COUNCIL OF EUROPE -- An Ethical Advantage: The Competitive Power of Human Rights in Business

Harvard Undergraduate Foreign Policy Initiative, Senior Director of Foreign Government and Businesses        Dec 2023

Past human-rights in business-oriented policy initiatives on behalf of the United Nations, Council of Europe, and other national and international authorities, have improved human rights standards and aimed to boost private-sector adherence to those standards. The implementation of “National Action Plans” as a national-level framework for member states has gained traction amongst members of the Council of Europe. It is clear that the effectiveness of such initiatives, however, depends upon the political and economic landscapes of individual countries, specifically regarding human rights. Case studies of member states such as France and the U.K. demonstrate the capacity of nations to emphasize human rights, yet highlight challenges with enforcement. Conversely, nations such as Poland, Turkey, and Greece, which have struggled to implement similar policies and show a commitment to human rights at a governmental level, demonstrate the rarity of businesses undertaking human rights initiatives without pressure from public policy. While the effectiveness of policy on private enterprise, and more broadly, the valuation of human rights practices can vary at a national level, we’ve identified three key mechanisms through which the adoption of human rights policy serves as a competitive advantage for the business. First and foremost are the benefits of brand reputation, customer attraction, and customer retention. Second, the financial investment is inspired by sound human rights practices, through human-rights-conscious investors and the rise of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) investment. Third, the prioritization of human rights can induce supply chain sustainability and create a supply advantage, especially in times of crisis. 

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NATO -- Generative AI: Landscape Analysis and Security Implications

Harvard Undergraduate Foreign Policy Initiative, Senior Director of Foreign Government and Businesses        Dec 2023

Rapid advances in the development of Artificial Intelligence have been on the radars of NATO leaders for years, especially in the context of the widely discussed implications of this technology on innovation within the sphere of international security. To this end, NATO identified four primary goals in its most recent Artificial Intelligence Strategy, released in October 2021: promoting responsible use of AI for defense and security, accelerating AI adoption, protecting and supporting AI innovation, and safeguarding members from threats. This project seeks to provide NATO officials with an up-to-date evaluation of the current landscape of generative AI development. Using this evaluation, our team then develops insights that may impact NATO’s updated strategy. Our team places a significant focus on Generative AI, starting with large language models (LLMs) and multimodal models, and its possible impact on defense and security. We focus on these technologies taking into account the current priorities of the NATO Emerging Security Challenges Division. However, other notable emerging technologies within the Generative AI space will be discussed as well.
This project — and report — is hence guided by the following questions: (1) What variations in scope, use, scalability, and compliance with NATO principles of responsible use exist in current and expected (within the next three years) developments in defense sector generative artificial intelligence (AI) within NATO member states versus in non-allied states, particularly Russia and China? (2) What are the potential security implications of this variation within the next 10 years?

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The Section for European Affairs, Office of the Government of the Czech Republic -- Realigning the Czech Republic’s Ties with Taiwan in the Context of EU-China Relations

Harvard Undergraduate Foreign Policy Initiative, Senior Director of Foreign Government and Businesses        Dec 2023

Despite both the Czech and European Union's reliance on China as an economic partner, Czech public opinion has driven preferences toward engaging and even formally recognizing Taiwan in the wake of concerns over the lack of democracy in China. This paper will explore the background of these issues, assess potential risks, review case studies in engagement with Taiwan, and present ways to encourage support of Taiwan without suffering from negative repercussions from China. To decide how to move forward, it is essential to understand the perspectives of the European Union, the Czech Republic, and China, respectively. Although economic partnership between EU member states and China continues, in recent years EU-China relations have increasingly shifted away from “engagement and cooperation” toward “engagement and rivalry.” Public opinion in the Czech Republic and the European Union has also moved away from China in favor of Taiwan. Despite this trend away from China, China views its relations with the EU in a positive light, indicating a potential for backlash if ties were loosened.

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Council of Europe Development Bank -- Winning the Silent Batte: Sustainable Financing For Mental Health Services in the Ukraine

Harvard Undergraduate Foreign Policy Initiative, Senior Director of Foreign Government and Businesses        Dec 2023

While the physical toll and widespread loss of life in war are frequently emphasized, the conflict in Ukraine has precipitated a mental health crisis within the nation. Swift intervention is imperative, as the enduring repercussions of this crisis remain uncertain and possess the capacity to irrevocably reshape the societal fabric of Ukraine. Many Ukrainians consider the mental health crisis, exacerbated daily, the “most significant impact of the war,” and the impact of the war on the development of anxiety disorders and other mental disorders is already measurable. Transitioning to efforts addressing the aftermath, the Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB) dedicates itself to European social cohesion. The CEB pursues its goals via three lines of action: “investing in people and enhancing human capital,” “promoting inclusive and resilient living environments,” and “supporting jobs and economic and financial inclusion.” Among the CEB’s objectives for the period 2023-2027 is the “reconstruction and rehabilitation needs of Ukraine’s social sectors.”

