Consensus Study Report
NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001
This study was supported by Contract No. 10004810 with the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any agency or organization that provided support for the project.
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-68785-0
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-68785-3
Digital Object Identifier: https://doi.org/10.17226/26544
Copies of this publication are available from
Intelligence Community Studies Board
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
500 Fifth Street, NW, Room 938
Washington, DC 20001
This publication is available from the National Academies Press, 500 Fifth Street, NW, Keck 360, Washington, DC 20001; (800) 624-6242 or (202) 334-3313; http://www.nap.edu.
Copyright 2022 by the National Academy of Sciences. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and National Academies Press and the graphical logos for each are all trademarks of the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Printed in the United States of America.
Suggested Citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Improving the Intelligence Community’s Leveraging of the Full Science and Technology Ecosystem. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/26544.
The National Academy of Sciences was established in 1863 by an Act of Congress, signed by President Lincoln, as a private, nongovernmental institution to advise the nation on issues related to science and technology. Members are elected by their peers for outstanding contributions to research. Dr. Marcia McNutt is president.
The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964 under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences to bring the practices of engineering to advising the nation. Members are elected by their peers for extraordinary contributions to engineering. Dr. John L. Anderson is president.
The National Academy of Medicine (formerly the Institute of Medicine) was established in 1970 under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences to advise the nation on medical and health issues. Members are elected by their peers for distinguished contributions to medicine and health. Dr. Victor J. Dzau is president.
The three Academies work together as the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to provide independent, objective analysis and advice to the nation and conduct other activities to solve complex problems and inform public policy decisions. The National Academies also encourage education and research, recognize outstanding contributions to knowledge, and increase public understanding in matters of science, engineering, and medicine.
Learn more about the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine at www.nationalacademies.org.
Consensus Study Reports published by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine document the evidence-based consensus on the study’s statement of task by an authoring committee of experts. Reports typically include findings, conclusions, and recommendations based on information gathered by the committee and the committee’s deliberations. Each report has been subjected to a rigorous and independent peer-review process and it represents the position of the National Academies on the statement of task.
Proceedings published by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine chronicle the presentations and discussions at a workshop, symposium, or other event convened by the National Academies. The statements and opinions contained in proceedings are those of the participants and are not endorsed by other participants, the planning committee, or the National Academies.
Rapid Expert Consultations published by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine are authored by subject-matter experts on narrowly focused topics that can be supported by a body of evidence. The discussions contained in rapid expert consultations are considered those of the authors and do not contain policy recommendations. Rapid expert consultations are reviewed by the institution before release.
For information about other products and activities of the National Academies, please visit www.nationalacademies.org/about/whatwedo.
COMMITTEE ON LEVERAGING THE FUTURE RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT ECOSYSTEM FOR THE INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY
FREDERICK R. CHANG (NAE), Southern Methodist University, Chair
MICHAEL A. MARLETTA (NAS/NAM), University of California, Berkeley, Vice Chair
LILIAN ALESSA, University of Idaho
TOMAS DÍAZ DE LA RUBIA, University of Oklahoma
VISHVA M. DIXIT (NAS/NAM), Genentech
DONALD DUNCAN, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory
GERALD L. EPSTEIN, National Defense University
KATHLEEN FISHER,1 Tufts University
JAMES R. GOSLER, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory
LAURA M. HAAS (NAE), University of Massachusetts Amherst
ROBERT F. HALE, Center for Strategic and International Studies
DANIEL E. HASTINGS (NAE), Massachusetts Institute of Technology
FRANCES S. LIGLER (NAE), North Carolina State University
BERNARD S. MEYERSON (NAE), IBM Corporation
LISA J. PORTER,2 LogiQ
PETER SCHIFFER, Yale University
ANTHONY J. VINCI, Center for a New American Security
MICHAEL S. WITHERELL (NAS), Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Staff
DIONNA ALI, Associate Program Officer
ANITA EISENSTADT, Program Officer
SHENAE BRADLEY, Administrative Assistant (until November 2021)
ANTHONY FAINBERG, Senior Program Officer
CHRIS JONES, Senior Financial Business Partner
MICHAEL NILES, Senior Program Officer (until August 2021)
NIA JOHNSON, Program Officer
MARGUERITE SCHNEIDER, Administrative Coordinator
ALAN H. SHAW, Director (until March 2022)
___________________
1 Resigned from the committee October 2021.
2 Resigned from the committee on May 16, 2022.
INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY STUDIES BOARD
MARK LOWENTHAL, Intelligence & Security Academy, LLC, Co-Chair
MICHAEL A. MARLETTA, University of California, Berkeley, Co-Chair
JOEL BRENNER, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
ROBERT CARDILLO, The Cardillo Group, LLC
FREDERICK R. CHANG (NAE), Southern Methodist University
DEAN CHENG, The Heritage Foundation
ROBERT C. DYNES (NAS), University of California (president emeritus)
ROBERT A. FEIN, Harvard Medical School
HUBAN A. GOWADIA, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
MARGARET A. HAMBURG, Nuclear Threat Initiative
MIRIAM E. JOHN, Independent Consultant
ANITA K. JONES (NAE), University of Virginia (professor emerita)
STEVEN E. KOONIN (NAS), Center for Urban Science and Progress
CARMEN L. MIDDLETON, The Walt Disney Company
ARTHUR L. MONEY, Department of Defense
WILLIAM C. OSTENDORFF, United States Naval Academy
DAVID A. RELMAN (NAM), Stanford University
ELIZABETH RINDSKOPF PARKER, State Bar of California (Retired)
SAMUEL S. VISNER, The MITRE Corporation
DAVID A. WHELAN (NAE), Cubic
Staff
DIONNA ALI, Associate Program Officer
SHENAE BRADLEY, Administrative Assistant (until November 2021)
BRYAN BUNNELL, Research Associate
JOSEPH CZIKA, Senior Program Officer (until June 2022)
MELVIN EULAU, Senior Program Officer (until March 2022)
ANTHONY FAINBERG, Senior Program Officer
CARYN A. LESLIE, Acting Board Director
LIZA HAMILTON, Program Officer (until April 2022)
NIA JOHNSON. Program Officer
CHRIS JONES, Senior Financial Business Partner
MARGUERITE SCHNEIDER, Administrative Coordinator
ALAN H. SHAW, Director (until March 2022)
Acknowledgment of Reviewers
This Consensus Study Report was reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in making each published report as sound as possible and to ensure that it meets the institutional standards for quality, objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process.
We thank the following individuals for their review of this report:
Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations of this report nor did they see the final draft before its release. The review of this report was overseen by GRANT H. STOKES (NAE), Massachusetts Institute of Technology Lincoln Laboratory, and SALLIE A. KELLER (NAE), University of Virginia. They were responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with the standards of the National Academies and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content rests entirely with the authoring committee and the National Academies.
This page intentionally left blank.
Contents
The Changing Nature of Global S&T
What Does It Mean for the IC to “Leverage” the S&T Landscape?
2 A VISION FOR STRENGTHENING THE IC’S ABILITY TO LEVERAGE S&T
Aspects That Limit IC Capabilities for Leveraging S&T
Foundational Steps for Strengthening IC S&T Capabilities
3 LEVERAGING THE S&T ACTIVITIES OF OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES
Mechanisms for Coordination Across Federal Agency S&T Programs
Performers of Federally Funded Research and Development
Strengthened Interactions with the National Laboratory System
4 LEVERAGING EXPERTISE FROM THE FULL U.S. S&T ECOSYSTEM
Dynamic Nature of Today’s S&T Ecosystem
5 LEVERAGING THE GLOBAL S&T COMMUNITY
Existing U.S. Government Engagement in International S&T Cooperation
Existing Cooperative Agreements with Selected Allies
Existing IC S&T Cooperation with Five Eyes and Allies
Ways for the IC to Enhance Its Access to, and Awareness of, International S&T
Preface
Initial discussions for the study that led to this report took place before anybody had heard of SARS-CoV-2. What the committee planned to cover, and how, was quite different from what could actually be accomplished. By the time the project started, COVID-19 restrictions were in full force. While COVID-19 restrictions affected all National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine studies, this study—because it touches on topics and context that are inherently sensitive, even when not classified—was particularly constrained. And that limited the depth of the study’s investigations and deliberations compared to what the committee would have wished and what the Intelligence Community (IC) needs.
On the surface, having an unclassified study take place virtually might not seem particularly consequential, but in fact, it had a profound effect on the study and on the conclusions that the study could draw. COVID-19 restrictions fundamentally impacted the depth of the study, and the conclusions and recommendations we were able to make as a committee. The restrictions affected the depth of presenter interactions, the depth of committee interactions, and the depth of insight and nuance that these interactions would have provided. It is for these reasons that this report is more generic than we had intended. Because an in-depth study on important parts of the science and technology (S&T) landscape had been released in 2021 by the Center for Strategic and International Studies,1 the committee therefore approached its task in part as a supplement to the detailed examination in that document. So this report does not replicate the deep and detailed analysis of that report, but instead expands on it by considering the full range of S&T and going beyond that report’s major focus on the IC itself to delve into domestic S&T in industry and academia, and international S&T across all sectors, including allied governments.
Frederick R. Chang, Chair
Committee on Leveraging the Future Research and Development Ecosystem for the Intelligence Community
___________________
1 CSIS Technology and Intelligence Task Force, 2021, Maintaining the Intelligence Edge: Reimagining and Reinventing Intelligence Through Innovation, Washington, DC: Center for Strategic and International Studies, https://www.csis.org/analysis/maintaining-intelligence-edge-reimagining-and-reinventing-intelligence-through-innovation.
This page intentionally left blank.