I was happy to host a one-on-one conversation with Alexandra Bell, President and CEO of the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, a couple of weeks ago. She offered a glimpse into what a career in nuclear risk reduction and arms control really looks like in and out of government. Hopefully this offers some insights to early career professionals thinking about their next steps.

Alex and I talked about her recent experience in government, leading the State Department’s arms control bureau in the early days of the Biden Administration to kick start diplomatic processes to extend the New START Treaty, begin a strategic stability dialogue with Russia, and revitalize the P5 Strategic Stability process. We also discussed the first U.S.-China arms control and nonproliferation consultation in November 2023, and the prospects for bilateral risk reduction. Alex helps highlight the nitty gritty nature of setting up successful diplomatic processes, and how persistence may be the most important attribute for a diplomat trying to advance risk reduction dialogue with major power adversaries.

We also talk about arms control as a profession, and how practitioners slowly build expertise and accomplishments over time, learning lessons from in and out of government. Alex also describes the slightly different (and challenging) nature of multilateral diplomacy, compared to New START and other areas of arms control policy work, and the importance of being an optimist in the field of managing nuclear risk. We also touch on current events, including President Trump’s interest in nuclear arms control, the value of unorthodox approaches to arms control, and prospects (and painful environment) for arms control with Russia as New START’s expiration and the rest of the world’s expectations for U.S.-Russia arms control.

Finally, we talk about the Bulletin’s origins and role as a media organization in the nuclear discourse and debates taking place among experts and the public, particularly in an information environment characterized more by tribes, and the need to overcome political differences to find solutions to the most urgent nuclear risks. Alex and I also discuss the importance of the next generation of nuclear professionals, the value of development programs like those at CSIS PONI, and the need for resilience and creativity in new entrants to the field along with some other advice for young pros. We spend a little time talking about the influence of social media on nuclear debates and education, and how to measure “success” in nuclear policy these days. Alex describes a new short story fiction contest at the Bulletin that listeners should check out here.

Somehow, we slide a Battlestar Galactica quote into the conversation and the importance of pop culture to increasing interest in reducing existential risks in the world. So say we all.

Intro/outro music licensed by Soundstripe: “The Iron Curtain” by Wicked Cinema.

Recording and edits through Riverside.fm.

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