Arms Control Challenge

Acting Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Rose Gottemoeller this week announced an effort to crowd-source ideas to solve current proliferation problems.

In a blog entry posted on her department's website, Gottemoeller writes:

Through this Challenge, we will collect new ideas about how innovation and technological advancement can affect the implementation of arms control, verification, and nonproliferation treaties and agreements. Can innovation bring about creative ways to prevent "loose nukes" from falling into the hands of terrorists? Can smart phone and tablet apps be created for the purpose of aiding on-site inspectors in verifying and monitoring treaty commitments? How can we use commonly available technologies in new and creative ways to support our arms control policy efforts?

. . . As an arms control policy wonk and negotiator, I see great value in incorporating innovative ideas across the whole spectrum of our arms control initiatives. As we look to the future of arms control, new thinking to face the challenges of the 21st century is vital to our success.

This Challenge is an experiment in that thinking. It seeks creative ideas from across the general public, from garage tinkerers and technologists; to gadget entrepreneurs and students, to support the U.S. arms control and nonproliferation agenda. Are there new ways that we can use existing data, such as Twitter streams, to generate information that will be useful to arms control and nonproliferation verification and monitoring? Are there ways that we can help our inspectors to do their jobs better, by having better tools available? Are there ways that governments and citizens can work together to ensure better monitoring and verification of treaties and agreements?

These are the types of questions that we are asking contestants to consider. We are looking for creative ways to tackle the long-standing problems of arms control and nonproliferation verification and monitoring, keeping in mind the big challenges that come about as we move to reduce nuclear weapons to lower numbers, and look for ways to monitor smaller units of account, such as chemical munitions in storage facilities. No matter how big the challenges, when we attack problems with all the brainpower that is available, we can solve them more effectively together.

The contest is open until Oct. 26, and has a "guaranteed award" of up to $10,000, Gottemoeller writes.

For more info, click here.