Scientists Working Group on Biological and Chemical Security
The Scientists Working Group on Biological and Chemical Weapons Control, founded in 1989 at the Federation of American Scientists, moved in November 2003 to the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation to join the Center’s new program on biological and chemical weapons control. At present, the defining goals of the Working Group are reinforcing the norm against biological weapons, broadening the norm to encompass all misuse of biology, and supporting all of components of the Biological and Chemical Weapons Conventions. Major interests include preventing the development of biochemical disabling agents as weapons, promoting international measures to monitor biological weapons-capable activities, promoting global cooperative measures for combating infectious diseases, ethical education of bioscientists, monitoring US biodefense and anti-bioterrorism activities and opposing risky or dangerous biological research.
The Working Group develops working papers and reports on technical and policy issues, publishes papers in peer-reviewed journals, and holds seminars and briefings for U.S. and international officials. Working Group members have extensive experience with biological and chemical weapons issues and have an array of technical expertise that they contribute on a voluntary basis.
The Working Group can be reached by contacting Dr. Lynn Klotz at lynnklotz@live.com.
Members of Scientists Working Group
Emeritus Members of Scientists Working Group
Recent Papers and Important Archived Documents
Recent Analysis on Biological and Chemical Weapons
- Hill recoils at proposed cut to Pentagon anti-pandemic effort June 19, 2020
- MU lab plans COVID-19 research May 9, 2020
- Chinese lab conducted extensive research on deadly bat viruses, but there is no evidence of accidental release April 30, 2020
- Did this virus come from a lab? Maybe not — but it exposes the threat of a biowarfare arms race April 24, 2020
- Syria is responsible for three chemical weapons attacks in 2017, investigation says April 17, 2020
- Rampant mistrust in wake of pandemic underscores need for accountability April 15, 2020
- Op-ed: National Security in the Age of Pandemics April 3, 2020
- Myanmar should finally come clean about its chemical weapons past—with US help March 11, 2020
- Leveraging Cheminformatics to Bolster the Control of Chemical Warfare Agents and their Precursors February 27, 2020
- Op-ed: A biotech firm made a smallpox-like virus on purpose. Nobody seems to care February 21, 2020
