home > the cfr think tank > experts > edward alden
Bernard L. Schwartz Senior Fellow
Contact Info:
Phone: +1-202-509-8474
E-mail: ealden@cfr.org
Location:
Washington, DC
Media downloads:
High-resolution photo (JPG, 47K)
One-page bio (PDF, 56K)
Former Washington bureau chief at the Financial Times. Latest book, The Closing of the American Border, examines U.S. visa and border policies in the wake of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
Expertise:U.S. economic competitiveness, U.S. trade policy, visa and immigration policy.
Honors:Society of Publishers in Asia, Award for Editorial Excellence in Explanatory Reporting for stories on China's RMB Revaluation in the Financial Times (2006); British Columbia Newspaper Award for General Excellence, "The New Face of Labor," Vancouver Sun (1997); Canadian National Magazine Awards, silver medal (1986), gold medal (1984); Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation Fellowship (1989); MacArthur Foundation Graduate Fellowship (1986); Mellon Fellowship in the Humanities (1986).
Related Links:
"Terrorism, immigration and security since 9/11" (video; UC Berkeley Conversations with History; November 21, 2008)
"How 9/11 transformed American immigration policy" (video; Zócalo Public Square; November 19, 2008)
"Welcome to America? Security and immigration in a post-9/11 United States" (audio; World Affairs Council of Northern California; November 17, 2008)
Current Research Projects
Past Research Project
January 3, 2009
Op-Ed
Ottawa Citizen
Seven years after the 9/11 attacks, Canada is still trying to cope with the new border regime that has been an enduring legacy of the terrorist attacks. In this Ottawa Citizen article, Edward Alden urges President-elect Obama to begin rebuilding trust on border issues with Canada.
See more in Border and Ports, Trade, U.S. Strategy and Politics, U.S. Election 2008
December 8, 2008
Video
Watch experts discuss U.S. trade policy at the final panel discussion in a series on the presidential transition co-hosted by CFR, the Economist, and New York University's Stern School of Business.
December 4, 2008
Audio
Listen to Edward Alden, the Bernard L. Schwartz senior fellow at CFR, discuss his book, The Closing of the American Border: Terrorism, Immigration, and Security Since 9/11, with students as part of CFR's Academic Conference Call Series.
See more in Homeland Security, Immigration
December 2, 2008
Audio
Listen to experts discuss U.S. trade policy at the final panel discussion in a series on the presidential transition co-hosted by CFR, the Economist, and New York University's Stern School of Business.
See more in United States, Trade
November 23, 2008
Op-Ed
Washington Post
In this Washington Post op-ed, Edward Alden writes that current immigration policy "was built in the wake of 9/11, but it will have to be reformed in the shadow of the economic crisis."
See more in Border and Ports, U.S. Election 2008
November 23, 2008
Op-Ed
San Francisco Chronicle
Since 9/11 and the creation of the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. immigration policy has been focused mostly on keeping out those we don't want. In this San Francisco Chronicle op-ed, Edward Alden argues that this single-mindedness has come with a high cost to our economy and reputation in the world.
See more in Border and Ports, Homeland Security
October 12, 2008
Op-Ed
New America Media
"The war on terror has come home to America. But when did the war on terror morph into a war on illegal immigration? Today it is much harder for a terrorist to enter the United States than it used to be, but according to Edward Alden, it's also much harder for everyone else."
See more in Border and Ports, Immigration
October 4, 2008
Op-Ed
The Globe and Mail
The next Canadian government must try to nudge the next U.S. administration back to the spirit of the 2001 Smart Border accords, which attempted to balance security and commerce concerns. Edward Alden writes that rebuilding trust between the U.S. and Canada over border issues will be critical for both countries.
See more in Border and Ports, U.S. Election 2008
September 29, 2008
Op-Ed
Forbes Online
In this Forbes.com op-ed, Edward Alden writes that there were many good reasons to strengthen U.S. border security after 9/11. However, maintaining this country's strength requires the relentless innovation that stems from keeping an open door to the most talented and ambitious people the world has to offer.
See more in Immigration, U.S. Strategy and Politics
September 25, 2008
Op-Ed
The Globalist
In this Globalist op-ed, Edward Alden warns that new regulations on immigration after 9/11 have come with the high price of keeping out the very people that the United States needs to maintain its position in the world.
