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Celebrating Pride Month graphic
News June 01, 2022
SPIA Celebrates Pride Month!
June is Pride Month! At SPIA, we celebrate the contributions of LGBTQ+ individuals within our community and beyond — and we stand with them in the ongoing fight for equal rights and against discrimination. SPIA is committed to ensuring that all members of our diverse community feel respected, supported, and valued both inside and outside the classroom. We seek to strengthen the capacity of our students to promote equity and foster inclusion while here and in the broader world. Upcoming Pride Month Events June 2, 2022 4:30 – 6:30 p.m. Princeton staff and faculty are welcome to attend the LGBT Pride Kick-Off Happy Hour hosted by the University’s…
Robertson Hall
News May 24, 2022
Making SPIA Proud: Celebrating the GREAT Classes of 2020 and 2022!
In-person celebrations for students graduating from the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA) made a jubilant return to the Princeton University campus on May 17 and May 23, for the Classes of 2020 and 2022, respectively. The week kicked off Tuesday, May 17, with a ceremony and reception at Robertson Hall honoring the 72 Master in Public Affairs (MPA), 21 Master in Public Policy (MPP), and three Ph.D. students who earned their graduate degrees during spring 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic necessitated entirely virtual commencement events. Princeton honored their achievements — as well as the undergraduate Class of 2020 — May…
Robertson Hall
News May 24, 2022
SPIA Class of 2022: Graduate Student Distinction and Prizes
At an in-person ceremony Monday, May 23, 2022, in Robertson Hall's Arthur Lewis Auditorium, the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA) awarded special annual prizes to Master in Public Affairs (MPA) and Master in Public Policy (MPP) students achieving academic excellence and demonstrating an unsurpassed commitment to public service. Two MPA students achieved distinction on their second-year qualifying exam. Congratulations to Caitlin Quinn in Field I, international relations, and McKenzie Leier in Field II, international development Dean Amaney Jamal and Caitlin Quinn. (Photo credit: Egan Jimenez) Dean Amaney Jamal and…
Keith Wailoo
News May 02, 2022
Wailoo Named Co-Chair of National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Ad Hoc Committee on Equity and Innovation
While new health and medicine technologies from gene editing to artificial intelligence promise to be immeasurably beneficial, they also come with profound ethical and societal implications. How can societies create dynamic governance structures to ensure that innovations are developed both ethically and equitably? A new ad hoc committee created by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and co-chaired by Keith Wailoo of Princeton University will develop new frameworks to govern the benefits and risks associated with health and medical technologies. “This is an exciting initiative,” Wailoo said. “Too often, issues of fairness,…
Arvind Narayanan
News May 02, 2022
Tech Privacy Expert Arvind Narayanan to Lead Center for Information Technology Policy
Arvind Narayanan – a computer scientist whose pioneering approach to teaching and research has shaped the study of fairness in algorithms, cryptocurrencies and blockchains, and advanced privacy technologies – has been appointed director of Princeton University's Center for Information Technology Policy, effective July 2023. Narayanan, who earned a Ph.D. in computer science at the University of Texas at Austin and completed his postdoctoral research at Stanford University, has a strong relationship with the center's community of researchers and scholars. "I owe my career to CITP and I have immensely enjoyed and benefited from being part of this…
Afghanistan Policy Lab
News April 14, 2022
Princeton SPIA Launches Afghanistan Policy Lab
Afghanistan is moving closer to a humanitarian crisis, marked by economic collapse. Half of the population needs aid, and the poverty rate is expected to reach 97% by mid-2022, according to reports from the United Nations. Understanding the country, its policymaking process, and advocacy needs is critical. To contribute toward — and advocate for — Afghanistan’s rebuilding, the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA) and the Liechtenstein Institute on Self-Determination are pleased to support the Princeton SPIA Afghanistan Policy Lab as founding co-sponsors. The lab aims to help build an inclusive, peaceful, and prosperous…
Rayna Truelove
News April 08, 2022
Rayna Truelove Named SPIA Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Rayna Truelove, a champion of diverse scholars and builder of inclusive communities, has been named the inaugural associate dean for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA), effective May 9, 2022. Truelove joins SPIA from Princeton University’s Graduate School, where, as assistant dean for access, diversity, and inclusion, she collaborates with faculty, students, and staff across the social sciences and humanities to support admissions, recruitment, and the retention of diverse scholars. In her current role, Truelove has served on several University committees and working groups…
misinformation
News April 01, 2022
A Princeton-Microsoft Project is Tracing the Digital Fingerprints of Disinformation
