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The Research Center at Florida International University (ARC-FIU)
In order to fully harness Florida International University’s expanding applied research and technology base, the University has established a stand-alone, university-wide Applied Research Center. The Center's focus is to solve real-world problems through multi-disciplinary research collaborations within the University's increasingly talented applied and basic research units. The Applied Research Center (ARC) is uniquely structured and staffed to allow for free-flowing exchange of ideas between the University's applied researchers, academia, government, private sector and industry partners.
The Center's vision is to be the leading international university-based applied research institution providing value-driven, real-world solutions, which will enable Florida International University to acquire, manage, and execute educationally relevant and economically sound research programs. That vision is based on the Center's core values of respect for the environment, health and safety of all individuals, creativity and innovation, service excellence, and leadership and accountability.
As the 20th largest academic institution in the country, Florida International University has a special opportunity to help address some of the nation’s critical scientific, technical, and policy challenges in the coming years, particularly in the hard sciences and engineering fields. A primary goal of the Applied Research Center is to bring together these and other FIU’s growing applied research capabilities to target critical national priorities in environmental remediation, regional energy security and policy, and defense technologies.
The Center has a well-recognized international capability in business and policy analysis and development thanks to its in-depth political and social knowledge of the Western Hemisphere. Recently the Center partnered with the U.S. Department of Energy Offices of Fossil Energy and of International Affairs and Policy jointly to promote the development of the hemispheric technology marketplace and to facilitate the transfer of regulatory and administrative expertise throughout the Americas.
ARC’s ongoing Western Hemisphere Information Exchange (WHIX) Program has leveraged benign technologies to further relationships with militaries improving hemispheric security. The Center is working jointly with the U.S. Southern Command to further Western Hemisphere security through WHIX and other security oriented initiatives.
The Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies (CHDS)
The Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies (CHDS) is a product of the Defense Ministerial of the Americas (DMA) process that began in Williamsburg, Virginia, in 1995. Latin American civilian and military defense officials expressed deep concerns over the relative lack of civilians prepared to deal knowledgeably with defense and military issues in their countries. In response, U.S. Secretary of Defense William Perry proposed creating a regional center to address this problem during the second Defense Ministerial held at Bariloche, Argentina, in 1996. Secretary Perry envisioned an educational center tailored to the unique requirements of the Western Hemisphere where many countries wished to strengthen civilian defense and security leadership in revitalized democracies. Between 1996 and September 1997, preparatory work for what became CHDS was conducted by a team from the U.S. Department of Defense and the National Defense University which included consultation with regional stakeholders such as the defense ministries and civilian academics. CHDS opened its doors with a Hemispheric Conference on Education and Defense on 19 September 1997. Its first Director and two faculty members reported for duty in December and CHDS conducted its first three-week course, the Defense Planning and Resource Management Courses in March 1998. The Center also conducted the first of many in-region seminars in Bolivia that year. At DMA V, in Santiago, Chile in 2003, CHDS was officially recognized for its contribution to matters of Hemispheric Defense and Security. In March 2004, Dr. Richard Downie took office as the new Director of CHDS. He immediately undertook a strategic reassessment of the Center in consultation with his faculty, staff, and U.S. and regional stakeholders. This assessment resulted in the affirmation of many things CHDS had been doing along with many significant changes. CHDS is building on its past success as it ventures into new territory in its eighth year.
Institute for National Strategic Studies (INSS)
The mission of the Institute for National Strategic Studies (INSS) is to assess the emerging security environment, develop new strategic concepts and integrated strategies to manage complex challenges, and advance strategic thinking for the Secretary of Defense, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff , Combatant Commanders, and other components of the National Defense University and Joint and Professional Military Education, as well as for the broader security community spanning the interagency and key national and international audiences.
Established by the Secretary of Defense in 1984, INSS is comprised of four components: the Research Directorate, which analyzes global and regional security trends and frames national security policy and defense strategy options for senior decision-makers; the National Strategic Gaming Center, which develops and facilitates numerous strategic-level policy exercises and experiential learning activities for senior Executive Branch officials, the military combatant commands, Members of Congress, and various NDU educational programs; NDU Press, which is responsible for the editorial development and production of a range of NDU publications, as well as Joint Force Quarterly (JFQ), published for the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; and the Conference Directorate, which annually organizes several major symposia and supports more than 100 other conferences, seminars, and round-tables organized by the research staff.
United States Army War College Strategic Studies Institute
The Strategic Studies Institute is the U.S. Army's institute for geo-strategic and national security research and analysis. The Strategic Studies Institute conducts strategic research and analysis to support the U.S. Army War College curricula, provides direct analysis for Army and Department of Defense leadership, and serves as a bridge to the wider strategic community.
The Strategic Studies Institute is composed of civilian research professors, uniformed military officers, and a professional support staff. All have extensive credentials and experience. SSI is divided into three components: the Art of War Department focuses on global, trans-regional, and functional issues, particularly those dealing with Army transformation; the Regional Strategy and Planning Department focuses on regional strategic issues; and the Academic Engagement Program creates and sustains partnerships with the global strategic community. In addition to its organic resources, SSI has a web of partnerships with strategic analysts around the world, including the foremost thinkers in the field of security and military strategy.
United States Southern Command (U.S.SOUTHCOM)
The United States Southern Command (USSOUTHCOM) is the unified command responsible for all U.S. military activities on the land mass of Latin America south of Mexico; the waters adjacent to Central and South America; the Caribbean Sea, with its 13 island nations, and European and U.S. territories; the Gulf of Mexico; and a portion of the Atlantic Ocean. Since 26 September 1997, the command headquarters has been located at Miami, Florida. It is one of five geographically unified commands under the U.S. Department of Defense. Southern Command's area of responsibility encompasses 32 countries (19 in Central and South America and 13 in the Caribbean) and covers about 14.5 million square miles (23.2 million square kilometers). The region represents about one-sixth of the landmass of the world assigned to regional unified commands.