Past Events
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On Thursday, April 21, the Strauss Center is pleased to welcome Ciaran Martin, visiting professor from the Blavatnik School of Government at Oxford University, for a discussion on lessons learned during his six and a half years at the highest levels of British cybersecurity, where he led the United Kingdom’s National Cyber Security Centre. The event will be moderated by Professor Bobby Chesney, director of the Strauss Center for International Security and Law.
In this talk, Martin will draw upon his experience at the top echelon of British cybersecurity, advising three Prime Ministers and building up the United Kingdom's defenses in this essential policy area while most of the political system was engulfed in Brexit. Martin will share his key takeaways from responding to over 7,000 serious cyber incidents, what he learned from collaborating with government and external partners, how political systems react to cybersecurity challenges, the importance of non-technical fields including law and economics when dealing with cybersecurity issues, and most importantly: what used to keep him awake at night.
Biography
Ciaran Martin is currently professor of practice in the management of public organizations within Oxford University's Blavatnik School of Government. Prior to joining the school, he was the founding chief executive of the National Cyber Security Centre, part of the British intelligence agency GCHQ. During his time with the NCSC, Martin led a fundamental shift in the UK's approach to cybersecurity, advocating for a wholesale change of approach toward a more interventionist posture. This initiative was integrated into the 2015 National Security Strategy, and led to the creation of the NCSC.
The NCSC's approach has been lauded for responding quickly to incidents and giving the British public clear and prompt advice on responding to cybersecurity threats, putting previously classified information in the hands of industry so that companies can defend themselves more effectively, major improvements in automatic cybersecurity like countering brand spoofing and rapidly taking down malicious sites, and projecting UK cybersecurity leadership around the world.
In his role at the NCSC, Martin worked closely with his United States counterparts, including Chris Krebs, director of the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency, and Anne Neuberger and Chris Inglis, who are now the president's top advisers on cybersecurity.
On Thursday, April 21, the Clements Center for National Security and the Alexander Hamilton Society - UT-Austin Chapter will host Ambassador Kristen Silverberg, president & chief operation officer at Business Roundtable and former ambassador to the European Union, for an event on "Economic Statecraft and the Future World Order." Join us at 12:15 p.m. in RLP 1.302E, Robert L. Patton Hall.
Ambassador Kristen Silverberg is president & COO at Business Roundtable. She previously served as executive vice president for policy. Prior to BRT she was a managing director at the Institute of International Finance. She served in the George W. Bush administration as U.S. ambassador to the European Union from 2008 to 2009, and as assistant secretary of state for international organization affairs from 2005 to 2008. She also held a number of senior positions at the White House, including deputy domestic policy advisor.
Silverberg served in 2003 in Baghdad, Iraq, for which she received the Secretary of Defense Medal for Outstanding Public Service. She formerly practiced law at Williams and Connolly, LLP in Washington, DC, and served as a law clerk to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and Judge David Sentelle of the U.S. Court of Appeals. She attended Harvard College and the University of Texas School of Law, where she graduated with High Honors.
In addition to her service on the IRI Board, Silverberg also serves on the board of directors of the Forum for American Leadership, on the board of the Vandenberg Coalition, on the steering committee of the Reagan Institute Strategy Group, and on the board of directors of Vorbeck.
For more information on this event, contact Elizabeth Doughtie: elizabeth.doughtie@utexas.edu.
On Tuesday, April 19, the Clements Center for National Security and the Kay Bailey Hutchison Center for Energy, Law & Business will host Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison and Will Inboden for a discussion: "The Ukraine War: What Comes Next on Energy and Security." Join us on Zoom at noon CT.
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison was sworn in as the permanent representative of the United States to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization on Aug. 15, 2017. From 1993 to 2013, she served as a U.S. senator from Texas, and was elected to a Senate leadership position. She gained extensive international experience and developed a deep understanding of NATO as a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
William lnboden is the executive director and William Powers, Jr. Chair at the Clements Center for National Security at The University of Texas at Austin. He also serves as associate professor at the LBJ School of Public Affairs, distinguished scholar at the Robert S. Strauss Center for International Security and Law, and editor-in-chief of the Texas National Security Review.
For more information about this event, contact Elizabeth Doughtie: elizabeth.doughtie@utexas.edu.
On Thursday, April 14, the Clements Center for National Security, the Center for Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies and the Center for European Studies will host Alina Polyakova, president and CEO of the Center for European Policy Analysis, for a talk on "Threat of the First Throne: Russia's Challenge to European Security and Political Order." Join us from 12:15–1:30 p.m. in SRH 3.122 at the LBJ School of Public Affairs.