 

HARVARD UNDERGRADUATE THINK TANK (HUTT) - POLICY MEMORANDUM AND POLICY PAPER: A Democratic Recession: The Rise in Digital Authoritarianism After the COVID-19 Pandemic

Harvard Undergraduate Think Tank (HUTT)                                                                                            May 2023

Democracy is being degraded around the world because people are losing faith in the legitimacy of elections and see freedom of expression being stymied, among a range of other problems, according to a global body founded to promote democracy worldwide. Given the recent decline in democracies during the COVID-19 pandemic, we refer to this period as a “democratic recession.” We believe that during this period, digital authoritarianism manifested a new trait of democratic backsliding, within democratic regimes. Digital authoritarianism — the use of digital information technology by democratic and authoritarian regimes to surveil, repress, and manipulate domestic and foreign populations — is a tool being used to reshape the power balance between democracies and autocracies; government, state actors, and powerful political actors play a critical role in deteriorating the freedoms of citizens through digital media. Based on this increasing trend after the COVID-19 pandemic, did a new strain of democratic backsliding, called digital authoritarianism, arise and how can we combat this rise? 

 

HARVARD UNIVERSITY GOV94DT - The Authoritarian Turn in Central and Eastern Europe: Using Political Opposition and Constitutional Design to Counter Democratic Backsliding: The Cases of Moldova and Turkey

Harvard University, Department of Government  - Government 94 Seminar                                               April 2023

In recent years, Central and Eastern European (CEE) democracies – once hailed as remarkable success stories of democratic transformation – have increasingly attracted media and academic attention as cases of democratic reversal. The consensus is that democracies across the region are in decline and in danger of “backsliding” towards semi-authoritarian hybrid regimes or even full-blown authoritarianism. Given this consensus by political scholars, it is imperative to understand the constitutional makeup of these democracies and examine the extent of democratic backsliding on their constitutional design. Another instrumental consideration of this trend is the role of political opposition, and how it can be mobilized to arrest democratic erosion. This paper thus aims to address the role of constitutional design and political opposition in inhibiting the spread of authoritarianism across Central and Eastern Europe. The impact of constitutional design and political opposition is explored across three broad sections. First, we give a general background on democratic backsliding, the factors that drive it, and how constitutional design can inhibit it. Second, we offer in-depth case studies of Turkey and Moldova, relating the role of constitutional design, political opposition, and democratic backsliding in each. Finally, we offer three sets of policy recommendations, with one section tailored to Moldova and another section tailored to Turkey. Constitutional design features heavily in the first two sections, but owing to the extreme difficulty inherent in changing a state constitution does not feature heavily in the third section reserved for policy recommendations. Our recommendations focus on three end goals – transforming polarization, strengthening democratic opposition, and ensuring election fairness. While these recommendations are tailored to the cases of Moldova and Turkey, the strategies can be expanded to other eroding democracies.

 

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF STATE, BUREAU OF LEGISLATIVE AFFAIRS: Congress and the United States Arm Sales to ME

Harvard Undergraduate Foreign Policy Initiative, Deputy Director of U.S Government and Businesses            Dec 2022

Post 9-11 US arms sales to the Middle East have been a point of contention in academic, political, and civilian circles. The debates are complex, with people agreeing and disagreeing based on a large variety of distinct factors that all have merit to be taken into account.
However, as relations have developed, there have been clearer lines along which arms sales can be analyzed. With different voting blocks forming in both Congress and in general elections, it is important to explore how Middle East arms sales are perceived socially, economically, politically, and in the context of how changes to such policies affect the individual American. The recent developments continually put into question whether or not the United States should continue to support its clients in the Middle East. Furthermore, inquiry about whether it is our role to provide such arms creates a discussion that is multifaceted and reaches far beyond the scope of purely describing who our clients are, and why we provide said arms. With this in mind, this paper proposes looking into congressional opinions based on the history of clients, why the United States sells weapons, how arms sales are considered, and why these congressional opinions differ along certain lines. In the latter half of the paper, the paper also proposes recommendations based on this research that are considered to be both applicable and feasible. 

