We expect political leaders to shape global events. It is rare when the foreign policy advisors behind these leaders leave lasting marks of their own. The geostrategists we remember were all able to use their understanding of history and geography to prescribe a new course for the world. Zbigniew Brzezinski is one of these great men. To this day his name is known in foreign capitals around the globe. It is associated with the very best of America’s strength and ideals. This Institute is meant to serve as a living embodiment of his ongoing work and legacy.

I am honored that Dr. Brzezinski designated CSIS as the permanent home of the Brzezinski Institute on Geostrategy. Dr. Brzezinski envisions that this Institute will eschew parochial advocacies, and instead become a center for objective analysis on global issues, grounded in an understanding of how history and geography affect the critical choices faced by policy analysts and national leaders. The Institute will become an incubator for constructive ideas with practical purpose and impact.

John J. Hamre
CSIS President and CEO