Conference Series

Each year PONI hosts four conferences that bring together people from across the nuclear enterprise to discuss a range of nuclear issues. The PONI yearly conference series brings together junior and senior level professionals from the laboratories, the military, and industry, academia and policy sectors to hear selected presentations on a range of topics related to nuclear weapons policy and strategy.

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About the Program

Each year PONI hosts four conferences that bring together people from across the nuclear enterprise to discuss a range of nuclear issues.

Benefits/Opportunities

The PONI yearly conference series brings together junior and senior level professionals from the military, national laboratories, industry, academia, and policy sphere to hear selected presentations on a range of topics related to nuclear weapons policy and strategy, including research related to deterrence, escalation management, nonproliferation, modernization, regional nuclear studies, and other related fields. PONI holds three regional conferences – on military bases, national labs, and CSIS headquarters – and a fourth Capstone Conference at United States Strategic Command in Omaha, Nebraska. The Capstone Conference features selected presentations from preceding regional conferences and offers individuals an opportunity to present their work to senior leadership from across the nuclear enterprise.

PONI Conferences typically feature three or four panels of selected presentations on a wide range of nuclear issues, as well as keynote addresses from prominent experts and practitioners in the field. To foster candid exchanges among participants, all comments made at PONI conferences are off-the-record – we thank you in advance for honoring this policy.

How to Apply

PONI puts out calls for presentation proposals in the lead-up to its regional conferences. Each conference has a theme—such as deterrence or arms control— that The PONI conference series brings together a diverse community of professionals from across the nuclear enterprise to discuss a wide range of nuclear issues. PONI conferences are unique in the high value they place on highlighting new faces and emerging experts in the field, as panels feature some of the best and brightest young professionals. PONI will announce the conference themes for the upcoming year will focus on, but will not be limited to, the topics listed in the PONI Conference Series Application Information

Presentations proposals should be submitted through this online form. Proposals will be considered for all 2023 PONI Conferences, unless applicant specifies otherwise. Please reach out to poni@csis.org if you have any issues accessing the link.

See attached flyer for more details on the research agenda and topics of interest for the upcoming year.

2023 PONI Conference Series Schedule

  • Summer Conference: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California | July 26-27, 2023.
  • Fall Conference: Center for Strategic and International Studies | October 25-26, 2022

2022 PONI Conference Series Schedule

  • Summer Conference: Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico | September 7-8, 2022.
  • Fall Conference: Center for Strategic and International Studies | October 25, 2022
  • Winter Conference: Ala Moana Hotel, Honolulu | Feb. 14, 2023
  • Capstone Conference: STRATCOM, Offutt AFB in Nebraska | June 15, 2023 | PONI will select top presenters from 2022 Conference Series to the Capstone Conference

2021 PONI Conference Series Schedule

  • Summer Conference: Virtual in partnership with Los Alamos National Laboratory| July 13-14, 2021
  • Fall Conference: Virtual | October 5-6, 2021
  • Winter Conference: Hybrid | CSIS | December 8-9, 2021
  • Capstone Conference: STRATCOM, Offutt AFB in Nebraska | Spring 2022

2020 PONI Conference Series Schedule

2019 PONI Conference Series Schedule

  • Summer Conference: Sandia National Laboratory in New Mexico | July 9-10, 2019
  • Fall Conference: Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base in Kings Bay, Georgia | October 16-17
  • Winter Conference: Center for Strategic and International Studies | December 11-12
  • Capstone Conference: STRATCOM, Offutt AFB in Nebraska | April 15, 2020 

2018 PONI Conference Series Schedule

  • Summer Conference: Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico | July 10-11, 2018
  • Fall Conference: United States Air Force Academy in Colorado | October 10-11, 2018
  • Winter Conference: Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC | December 4, 2018
  • Capstone Conference: STRATCOM, Offutt AFB in Nebraska | April 30, 2019  | PONI will select top presenters from 2019 Conference Series to the Capstone Conference

View all past conferences