 

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE, CYBER COMMAND: Trends in Russian Ransomware and 3rd Party Hacktivism          

Harvard Undergraduate Foreign Policy Initiative, Deputy Director of U.S Government and Businesses            Dec 2022

Russian Ransomware continues to be a central challenge to American national security due to its impact on the government and private companies and individuals. The increasing developments in open-source intelligence have changed calculations on both the side of defense and security as well as for malicious actors and hacktivists. Much of the information and statistical analysis in this research has been gathered from open-source analysis, which allowed us to study the subject matter beyond government-published information. At the beginning of 2022, the war in Ukraine appeared to signal an increase in cyber attacks against the West. The United States and our allies expected to observe a growth in ransomware strikes and hacktivism following the escalation of conflict and the involvement of the international community. However, as we are drawing closer to the end of the year, the statistical analysis has proven different - ransomware attacks against the United States have maintained constant and even decreased at times. A few of the most frequent areas of attack include elections, government, and academia. In this research paper, we are analyzing both general trends in ransomware and economic trends in cyber crimes. The most relevant areas of attack are outlined in Chapter 2: Trends, and further developed in the remainder of the paper and the policy recommendations. Chapters 4 and 5 outline the impact of kinetic attacks and attacks on the military, which are important considerations for the following chapter on cyber-attack attribution. Hacktivism has had a substantial financial effect on the Ukrainian war and continues to play a significant role in its development. Lastly, the policy proposals cover three different areas of focus: social media, attribution, and academia.

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HARVARD GOVERNMENT COURSE: DATA SCIENCE AND SOCIAL STUDIES: Caribbean Crime And Its Relation to Democracy

Harvard University Government Department, Professor Matt Blackwell                                                       Dec 2022

Democratization has suffered more reversals in 2021, with the percentage of people living in a democracy falling to well below 50% and authoritarian regimes gaining ground. The project focuses on the impact of crime and democracy using the specific variable “Rule of Law (RL)” as a measure. The data goes back from 1996 to 2021 and has various countries. However, there will be a specific observational study on Latin America and the Caribbean and a possible cross-comparison to different regions of the world and their relationship to crime and democracy. The data contains over 5700 observations for countries as it relates to their democracy and crime index, and about 900 of those data points are focused on Latin America and the Caribbean. In Latin America and the Caribbean countries, does crime influence democratic institutions? This study conducts a bivariate analysis of the relationship between democratic institutions and crime within Latin America and the Caribbean. I hypothesize that crime impacts their democratic institutions and that crime has increased over the years therefore as crime increases, democracy in the Caribbean decreases. Although I am using this data for my final project it is imperative to point out that the data collected are subject to several biases, including underrepresentation of the developing world, asymmetries in reporting countries’ definitions of homicide, and those imposed by difficulties in collecting and compiling reliable data in nations with limited statistical and organizational capacity. The explanatory variable of interest is the democratic institutions or overall democratic index of each country and the outcome variable is the rate of crime rates in Latin America and the Caribbean. This project was completed using the programming language, R, and is the final project for my Government 50 course.

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PENTAGON, DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE: Democratic Backsliding in the Transatlantic Community: Analyzing Threats to Western Democracies in the 21st Century                                                                        

Harvard Undergraduate Foreign Policy Initiative, Policy Chair                                                                 May 2022 

Democratic backsliding (the state-led debilitation or elimination of the political institutions sustaining an existing democracy) has changed dramatically since the Cold War. Open-ended coups d’état, executive coups, and blatant election-day vote fraud are declining while promissory coups, executive aggrandizement, and strategic electoral manipulation and harassment are increasing. Using the transatlantic community as the focus of the project, the paper takes two routes in examining the causes behind democratic backsliding: the internal and the external. First, internal political factors, such as populist leaders and anti-democratic parties, are threatening the foundation of political norms. Second, the broader geopolitical context—weaknesses in the European Union and Russia’s foreign policy—is also quickening democratic backsliding. The recent Russian invasion of Ukraine is a blatant example of how democracy is under threat globally. Even within the established “democratic community,” there has been a serious retreat from liberal democracy. Several member NATO states have openly attacked their domestic opposition and judicial systems. Elsewhere, similar patterns can be observed. At the end of the paper, we will explore the issue of democratic backsliding in the transatlantic community and examine the trajectories of major players, such as China and Russia, about this issue. Moreover, we will identify and analyze major threats to democracy throughout the world, such as Russia’s encroachment in Ukraine and the Baltic region while looking at the perceptions – this includes the perception from rising generations – of NATO allies. Finally, we have proposed recommendations, specific to NATO and some specific to the United States, as to how both these institutions can best mitigate these threats and promote democracy on a global scale.

