Research Analyst
Expertise: Climate security and climate adaptation, Indo-Pacific affairs, nuclear deterrence
Katherine Yusko is a research analyst at the American Security Project, where she leads research on energy security, strategic competition with China, and military readiness. Prior to joining ASP, Katherine supported research and programming on critical Indo-Pacific policy issues at the Atlantic Council’s Indo-Pacific Security Initiative, with a focus on trans-Atlantic-Pacific alliance building, nuclear deterrence, security on the Korean Peninsula, and U.S.-Taiwan relations.
She previously worked with the Permanent Mission of Afghanistan to the United Nations, where she wrote speeches delivered at high-level UN sessions and supported advocacy for the rights of Afghan women and girls. She also served as a graduate consultant to the U.S. Department of Defense’s Center for Excellence in Disaster Management and Humanitarian Affairs, leading research on climate security and climate adaptation in Papua New Guinea and helping to build a strategy for U.S. engagement on these challenges.
Katherine earned her BA in culture and conflict from New York University with a minor in Middle Eastern and Islamic studies. She holds a master’s degree in international affairs, with a concentration in international security policy and a specialization in international conflict resolution, from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs.