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Programs

The Atlantic Council Technology Programs comprises five existing efforts—the Digital Forensic Research Lab (DFRLab), the GeoTech Center, the Cyber Statecraft Initiative, the Democracy + Tech Initiative, and the Capacity Building Initiative. These operations work together to address the geopolitical implications of technology and provide policymakers and global stakeholders necessary research, insights, and convenings to address challenges around global technology and ensure its responsible advancement.

Forward Defense leads the Atlantic Council’s US and global defense programming, developing actionable recommendations for the United States and its allies and partners to compete, innovate, and navigate the rapidly evolving character of warfare. Through its work on US defense policy and force design, the military applications of advanced technology, space security, strategic deterrence, and defense industrial revitalization, it informs the strategies, policies, and capabilities that the United States will need to deter, and, if necessary, prevail in major-power conflict.

Content

In the News

Sep 16, 2014

Grundman on New NASA Contract

By Steven Grundman

Los Angeles Daily News quotes M.A. and George Lund Fellow for Emerging Defense Challenges Steven Grundman on the possibility that NASA may choose SpaceX as a contractor for future projects: 

Space Technology & Innovation
Russian President Vladimir Putin, Sept. 6, 2014

NATOSource

Sep 10, 2014

Putin Says Russia Will Keep Building Military Power

By David M. Herszenhorn, New York Times

Russia will continue to build up its military might with large-scale weapons purchases in order to meet any threat, particularly from the United States and NATO, President Vladimir V. Putin said on Wednesday.

Missile Defense NATO

In the News

Aug 21, 2014

Grundman on Future NASA Contracts

By Steven Grundman

The Daily Breeze quotes M.A. and George Lund Fellow for Emerging Defense Challenges Steven Grundman on the possibility of NASA choosing SpaceX as its contractor for future projects: 

Space Technology & Innovation

Commanders Series

Jul 23, 2014

Transcript: The US Future in Space

By The Atlantic Council

Atlantic Council The US Future in Space Welcome and Moderator: Barry Pavel Vice President and Director, Brent Scowcroft Center on International Security, Atlantic Council Speakers: General William L. Shelton, Commander, US Air Force Space Command Michael Andersson, Executive Vice President, Saab North America Location: Washington, D.C. Date: Tuesday, July 22, 2014 Transcript by Federal News […]

Space Technology & Innovation

Commanders Series

Jul 23, 2014

The US Future in Space

How should US space programs adjust to sequestration? How does the US regain the lead in liquid propulsion rockets? What can the US do to inspire young people to get involved in space? Those were just some of the topics which General William L. Shelton, commander of US Air Force Space Command, discussed at the […]

Space Technology & Innovation

Event Recap

Apr 17, 2014

The Promise of Human Space Exploration

Space exploration captured Americans’ imaginations in the 1960s and became a significant cultural touchstone in American history due to the Apollo programs and that iconic moment when man first walked on the moon in 1969. Lately, this sense of wonder seems to be fading as NASA gets less funding, private industry steps in to fill […]

Space Technology & Innovation

New Atlanticist

Apr 16, 2014

As China Builds Ability to Attack Satellites, Here is How US Should Respond

By Bharath Gopalaswamy and Dylan Rebstock

As searchers in the Indian Ocean inch toward finding the disappeared Malaysian Airlines Flight 370, a reminder of the rising role of China in space is that the critical first step in learning the plane’s fate was an innovative analysis of routine satellite data – and that Chinese space assets played an unusually prominent role […]

China Indo-Pacific

Defense Industrialist

Apr 15, 2014

The Disruptive Democratization of Space

By James Hasik

Tiny satellites are diffusing remote sensing capabilities around the world The Americans have reconnaissance satellites. The French, Belgians, Spanish, and Greeks share some reconnaissance satellites. The Russians have their reconnaissance satellites. The Ukrainians have Google Earth. It’s not the same thing, but right now, it the best they’ve got. But as technology and the market are developing, […]

Space Technology & Innovation

In the News

Mar 24, 2014

MH 370 Reminds of US Vulnerabilities in Space

By Bharath Gopalaswamy and Dylan Rebstock

Bharath Gopalaswamy, deputy director for the South Asia Center, and Eurasia Center intern Dylan Rebstock write in the Huffington Post on how the search for Malaysian Airlines Flight 370 highlights the US space program’s vulnerabilities:

Space Technology & Innovation

New Atlanticist

Mar 11, 2014

Lost in Space

By Bharath Gopalaswamy

The Crimean Crisis highlights America’s Dangerous Dependence on Russian Space Technology. The Crimea crisis, the sharpest conflict in decades between the United States and Russia, is raising concerns about the future of the U.S. space program. The cooperation in space that Washington and Moscow fostered in the quarter-century since the Cold War ended is now […]

Space Technology & Innovation

Experts