National security among topics slated symposium

UNM’s National Security Studies Program will kick off its annual three-day national security symposium tomorrow.

This year’s symposium, titled “Security Trends in the next Decade: Challenges, Issues and Opportunities,” will start with lectures at the law and business schools.

Topics for the three-day event will include national security, Guantanamo Bay detainees, the Ukrainian crisis and other military, cyber, legal and political global issues, according to a UNM press release.

“This University-wide event will focus on national security, broadly defined—ranging from human rights and privacy to cybersecurity. The speakers will include nationally and UNM recognized scholars and legal experts,” said Emile Nakhleh, a research professor at UNM and a senior adviser to the National Security Studies Program.

Gregory Treverton, chairman of the U.S. National Intelligence Council will discuss global security trends for the next two decades in a keynote speech at the symposium, according the UNM press release.

Peter Highnam, director of intelligence advanced research projects activity in the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, will also present a seminar on “Cutting Edge Research Agenda for National Security,” according to the statement.

“It is a very important symposium because national security, broadly defined, touches all of us. The presentations will touch on such subjects as law, privacy, ethics, Guantanamo detentions and national security; intelligence advanced research projects and national security; humanitarian assistance; global trends in the next two decades; state failure; cybersecurity threats to U.S. businesses, for example, Sony; and human-centric security,” Nakhleh said.

The symposium will provide UNM students with a great opportunity to ponder these national issues and meet high-level speakers from the U.S. government and from the private sector, he said.

“I strongly encourage UNM faculty and students, regardless of majors or areas of expertise, to attend as many panels as possible because this symposium cuts across most majors, schools and departments,” he said.

The symposium will address some of the cutting edge issues that are of concern to the citizens collectively and individually with national and global concerns and values, Nakhleh said.

Sayyed Shah is the assistant news editor at the Daily Lobo. He can be contacted at assistant-news@dailylobo.com or on Twitter 
@mianfawadshah.