CNS Project: Middle East Research

Middlebury College
Major: International Studies with Middle Eastern Studies focus

Country: United States

"Working for the Center for Nonproliferation Studies this summer has been a welcome and helpful opportunity. The work is important, contemporary and challenging. The center and all of its employees have provided a supportive environment that encourages hard work and education. In particular, my supervisor, Sammy Salama, has been very helpful in guiding me to make the most of my experience here at CNS. Under his supervision, I am responsible for two main tasks: for the majority of my working hours I am responsible for monitoring the Arabic press in order to find any mention or discussion of emerging WMD topics. To occupy the rest of my time, I am researching and writing a paper on the ineffectiveness of WMD as a credible deterrent to conflict in the Middle East.

I cannot think of a more useful and informative way to spend my summer. Through my monitoring of the Arabic press, I am not only helping to further my office's research aims, but am also improving my Arabic reading comprehension."

CNS Project: WMD 411/NTI website

Middlebury College
Major: Political Science

Country: Canada

"Work at CNS is very fulfilling. I am working on the Nuclear Threat Initiative website, among other projects. One of my responsibilities is to complete an up-to-date chronology of daily WMD news. I compile important events into a series of summaries.  After my supervisor edits them, these summaries are added to the website. I like being able to see what I've been able to contribute. Another interesting project I am working on is writing an issue brief for the NTI website on a 2004 IAEA-Brazil impasse. I recognize that the process of writing this research paper is a learning experience in and of itself! To sum up my work experience, I would say that it's a good balance between learning as you go along and being able to give back to the Center."

CNS Project: CBWNP

Wellesley College
Major: Chemistry and Anthropology

Country: Malaysia

"In the course of my current work with the Chemical and Biological Weapons Nonproliferation Program, I have had the opportunity to participate in the evaluation and planning of mass casualty health emergency response and preparedness exercises in collaboration with the Monterey County Health Department and the Presidio of Monterey Army Health Clinic. As a follow-up from this exercise, I have been working on projects that seek to prepare for and educate on a variety of public health threats such as pandemic influenza, avian flu and biological and chemical terrorist attacks. In addition, I am preparing a chemical weapons ocean dumping map that will illustrate the location of all known and suspected ocean dumpsites worldwide. By the end of this internship, I also hope to complete the preliminary research for my independent study at Wellesley College that seeks to examine the delayed effects of chemical and biological warfare agents and the possible social cultural impact that stem from the use of these agents."

CNS Project: IONP

Wellesley College
Major: Political Science

Country: Nigeria

"It's been a whirlwind here in Monterey, and I've learned so much about incredibly relevant topics that I've only cursorily glanced at before. The interactions with the scholars here and the numerous fascinating seminars I've been lucky to attend contribute immensely to the vast intellectual stimulation that this summer has provided for me. And my research skills have also advanced! To make things even better, I'm in the gorgeous town of Monterey, with amazing vistas only a few minutes away, offering an aspect of America I feel lucky to experience. There is so much to see and take advantage of here; hiking in Big Sur, San Francisco and the beautiful Monterey Bay itself is well worth seeing. The weather, though sometimes foggy, is even a pleasant counterpoint to the general summer heat and humidity in most other states."

CNS Project: IONP

College of the Atlantic
Major: Human Ecology

Country: India

"I chose to intern at the Center for Nonproliferation Studies because I wanted to explore disarmament and international security from a philosophical perspective; one which brings together concepts like ethics, sovereignty, terrorism, hospitality, globalization, forgiveness. Interning at CNS has been a rewarding experience with a research organization committed to training the next generation in nonproliferation issues.

Working under the supervision of Jean DuPreez at the International Organizations and Nonproliferation program greatly furthered my knowledge of issues related to international organizations and nonproliferation issues. I also gained a deeper understanding of how multilateral negotiations and initiatives work, in terms of both the potential as well as the limits of their power. In my final paper, I explored the implications of current issues surrounding the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty on the global nonproliferation regime, and focused on the urgent necessity of reviving disarmament. I have been updating the Inventory of International Organizations, studying regional nuclear issues in South Asia, as well as working on a project documenting the progress of nuclear disarmament worldwide.

I have had the opportunity to attend numerous seminars by resident lecturers and visiting scholars. The staff is warm and generous, very encouraging and supportive of independent research and always willing to answer questions. It has been a privilege to interact--in both formal and informal settings--with leading experts in the field. California is incredible, and in its beauty, history, diversity, and hospitality, Monterey is unparalleled."

CNS Project: EANP

Princeton University
Major: International Affairs

Country: United States

"For a fourth time in my life, I am extremely grateful to Shelby Davis for his generosity in supporting innovative and effective programs that I have been fortunate enough to benefit from. I refer here to the fellowships he has supported for UWC graduates at CNS/MIIS.

