Research Projects

Below you will find a chronological list of current Council research projects. You can search by issue or region by selecting the appropriate category. In addition to this sorting control, you can search for specific subjects within the alphabetical, regional, and issue categories by choosing from the selections in the drop-down menu below.

Each project page contains the name of the project director, a description of the project, a list of meetings it has held, and any related publications, transcripts, or videos.

All Projects

1994

January 1, 1994—Present

Center for Preventive Action

Advisory Board:	Richard K. Betts, Adjunct Senior Fellow for National Security Studies, Council on Foreign Relations
Staff:	Carol Melton, Time Warner Inc.
Fellow:	Micah Zenko, Fellow for Conflict Prevention
Staff:	Elise Vaughan, Research Associate Rebecca Friedman, Research Associate Richard N. Haass, President, Council on Foreign Relations
Director:	Paul B. Stares, General John W. Vessey Senior Fellow for Conflict Prevention and Director of the Center for Preventive Action
Advisory Board:	Peter Ackerman, Managing Director, Rockport Capital, Inc. Patrick M. Byrne, Overstock.com Aaron L. Friedberg, Princeton University Leslie H. Gelb, President Emeritus and Board Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations Sherri W. Goodman, CNA David A. Hamburg, Cornell University Medical College Matthew L. Hodes, Ascent Strategies LLC General George A. Joulwan, USA (Ret.), One Team, Inc. Marc E. Leland, Marc E. Leland & Associates, Inc. Robert S. Litwak, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars Carol Melton, Time Warner Inc. Barnett R. Rubin, New York University Nancy E. Soderberg, University of North Florida General John W. Vessey, USA (Ret.) Steven D. Winch, Ripplewood Holdings, LLC James D. Zirin, Sidley Austin, LLP

December 1, 1994—January 1, 2000

Center for Preventive Action Annual Conference

Director:	Barnett R. Rubin, New York University
Chairs:	General John W. Vessey, USA (Ret.) David A. Hamburg, Cornell University Medical College Richard C. Leone

This annual event surveys the past year’s lessons in conflict prevention, promotes discussion and coordination among those involved, and introduces the idea of preventive action to key U.S. constituencies, represented in part by the Council membership. The keynote speaker for this year’s conference was George Soros. The day-long event addressed four topics: (1) assistance to civil society as a tool of conflict prevention; (2) curbing the proliferation and trafficking of small arms and light weapons; (3) the failure of early warning in Kosovo; and (4) financial crises and the escalation of conflict. The conference was held at the Council’s New York office on December 11, 1998.

January 1, 1994—December 31, 1999

Pieter A. Fisher Program in International Relations

Staff:	Charles A. Kupchan, Senior Fellow for Europe Studies

January 1, 1994—December 31, 1995

Pieter A. Fisher Program on Russian Studies

January 1, 1994—December 31, 1995

Pieter A. Fisher Study Group on U.S. Policy Toward Russia

November 1, 1994—October 1, 1997

Study Group on After The Uruguay Round: The Politics, The Issues, The Rules

Director:	Bruce Stokes

This study group was a joint Council and Royal Institute of International Affairs (RIIA) effort to analyze trade policy choices and policymaking after the completion of the Uruguay Round and the creation of the World Trade Organization. The project built on the extensive trade policy research already completed or underway at the Council and the RIIA. The study group culminated in the publication of the book Trade Strategies for a New Era (1998), edited by Geza Feketekuty and Bruce Stokes.

December 1, 1994—April 1, 1998

Term Member Roundtable

Staff:	Charles A. Kupchan, Senior Fellow for Europe Studies

It was no coincidence that a new generation of Americans occupied the White House at the same time that the Cold War subsided. Had a dominant external threat continued to exist, the American people probably would not have elected a president with little experience in foreign policy. The Clinton administration's difficult struggle with foreign policy stems, at least in part, from the fact that a successor generation of foreign policy leaders has yet to take shape. To help foster this new generation of leaders, the Council regularly convenes meetings of twenty younger members on a wide array of international issues. Individuals are selected form each of four sectors: academia, government, media, and the private sector. Each meeting focuses on a timely foreign policy issue. A reading, which is circulated to members beforehand, serves to focus the discussion. The gatherings enable members to exchange ideas on timely issues and to help build new networks among the next generation of foreign policy leaders. Recent Roundtable speakers have included Jim Hoagland, David Remnick, Roger Altman, Charles Kupchan, Tina Rosenberg, Michael Lind, Jessica Mathews, and Sidney Blumenthal.

November 1, 1994—June 1, 2000

U.S.-China Roundtable

Staff:	Elizabeth C. Economy, C.V. Starr Senior Fellow and Director for Asia Studies

This series provided an opportunity for Council members to hear prominent speakers and to discuss the full range of issues that define the U.S. relationship with China. speakers in the 1999-2000 program year included: Stephen E. Flynn, Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations, and Commander, U.S. Coast Guard; Bikhim Hsiao, Director of the Department of International Affairs, Democratic Progressive Party of Taiwan; Peter Kwong, Director, Asian American Studies, and Professor of Sociology, Hunter College; Sheri Xiaoyi Liao, President, Global Village of Beijing, and Producer, "Time for Environment," China Central Television; Ma Ying-Jeou, Mayor, Taipei City; Michel Oksenberg, Senior Fellow, Asia-Pacific Research Center, Stanford University; Michael Pillsbury, Visiting Fellow, National Defense University; James Stapleton Roy, Assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence and Research; and Song Yongyi, Librarian, Dickinson College.

The Global Finance Regime

Explore the international finance regime with a new interactive from CFR's program on International Institutions and Global Governance.

New Council Special Reports

Enhancing U.S. Preventive Action

Identifying international threats and acting on them may be the most difficult job for U.S. policymakers. This report provides an actionable road map for managing international threats before they erupt into crises and makes a strong case that preventive action is not a luxury but a necessity.

The United States in the New Asia

For more than a decade, the United States has mostly watched from the sidelines as Asian countries organize themselves into an alphabet soup of new multilateral groups. In this report, the authors review the relationship between pan-Asian and trans-Pacific institutions and suggest policy guidelines for a new U.S. approach to this new Asian landscape.

Complete list of Council Special Reports

New Books

Start-Up Nation addresses the trillion-dollar question: How is it that Israel—a country of 7.1 million, only sixty years old, surrounded by enemies— produces more start-up companies than large, peaceful, and stable nations like Japan, China, India, Korea, Canada, and the UK? With the insights of geopolitical experts and investors, the authors examine this nation’s adversity-driven culture to answer this question and offer prescriptions for a global economy on the rebound.

In Forces of Fortune, Vali Nasr presents a paradigm-changing revelation that will transform the understanding of the Muslim world at large. He reveals that there is a vital but unseen rising force in the Islamic world—a new business-minded middle class—that is building a vibrant new Muslim world economy and that holds the key to winning the cold war against Iran and extremists.

In Cuba: What Everyone Needs to Know, Julia E. Sweig presents a remarkably accessible portrait of Cuba's unique place on the world stage over the past fifty years, including its internal politics, its often fraught relationship with the United States, and its shifting relationship with the global community.

Complete list of CFR Books

David Rockefeller Studies Program Contacts

For more information on the David Rockefeller Studies Program, contact:

James M. Lindsay
Senior Vice President, Director of Studies, and Maurice R. Greenberg Chair
+1.212.434.9626 (NY); +1.202.509.8405 (DC)
jlindsay@cfr.org

Janine Hill
Deputy Director of Studies Administration
+1.212.434.9753
jhill@cfr.org