The overarching question imparting urgency to this exploration is: Can U.S.-Russian contention in cyberspace cause the two nuclear superpowers to stumble into war? In considering this question we were constantly reminded of recent comments by a prominent U.S. arms control expert: At least as dangerous as the risk of an actual cyberattack, he observed, is cyber operations’ “blurring of the line between peace and war.” Or, as Nye wrote, “in the cyber realm, the difference between a weapon and a non-weapon may come down to a single line of code, or simply the intent of a computer program’s user.”
Currently the Research Director for the Security and Global Health Project at the Belfer Center, Dr. Bourdeaux, MD, MPH, conducts research and field work focused on health systems and institutions in conflict affected states, health security, and health crisis management. She has worked with the Office of the Secretary of Defense Policy to analyze the US Department of Defense’s global health projects and programs. She led a joint Harvard-NATO team of analysts to evaluate the impacts, challenges and opportunities international security forces have in protecting and rebuilding health systems in conflict affected states.
Dr. Bourdeaux earned her BA at Harvard University, her MD at Yale Medical School, completed her combined residency in Internal Medicine and Pediatrics at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, MA, and completed her MPH at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. She was one of the first graduates of the Global Women’s Fellowship at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.