As the 2018 U.S. mid-term elections approached, a group of Princeton alumni military veterans pitched an idea to the School of Public and International Affairs to host a conference on national security. With reports of foreign interference during the 2016 presidential election campaign still circulating in the media and in political and academic circles, Princeton professor of politics and international affairs Jacob N. Shapiro recommended a conference focusing on Russian disinformation campaigns. That idea evolved into “Defending Democracy: Civil and Military Responses to Weaponized Information.” The April 7, 2018, Veterans Summit featured national…
Researchers win at SXSW
News March 30, 2022
Virtual Reality Project on Nuclear Threats Wins SXSW Award
A virtual reality (VR) project executive produced by researchers at Princeton University’s Program on Science and Global Security (SGS) and Games for Change won the Jury Award for Extended Reality (XR) Experiences at the South by Southwest (SXSW) Film Festival. The jury, comprised of three leading filmmakers and XR experts, described “On the Morning You Wake (To the End of the World)” as an “emotionally impactful and beautifully told story, delivered with stunning technical craftsmanship.” Created by Emmy Award-winning creators of Archer’s Mark and Atlas V, “On the Morning You Wake (To the End of the World)” explores the real and imminent risk of…
energy
News March 28, 2022
Energy and Economics: Impact of the Russian Invasion of Ukraine
It’s been four weeks since Russia first invaded Ukraine, and the world is already beginning to see economic and energy impacts. Russia is one of the top three oil producers and the second leading natural gas producer in the world. What does this mean for the Western world? In the latest installment of SPIA’s virtual webinar series, moderator Razia Iqbal of the BBC World Service discusses this with some of Princeton University’s economic and energy experts including: Markus Brunnermeier, Edward S. Sanford Professor of Economics Meg Jacobs, Senior Research Scholar, Lecturer in Public Affairs Jesse Jenkins, Assistant Professor of Mechanical and…
Zelizer
News March 21, 2022
Zelizer Named Fellow at New-York Historical Society
Julian Zelizer, a pioneer in the revival of American political history and professor at Princeton University, has been selected as the Lapidus-Weisberg Fellow in American History by the New-York Historical Society Museum & Library. As a fellow, Zelizer will spend a year at the society beginning September 2022, where he’ll pen a book about the clash that took place at the 1964 Democratic National Convention between the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party — 68 sharecroppers, farmers, undertakers, mechanics, beauticians, preachers, and manual workers who had been fighting for voting rights in their home state — and President Lyndon B. Johnson. …
Russia and Ukraine
News March 14, 2022
Ukraine — Russian Misinformation and Cybersecurity
Russia is no stranger to turning to the digital sphere to spread misinformation and propaganda. As the war wages in Ukraine, how is internet discourse adding fuel to the fire — and what cybersecurity threats remain? In the third segment of SPIA’s event series to discuss the ongoing war in Ukraine, Asha Rangappa '96, CNN legal and national security analyst and former FBI agent, moderated a discussion with Princeton experts who focused on disinformation, online governance, and propaganda by authoritarian regimes. Panelists for the talk included: Jacob N. Shapiro, professor of politics and international affairs Sergey Sanovich, postdoctoral…
Russia and Ukraine
News March 07, 2022
Ukraine — Global Ramifications
On March 4, the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs held a second live, virtual discussion about the Russian invasion of Ukraine, this time focusing on the Western response, how it affects global migration, and humanitarian-related perspectives on the conflict. Russia continues to try and seize key Ukrainian cities, while citizens are fleeing to Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Hungary, and Moldova. How should the West respond? Moderator Razia Iqbal of the BBC World Service leads a conversation building on these vital questions. Panelists for the talk included: Filiz Garip, Professor of Sociology and Public Affairs Brian Katulis MPA …
Paul Lipton
News March 03, 2022
Paul Lipton Named Senior Associate Dean for Academic Administration
Paul Lipton, a dedicated member of the dean’s senior leadership team at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA), has been named senior associate dean for academic administration, effective March 7. A longtime higher education administrator and educator, Lipton currently serves as associate dean of the undergraduate program at SPIA, where he has led and shaped the undergraduate academic curriculum and policies, as well as serving as an advisor to students and a liaison to other units at Princeton University. Working with a faculty committee, he led an undergraduate curriculum review at SPIA to strengthen intellectual cohesion…
Russia and Ukraine
News February 26, 2022
The Conflict in Ukraine
Russia deployed troops into neighboring Ukraine on Feb. 24 — an attack coming just days after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a “military operation” in the Donbas region of Ukraine, saying that Russia would intervene as an act of self-defense. Now, bombings and airstrikes are escalating, leading those in Ukraine to flee their homes and desperately seek refuge. People across the world are wondering what’s next for the country, Europe, and international relations. To help explain this complex geopolitical moment, experts from Princeton University came together Feb. 25 for a live, virtual discussion about the Russian invasion of Ukraine as…