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222. Internet Freedom: Fighting Back Against Digital Authoritarianism
- Author:
- Olivier Alais
- Publication Date:
- 07-2020
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
- Abstract:
- One of the great challenges of cyberspace is defending freedom and human rights on the internet, all of which are in steady decline. In a decade, we have moved from a free and open internet to one dominated by closed platforms that are more centralized and easier to control. The internet has become a space where digital giants defend shareholder interests, authoritarian governments squash human rights, and private companies spy on politicians, activists, and journalists.
- Topic:
- Science and Technology, Authoritarianism, Internet, Multilateralism, and Data
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
223. Preparing for the Inevitable: Climate Change and the Military
- Author:
- Esther Sperling
- Publication Date:
- 03-2020
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
- Abstract:
- The US military maintains almost $1.2 trillion worth of installations worldwide, allowing the United States to sustain critical capabilities and respond to crises around the globe. Outdated and degraded infrastructure limits the military’s ability to respond. The growing impacts of climate change exacerbate the challenge of modernizing and maintaining infrastructure. Climate change’s impact on military installations can be broken down into four main categories: sea level rise, extreme storms, extreme drought and heat, and Arctic ice melt. While Congress has passed bipartisan legislation to address the threat, the Department of Defense (DoD) must take additional steps to adapt to the challenges of climate change.
- Topic:
- Climate Change, Environment, Military Affairs, and Sustainability
- Political Geography:
- North America, Global Focus, and United States of America
224. Epidemics and Pandemics as Transnational Issues: The Challenge of the Novel Coronavirus
- Author:
- Robert Kim-Farley and Lauren Dunning
- Publication Date:
- 03-2020
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
- Abstract:
- The first recorded pandemic occurred during the Peloponnesian War in 430 B.C. Suspected to be due to typhoid fever, the pandemic contributed to the Spartan victory over the Athenians. Since then, infectious diseases have had a significant impact on the course of human history. The explosive outbreak of the new novel coronavirus, COVID-19, was first identified in Wuhan, the capital city of Hubei province in the People’s Republic of China. The outbreak is again challenging the global community, its governance structures, and its mechanisms for international collaboration. Many key data points critical to fully characterizing the disease epidemiology of COVID-19—including transmissibility, potential for asymptomatic spread, and risk factors for severe illness or death—are still emerging; as a result, a collective global response under strong World Health Organization (WHO) leadership, followed by subsequent nation-level implementation, is vital to ensuring the good of the many is not sacrificed for the good of the few. COVID-19 is in the same family as the coronavirus of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), the spread of which in 2002-2003 caused the first pandemic of the twenty-first century. It prompted the creation of an ad-hoc Emergency Committee (EC) composed of international experts convened under the International Health Regulations (IHR) that inform the World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General. The IHR, which were last revised in 2005 following the SARS outbreak and subsequent calls for reform, obligate 196 state parties, including all WHO member states, to broadly work together to enhance global health security.
- Topic:
- Governance, Multilateralism, Pandemic, COVID-19, and Health Crisis
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
225. The New Weapon of Choice: Technology and Information Operations Today
- Author:
- Kelly M. McFarland
- Publication Date:
- 10-2020
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Institute for the Study of Diplomacy, Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University
- Abstract:
- In recent years, a growing number of governments, non-state actors, and citizens have rapidly expanded their use of pernicious information operations against other countries and even their fellow citizens. Social media and the internet have become the main tool. The current technological revolution has lowered the cost of entry for those wishing to spread misinformation and disinformation. Some use the internet to propagate an alternative version of the global order they seek to dominate, to damage a regional rival, or to influence their own or others’ elections. The players, tactics, tools, and topics will continue to expand in the months and years ahead, and the coronavirus pandemic has only enhanced the salience of these activities. Information operation campaigns sow confusion, further divide deeply partisan societies, and are an existential threat to democracies around the world. Thus far, governmental, tech sector, and civil society responses have fallen short, although some have fared better than others. In fall 2019 and the spring 2020, the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy convened a series of working group meetings that included academics and practitioners, private sector specialists, and representatives from civil society. The attendees mapped out this space and identified the challenges inherent in this new form of incipient and widespread information operations. This group also identified potential areas of further engagement, collaboration, and research within the private sector, academia, and civil society. Ultimately, the group came up with a set of principles and policy recommendations for governments, private sector companies, and civil society to enact in both the near-and-long-term in order to mitigate information operations.
