Ploughshares Fund today named seven individuals who are leading the way to security and peace in the 21st century. These leaders are available to discuss prospects for President-elect Obama’s national security team, and the complex range of historic opportunities to reduce and ultimately eliminate nuclear weapons and promote peace in regions of conflicts.
“At a moment of unprecedented opportunity for increasing global security, these people are leading initiatives capable of far-reaching change,” said Joseph Cirincione, president of Ploughshares Fund. He cited the vision and innovation exemplified by the following individuals, each of whom has received a grant ranging from $40,000 to $100,000 to support his or her work and are profiled in New Leaders/New Future [1]: Ploughshares Fund Annual Report 2008.
Major General Dipankar Banerjee [2], who traded his military uniform for the mantle of peacemaker as the founder of the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies in volatile and nuclear-armed South Asia.
Contact: (New Delhi) 91.11.5100.1900, dbanerjee@ipcs.org [3]
Kennette Benedict, [4] who is transforming the venerable Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists into a powerful tool for educating the public and policymakers and building a public movement for a safer, nuclear weapon-free world.
Contact: 312.364.9710 ext. 12, kbenedict@thebulletin.org [5]
Bruce Blair [6], who this week will officially launch Global Zero, a worldwide popular drive for an international agreement to eliminate all nuclear weapons by a date certain.
Contact: 202-797-5116, bblair@worldsecurityinstitute.org [7]
Matthew Bunn, [8] who combines urgency with the practical steps needed to fast-track international efforts to prevent nuclear terrorism, from Harvard’s Managing the Atom Project.
Contact: 617.495.9916, matthew_bunn@harvard.edu [9]
Victoria Holt [10], who is redefining the role of militaries in protecting civilians caught in violent conflicts around the world. Holt is co-director of the Future of Peace Operations project at the Henry L. Stimson Center.
Contact: 202.223.5956, vholt@stimson.org [11]
Rachel Kleinfeld [12], whose Truman National Security Project is recruiting and training tomorrow’s young, progressive leaders.
Contact: 202.216.9723, rachel@trumanproject.org [13]
Trita Parsi [14], founder of the National Iranian American Council and leader of efforts to forge a more rational U.S. policy toward Iran.
Contact: 202.386.2303, tparsi@niacouncil.org [15]
For interviews, including Ploughshares Fund President Joseph Cirincione [16] or Executive Director Naila Bolus [17], please contact:
Links
[1] http://www.flash-view.com/pub/ebooks/1684edc9fe/view_book.html
[2] http://www.ploughshares.org/expert.php?id=179
[3] mailto:dbanerjee@ipcs.org
[4] http://www.ploughshares.org/expert.php?id=159
[5] mailto:kbenedict@thebulletin.org
[6] http://www.ploughshares.org/expert.php?id=111
[7] mailto:bblair@worldsecurityinstitute.org
[8] http://www.ploughshares.org/expert.php?id=134
[9] mailto:matthew_bunn@harvard.edu
[10] http://www.ploughshares.org/expert.php?id=32
[11] mailto:vholt@stimson.org
[12] http://www.ploughshares.org/expert.php?id=234
[13] mailto:rachel@trumanproject.org
[14] http://www.ploughshares.org/expert.php?id=220
[15] mailto:tparsi@niacouncil.org
[16] http://www.ploughshares.org/expert.php?id=103
[17] http://www.ploughshares.org/expert.php?id=227
[18] http://tinyurl.com/ybe8agw