Spring/Summer 2024

Noah Nathan, an associate professor of political science at MIT, discusses ongoing research, work with the Global Diversity Lab (GDL), and teaching. Nathan's research focuses on electoral politics, political economy, and urban politics in Africa. His most recent book, The Scarce State: Inequality and Political Power in the Hinterland, was named among the "Best Books of 2023" by Foreign Affairs.

The first cohort of Ukrainian scholars arrived to MIT in the spring and were paired with faculty advisors to exchange knowledge on teaching methods and research strategies. The GMAF program is being piloted by the Center’s MIT-Ukraine Program under the leadership of Ford International Professor of History Elizabeth Wood and managing director Svitlana Krasynska.

An influential national expert on undersea warfare, Coté is remembered as "the heart and soul of SSP."

Anjana Sankar, a veteran journalist in the UAE, has reported on the ground from Syria and inside Kurdish prisons; embedded with Emirati military forces and covered the UAE’s deployment in the Saudi-led war; and reported on Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). She joined CIS as the 2024 Elizabeth Neuffer Fellow where she studied at MIT and interned at the Boston Globe. She is now at the New York Times for the final phase of her fellowship. Learn about her fellowship in this video essay.

Kinan Martin '24, a computer and cognitive sciences graduate, is a MISTI-Japan intern at Reazon Holdings (Japan) this summer. He has participated in two MISTI Global Teaching Labs in Kazakhstan and Jordan and interned for MISTI Chile and MISTI Taiwan. He was awarded a 2024 MISTI Excellence Award for his commitment to global leadership. Learn about his work while interning at the University of Chile's Center for Mathematical Modeling in this video essay.

The latest releases from the Center’s faculty, fellows, and scholars are featured below.

Global Seed Funds awards $2.6 million; MIT-Mexico fosters cross-border collaboration; Ethnic dynamics and climate change in Africa; Rethinking the Iraq war; The rules of the game; A path to political science

CIS offers resources on the Israel-Hamas war; Join the Center’s M3 (Mens, Manus, Mundus) initiative; SSP launches summer wargaming program; New pledge expands MISTI-Netherlands; 650+ MISTI students across the globe; Seminar XXI spotlight; Starr Forums on China, Ukraine, and Haiti; SSP Wednesday seminars

End Notes features an editor's pick of professional achievements of our scholars, students, and staff.