BIOGRAPHY
Dr. Alina Polyakova is president and CEO of the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA) as well as an adjunct professor of European studies at the Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS).
She is a recognized expert on transatlantic relations, European security, Russian foreign policy, digital authoritarianism and populism in democracies. She is the author of the book The Dark Side of European Integration (Columbia University Press), which examines the rise of far-right political movements in Europe, as well as dozens of major reports and articles in outlets such as the Washington Post, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, Foreign Affairs and The Atlantic, among others. She is a frequent commentator in major media outlets including Fox News, CNN and BBC.
Prieviously, Polyakova was the founding director for global democracy and emerging technology at the Brookings Institution, and prior to that served as director of research for Europe and Eurasia at the Atlantic Council. She has held numerous prestigious fellowships, including at the National Science Foundation, the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and the Fulbright Foundation, among others. She also serves on the board of the Free Russia Foundation and the Institute of Modern Russia.
Polyakova holds a Ph.D. and M.A. in sociology from the University of California, Berkeley, and a B.A. in economics and sociology from Emory University.
For more information on this event, contact Elizabeth Doughtie: elizabeth.doughtie@utexas.edu.
On April 13, the Clements Center for National Security, the UT-Austin Department of History and Department of Government will host Patrick Cohrs, professor of international history at the University of Florence, for a book talk on his upcoming release, The New Atlantic Order: The Transformation of International Politics, 1860–1933. This event will take place at the Texas Union in the Governor's Room.
Biography
Patrick O. Cohrs is professor of international history at the University of Florence. He specialises in the history of modern international politics. His work focuses on war and peace and the transformation of the transatlantic and global order in the 19th and 20th centuries. Before Florence, he was associate professor of history and international relations at Yale University, where he also was one of the co-founders of the Yale International History Workshop. Cohrs received his DPhil from Oxford University in 2002 and was subsequently Alistair Horne Fellow at St. Antony's College, Oxford, in 2006–07. Earlier, he was a fellow both at the Kennedy School of Government and at the Center for European Studies at Harvard University. He has also held fellowships in London, Paris, Tokyo and Budapest. Having once taught at Humboldt University Berlin, Cohrs was a visiting professor at the Free International University of Social Studies in Rome (2016) and at Helmut-Schmidt-University Hamburg (2017–18). Cohrs is the author of The Unfinished Peace after World War I. America, Britain and the Stabilisation of Europe, 1919–1932 (Cambridge University Press, 2006) and of The New Atlantic Order: The Transformation of International Politics, 1860–1933 (Cambridge University Press, 2022).He is currently working on the next and final volume of his study of the transformation of the modern Atlantic and global order, which will cover the second half of the "long" 20th century (1933–2020).
For more information on this event, contact Elizabeth Doughtie: elizabeth.doughtie@utexas.edu.
On Wednesday, April 13, the Strauss Center will host an event, "War Crimes in Russia's Invasion of Ukraine," with UT Law School Professor Derek Jinks. Russian atrocities in Ukraine have shocked the world, reviving memories of some of the darkest moments of the 20th century. Many of these acts are war crimes, a phrase that is used by many but fully understood by few.
UT Law's Professor Derek Jinks is one of those few. He'll explain war crimes: what are they, where do they fit into the international legal system, and how can justice be done? Students will have an opportunity to ask questions about Russia's invasion of Ukraine and other conflicts. U.S. military veterans will also provide brief recollections of their own training on such issues as how to interact with civilians, lawful use of force, and handling prisoners.
The Strauss Center will provide lunch from Tacodeli.
Join the LBJ Presidential Library n April 11 for an evening with former Rep. Will Hurd, who will talk about his new book, American Reboot: An Idealist’s Guide to Getting Big Things Done, a political playbook rooted in "the timeless ideals of bipartisanship, inclusivity, and democratic values." JR DeShazo, dean of the LBJ School of Public Affairs, will moderate the discussion.
About Will Hurd
Will Hurd is a former member of Congress, cybersecurity executive and undercover officer in the CIA. For two decades he's been involved in the most pressing national security issues challenging the country, whether it was overseas in dangerous places, boardrooms of international businesses, or the halls of Congress. Hurd is a native of San Antonio and graduate of Texas A&M University. He is a trustee of the German Marshall Fund, board member of OpenAI and managing director at Allen & Company.
A child of interracial parents in South Texas, Hurd survived the back alleys of dangerous places as a CIA officer. He carried that experience into three terms in Congress, where he was, for a time, the House's only Black Republican, representing a 71% Latino swing district in Texas that runs along 820 miles of U.S.-Mexico border. As a cyber security executive, Hurd has worked with entrepreneurs on the cutting edge of technology to anticipate the shockwaves of the future. In March 2017, Hurd and his fellow Rep. Beto O'Rourke made headlines when they livestreamed their cross-country drive to Washington, DC.