See more in Immigration, U.S. Strategy and Politics
September 24, 2008
Op-Ed
The Globalist
Since the terrorist attacks of 9/11, travelling to the U.S. has become vastly more difficult and unpleasant. Edward Alden describes where the visa process has gone wrong and how this has impacted America's image abroad.
See more in Global Governance, Immigration, U.S. Strategy and Politics
September 17, 2008
Audio
Listen to Edward Alden, CFR's Bernard L. Schwartz senior fellow, discuss his new book The Closing of the American Border.
See more in North America, Defense/Homeland Security, Immigration
September 17, 2008
Podcast
CFR's Edward Alden says a flawed U.S. approach to tightening its borders after the 9/11 terrorist attacks has harmed the country's once-admired immigration image.
See more in United States, Homeland Security, Immigration
September 17, 2008
Transcript
In his new book, Edward Alden goes behind the scenes to tell the story of the Bush administration's struggle to balance security and openness in the wake of the worst ever attack on U.S. soil. This is a transcript of a discussion of the book and U.S. immigration policy.
See more in United States, Border and Ports, Immigration
September 12, 2008
Audio
Listen to experts discuss U.S. immigration policies, their effects on Latin America and national security concerns, and how immigration reform might occur in the next administration.
This symposium was made possible by the generous support of the Ford Foundation and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.
See more in Americas, Homeland Security, Immigration
September 12, 2008
Transcript
Second session of a forum on Latin American influence on U.S. policies and politics with an emphasis on trade.
See more in Central America, United States, South America, Economics, Trade
September 2, 2008
Audio
Listen to experts discuss the various foreign policy challenges the next U.S. administration will face as part of a three-day symposium during the Republican National Convention in Minneapolis, cosponsored with the University of Minnesota's Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs.
This symposium was underwritten by Chevron Corporation, The Coca-Cola Company, the Stanford Financial Group, and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.
See more in U.S. Strategy and Politics, Presidency, U.S. Election 2008
September 2, 2008
Video
Watch experts discuss the various foreign policy challenges the next U.S. administration will face as part of a three-day symposium during the Republican National Convention in Minneapolis, cosponsored with the University of Minnesota's Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs.
This symposium was underwritten by Chevron Corporation, The Coca-Cola Company, the Stanford Financial Group, and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.
See more in U.S. Strategy and Politics, Presidency, U.S. Election 2008
September 2, 2008
Transcript
Panelists discuss Foreign Policy challenges
See more in United States, Defense/Homeland Security, NATO, Economics, Energy/Environment, Energy, Energy Security, Immigration, U.S. Strategy and Politics, U.S. Election 2008
August 27, 2008
Video
Watch experts discuss foreign policy challenges for the next administration at the 2008 Democratic National Convention, featuring a special address by former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright, cosponsored with the University of Denver's Josef Korbel School of International Studies and the City and County of Denver's 2008 Rocky Mountain Roundtable.
This roundtable was underwritten, in part, by Chevron Corporation and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.
See more in U.S. Strategy and Politics, U.S. Election 2008
In The Closing of the American Border, Edward Alden goes behind the scenes to tell the story of the Bush administration’s struggle to balance security and openness in the wake of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
In Termites in the Trading System, Jagdish Bhagwati reveals how the rapid spread of preferential trade agreements endangers the world trading system.
America Between the Wars explores how the decisions and debates of the years between the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Twin Towers shaped the events, arguments, and politics of the world we live in today.
Complete list of CFR Books.
This report lays out a thoughtful agenda for U.S. policy toward the Democratic Republic of Congo, arguing that what happens there should matter to the United States--for humanitarian reasons as well as economic and strategic ones.
In this report, CFR Senior Fellow Michael A. Levi analyzes the potential use of deterrence in preventing terrorist groups from acquiring nuclear weapons and recommends a new approach to U.S. declaratory policy, as well as ways to improve U.S. capabilities to determine the sources of terrorist attacks.
Complete list of Council Special Reports.
For more information on the David Rockefeller Studies Program, contact:
Gary Samore
Vice President, Director of Studies, and Maurice R. Greenberg Chair
+1.212.434.9627
gsamore@cfr.org
Sebastian Mallaby
Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for
Geoeconomic Studies, Deputy Director of Studies, and Paul A. Volcker Senior
Fellow for International Economics
smallaby@cfr.org
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Deputy Director of Studies Administration
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jhill@cfr.org
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