Moving Science from a “Nice to Have” to a “Must Have” in U.S. Foreign Policy_Benjamin L. Schmitt

On February 11, 2021, Dr. Benjamin L. Schmitt and Dr. Amrita Banerjee spoke at the event: Moving Science from a “Nice to Have” to a “Must Have” in U.S. Foreign Policy: Chatting with an Astrophysicist on the Front Lines of Transatlantic Security Policy.

The event was organized by the Duke Center for International and Global Studies (DUCIGS)/Rethinking Diplomacy Program. Dr. Schmitt is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow and Project Development Scientist at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. At Harvard, Benjamin focuses on the development of instrumentation and infrastructure for next-generation Antarctic experimental cosmology facilities at the South Pole. Dr. Amrita Banerjee is a Duke alumna and the Vice-Chair of the National Science Policy Network (NSPN).

Giovanni Zanalda, Director of DUCIGS, moderated the discussion.

The webinar was the first of the Rethinking Diplomacy subseries: “Multi-Stakeholder Framework Series,” and focussed on the vital need for science and technology as a central component to reshape U.S. diplomatic strategy.

Benjamin is a fellow with the Duke University Center for International and Global Studies "Rethinking Diplomacy" program focused on advancing research toward better integrating practitioners of science and technology into the senior U.S. national security and foreign policy enterprise. He is also a Senior Fellow in the Democratic Resilience program at the Center for European Policy Analysis think tank in Washington, D.C.