About Sam Nunn

Sam Nunn is co-chairman and chief executive officer of the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI), a charitable organization working to reduce the global threats from nuclear, biological and chemical weapons. He served as a United States Senator from Georgia for 24 years (1972-1996) and is retired from the law firm of King & Spalding.

Raised in the small town of Perry in middle Georgia, he attended Georgia Tech, Emory University and Emory Law School, where he graduated with honors in 1962. After active duty service in the U.S. Coast Guard, he served six years in the U.S. Coast Guard Reserve. He first entered politics as a member of the Georgia House of Representatives in 1968.

During his tenure in the U.S. Senate, Senator Nunn served as chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee and the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. He also served on the Intelligence and Small Business Committees. His legislative achievements include the landmark Department of Defense Reorganization Act, drafted with the late Senator Barry Goldwater, and the “Nunn-Lugar” Cooperative Threat Reduction Program, which provides assistance to Russia and the former Soviet republics for securing and destroying their excess nuclear, biological and chemical weapons.

In addition to his work with NTI, Senator Nunn has continued his service in the public policy arena as a distinguished professor in the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs at Georgia Tech and as chairman of the board of the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C.

Sam Nunn Policy Forum

The Sam Nunn Bank of America Policy Forum is a policy meeting that brings together noted academic, government and private-sector experts on technology, public policy and international affairs to address issues of immediate importance to the nation. It was developed from former Senator Nunn's vision of increasing understanding among policy-makers, academic researchers, technologists and citizens regarding important issues facing them.

The Policy Forum is open to the public and offers a significant venue for policy-relevant research and dialogue. The Policy Forum transcends disciplinary boundaries and engages scholars, practicioners, students and the public. The insights and findings produced at the Forum are shared with policymakers and broaders publics through Congressional testimony, the circulation of proceedings, policy papers, journal articles, and educational television, and Internet broadcasts.

The original Policy Forum series was held annually from 1997 to 2002, co-sponsored jointly by the University of Georgia, the Georgia Institute of Technology, and Emory University and hosted in turn by each institution. Since 2002, the Policy Forum has been sponsored by and held biennially at the Georgia Institute of Technology. The Policy Forum is funded by a generous endowment provided by Bank of America.