- Topic:
- Government, Science and Technology, and Information Technology
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus and United States of America
226. The reverse cascade: Enforcing security on the global IoT supply chain
- Author:
- Nathaniel Kim, Trey Herr, and Bruce Schneier
- Publication Date:
- 06-2020
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Atlantic Council
- Abstract:
- The Internet of Things (IoT) refers to the increasing convergence of the physical and digital worlds. Hundreds of “things” are being connected to the Internet and each other, with more than fifty billion devices expected to be connected by 2030. 1 These devices vary from Internet-connected power-generation equipment to wearable health trackers and smart home appliances, and generally offer some combination of new functionality, greater convenience, or cost savings to users. The Internet of Things (IoT) refers to the increasing convergence of the physical and digital worlds. Hundreds of “things” are being connected to the Internet and each other, with more than fifty billion devices expected to be connected by 2030. 1 These devices vary from Internet-connected power-generation equipment to wearable health trackers and smart home appliances, and generally offer some combination of new functionality, greater convenience, or cost savings to users.
- Topic:
- Security, Science and Technology, Cybersecurity, Internet, and Innovation
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
227. Downstream oil theft: Countermeasures and good practices
- Author:
- David Soud, Ian M. Ralby, and Rohini Ralby
- Publication Date:
- 05-2020
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Atlantic Council
- Abstract:
- Downstream oil theft has become a global problem. Since most of the world’s energy systems still rely on oil, fuel smugglers are nearly always able to find markets for their goods. Moreover, since oil is not inherently illegal, it is generally an easy product to move, buy, and sell. Profits from oil theft are frequently used to fund terrorism and other illegal activities. The new Atlantic Council Global Energy Report by Dr. David Soud, Downstream Oil Theft: Countermeasures and Good Practices, provides an in-depth look at how governments—from militaries to law enforcement officials—along with other stakeholders can anticipate and intercept instances of downstream oil theft. The report offers a range of methods to counter oil theft, which range from fuel marking and other technologies to transnational
- Topic:
- Security, Crime, Energy Policy, Environment, Governance, Law Enforcement, and Geopolitics
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
228. A framework for an open, trusted, and resilient 5G global telecommunications network
- Author:
- John T. Watts
- Publication Date:
- 03-2020
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Atlantic Council
- Abstract:
- Recent events have seen an acceleration in the rise of reemerging great powers. This has had a profound impact on global economic, technological, and political assumptions and has created new technological realities. The potential impact and implications of artificial intelligence (AI), biotechnology innovation, and the dark sides of social media have raised new concerns for social norms. No issue is more emblematic of the competition between liberal, free-market nations and authoritarian command-economy principles than the evolution of fifth-generation (5G) telecommunications. Generational shifts between cellular telecommunications networks have profound implications for national and global economies. As data become increasingly central to every aspect of a modern economy, the shift to the next generation of cellular networks will be of even greater significance. The Chinese government identified the importance of this transition and has, for years, been aggressively investing around the world to be the purveyor of 5G infrastructure that will carry that data in the coming decades. Chinese-backed firms are currently better positioned to exploit the vast opportunity that 5G represents more effectively than corporations within free markets, for several reasons. The most significant is the high infrastructure cost of legacy cellular models and uncertain consumer demand in the short term. Capital costs are driven predominately by the technical requirements of 5G, which—in return for far higher speeds and ultra-low latency—require new hardware to be installed in many more locations than previous networks. Moreover, the legacy infrastructure model relied on proprietary and incompatible hardware components that are best suited to large, single-manufacture companies that can provide comprehensive end-to-end solutions. While consumer demand is predicted to be high, businesses are cautious in deploying such large amounts of money for unproven speculative demand. The lack of a concrete user base creates an opening that vertically integrated Chinese companies, heavily backed by the state, are exploiting by deploying the 5G technology and services at a discount of about 25 percent, along with loss-leading financing terms. Given that end-to-end network solutions can cost $10–100 billion, or more, 25-percent discounts have a major impact. While the 25-percent discount is financially enticing, the longer-term consequences are often hidden, and can include vulnerability to foreign espionage, economic leverage, and forced compliance to conditions underpinned by authoritarian principles. For the Chinese government, the financial cost is a small investment in return for potential control of the world’s data backbone for the next several decades. The reality is that questions revolving around security, as defined from the perspective of traditional “cyber” or “network security,” are ancillary to the critical challenge. If a nation builds a telecommunications network with equipment supplied from Chinese tech giants such as Huawei or ZTE, those networks will inherently be subject to Chinese laws that require compliance with many principles’ anathema to free-market, liberal views. Moreover, these networks, by design, must be managed and maintained by large services organizations, likely staffed by a vast workforce of Chinese citizens, who also must comply with Chinese law and can provide local human intelligence back to the Chinese state. These are terms that countries should not have to accept, and to which their citizens should not be involuntarily subjected. An open, innovative, safe, and reliable alternative is needed, so that people have a realistic option that allows them to freely communicate and consume information. 5G is emblematic of the competition between the new authoritarianism and free-market, liberal principles. China has executed its plan well over the last five years by driving the standards discussion, developing the leading vertically integrated solution, deploying national export finance to subsidize their offerings, and building the largest and most effective services organization in the market. Free-market economies have spent far less on research and development (R&D), have only limited export finance options, rely on semiconductor dominance, deploy severely limited services organizations, and have no integrated national or international strategy. Few governments or companies were prepared for the level of sophistication of the product and export finance offering of the authoritarian-backed commercial players.
