Project on Nuclear Issues

The Center for Strategic and International Studies launched the Project on Nuclear Issues (PONI) in 2003 in order to revitalize and strengthen a community of nuclear weapons experts whose training and background increasingly emphasize multidisciplinary expertise, especially among younger generations. In support of this goal, the PONI conference series was created to provide a forum for facilitating new and innovative thinking on how to address the evolving role of nuclear weapons in international security and to gather people from across the policy and technical communities to discuss key issues. The conference series continues to place a strong emphasis on featuring the ideas of rising experts in the field, who are uniquely positioned to advance new thinking and who represent the next generation of leaders from across the nuclear enterprise.

The 2011 conference series included events at the Nevada National Security Site in April, at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in July, and at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in September, before concluding with a Capstone Conference at Offutt Air Force Base, home of the U.S. Strategic Command, in December. The papers included in this volume are a collection of some of the presentations delivered at the Capstone Conference. Spanning a wide range of technical and policy issues, these selected papers hope to further discussion in their respective areas, as well as contribute to the success of the greater nuclear community.