I find my work very interesting, and have been surprised at how much I have learned. I think this is due to three key factors. First, my supervisors have been extremely accommodating and respectful of my interests- very rarely am I asked to do "grunt work" that is so commonly a feature of the intern experience, and I am grateful for that. Second, my supervisors have afforded me the flexibility to pursue what interests me most, specifically China and India, and guided me to the office specialist in this area. Finally, I very much appreciate the small size of EANP, which I think is crucial to making this summer such an interesting time for me. I hope that in the future UWC interns can have similar experiences.

In addition, it is always nice to have an extra, non-work dimension to a summer experience. I especially enjoyed the UWC picnic and the trip to the Bach festival, and would recommend that all activities be repeated next year."

--Please see his article on the NTI website.

CNS Project: Civilian Highly Enriched Uranium Reduction & Elimination

UC Berkeley
Major: Political Science

Country: Germany

"It is difficult to imagine a better way to spend your summer than being an intern at the Center for Nonproliferation Studies. The intellectually curious will find the offering of lectures and seminars on historical and contemporary matters stimulating, while the more activism-minded will be satisfied by the feeling that their work can have an impact. The welcoming atmosphere at the Center is difficult to exaggerate, which is perhaps surprising given the varied projects the staff appears to be juggling at all times. Instead of being stressful, it's exciting. My research has been so exciting, in fact, that I have on occasion dreamed I was inspecting a nuclear facility.

When not working, interns here have ample opportunity to explore Monterey's offerings: long stretches of sand beaches, short distances to Big Sur and Santa Cruz, huge fish in the aquarium, and a charming small-town feel. Outdoor-types will be in heaven, and others will amuse themselves in the cafes, movie theater, and British pubs that are only a short walk from CNS.

I chose this particular nonproliferation internship because I had the impression that CNS was the most serious and competent. Interning here has confirmed that belief."

CNS Project: Nuclear Terrorism

Stanford University
Major: Physics with honors in Intl Security

Country: United States

"As a physics major, I became interested in nonproliferation when I was looking for a way to put my scientific knowledge to use in international relations. Studying and understanding nuclear weapons has been fascinating, and I found a good application of my skills while writing a thesis last year on nuclear attribution. I examined the technology behind tracing a nuclear weapon after an explosion, finding that most of the tools have been developed, but they have not been put together in unclassified scientific literature.

This summer, I continued that work, trying to turn my thesis into a shorter paper. I also explored the consequences of a nuclear terrorist attack as part of a chapter on global catastrophic risks and helped with various other research tasks.

Overall, my experience in Monterey has been laid-back and relaxing, with some learning and ample opportunity to explore my own interests. Monterey is a very livable city, and it's nice to be able to walk everywhere downtown or hop in the car to go up or down the coast or to San Francisco for a weekend."

CNS Project : Space Security

Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Major: Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering

Country: United States

"During summer 2006 I worked with Dr. Clay Moltz on space security issues. I compiled chronologies of recent space security developments and updated the space web pages, developing new features on North Korean and South Korean missile development. I also wrote biographies of prominent nuclear physicists for inclusion in a high school textbook. I was given the opportunity to attend a conference at the NASA-Ames Research Center on the prospects for future manned space exploration. I also wrote a briefing paper on the current state of international agreements limiting space debris.

Living in the Monterey area was a great experience; traveling the coast every day was a gorgeous morning commute. Being close to world class recreation in Big Sur, the Ventana Wilderness and Yosemite made sitting in front of a computer all day a welcome trade for active weekends. Weekly outings to the Mucky Duck honed our trivia and karaoke skills. Lectures from specialists provided perspective and information from outside my daily research experience."

CNS Project:IONP

London School of Economics
Major: International Relations

Country: United Kingdom

"As a student of International Relations, I don't think there are many other internships, if any at all, that would have given me the chance to work, study and earn in a field directly related to my degree. Not only that, I was given almost total freedom to work on whatever project I could come up with that was both interesting to me and relevant to the department I worked for. As a result, I wrote a report on the two areas that interest me most in nonproliferation --the potential replacement of the UK's nuclear weapons, and the political implications of Israeli WMDs in the Middle East. No photocopying, no making coffee for my boss, just ten weeks of solid, interesting (and paid!) research in a totally relaxed environment. Perfect summer work.

As the CNS itself, it is located in an area of Central California with plenty of potential for exploring. Although Monterey itself can be a little bit quiet for those of us used to big city life, the huge and amazing cities of San Francisco and Los Angeles are there to be explored on weekends. Even better for me was the absolutely stunning Big Sur coastline and the weekly sailing around Monterey Bay. In other words, there is something for everyone with a little energy and initiative."