Educating global leaders and generating research and insights for a safer, more prosperous world

US Israel Iran War

After the strike: The danger of war in Iran

2025 Guillemin Prize winners

Guillemin Prize winners conduct dissertation research abroad

Paradox of wartime commerce

The paradox of wartime commerce

Venezuela 2026

The global implications of US military operation in Venezuela

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Trump's grounds for concern: Will the US risk lives to take Iran's uranium?

Trump's grounds for concern: Will the US risk lives to take Iran's uranium?

For US, unmet expectations in Iran fit a familiar pattern in the region

For US, unmet expectations in Iran fit a familiar pattern in the region

The Hormuz minefield

The Hormuz minefield

General McChrystal’s Dolly Parton doctrine

General McChrystal’s Dolly Parton doctrine

Asia in the new world order

Asia in the new world order

Weakened by war, Iran hits back by strangling a vital waterway

Weakened by war, Iran hits back by strangling a vital waterway

Abandoning reunification is survival strategy for North Korea

Abandoning reunification is survival strategy for North Korea

Hackathon tackles real-world challenges in Ukraine

Hackathon tackles real-world challenges in Ukraine

The Philippine chairmanship of Asean in a year of strategic tension

The Philippine chairmanship of Asean in a year of strategic tension

Walsh on the US-Iran conflict

Walsh on the Iran conflict

Two women working in a lab

MIT Global Seed Funds

Each year, approximately $2 million is awarded to over 100 proposals. Since its inception in 2008, GSF has awarded more than $30 million to enable some 1,300 faculty research collaborations.

Upcoming events

Europe’s Nuclear Umbrella

Michal Onderco, Professor of International Relations and Program, Director, Bachelor Management of International Social Challenges, Erasmus University Rotterdam

10:30am - 12:00pm

Building E40 - 496

Systemic Risk Management: A Perspective from the Inter-American Development Bank

Søren Elbech, Chief Risk Officer, Inter-American Development Bank

12:00pm - 1:00pm

Building E40 - 496

Geopolitics of the Strait of Hormuz

Nader Habibi, Henry J. Leir Professor of Practice in the Economics of the Middle East, Crown Center for Middle East Studies, Brandeis University

Ali Kadivar, Associate Professor of Sociology and International Studies, Boston College

Dafna Rand, Former US Assistant Secretary of State

Caitlin Talmadge, Raphael Dorman-Helen Starbuck Associate Professor of Political Science

Richard Nielsen, Associate Professor of Political Science

3:00pm - 4:30pm

In-person and virtual details will be shared prior to the event. -

The Strategic Logic of Nuclear Restraint

Andreas Lutsch, Professor, Federal University of Applied Sciences for Public Administration

Federal Intelligence Service Department

2:00pm - 4:00pm

Building E40 - 496

Marie Sénat

Community Spotlight: Marie Sénat

At CIS, our colleagues make all the difference. Get to know the people who bring energy, care, and excellence to everything we do.

Our community

Faculty and Researchers

Ben Ross Schneider

Faculty Director, MIT-Chile Program, MIT-Peru Program

Ford International Professor of Political Science

Dan Knudson

Military Fellow, Security Studies Program

Lieutenant Colonel, US Marine Corps

Affiliates and Visitors

Joshua Shifrinson

Affiliate, Security Studies Program

Associate Professor of International Relations at the Pardee School of Global Studies

Chengyang (Damien) Zhang

Chengyang (Damien) Zhang

Isabelle Bitman

Isabelle Bitman

Program Administrator, MISTI

Carlo Ratti

Faculty and Researchers

Carlo Ratti

Faculty Director, MIT-Italy Program

Professor of Practice of Urban Technologies and Planning

Opportunities

See all opportunities

MIT and new manufacturing initiative

Postdoctoral Associate Program

The Call for Applications for the 2026–27 Postdoctoral Associate Program at CIS is currently open. The Center is dedicated to advancing innovative, policy-relevant scholarship that addresses critical global challenges, and seek to appoint two postdoctoral associates during the next academic year.

Wargaming Working Group

CIS provides working group grants for advancing interdisciplinary collaborations in the field of international studies. These small grants are provided as "seed" funds for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows seeking to address scholarly problems.

Learn how to apply