Francis J. Gavin
Chair, Editorial Board
Francis J. Gavin is the Giovanni Agnelli Distinguished Professor and the inaugural director of the Henry A. Kissinger Center for Global Affairs at Johns Hopkins SAIS. Previously, he was the first Frank Stanton Chair in Nuclear Security Policy Studies at MIT and the Tom Slick Professor of International Affairs and the Director of the Robert S. Strauss Center for International Security and Law at the University of Texas.
Gavin received a PhD and MA in history from the University of Pennsylvania, an MS in modern European history from Oxford University, and a BA in political science from the University of Chicago. He directs the "Nuclear Studies Research Initiative" and, with James Steinberg, the "International Policy Scholars Consortium and Network." From 2005 until 2010, he directed the American Assembly’s multiyear, national initiative, the "Next Generation Project: U.S. Global Policy and the Future of International Institutions." He is also the Chairman of the Board of Editors of the "Texas National Security Review," an affiliate of MIT’s Security Studies Program, a senior fellow of the Clements Center for National Security, a distinguished scholar at the Robert S. Strauss Center, a member of the CIA Historical Panel, and a life-member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
Gavin’s writings include "Gold, Dollars, and Power: The Politics of International Monetary Relations, 1958-1971" (University of North Carolina Press); "Nuclear Statecraft: History and Strategy in America’s Atomic Age" (Cornell University Press) and "Nuclear Weapons and American Grand Strategy" (Brookings Institution Press), which was named a "2020 Choice" Outstanding Academic Title. His IISS-Adelphi book, "The Taming of Scarcity and the Problems of Plenty: Rethinking International Relations and American Grand Strategy in a New Era" was published in 2024. In 2025, "Wonder and Worry: Contemporary History in an Age of Uncertainty" was published by Stolpe Press and "Thinking Historically – A Guide to Statecraft and Strategy" came out with Yale University Press.
Author's Articles
What Do We Really Know?
We are more confident about our world than we should be.
Remembrance of Things Past
In his introduction to Volume 8, Issue 1, the chair of our editorial board, Frank Gavin, considers the importance — and the challenge — of putting the past, present, and future in perspective.
Why We Write
In his introduction to Volume 7, Issue 3, the chair of our editorial board, Frank Gavin, considers the limitations that academic disciplines tend to impose on writing, the value in making such writing more accessible, and the need to consider big questions…
What Exactly Are We Doing?
In his introduction to Volume 7, Issue 2, the chair of our editorial board, Frank Gavin, considers why the United States seems stuck in the Middle East and suggests that Washington refocus on core grand-strategic interests. More broadly, he calls on Americans…
Cracks in the Ivory Tower?
In his introduction to Volume 7, Issue 1, the chair of our editorial board, Frank Gavin, reflects on the joys of being a professor and the importance of higher education. He also expresses concern about the health of American universities and calls on them to…
Dark ‘N’ Stormy
In his introduction to Volume 6, Issue 4, the chair of our editorial board, Frank Gavin, writes about why so many people feel such doom and gloom when we are living in a time of unprecedented prosperity, why his faith has been shaken, and how he’s finding…
It’s Not the Plane, It’s the Pilot
In his introduction to Volume 6, Issue 3, the chair of TNSR’s editorial board, Francis J. Gavin, considers how time, space, and other factors shape perspectives — and why Top Gun's Maverick was right when he said, "It’s not the plane, it’s the pilot."
Unspoken Assumptions
In his introduction to Volume 6, Issue 2, the chair of TNSR’s editorial board, Francis J. Gavin, reflects on the unspoken assumptions during and after the attacks of 9/11. He asks what ideas today might similarly be so widely shared that no one is saying…
It May Be Different than You Think
In this issue’s introductory essay, the chair of our editorial board, Frank Gavin, discusses the need to shake up the status quo and the importance of intellectually playing the field.
The Gap Has Been Bridged!
In his introductory essay for Volume 5, Issue 4, the chair of our editorial board, Frank Gavin, declares that the gap between scholars and policymakers has been bridged, but he also offers some words of caution.
I Was Wrong. Now What?
In his introductory essay for Volume 5, Issue 3, the chair of our editorial board, Frank Gavin, contemplates being wrong, the value of academic debate, and the importance of a society looking at itself in the mirror, warts and all.
How Are They Doing?
In his introductory essay for Volume 5, Issue 1, the chair of our editorial board, Frank Gavin, discusses how to evaluate a presidency — and a sports team — in real time and some of the pitfalls of doing so.