Natasha Lander is a nonresident senior fellow with the Transatlantic Security Initiative in the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security. She previously worked as a senior policy analyst at the RAND Corporation, where she led and conducted research on a range of issues, including chemical, biological, and nuclear policy; counterterrorism; European security; and military and civilian workforce policy. From 2013 to 2015, Lander served as an advisor to the deputy assistant secretary of defense for countering weapons of mass destruction (DASD/CWMD) within the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Policy. In this capacity, she aided the development of policy guidance influencing diplomatic, operational, and technical aspects of the international mission to remove and destroy Syria’s declared chemical weapons. She also served as DASD/CWMD’s principal advisor for NATO’s Committee on Proliferation in the Defense Format, where she fostered implementation of policies to protect NATO Allies against threats posed by WMD, and strengthen NATO’s chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) preparedness. For her efforts, Natasha was twice awarded the Office of the Secretary of Defense Medal for Exceptional Public Service.

Prior to joining RAND, Lander was a senior analyst and deputy program manager at BAE Systems, where she authored a variety of analytic products for US government policymakers.

Natasha has an MPP from George Mason University and a BS in journalism with a dual major in political science from Bowling Green State University. She is currently pursuing a personal and professional interest in psychology at King’s College London, where she is a candidate in the Master of Science in Psychology and the Neuroscience of Mental Health program. Her commentaries have been published in the Cipher Brief, National Interest, Real Clear Defense, and US News and World Report.