Our Staff

Oksana Bellas is the Director of Finance and Administration at the Stimson Center responsible for directing finance and accounting functions, human resources, and administrative services.

Barry M. Blechman is currently a Distinguished Fellow at the Stimson Center -- a nonpartisan, nonprofit think-tank in Washington, D.C. He co-founded Stimson and was chairman of its Board from 1989 to 2007.

Joanne Calapodas is the Development Assistant at the Stimson Center. She holds bachelor’s degrees in Foreign Affairs and Spanish from the University of Virginia.

Mr. Casterton has over 35 years experience in nuclear non-proliferation policy development and implementation at the national and international levels.

William J. Durch is a Distinguished Fellow with the Stimson Center. Prior to joining Stimson in 1990, Durch served as a Foreign Affairs Officer with the U.S.

Brian Finlay is the President and CEO at Stimson. His areas of expertise include nonproliferation, transnational crime, counter-trafficking, supply chain security and private sector engagement.

Vice Admiral Michael Franken, USN (ret), is a distinguished fellow with the Environmental Security Program at the Stimson Center. Raised in rural Iowa, Franken lived within view of the world’s oceans during much of his thirty-six-year military career.

Caitlin Goodman is a Communications Specialist at the Stimson Center. Prior to joining Stimson, she was a Communications and Outreach Manager for Big Brothers Big Sisters.

Hannah E. Haegeland is a Research Analyst in Stimson's South Asia Program working on nuclear security, crisis escalation and management, and regional politics.

Jan Hartke helped to internationalize the environmental agenda and is recognized as one of the founders of the sustainable development movement. He is President of the Earth Council, formed by UN Secretary-General Maurice Strong at the Earth Summit of 1992.

Alex Hopkins is a Research Assistant with the Global Governance program at the Stimson Center. His primary research areas for the program include UN peacekeeping and Congressional engagement on transnational security challenges.

Benjamin Katzeff Silberstein is a Nonresident Fellow with the Stimson Center, where he works primarily with the 38 North project, and serves as editor for its affiliate website North Korean Economy Watch.

Igor Khripunov joined the Center for International Trade and Security (formerly the Center for East-West Trade Policy) at the University of Georgia in 1992 and served until July 2018 as a Distinguished Fellow with the Center as well as an Adjunct Professor for the University of Georgia’s School o

Ellen Laipson is a Distinguished Fellow and President Emeritus of Stimson. Laipson joined Stimson in 2002, after 25 years of government service. Her last post was Vice Chair of the National Intelligence Council (1997-2002).

Kirk Lancaster is a Junior Fellow with the South Asia Program at the Stimson Center. A scientist turned policy analyst, he holds a B.A. from the University of Chicago where he graduated with honors in both Chemistry and Law, Letters, and Society.

Jason Li is a Research Assistant with the East Asia program at the Stimson Center. His research focuses on U.S.-China relations, cross-Strait relations, and grand strategy in Asia-Pacific.

Michael Madden is a Nonresident Fellow at the Stimson Center and a leading contributing analyst to 38 North.

Frank O’Donnell is a Nonresident Fellow with Stimson’s South Asia Program. His areas of expertise include nuclear doctrine and posture development, conventional military modernization, and national security policymaking processes in India, China and Pakistan.

Richard Ponzio is Director of the Just Security 2020 Program and a Senior Fellow at Stimson. Previously, he directed the Global Governance Program at The Hague Institute for Global Justice, where (in a partnership with Stimson) he served as Director for the Albright-Gambari Commission on Global S

Kathryn Rauhut is an attorney specializing in international security based in Vienna, Austria. She works primarily on nuclear security governance, accountability and liability issues with a focus on cybersecurity.

James Siebens is a Research Associate with the Defense Strategy and Planning program, where he is currently working on a book related to US military operations “short of war” since the end of the Cold War.

Natalia is a Research Assistant at the Stimson Center and Editorial Assistant for “38 North,” a web journal that provides policy and technical analysis on North Korea.

Mallory Stewart is a nonresident fellow in the WMD, Nonproliferation, and Security program at the Stimson Center. Her areas of expertise include chemical and biological weapons law and policy, space security policy, U.S. missile defense, and nonproliferation and arms control law.

Yun Sun is a Senior Fellow and Co-Director of the East Asia Program and Director of the China Program at the Stimson Center. Her expertise is in Chinese foreign policy, U.S.-China relations and China's relations with neighboring countries and authoritarian regimes.

Elizabeth Threlkeld is a Fellow and Deputy Director of the South Asia Program at the Stimson Center. Before joining Stimson, she served as a Foreign Service Officer with the U.S. Department of State in Islamabad and Peshawar, Pakistan, and Monterrey, Mexico.

Lovely Umayam is a Fellow with Stimson’s Nuclear Security Program.

Cindy Vestergaard is a Senior Fellow and Director with the Stimson’s Nuclear Safeguards Program. Her current research focuses on the impact of evolving international safeguards obligations on states and facility operators.