Kick-Off Meeting
4/23/20
The meeting featured brief presentations that delved deeper into these and other developments to examine how current security classification policies are impacting America’s national security
Increasing Lack of Historical Documentation
5/27/20
This meeting delved deeper into one of the key problems facing national security planners in our government — the increasing lack of historical documentation relating to important national security decisions.
Excessive Secrecy and Cybersecurity
6/24/20
Harvey Rishikof with the American Bar Association Standing Committee on Law and National Security gave a presentation on how excessive secrecy harms the cause of cybersecurity.
Space Secrecy
8/10/20
This meeting focused on Simon “Pete” Worden’s memo and recommendations, and Dennis Blair and Robert Work’s piece “Stovepipes in Space.”
Keeping Atoms for Peace from Being Overshadowed by Secrecy
10/28/20
The increasing opacity of U.S. nuclear export licensing, intangible nuclear technology transfers, nuclear cooperative agreement negotiations, and nuclear proliferation intelligence.
National Security and Secrecy
12/2/20
This meeting featured Kenneth Wainstein, longest-serving member of the Public Interest Declassification Board.
Security Clearances: Barriers to Entry and Defense Innovation
1/21/21
Paul Bracken described how security clearances can deter small innovative firms from being able to successfully bid on defense contracts.
Are Australia's Classification Reforms a Model to Follow?
2/18/21
Ambassador Paul Myler briefed the group on how Australia has streamlined and reformed its classification system and how this has worked during the covid crisis.
ITAR: A Security Clearance Barrier to Military Innovation
3/16/21
Bill Greenwalt briefed the group on the barriers to technical innovation and collaboration the U.S., ITAR, & related technology transfer restrictions impose on domestic & foreign high-tech firms.
9/23/21
The Information Security Branch in the Office of Security at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency detailed how the Agency manages the classification of the information it uses.
1/26/22
This meeting focused on Congressional oversight of classified matters & on the disparate access to classified information between similarly cleared Legislative & Executive Branch staff.
2/23/22
Lecture for the University of Southern California on tight secrecy protocols that served us during the Cold War, today, are becoming less of a national security fix than a problem.
1/26/23
Richard Lawless discussed challenges faced clearing his book manuscript through the CIA, removing Pentagon’s redactions, & implications of Pentagon’s classification policies for US nuclear nonproliferation policy.