News & Stories

All News Research Newsmakers SPIA Reacts Community Profiles
EU flag with arrows
News January 14, 2025
Will Europe Follow in the U.S.’s Footsteps in Controlling Outbound Investment?
The recent block by President Joe Biden of the proposed takeover of U.S. Steel by Nippon Steel on grounds of national security has put the issue of foreign investment in the news and highlighted how the power to screen incoming investments could be used by governments for protectionist purposes. One instrument of investment control with even greater potential to inhibit global free trade is the screening of outbound foreign direct investment (FDI).The United States has been leading the way on this through an executive order signed by President Biden in 2023 that restricted U.S. non-passive investments in China, Hong Kong, and Macau for advanced…
In Defense of Partisanship book cover
News January 13, 2025
EXCERPT: Julian Zelizer Offers a Defense of Partisanship
Nearly 30 percent of Americans hold unfavorable views of both the Republican Party and the Democratic Party, according to the Pew Research Center, which notes that figure is “the highest share in three decades of polling.” A quarter of adults, Pew adds, “do not feel well-represented by either party.”“Partisanship is a dirty word in American politics,” says Julian Zelizer, the Malcolm Stevenson Forbes, Class of 1941 Professor of History and Public Affairs at Princeton SPIA. “If there is one issue on which almost everyone in our divided country seems to agree, it’s the belief that the intense loyalty within the electorate toward Democrats and…
Behavioral science news story hero banner with orange head and map of brain
News January 10, 2025
Kahneman-Treisman Center Initiative Assists Students, Scholars in Applying Behavioral Science to Research
A few years ago, in a paper published in Science, researchers showed that reminders beforehand were more effective in getting criminal defendants to show up for court appearances than the deterrent threat of arrests for failing to appear.One of the researchers was Anuj Shah, a new associate professor of psychology and public affairs in Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. He was recruited to the project by ideas42, the world’s first nonprofit behavioral science innovation lab, which was working with the New York City’s Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice to increase defendants’ attendance at court appearances.“It was a pretty ideal…
SPIAction Newsletter
News January 08, 2025
SPIAction Newsletter
Dear Princeton SPIA community,I hope you enjoyed a restful and joyful holiday season. The end of a year is typically a time of reflection; the start of a new one is a time to look ahead. And I am excited by what awaits the School in the months to come.I’m particularly looking forward to our Dean’s Leadership Series guests, who will share their diverse perspectives on key domestic and global issues spanning the political spectrum. Analysts, activists, thought leaders, and more will share their time and thoughts with us, giving our students the opportunity to hear differing viewpoints in a constructive, respectful setting. You can find the full lineup…
Larry Martin Bartels and Arati Prabhakar. Photo by Ryan K. Morris for the National Science & Technology Medals Foundation.
News January 08, 2025
Emeritus Professor, CSDP Founder Wins National Medal of Science
Princeton molecular biologist Bonnie Bassler has received the National Medal of Science, the nation’s highest scientific honor. Two emeritus members of the Princeton faculty, Larry Martin Bartels and Ingrid Daubechies, and two undergraduate alumni, John Dabiri and Cynthia Dwork, were also among this year’s 14 recipients of the White House honor, announced and awarded in a ceremony Jan. 3. The ceremony also honored nine individuals with National Medals of Technology and Innovation, the highest honor for technological achievement.“Congratulations to those recipients of two of our nation’s most prestigious honors, the National Medal of Science and…
AI policy task force-students meeting with policymakers
News January 06, 2025
Students Brief Policymakers on Artificial Intelligence in First-Ever AI Task Force
While artificial intelligence may unlock unprecedented human potential in the coming years, it is also a forceful technology that is magnifying the threats society faces and posing thorny policy challenges for elected officials in Washington.From increasingly complex cyber threats to the development of harmful biological agents, keeping Americans and U.S. businesses safe from potentially harmful effects of AI is no small order.Juniors at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs (Princeton SPIA) took these challenges head-on in the School’s first-ever AI Policy Task Force last semester. It was led by Ali Nouri, a lecturer at Princeton…
Research Record header
News January 06, 2025
Research Record: Estimating the Collapse of Afghanistan’s Economy Using Nightlights Data
Princeton SPIA’s Research Record series highlights the vast scholarly achievements of our faculty members, whose expertise extends beyond the classroom and into everyday life.If you’d like your work considered for future editions of Research Record, click here and select “research project.”
