Remembering Professor Richard H. Shultz, Jr.
We share with deep sadness the passing of Professor Richard H. Shultz, Jr., Senior Advisor to LEADx and longtime Director of the International Security Studies Program at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University.
Professor Shultz was a defining figure in the field of security studies, and a foundational supporter of the leadership mission that LEADx has carried forward from its earliest days.
A Foundational Presence in the LEADx Community
From the first conversations in 2019, when LEADx was still only an ambitious idea, Professor Shultz believed deeply in its purpose. He recognized the need for a space dedicated to cultivating leaders with clarity, integrity, and courage.
He helped shape LEADx’s founding vision, traveled to Tbilisi for its inauguration, and continued to strengthen each edition that followed. Many within the LEADx network learned directly from his mentorship, wisdom, and guidance. Even when he was not physically present, he remained a steady advocate for the mission and the community.
LEADx mementos held a proud place in his history-filled office, reflecting how personally he valued this project and the people within it.
A Lasting Legacy in Security Studies
Over more than four decades at Fletcher, Professor Shultz helped define the discipline of security studies and shaped generations of scholars and practitioners. His influence continues through the institutions he built and the individuals he mentored, many of whom now serve in governments, universities, organizations, and missions around the world.
Carrying Forward His Example
When words fall short, LEADx often speaks in jazz. In that spirit, Professor Shultz has been described as the community’s John Coltrane: disciplined, foundational, and defining. Through rigor, depth, and clarity, he elevated those around him and made complexity feel purposeful and alive.
As LEADx continues its mission to rethink leadership for a rapidly changing 21st century, we carry forward the baton he placed in so many hands.
Professor Richard H. Shultz, Jr. will be remembered as a mentor, scholar, ally, and enduring presence in the communities he served.
Closing a Game-Changing 2025 | PollyLabs Community update
In its year-end community update, PollyLabs reflects on what 2025 revealed about its core thesis: that proven technology, applied thoughtfully and with the right frontline partners, can generate outsized social impact. Early ventures spun out independently, unlocked critical funding, and translated research into practical tools already reaching families at scale—offering early proof of a system-focused approach to impact.
Looking ahead, PollyLabs positions 2026 as a year of scaling what has been built, taking on larger challenges, and inviting others to engage, while maintaining the rigor that made these outcomes possible. The update also recognizes the partners, donors, and team members whose support underpins a broader vision of technology used to reduce avoidable suffering and strengthen resilience.
Click here to read the full report: Polly Labs Community Update
William Ury: Making Peace "Possible"
William Ury is one of the world’s most respected voices in negotiation, mediation, and peacebuilding. A co-founder of Harvard’s Program on Negotiation and author of the bestselling Getting to Yes, Ury has spent decades helping leaders, communities, and nations move beyond conflict toward constructive agreement. His work has ranged from advising on peace processes in Colombia to helping reduce nuclear tensions and teaching negotiation principles that apply anywhere—from the United Nations to everyday life. On Making Peace Visible, Ury shares ideas about how we can understand conflict more deeply and highlight efforts for peace more broadly.
Click here to listen to the podcast: https://www.makingpeacevisible.org/bill-ury
Our Annus Horribilis
In this year-end reflection, veteran foreign correspondent Mort Rosenblum looks back on a difficult and unsettling year in global and U.S. affairs. Drawing on decades of reporting experience, he considers how political choices, diplomatic breakdowns, and shifts in American leadership have affected both international stability and democratic norms at home. The essay situates recent events in a broader historical context, asking what responsibility the United States bears when its actions—and inaction—shape outcomes far beyond its borders.
Read article here: https://www.mortreport.org/reports/our-annus
Clarifying the Idea of the Balance of Power - Michael Poulshock
The idea of the balance of power is central to how scholars and policymakers think about international politics, but what does it really mean in practice? In this essay, Michael Poulshock argues that the conventional concept is vague and often conflates observation with prescription. He highlights three core issues: uncertainty about what actions actually constitute balancing, the lack of a clear definition of equilibrium in global politics, and the tendency of the literature to blur descriptive analysis with advice. By reframing the balance of power through a systematic framework grounded in power structure theory, this piece offers a fresh lens on how states form coalitions, deter dominance, and manage competition in the international system.
Click here for the full article: Michael Poulshock Substack
10 Conflicts to Watch in 2026 - Foreign Policy
War, instability, and political ruptures aren’t fading as the new year begins—they’re multiplying. In its annual forecast of global hotspots, Foreign Policy and the International Crisis Group highlight the conflicts most likely to shape geopolitics in 2026. From the grinding full-scale war in Ukraine and the fragile aftermath of the Gaza fighting to renewed tensions in Africa, the Middle East, and the Western Hemisphere, these are not distant troubles: they are flashpoints with worldwide implications, affecting diplomacy, humanitarian crises, and world order. If 2025 was defined by violent confrontation and shifting alliances, 2026 may prove even more consequential.
Read more on their website: Foreign Policy