Talia Weiss (Director)
Talia Weiss is a PhD student in experimental particle physics at Yale University. She leads the Yale Kimball Smith Series on science, ethics and international affairs, and she previously developed a similar program for the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. Talia received an M.A. in Political Science from the University of Chicago and a B.S. in Physics from MIT. She has written and spoken on the history of scientific self-regulation, lessons learned from the case of Nazi nuclear physicists, and how scientists who invented gene editing technologies viewed the ethics of their research.

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Daniel Ajudeonu
Daniel has a dream that someday the world will be without nuclear weapons. He is a member of the Next Generation Advisory Committee of the European Leadership Network-Norway Ministry of Foreign Affairs Multi-year Non-Proliferation Treaty Project and a Future Generations Global Ambassador for the Office of the Future Generations Commissioner for Wales. His core interests are in nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament, nuclear energy, multilateralism, existential risk reduction, global security and cooperation, and youth development. Previously he was the Deputy Partnerships Coordinator at Youth for the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and was a key member of the organizing team for the inaugural Youth Meeting of State Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in 2022. Prior, Daniel was a Contributing Researcher at The Effective Institutions Project and a Research Assistant at CoronaNet Research Project. In 2021, he represented Africa at the Africa-Europe Partnership Summit hosted by the Council of European Municipalities and Regions. Furthermore, Daniel served as an Expert at the Common Purpose Global Leadership Experience ’21 and is a member of BASIC’s Emerging Voices Network. He is also a Fellow and Honorary Global Advisor at the American Academy of Project Management (AAPM). Daniel is an Honorary Doctorate Degree at Commonwealth University and an alumnus of the Geneva Centre for Security Policy (GCSP).

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Nicolas Alejandro Ayala Arboleda
Nicolas is a research assistant and graduate student of Politics and Technology (M.Sc.) at the Technical University of Munich. His experience includes working in research and programme management at the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs and being co-founder and the head of partnerships for the Responsible Technology Hub. Nicolas focuses on the impact of technologies, such as space-enabled capabilities and neurotechnology, on peace and war.

Sanaa Alvira (Secretary)
Sanaa Alvira is a Research Associate specialising in nuclear policy and related issues at the Centre for Air Power Studies, India, and a Research Assistant at the Centre for the Governance of AI (GovAI). She is also a Marie Sklodowska-Curie fellow at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and a recent graduate of the Non-Proliferation and Terrorism Studies master’s programme at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey. She previously graduated with another master’s degree in International Relations from the London School of Economics and Political Science. Her past experiences include working at the James Martin Center for Non-Proliferation Studies and the IAEA’s Department of Safeguards. She holds a professional certification in nuclear security offered by the World Institute for Nuclear Security, Austria.

Joel Christoph
Joel Christoph is a PhD researcher in Economics at the European University Institute (EUI). His academic background includes master’s degrees in economics from the Barcelona School of Economics and the EUI, along with studies in political science at Tsinghua University and Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). A Dahrendorf Fellow of Oxford University and a Bretton Woods 2.0 Fellow of the Atlantic Council, Joel brings unique insights into the economic aspects of global security. His recent work as a research manager for the Existential Risk Alliance, as a Hiroshima G7 Youth summit delegate, and research on nuclear energy economics for the Swiss Existential Risk Initiative and Nuclear Nonproliferation Education and Research Centre are especially pertinent to his role at ISYP. Joel also co-founded Endeema, a renewable energy software start-up.

Shira Cohen
Shira Cohen is a Political Science Ph.D. student at the University of California, Berkeley, specializing in International Relations and Methods. Her research interests include military strategy, emerging technologies, and religion. Shira holds a B.A. from the Honors Track in Security, Strategy, and Decision-Making and from the M.A. thesis track in Government, Diplomacy, and Strategy at Reichman University in Israel. Her MA dissertation explored the decision-making process of an ancient religious leader by using a multi-method approach, including Game Theory, Prospect Theory, and Applied Decision Analysis. Before starting her Ph.D., she worked as the academic director of the B.A. Honor’s Track, which she graduated from, and as a research assistant at various research institutes. Among her publications, she published an article on the first international crisis of AI in the West Point Journal of Politics and Security. Furthermore, she presented her MA dissertation at international conferences, including MPSA, EPSA, and ISPP.

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Anna Belolipetskaia

Anna is currently a Research Associate at the Center for Energy and Security Studies (CENESS) in Moscow, Russia. She also serves as Coordinator of the 2026 Moscow Nonproliferation Conference. As both a lead researcher and coordinator, Anna has been involved in the “Navigating the Post-JCPOA Era” project, which focuses on existing risks related to the situation around the Iranian nuclear issue, exploring ways to mitigate them and strengthening the nuclear nonproliferation regime. She also coordinates the CTBTO Research Fellowship Program, carried out by the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization in cooperation with CENESS. Anna’s research interests include nuclear nonproliferation, peaceful uses of nuclear energy, the prevention of an arms race in outer space.Anna holds a Master’s Degree in Strategic and Arms Control Studies from Saint Petersburg State University, where her thesis focused on the prevention of an arms race in outer space.

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Dylan Land
Dylan recently received a Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School, with a concentration in Nuclear Deterrence and Technological Innovation. Dylan’s continued research explores emerging technologies’ impact on strategic nuclear deterrence, with particular focus on multi-domain deterrence, novel weapons delivery systems, and U.S. grand strategy. Before attending the Fletcher School, Dylan received a B.A. in Political Science and International Relations from the University of Oregon Clark Honors College.

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Alexander Nezvanov
Alexander Nezvanov is a researcher at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR). JINR is an international intergovernmental scientific research organization based in Dubna, Moscow region. Its scientists have been active Pugwashites and members of national Pugwash groups for many years. Alexander received his PhD in Physics from the Université Grenoble Alpes, conducting his research at the Institut Laue-Langevin in France. His main research interest lies in the field of low-energy neutron physics. He is the chairman of the Russian Student/Young Pugwash.

On Leave

Laura Rose O’Connor
Laura Rose is a Senior Project Officer at Ottawa Dialogue, where she has been for the past three years. She is also a Research Associate at the Council for Strategic and Defense Research, New Delhi, India. Her work focuses on Track Two, non-proliferation, environmental security, and gendered elements of conflict. She holds an undergraduate degree in Political Science and Communication from the University of Ottawa.

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