As part of the Policy@Tech Speakers Series for 2014, Nunn School Assistant Professor Margaret E. Kosal will share her experiences in policymaking, advising in the Department of Defense, and discuss critical policy issues of relevance to the Georgia Tech community. She will be speaking on her recent experiences and observations from serving as a Senior Advisor to the Chief of Staff of the Army (CSA) as part of his inaugural Strategic Studies Group (SSG) in Washington DC.

As part of her experience with the Army, she led research, analysis, and development of new strategic concepts for design and employment of US ground forces and integration across the joint, interagency, inter-governmental and multi-national environments focusing on challenges for 10-25 years in the future. The SSG works exclusively for the CSA, General Ray Odierno, and conducts independent research and analysis to generate strategic and operational concepts for land forces. She was also involved in advising on policy and capabilities related to responding to current threats, including counter-WMD operations.

About the speaker:

Working at the intersection of science and security, Margaret E. Kosal is among the foremost young experts on the weapons of mass destruction and the national security implications of emerging and dual-use technologies; such as nanotechnology, biotechnology, and the cognitive neurosciences. She earned a doctoral degree in Chemistry from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) and has served previously in the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD), at the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), and as an advisor to the Chief of Staff of the US Army as part of his Strategic Studies Group (SSG). Her book Nanotechnology for Chemical and Biological Defense(Springer Academic Publishers, 2009) explores scenarios and strategies regarding the benefits and potential proliferation threats of nanotechnology and other emerging sciences for national security.