Where: SRH 3.122, LBJ School

Sponsored by: The Robert S. Strauss Center for International Security and Law

Join the Strauss Center for International Security and Law and the Clements Center for National Security on Tuesday, September 22, for “The Law of the Sea Treaty at Risk,” with former Secretary of the Navy Donald Winter. The Law of the Sea Treaty was the product of the third UN convention on law of the sea held from 1973 to 1982 with more than 160 states participating. Currently, however, many states, including the US and Iran, still have not ratified the treaty. Furthermore, some states that have ratified the treaty, such as the PRC, blatantly ignore treaty provisions. At a time when maritime commerce represents over 80% of world trade, can the international community let this treaty effectively become irrelevant? Join Secretary Winter as he answers these questions. Lunch will be served.

Biography Dr. Donald C. Winter is an independent consultant supporting national and international security interests in the US and allied nations. He served as the 74th Secretary of the Navy from January 2006 to March 2009. As Secretary of the Navy, he led America’s Navy and Marine Corps Team and was responsible for an annual budget of over $125 billion and almost 900,000 people. Dr. Winter’s prior business career in the aerospace and defense industry spanned over 30 years as a systems engineer, program manager and corporate executive.

From 2009 to 2020, he was a Professor of Practice at the University of Michigan where he taught graduate level courses on systems engineering, satellite design, and maritime policy. He was reappointed to this role in 2024. Since 2011 he has served in multiple roles assisting the Commonwealth of Australia in their efforts to reconstruct the Royal Australian Navy’s fleet and establish a sustainable shipbuilding capability. During 2019 to 2021 he also served as the US DoD’s Senior Defense Industry Advisor for Ukraine. Dr. Winter was elected to the U.S. National Academy of Engineering (NAE) in 2002 and served as its chair from 2020 to 2024.

If you need an accommodation to participate in this event, please contact the event sponsor or the Texas Law Special Events Office at specialevents@law.utexas.edu no later than seven business days prior to the event.

More information: https://www.strausscenter.org/events/the-law-of-the-sea-treaty-at-risk/

Where: SRH 3.122, LBJ School

Sponsored by: The Robert S. Strauss Center for International Security and Law

Join the Strauss Center for International Security and Law and the Clements Center for National Security on Tuesday, September 22, for “The Law of the Sea Treaty at Risk,” with former Secretary of the Navy Donald Winter. The Law of the Sea Treaty was the product of the third UN convention on law of the sea held from 1973 to 1982 with more than 160 states participating. Currently, however, many states, including the US and Iran, still have not ratified the treaty. Furthermore, some states that have ratified the treaty, such as the PRC, blatantly ignore treaty provisions. At a time when maritime commerce represents over 80% of world trade, can the international community let this treaty effectively become irrelevant? Join Secretary Winter as he answers these questions.

Lunch will be served. For more information, please reach out to Ali Prince Ponce at ali.prince@austin.utexas.edu.

Biography Dr. Donald C. Winter is an independent consultant supporting national and international security interests in the US and allied nations. He served as the 74th Secretary of the Navy from January 2006 to March 2009. As Secretary of the Navy, he led America’s Navy and Marine Corps Team and was responsible for an annual budget of over $125 billion and almost 900,000 people. Dr. Winter’s prior business career in the aerospace and defense industry spanned over 30 years as a systems engineer, program manager and corporate executive.

From 2009 to 2020, he was a Professor of Practice at the University of Michigan where he taught graduate level courses on systems engineering, satellite design, and maritime policy. He was reappointed to this role in 2024. Since 2011 he has served in multiple roles assisting the Commonwealth of Australia in their efforts to reconstruct the Royal Australian Navy’s fleet and establish a sustainable shipbuilding capability. During 2019 to 2021 he also served as the US DoD’s Senior Defense Industry Advisor for Ukraine. Dr. Winter was elected to the U.S. National Academy of Engineering (NAE) in 2002 and served as its chair from 2020 to 2024.

If you need an accommodation to participate in this event, please contact the event sponsor or the Texas Law Special Events Office at specialevents@law.utexas.edu no later than seven business days prior to the event.

More information: https://www.strausscenter.org/events/the-law-of-the-sea-treaty-at-risk/

Where: SRH 3.122, LBJ School

Sponsored by: The Robert S. Strauss Center for International Security and Law

Join the Strauss Center for International Security and Law and the Clements Center for National Security as we host Caitlin Lee, Ph.D., the director of Acquisition Technology and Policy at RAND Corporation, as she gives a lecture on “The Central Role of the US Industrial Base in US National Security Decision Making.”

Deterring the next great power conflict isn’t just about military might. It’s about who can build, mobilize, and sustain faster. As the rivalry between the United States and China intensifies, the US industrial base is emerging as a game-changing instrument of national power, fueling an intense industrial base mobilization contest between the two great powers. Lee, a leading expert in defense policy, will reveal how new technologies and shifting geopolitics are transforming the way America prepares for and deters global threats. Drawing on lessons from Ukraine and other recent conflicts, this talk will show why the ability to scale up production and innovation is now the ultimate US advantage. Join us for a discussion that will shed new light on how mobilization capacity is shaping US force design—and what it means for US deterrence and the ability to prevail in twenty-first century conflict. Whether you’re a student, a curious member of the public, or a defense industry insider, don’t miss this chance to rethink the foundations of American security.

No registration required. Seating is first come, first served. Lunch will be served. For more information, reach out to Ali Prince at ali.prince@austin.utexas.edu

Biography Caitlin Lee, Ph.D., is the director of Acquisition and Technology Policy in the National Security Research Division at RAND, where she oversees the RAND’s research for the Pentagon related to US-China competition, emerging technology, defense industrial base issues, and acquisition. In her research role as a senior political scientist, she is currently leading projects focused on US and Chinese defense mobilization trends and implications, and US efforts to build resilience in the industrial base to deter great power war. She has testified before the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, published on military innovation and drone warfare in the Journal of Strategic Studies, Air and Space Power Journal, and other academic and popular outlets, and has authored or co-authored RAND studies on a variety of aerospace, force design, and technology topics including RAND’s Thinking Through Protracted War with China. She previously founded the Mitchell Institute’s Center for UAV and Autonomy Studies and served as the senior aviation reporter for the America’s Bureau of Jane’s for over a decade. She teaches Planning US Military Forces at Georgetown University’s Security Studies Program and holds a Ph.D. in War Studies from King’s College London.

If you need an accommodation to participate in this event, please contact the event sponsor or the Texas Law Special Events Office at specialevents@law.utexas.edu no later than seven business days prior to the event.

More information: https://www.strausscenter.org/events/building-to-win/