New America is hosting a national security essay competition.
Submissions should either offer innovative approaches to security policy, or incorporate disciplines and modes of thought less well-represented in the contemporary policy process, or both. They should feature truly new thoughts on central security challenges, understood to include (but not limited to) endless war, nuclear weapons, and alliance arrangements, as well as pandemics, climate security, and migration.
Prizes
- We will award $1,000 prizes to the top three submissions.
- We will also select 1-3 honorable mentions.
- The prize winners and honorable mentions will be published in a media outlet or as New America publications.
Contest Rules
- Submissions should be 1,200-2,500 word “policy memos” or 15-20 minute video “briefings."
- Each essay or video should include a description of the problem you seek to address and a short review of why existing mechanisms are inadequate.
- Most of the paper/video should focus on outlining an alternative approach, the specifics of how this approach would work, what obstacles it would face, and what would be needed to make the proposed approach work.
The submission deadline has been extended: submissions will be open through July 16th, 2020, at 11:59 PM EDT.
An advisory committee will read and comment on submissions.
Eligibility
If you have creative, original ideas about U.S. security challenges with international dimensions, and are not currently employed by New America or the Ploughshares Fund, you are eligible.
Submissions
The online submission form is here. Submissions are due July 16th.
A longer description of the competition is here.
