tariffs, and protectionism. Instead of a break from the past, are we witnessing the return to a more interventionist economic tradition? Rana Foroohar, global business columnist and associate editor at the Financial Times, joins Josh and Jessie for a tour de force through US economic history, from Hamilton to Reagan to Trump II.

UkraineAlert

Jul 16, 2026

Ukraine’s tech-savvy defense minister ousted in clash with army old guard

By Peter Dickinson

President Zelenskyy's decision to side with the army old guard and oust Ukraine's tech-savvy Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov has sparked a political crisis and raised questions over the country's future direction, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Defense Policy
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Latest in-depth research and reports

Report

Jul 16, 2026

Artificial intelligence and the future of African mining

By Anthony Carroll and Jef Karel Caers

Artificial intelligence and digitalization offer African states, the United States, and allied partners an opportunity to move beyond legacy constraints and one-sided partnerships in the mining sector.

Africa Artificial Intelligence

Report

Jul 15, 2026

2026 Freedom and Prosperity Indexes: The legal foundations that enable prosperity are rapidly eroding

By Ignacio Campomanes, Nina Dannaoui-Johnson, Annie (Yu-Lin) Lee, James Mazzarella

Adherence to the rule of law has declined sharply since 2020. Drawing on thirty years of data across 171 countries, the 2026 Freedom and Prosperity Indexes show why that matters: without strong legal foundations, economic reforms stall, democracies erode, and prosperity stays out of reach for millions.

Freedom and Prosperity Rule of Law

Issue Brief

Jul 7, 2026

AI is the next major biodefense tech priority

By the Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense

Artificial intelligence is changing how biological threats can be created, detected, and countered.

Artificial Intelligence Security & Defense
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Content

In the News

Apr 21, 2021

O’Toole quoted in Foreign Policy on how to approach sanctioning Russia

By Brian O’Toole

Read the full article here.  

Economy & Business Financial Sanctions and Economic Coercion

In the News

Apr 20, 2021

Slavin joins The Wright Show to discuss US-Iran relations

By Atlantic Council

Iran Middle East

In the News

Apr 20, 2021

Lipsky spoke with BBC radio in an interview on ‘britcoin’

By Josh Lipsky

Read the full article here.

Economy & Business United Kingdom

In the News

Apr 20, 2021

Greenwald spoke with CNBC in an interview on the US falling behind China in the digital currency race

By Michael Greenwald

Read the full article here.

China Economy & Business

In the News

Apr 20, 2021

Forscey in Lawfare: the cyber regulators are coming for the cloud

Today’s cloud computing industry is as important as it is complicated, a critical and opaque sector that undergirds the economy but that few people truly understand. Cloud services have become a pillar of digital society, supporting nonstop innovation. They also create interdependencies that generate a wellspring of concentrated risk. Ensuring that the various subsectors of […]

Cybersecurity

In the News

Apr 19, 2021

Ben Mahfoudh in JCL-MENA: “Tunisia: between calls for dialogue and the politics of denial”
Democratic Transitions Middle East

In the News

Apr 19, 2021

Blanford quoted in Forbes on Iran’s militia proxies

By Atlantic Council

Iran Middle East

In the News

Apr 19, 2021

Binnendijk, Kirchberger, Kramer, and Skaluba on DEFAERO Report Podcast: The need for a transatlantic China Plan

By Hans Binnendijk, Sarah Kirchberger, Franklin D. Kramer, Christopher Skaluba

China Plan authors Hans Binnendijk, Sarah Kirchberger, Franklin D. Kramer, and Chris Skaluba joined DEFAERO Report Founder and Editor Vago Muradian to discuss the China Plan's key analysis and findings.

China Europe & Eurasia

In the News

Apr 19, 2021

Foroohar in Financial Times on Biden’s infrastructure package and Atlantic Council event

By Rana Foroohar

Read the full article here.

Economy & Business Macroeconomics

In the News

Apr 19, 2021

Mark in Foreign Policy on Taiwan and China’s codependent economic relationship

By Jeremy Mark

Read the full article here.

China East Asia
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