Tim Nichols

NATIONAL SECURITY & FOREIGN POLICY/ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT POLICY)

The new administration’s interest in cold, snowy regions of the world might have come out of the blue to many Americans, but not to Tim Nichols. He leads Duke University Sanford School of Public Policy’s Master of National Security Policy Program – and he teaches about the growing strategic importance of Greenland and the broader Arctic. He joins Manoj Mohanan, interim public policy dean at Duke to discuss how melting ice is opening up international competition related to shipping and mineral drilling.

Bruce Jentleson

Should universities do more to solve real-world problems? Bruce Jentleson and co-authors argue that higher education must rethink how it rewards faculty research to enhance incentives for societal impact. This article follows on their earlier study for Pew Charitable Trusts as well as the work being done by the Pew-sponsored Presidents and Chancellors Council on Public Impact Research, on which Duke President Vincent Price serves, outlining a roadmap for universities to remain relevant and actively contribute to solving today’s most pressing challenges.

Philip M. Napoli

Who gets to decide what counts as real journalism? Philip M. Napoli examines how the Federal Election Commission (FEC) determines whether an organization is a legitimate press entity or a political influence operation. With the rise of partisan content disguised as news, he argues for a more rigorous process—one that leverages digital forensic tools to separate authentic journalism from covert political activity. His analysis highlights the urgent need to safeguard democratic integrity in an era of blurred media lines.

Lisa Gennetian

Universal home visiting programs struggle with participation among Black families. This new three-part study by Lisa Gennetian, Jane Leer, Imari Smith, and Zoelene Hill—all Duke Sanford PhD alums—reveals how parenting and parental surveillance negatively affect Black parents’ interest and participation in early childhood home visiting programs, even though in focus groups Black parents describe high interest and value the benefits. Deciding not to participate in home visiting can be viewed as an adaptive response to an adversarial climate toward Black families. Labels cannot solve these systemic issues or historical injustices, but those that cue surveillance versus well-being can affect how people decide to participate in public health interventions.

Insights from the inaugural Director of Graduate Studies for Duke’s new executive Master of Public Affairs (MPA) program. Read more about Sanford's new MPA. 

Four Duke experts on global health and foreign policy, including Sanford's Sarah Bermeo and Gavin Yamey, spoke during a recent expert panel, hosted by the Duke Global Health Institute.All echoed concern that the administration’s actions are irreversibly damaging U.S.-led global health efforts and putting lives at risk. Watch the discussion here. 

Jennifer Lansford, S. Malcolm Gillis Distinguished Research Professor of Public Policy and director of the Center for Child and Family Policy at Sanford, spoke at the United Nations, offering insights into four megatrends shaping families worldwide: technology, demographic shifts, urbanization and migration, and climate change. See more details about the address.

What’s it really like to work in the national security space? How do countries, organizations and businesses negotiate when their national interests are not aligned? What about when there are allegations of spying, or other nefarious actions? This is what students at Sanford explored in a recent course, National Security Simulation: Domestic Terrorism, Migration and Misinformation which featured a semester-long game, “Acceleration.” Learn more about this innovative course. 

As the founder of the Algorithmic Justice League, Buolamwini is a pioneering computer scientist, poet, and advocate, and has dedicated her work to exposing the biases embedded in artificial intelligence (AI) and advocating for more equitable technology. She delivered Sanford's Spring 2025 Rubenstein Lecture combining personal stories, research findings, and poetry to illuminate the urgent need for AI accountability. Read about this event.

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