Join the Intelligence Project as David Priess gives a rare window into America's most unique contribution to the practice of intelligence: the production and delivery of the most exclusive daily newspaper in the world, the President’s Daily Brief.

Telling tales from his own time at CIA and the experiences of the former Presidents, Vice Presidents, CIA Directors, and other senior policymakers that he worked with or has interviewed, Priess will bring more than 60 years of history-changing analysis alive by describing how the CIA (and, more recently, the ODNI) has tailored delivery of its daily intelligence report to each President’s personal style and preferences. The best and the worst of White House-intelligence interactions illuminate enduring best practices for intelligence officers trying to learn and effectively meet senior policymakers' needs.

This seminar is in person only and is open to Harvard students, fellows, faculty, and staff. The conversation will be on the record and will be moderated by Intelligence Project Assistant Director Calder Walton. Refreshments will be served. Registration is required and will be open to the first 30 to register. 

Please note that the event has hit capacity and registration is now closed.

Putin’s war in Ukraine, Russian election meddling, deep-cover Russian “illegal” spies in the West, disinformation, overhead spy balloons, and assassinations—subjects that all make regular news headlines. When they do so, however, those headlines frequently lack their proper, long-term, context.

To bring historical perspective to these national security issues at the frontline of contemporary geopolitics, join the Belfer Center’s Intelligence Project for the launch of Calder Walton’s book, SPIES. The Epic Intelligence War between East and West, being published on June 6.

Described by Fiona Hill as “essential reading” and a “masterclass in twentieth century and contemporary history,” and by Christopher Andrew as a “masterpiece,” SPIES explores the clandestine struggle that has been raging between Russia and Western powers for a hundred years and counting. Its conclusions, however, go further than Russia in the past: they relate to the current unfolding intelligence conflict between China and the West. Chinese intelligence has taken up the mantle of the KGB— but taken espionage to new levels.

Calder Walton will present the principal findings of his book, followed by a  Question & Answer session with incoming Intelligence Project Director incoming Project Director Mark Pascale and Intelligence Project Fellows including Beth Sanner, Norman T. Roule, Rolf Mowatt-Larssen, Kristin Wood, and Jeff Fields.

This virtual event will take place on June 5 at 4:00PM EST. Calder Walton’s remarks will be on the record, but the Q&A will be under Chatham House rules. It will be open to the public, but registration is required. RSVP at the link below:

Applications for the Spring 2023 Intelligence Study Group are now live. The Intelligence Study Group is designed for Harvard students considering careers in government or the private sector as well as those interested in a broad introduction to intelligence. Participation is limited to 40 students determined by application. The study group is open to all Harvard students, faculty, fellows, and staff.  We will meet on Thursday afternoons from 4:30PM to 6:00PM beginning February 9 through April 27, 2023. The application will remain open until February 1 with initial decisions shortly thereafter. To apply, please fill out the application and we will contact you as space allows.

The Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 continues to stand as the single most dangerous event of the nuclear age, when the world came closer than ever before or since to the prospect of nuclear annihilation. Scholars and analysts continue to revisit the CMC to learn its lessons in order to avoid nuclear dangers in the future. A number of recent accounts have shed new light on the various aspects of and incidents within the CMC, providing us with a better understanding of the dynamics of the crisis. As the world marks 60 years since those fateful events, the risk of nuclear conflagration is once again on the rise. Russia, a major nuclear power, is waging a war against Ukraine, a state supported by the United States and NATO, a nuclear-armed alliance. What were the most dangerous moments of the CMC? What contributed to and what ameliorated the risks of a nuclear conflagration? What can we learn from the CMC that is pertinent for preventing a conventional war in Ukraine from crossing the nuclear threshold? MTA brings together historians and political scientists to discuss the state of the art of history and politics of the Cuban Missile Crisis and gauge its relevance for the war in Ukraine and for future crises and conflicts. 

In-person Registration (Click Here)        Zoom Registration (Click Here)

Imagine if you woke up tomorrow to news of:

• A massive cyber-attack that irreparably damaged financial markets and shut down critical infrastructure, or
• A significant conventional defeat due to strategic surprise like happened at Pearl Harbor, or
• The release of a manufactured pathogen that marks the beginning of a new global pandemic.

Please join the Intelligence and Applied History Projects at the Belfer Center, Harvard Kennedy School, for a day of thoughtful discussion about the top challenges facing the existing intelligence and national security mechanisms in the United States, and possible mitigation strategies to ensure that the U.S. has the people, structure, systems, integration, legal authority, and partnerships needed to protect national interests in the years ahead. Panelists include intelligence historians Dr. Sara Castro, Dr. Michael Warner, and Dr. James Wirtz, and former intelligence practitioners Sue Gordon and Ellen McCarthy. Former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper will provide a keynote address. At the conference, we will showcase the winners of our essay competition: A New National Security Act for the 21st Century.

This event will take place in hybrid format under Chatham House Rules. Registration is required. Harvard community members are welcome to attend in person. Please register for the event here: https://harvard.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_U_wuab28R0y1NnLQtIqylg.

How should intelligence communities maintain their analytic objectivity within societies that are increasingly politically polarized? What role can academia and the private sector play in developing and sharing best practices? What strategies can intelligence agencies adopt to ensure objectivity for an uncertain future?

Analytic Objectivity and Avoiding Politicization in Intelligence: Perspectives from the U.S., Five Eyes, and the Private Sector is a one-day virtual conference hosted by the Intelligence Project. Experts will discuss how the U.S. and Five Eyes intelligence communities can work with and learn from academia and business to safeguard the objectivity of intelligence products and ensure quality and accountability.
 
Participation is for the Harvard community and by invitation. The conference will take place on Microsoft Teams and registration is required. Please register at http://evite.me/r8zhKdNH7H. For more details, contact Recanati-Kaplan Fellow Barry Zulauf at barryzulauf@hks.harvard.edu.

The Intelligence Study Group is designed for students considering careers in government or private sector intelligence, as well as for those interested in a broad introduction to the uses and abuses of intelligence. Over the course of 10 sessions, participants will become familiar with intelligence history, methodology, organizations and practice.

In a rapidly-evolving international security landscape with new technologies available to a variety of threat actors, the United States is, in the words of intelligence scholar and expert Dr. Amy Zegart, "losing its intelligence advantage." Join the Intelligence and Applied History Projects for a conversation with Dr. Zegart on her newest book, Spies, Lies, and Algorithms: The History and Future of American Intelligence. The discussion will be moderated by Calder Walton, Associate Director for Research at the Intelligence Project and Assistant Director at the Applied History Project. This virtual event is open to the public. Registration is required. To join via Zoom, please register at https://harvard.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_HD9Jk2p8S2atQkgTENWYoA.

9/11: Intelligence and National Security Twenty Years Later is a full-day conference sponsored by the Intelligence Project at Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center. This will be a Zoom webinar with speakers and moderators participating in person.

The Intelligence Project will host Ben MacIntyre, best selling author and Writer at Large and Associate Editor at The Times, to speak about his latest book, Agent Sonya, on Wednesday, March 3rd from 12:00-1:00pm. 

This event will be on-the-record and open to the public. Please note, while this virtual event is on the record, our policy prohibits any attendees, including journalists, from audio/visual recording or distributing parts or all of the event program without prior written authorization.