LETTER FROM THE DEAN.

• Author: Yarhi-Milo, Keren

This year's 75th anniversary edition of the Journal of International Affairs (JIA) is focused on "international affairs and insecure systems." I can think of no more important topic in this current moment where the world faces historic challenges and transitions. As the Journal's editors noted, "in recent years, the security and stability associated with international systems has been replaced by dynamism and contradiction." I am sure that we have all felt this disruption in many facets of our lives, from what we see on the news to the influence of domestic policies on our day-to-day circumstances. But this time of change is also an opening for new ideas to make their way to the forefront, and for new voices to join the conversation. As such, a time of insecurity can also be recast as a time of opportunity.

In my own academic work, I study the ways in which leaders make decisions under uncertainty. One of the key insights in my work, and the work of other notable political psychologists, is that leaders must fight through a lot of "noise" when making consequential, high-pressure decisions - information which they must evaluate as credible or not, and incorporate into their decision calculus. We are fortunate to be able to provide leaders and other decision-makers with robust, peer-reviewed information on critical issues faced by the policy community.

This issue of JIA addresses crucial areas that policymakers grapple with every day, including international governance and multilateralism; food security; climate change; technology; illiberalism and authoritarianism; sovereignty and borders; COVID-19 and global health; and opportunities for innovation and systemic resilience. We are proud that the School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) is working to address these and other global policy challenges, and hope that the essays in this volume spark conversations within and beyond SIPA on research and policy suggestions that can alleviate hardships for the world's citizens and cultivate collective wellbeing.

SIPA is one of the world's leading public policy schools, with a mission to prepare the next generation of leaders to meet the challenges of an ever-changing and interconnected global society. SIPA is the world's most global public...