SPIA students: Kristy Gonzalez, Austen Boroff, Joshua Peters, Caroline Miller
News December 23, 2024
Active Military Students Bring On-the-Ground Perspective to Princeton SPIA Classrooms
The students at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs bring a range of experiences to the classroom, perhaps none more so than the active military members who attend the School.Their practical experience often illuminates policy discussions and adds nuance to conversations about the world’s most pressing problems, said Jacob N. Shapiro, a professor of politics and international affairs and director of the Empirical Studies of Conflict project. In turn, the students say their time at School helps them think more broadly about the U.S. military’s challenges and how to tackle them more holistically.“In most places around the world, the…
Princeton Tiger
News December 20, 2024
Princeton’s SPIA in New Jersey Garden State Fellows Cohort Reflections
Garden State Fellows reflect on their work, halfway through the Fellowship: Lauren Aung"My experience at the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey (ACLU-NJ) so far has been incredible; I have applied the skills I cultivated at Princeton in a meaningful way, grown my understanding of political change, and deepened my commitment to social justice work.At Princeton, I studied political science, and my research, reading, and writing skills have been extremely useful for me at the ACLU-NJ as a policy fellow. My work at ACLU-NJ is in criminal legal reform, and a key aspect of my work so far is researching and writing memorandums…
row of jail cell doors
News December 20, 2024
Princeton Policy Advocacy Clinic Students Release Analysis of Federal Crack-Powder Cocaine Sentencing Disparities, Draw Bipartisan Praise
In a country that strives for equal justice under the law, the federal statute that governs sentencing for cocaine offenses is especially eye-opening: The sentence for 28 grams of crack cocaine is the same as that for 500 grams of powder cocaine. The 18-to-1 sentencing disparity is despite there being no significant pharmacological differences between the drugs.The corollary numbers are equally striking.From 2015 to 2023, Black people made up on average 80% of convictions for crack cocaine, while white and Latino people made up on average 6% and 13%, respectively.The large majority of people convicted and sentenced for crack cocaine offenses had no…
Fall 2024 Dean's Leadership Series wrap up header
News December 16, 2024
Dean’s Leadership Series Welcomed World Leaders and Distinguished Speakers During Fall Semester
Eight distinguished speakers representing fields ranging from the U.S. government to international heads of state to journalism visited Princeton SPIA as participants in the Dean’s Leadership Series, which concluded its fall 2024 schedule in late November.
Gray electric car with smokestacks in the background. Graphic Design: Bumper DeJesus
News December 12, 2024
EV Transition Could Create Air Pollution Hotspots in India, China
While electric vehicles have become a cornerstone of the global energy transition, new research led by Princeton University has demonstrated that refining the critical minerals needed for electric vehicle batteries could create pollution hotspots near manufacturing hubs.Focusing on China and India, the researchers found that national sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions could increase by up to 20% over current levels if the countries were to fully domesticize their supply chains for electric vehicles. The overwhelming majority of those SO­2 emissions would come from refining and manufacturing nickel and cobalt — important minerals for today’s electric…
Anuj Shah
News December 11, 2024
Fill in the Blanks with Anuj Shah
Anuj Shah came to Princeton this fall from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. An associate professor of psychology and public affairs, Shah applies cognitive and social psychology to social issues with a lens on how poverty affects decision-making.Shah is no stranger to Princeton University, where he completed his Ph.D. in psychology and a postdoctoral fellowship. Here’s more about him, in his own words:My research explores… how we can use the psychology of decision-making as a lens into social issues such as poverty, crime, and conflict. For example, in one line of work I explore how resource scarcity (lacking money, lacking time)…
Bipartisan Header
News December 09, 2024
Princeton SPIA Case Study Offers Some Hope for Future Bipartisanship
Political polarization in contemporary U.S. politics appears to be an intractable, permanent problem, threatening a near-constant state of legislative gridlock and vitriolic dialogue.However, a new case study by researchers in the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs’ Innovations for Successful Societies program offers a few glimmers of hope.Martha B. Coven, a visiting lecturer in public and international affairs, and Elliot Mamet, a postdoctoral research associate, developed the case study for the first-year MPA course Politics of Public Policy, which Mamet is co-teaching with ISS Director Jennifer Widner, a professor of politics and…
SPIAction Newsletter
News December 06, 2024
SPIAction Newsletter
Dear Princeton SPIA community,As the end of another year approaches, I want to share how grateful I am for all you do for the School. Thanks to your work and support, 2024 has seen Princeton SPIA rise to the occasion in numerous areas. As always, we remained responsive to the needs and interests of our students, especially in the areas of international opportunities and public service. A full telling of all our successes is not possible here, but I am proud to point to several key achievements:Expanding Internationalization Efforts: Students traveled the world on policy trips, from Finland to Saudi Arabia, and faculty members crossed the globe to…