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COALITION FOR HUMANE IMMIGRANT RIGHTS OF LOS ANGELES (CHIRLA): Charting a New Timeline for Immigration Registry
Harvard Institute of Politics Policy Program, Immigration Policy Team Lead                                                    Jun 2022
Immigration registry is the process that permits undocumented immigrants, through a long-standing presence in the country, to become lawful permanent residents of the United States. As part of a series of immigration reforms in 1929, Congress created the registry provision to ensure that undocumented immigrants arriving in the U.S. would have a pathway to citizenship. This original provision qualified immigrants for legal permanent residence if they entered the country before June 3, 1921, lived continuously in the U.S. since then, and proved their “good moral character.” Since 1929, Congress has procedurally updated the cut-off date three times, most recently in the bipartisan Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA). For the past 36 years, only undocumented immigrants who entered the country before January 1, 1972, and satisfied the previous qualifications have been deemed eligible for a Green Card application. In other words, this cutoff means that, as of today, undocumented immigrants must have continually resided in the U.S. for 50 years to apply for permanent residency. The report provided recommendations for a rolling registry date, in partnership with the CA Representative Zoe Lofgren, to substantiate the current Rolling Registry Bill of 2022 that was introduced to Congress at the time. 

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DRUG POLICY ALLIANCE: Alternatives to Police Responses in Substance Abuse Disorder

Harvard Institute of Politics Policy Program, Policy Designer and Creative Director                                        Jun 2022

Historically, rural communities have faced higher rates of opioid abuse and opioid-related overdoses per capita in comparison to urban areas, an issue that has been further exacerbated by a lack of well-funded, community-specific programming. Furthermore, this trend persists due to a widening partisan gap in knowledge of and willingness to address the topic of harm reduction strategies that tend to be concentrated within these particular communities. Studies in several other countries and communities have shown that a harm-reduction-driven approach drastically reduces the number of overdoses and opioid-related fatalities. Specifically, the creation of physical resources and the provision of critical information to both people who use drugs (PWUD) and the greater community is crucial in furthering the effect of harm reduction strategies. From February to June 2022, students at the Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics Policy Program researched and drafted policy recommendations toward these goals for DPA. We would like to thank everyone at DPA who assisted with this project for all of their support and insights.

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THE NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR INCARCERATED AND FORMERLY INCARCERATED WOMEN & GIRLS & THE DEMOCRACY BEHIND BARS COALITION:  Analysis of Felony Disenfranchisement in Massachusetts

Harvard Institute of Politics Policy Program, Criminal Policy Team Lead                                                        Jan 2022

Felony disenfranchisement is the process by which felons are denied the right to vote based on their conviction. In the United States, a nation characterized by its mass incarceration crisis, voting rights for felons vary state by state. 21 states restrict those in prison from voting; 16 states restrict those in prison, on parole, and probation from voting; and 11 states completely disenfranchise felons, meaning they still cannot vote after their sentence has been completed. Four states and territories (Maine, Vermont, Washington DC, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico) do not restrict felons from voting. Massachusetts only restricts felons in prison from voting. This law is relatively recent; the change occurred in 2000 after a ballot question passed that made voting in Massachusetts prisons illegal. In the 1970s, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court actively carved out more felons' rights, allowing previously and currently incarcerated individuals to form a political action committee.4 The committee aimed to “gather and distribute educational materials
about elected officials’ voting records on issues related to prisons, and to encourage prisoners and their family members to register to vote and participate in the electoral process.” Governor Paul Cellucci, who initiated the ballot question, deemed this development unacceptable. It passed by 60 percent, removing the ability for incarcerated felons to vote while in prison.

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NEW ZEALAND MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT, ARENA WILLIAMS                                                                             Harvard Undergraduate Foreign Policy Initiative, Researcher                                                                    Nov 2021

Delivered statistical and qualitative measures for a foundational understanding of the impact of drug abuse in New Zealand. Examined case studies regarding the success and failures of drug decriminalization within other jurisdictions.

FINES AND FEES JUSTICE CENTER: International Traffic Enforcement and Policing 

Harvard Institute of Politics Policy Program, Researcher                                                                              Jun 2021

We provided an overview U.S. Model of Traffic enforcement and recent criticism. Our guiding questions were: what is the general environment of traffic violations in the United States, and how do certain localities and states collect fines and fees from those who violate the law? Note that some jurisdictions have made efforts to abolish fines and fees related to traffic violations (what are the pros and cons of doing so?). We aimed to address the current police officer training regarding traffic enforcement and analyzed how are police officers trained to enforce traffic violations in the U.S Moreover we looked into who becomes a traffic enforcement officer, who is responsible for dealing with traffic enforcement responsibilities, and who are police officers trained to de-escalate situations? Is there training to combat internal bias? Lastly, we confronted the issue of police brutality and confrontation during traffic stops while asking in our policy report how often are there occurrences of police confrontation and brutality during traffic stops and are there certain demographics of people are more vulnerable to this.