Thursday, May 31, 2007

Columbia University's Joint Warfare Analysis Center Link

In 2006, Columbia University's Saltzman Institute of War and Peace Studies was awarded a $300,000 grant from the Pentagon's Joint Warfare Analysis Center [JWAC] to study Public Aspirations and Anti-Americanism in the Muslim World. The study is a pilot program that includes public opinion research in Bangladesh, Indonesia and Pakistan. Lincoln Mitchell is the primary investigator on the project. A leading polling firm, Charney Research, was contracted as a consultant on the project.

Today, the Joint Warfare Analysis Center (JWAC) contributes to the U.S. war machine by recommending strategic technical solutions. These recommendations are based on analytical techniques that were first conceived, developed, and operationally introduced by the personnel of a program office at the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Dahlgren Division (NSWCDD) that responded to the Office of the Secretary of Defense's call for support during the Iranian hostage rescue efforts.

Over the subsequent quarter of a century, JWAC has evolved from a small program office into a joint command of more than 500 personnel. As it grew, it became part of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in 1994 and then was spun-off as an independent joint command subordinate to Joint Forces Command (formerly Atlantic Command) in 1998. JWAC coordinates directly with the staffs of all Unified Commands, Department of Defense (DoD) elements, Combatant Commands, military services, and other government departments and agencies to respond to crises. JWAC has twice been awarded the Joint Meritorious Unit Award and twice awarded the Defense Modeling and Simulation Office's award for Outstanding Achievement in Modeling and Simulation Analysis.

Next: Columbia University’s RAND Corporation Connection