In American Reboot, Hurd takes on five seismic problems facing a country in crisis: the Republican Party's failure to present a principled vision for the future; the lack of honest leadership in Washington, DC; income inequality that threatens the livelihood of millions of Americans; U.S. economic and military dominance that is no longer guaranteed; and& technological change that will make the last 30 years of advancements seem trivial compared to the next 30.
The Store at LBJ will be selling copies of American Reboot (Simon and Schuster, on sale March 29) onsite in the Atrium on the 10th floor of the LBJ Library. Hurd will be signing copies in-person from 5:45-6:15 p.m. You may pre-order your copy on the store's website; copies will be shipped after the event unless otherwise requested.
Health protocol
Masks are strongly encouraged and will be available onsite. Please stay home if you are sick or experiencing signs of COVID-19.
Please note: our COVID protocols may change as local health conditions warrant.
Location and Parking
The LBJ Library is located at 2313 Red River St. Free parking will be available in the LBJ Library visitors' lot (#38), and lots #37 and #39 after 5 p.m. Overflow parking will be in Manor Garage on a self-pay, space available basis.
Please note that Red River Street is closed between Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. and Clyde Littlefield Drive. Red River Street is open and accessible from E. Dean Keeton Street; please plan your route accordingly.
Check in for this event will begin at 5:30. Book signing is from 5:45-6:15.
On Monday, April 11, the Strauss Center will welcome John Skaarup, cybersecurity officer with the Texas Department of Transportation, for a talk: "So You Want To Be a Cyber-Hero?" as part of Strauss's speaker series titled "Tales from the Cybersecurity Front," aimed at sharing stories from the cyber world. This talk will be moderated by Wendy Nather, Strauss senior cybersecurity fellow.
The thrill of a cybersecurity breach: the adrenaline, the conference bridges, the cold pizza. You may think that incident response is cool, and sometimes, it is. But sometimes it's not what you were expecting. In this talk, Skaarup presents the story behind the ransomware attack at the Texas Department of Transportation: how it broke out just as the pandemic was shutting everyone out of the offices; how the obvious countermeasures and best practices didn't necessarily work; and how, to paraphrase Dante Hicks in the movie "Clerks," he wasn't even supposed to be there!
Biography
John Skaarup is a cybersecurity officer with the Texas Department of Transportation, responsible for the security operations of everything from iPads to tollbooths. Originally from New York, he finished 20 years in the Army making tanks roll over and do tricks, and then answered a Craigslist ad* and began his cybersecurity career with the State. After 16 years, he's beginning to suspect that state government IT is not as agile as a tank.
*This part is absolutely true
On Wednesday, April 6, 2022, the University of Texas at Austin's Intelligence Studies Project, Strauss Center for International Security and Law, and Clements Center for National Security will host author and former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) operations officer James Lawler for a talk on his recently released book, Living Lies: A Novel of the Iranian Nuclear Weapons Program, which will be followed by a conversation on counterproliferation. Steve Slick, director of the Intelligence Studies Project, will moderate.
BIOGRAPHY
James Lawler served for 25 years as a CIA operations officer in various international posts and was a member of CIA's Senior Intelligence Service (SIS-3) from 1998 until retirement in 2005. He was a specialist in the recruitment of foreign spies, and he spent more than half of his CIA career battling the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. As chief of the A.Q. Khan Nuclear Takedown Team, which resulted in the disruption of the most dangerous nuclear weapons network in history, Lawler was the recipient of one of the CIA's Trailblazer Awards in 2007, marking the 60th anniversary of CIA. DCI George Tenet sent Lawler a note which stated, "Jim, what you and your team have achieved will rank up there as one of the most spectacular intelligence accomplishments in the history of the CIA." Former CIA Deputy Director John McLaughlin noted that the effort was "the closest thing I’ve ever seen to a perfect intelligence operation."
Lawler also received the Director's Award from DCI Tenet, the U.S. Intelligence Community's HUMINT Collector of the Year Award, and the Donovan Award from the CIA's Deputy Director of Operations.
Prior to his career in intelligence, Lawler was a graduate of Rice University and the University of Texas School of Law. He has completed two novels: Living Lies, an espionage story of the Iranian nuclear weapons program, and In the Twinkling of an Eye, about a devastating covert Russian-North Korean genetic bioweapons program. Both have been cleared by the CIA's Publication Review Board. He is currently writing his third espionage novel, The Traitor's Tale, about treachery and treason deep within the CIA.