- Topic:
- Science and Technology, Cybersecurity, Innovation, and 5G
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
229. After Covid-19: Australia and the world rebuild (Volume 1)
- Author:
- John Coyne and Peter Jennings
- Publication Date:
- 05-2020
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI)
- Abstract:
- This Strategy report offers policy-focused analysis of the world we will face once the pandemic has passed. At a time when all our assumptions about the shape of Australian society and the broader global order are being challenged, we need to take stock of likely future directions. The report analyses 26 key topics, countries and themes, ranging from Australia’s domestic situation through to the global balance of power, climate and technology issues. In each case we asked the authors to consider four questions. What impact did Covid-19 have on their research topic? What will recovery mean? Will there be differences in future? What policy prescriptions would you recommend for the Australian government?
- Topic:
- Defense Policy, Climate Change, Disaster Relief, National Security, Science and Technology, Coronavirus, Pandemic, and COVID-19
- Political Geography:
- Australia and Global Focus
230. Disrupted: The Reproductive Rights Issue
- Author:
- Katie Washington
- Publication Date:
- 02-2020
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Centre for Feminist Foreign Policy
- Abstract:
- This journal began with the aim to reject and disrupt the ‘single-story’ of mainstream foreign policy through highlighting both experienced and emerging voices from across the globe. Throughout the last four issues of Disrupted, we have sought to understand, challenge, and critique mainstream foreign policy. Through a post-colonial feminist analytical lens, our contributors from all around the world, have questioned the unquestioned objectivity of elitist, Western-centric foreign policy, and unpacked the complex connections between gender, race, ethnicity, sexuality that are embedded in the everyday actions and politics of people from across the world. We truly believe that Feminist Foreign Policy brings all voices to the table, through whichever medium they choose to express themselves, and alongside our expertly written articles, we aimed to challenge the academic and un-inclusive paradigm that foreign policy is embedded in by including artwork, poetry, and more. Regrettably, this issue will be the last of its kind and - for now - Disrupted as a project will be on hold. Disrupted was a passion project that was started with lots of good intentions but no budget. Until very recently, CFFP has been an entirely volunteer-run organisation, so the volunteer-run journal fit within that scope. No one, including CFFP volunteers and staff, has ever been reimbursed for this project. However, we strongly believe that we cannot continue producing a feminist journal without paying all editors and contributors for their labour. While members have received access to the journal in the past, in no way does the money generated from membership come even close to covering the cost of producing even a part of the journal. The small pot of money generated by Disrupted purchases/membership has only ever covered the cost of printing the journal, but even printing became very unsustainable (financially and environmentally) so we decided to go digital. Charging a small amount for access (£5 for a digital issue) was a path we thought we could use to generate money to offset project and event costs and pay for labour, but again, the numbers haven't got close to balancing out. It's been a bit of trial and error to see how we could make Disrupted sustainable. Indeed, over the past year, we've gotten done a wonderful job at figuring out how to source sustainable funding for projects and pay people for their time. However, Disrupted is one of the pieces of the CFFP puzzle that we haven't quite figured out a solid funding model for, nor found someone willing to fund it (yet!). This brings us to our final issue of Disrupted in its current form. With a thematic focus on Sexual and Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice, our contributors tackle issues from decriminalising abortion to menstrual equity and sustainability, to reproductive health conditions, to the Trump Administration’s global gag rule, and more. Across the world there is an urgency of providing a platform within foreign policy and beyond for women and minorities’ voices on these issues that directly, and often violently, impact and oppress their daily lives. We hope that we have contributed to building this platform, making foreign policy more feminist, more transparent, and more intersectional. Thank you to every single one of the contributors and volunteer Editors, past and present, who have helped make Disrupted a reality. A special thank you to Louise Scarce – without you, this issue wouldn’t have been possible. And, finally, thank you to you, our members and readers, for supporting us. With your support, we have amplified a different and more nuanced conversation that can better inform policy decisions and begin to alleviate global inequality. I am extremely proud to have been Editor-in-Chief of Disrupted, and I hope that this is only goodbye for now.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Gender Issues, Women, Feminism, Decolonization, and Reproductive Rights
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus