The Nuclear Threat
Initiative (NTI) named Jill Hruby, former director of Sandia National
Laboratories, as the first Sam Nunn Distinguished Fellow, a new NTI position
designed to seed innovation in threat reduction. Her work will focus on the
intersection of technology and security. Sam Nunn is the co-founder and co-chair of NTI
and served as chief executive officer from 2001 to 2017.
“To identify our
first Sam Nunn Distinguished Fellow, we looked for someone with the talents Sam
embodies: an ability to identify new threats on the horizon, an interest in
practical solutions, and a spirit of collaboration. We found them all in Jill,”
said NTI Co-chair and Chief Executive Officer Ernest J. Moniz.
“We are delighted that Jill will be our first
Sam Nunn Distinguished Fellow. Her deep science and technical background, her
policy understanding, and her leadership in our field will inspire NTI staff,
invigorate our work, and increase our impact,” added Joan Rohlfing, NTI
president.
Beginning on November
5, Hruby will spend one year at NTI, working in residence the majority of the
time.
The Sam Nunn
Distinguished Fellow program is made possible through generous donations from
Edlow International, the Hess Foundation, the Michael A. Peterson Foundation,
and Major General Arnold and Jan Punaro.
About Jill Hruby
Jill Hruby served
as the director of Sandia National Laboratories from July 2015 to May 2017. Sandia is a Department of Energy/National
Nuclear Security Administration national laboratory with an operating revenue
of $3 billion and about 12,000 employees. Sandia’s diverse national security
missions include nuclear weapons, cyberspace, energy, non-proliferation,
biological defense, and space. She managed work in global security, nuclear
weapons, non-proliferation, homeland security, and energy technologies.
Among extensive
recognition, Hruby has received the Department of Energy Secretary’s
Exceptional Service Award, the National Nuclear Security Administrator’s
Distinguished Service Gold Award, and Office of the Secretary of Defense Medal
for Exceptional Public Service. In 2017, Business
Insider named her the second most powerful female engineer.
About the Sam Nunn Distinguished Fellow
Program
The Sam Nunn
Distinguished Fellow Program honors NTI co-founder and co-chair Sam Nunn for
his significant impact on shaping the field of WMD-related risk reduction by
bringing outstanding talent to NTI on a term basis for the purpose of advancing
a strategic priority or seeding new directions in threat reduction.
For more than four
decades, Sam Nunn has worked to strengthen U.S. national and global security,
reduce nuclear risks and advance bipartisan solutions to our world’s greatest
challenges. During his tenure in the
United States Senate (D-GA, 1972-1996), Senator Nunn conceived of and then
co-authored legislation with Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN) creating the
Cooperative Threat Reduction Program, widely known as the “Nunn-Lugar program,”
which provided assistance for more than 20 years to Russia and the former
Soviet republics for securing and destroying their excess nuclear, biological
and chemical weapons.
Since retiring
from the Senate, Sam Nunn has continued his work to build a safer and more
peaceful world by spending the majority of his time devoted to reducing the
global risks from weapons of mass destruction and disruption. As co-chairman and chief executive officer of
NTI from January of 2001 through May 2017, he and NTI have worked to secure
nuclear materials globally, reduce the chance of a dirty bomb attack, raise
awareness of nuclear and biological dangers, and strengthen non-proliferation
efforts. Nunn continues to serve as one of NTI’s co-chairs, alongside Moniz and
fellow NTI co-founder Ted Turner.
About NTI
The Nuclear Threat Initiative works to
protect our lives, environment, and quality of life now and for future
generations. We work to prevent catastrophic attacks with weapons of mass
destruction and disruption (WMDD)—nuclear, biological, radiological, chemical,
and cyber.
For Immediate Release:
November 7, 2018
Contact: Cathy Gwin, 202-454-7706
[email protected]
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