BiothreatsBiodefense Manhattan Project

The Blue Ribbon Study Panel on Biodefense will hold a day-long meeting to discuss a national, public-private research and development initiative to defend the United States against biological threats. The discussants will be “representatives from the same sorts of organizations that contributed to the original Manhattan Project,” the Blue Ribbon Panel says.

Here is the announcement:

A Manhattan Project for biodefense: Taking biological threats off the table
Eighty years ago, the United States began leading a research and development effort to produce the world’s first nuclear weapons. Military and federal agencies, academia, industry, government contractors, and predecessors of today’s national laboratories worked together – with a great deal of support from Manhattan, NY and other localities – to establish overwhelming military superiority for the Allies during World War II. Their efforts effectively ended the war.

Today, the challenge is defense against the biological threat, for which we are at a decided disadvantage. No matter what the source – intentional, accidental, or natural – the Nation and the world are at catastrophic biological risk. We need to tale this threat off the table for good.

Please join the Panel on 11 July 2019, when we hold a meeting to discuss a Manhattan Project for Biodefense – a national, public-private research and development undertaking to defend the United States against biological threats.

Representatives from the same sorts of organizations that contributed to the original Manhattan Project will gather to talk with the Panel about the biological threat, cutting edge biodefense research, needed resources, and business risk. We will also talk about universal flu vaccine as an example of public-private interagency activity.

The event will be held at 58 E. 68th Street, New York, NY 10065

RSVP by 3 July 2019.