- New, more effective vaccines for anthrax and ricin.
- Improved information systems that would allow national leaders to make better and faster decisions during security crises or natural disasters.
- Stronger assessment tools to allow for timely, thorough responses to outbreaks of foodborne illnesses.
These are the goals of just a few of the projects undertaken since the establishment of the University of Nebraska’s National Strategic Research Institute (NSRI) in the fall of 2012. The institute, a collaboration between NU and the United States Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM), has highlighted numerous accomplishments in its first annual report, available now on the NSRI website.
Key among those: Faculty from across the university, including UNMC, have attracted more than $9 million in contract funding to pursue 22 different projects related to the chief mission of the National Strategic Research Institute to support research for combating weapons of mass destruction.
“We launched the National Strategic Research Institute a year and a half ago with the goal of leveraging the talents and expertise of our faculty for the benefit of our partners at USSTRATCOM and the Department of Defense. I’m pleased that at this early stage, we are doing that very effectively,” said University of Nebraska President James B. Milliken. “NSRI has engaged a range of diverse faculty who are committed to supporting our men and women in uniform and improving national security. Because of their work, and the leadership and commitment of our founding executive director, Bob Hinson, the NSRI is off to an incredible start.”
The National Strategic Research Institute is the newest of 13 University-Affiliated Research Centers (UARCs) across the United States. NSRI focuses on five core areas of expertise demonstrated by NU faculty: nuclear detection and forensics; detection of chemical and biological weapons; passive medical defense against weapons of mass destruction; consequence management; and space, cyber and telecommunications law.
“The establishment of the NSRI at the University of Nebraska has created a significant opportunity for the university faculty and researchers to contribute directly to the combating weapons of mass destruction research and technology requirements of our defense partners and other federal agencies,” said Robert Hinson, a retired U.S. Air Force Lieutenant General and executive director of NSRI. “The established core competencies reflect a very real mission area concern of USSTRATCOM and other federal agencies with assigned roles and responsibilities for addressing significant national security requirements for combating weapons of mass destruction.”