Research and Innovation Series (RIS) – Part III: Are US Research Security Policies Working?
The Institute for Security and Development Policy (ISDP) is pleased to host a new webinar in its Research and Innovation Series (RIS), focusing on the new study, “Are Research Security Policies in the US Working? A Case Study on Research Collaborations with PRC Defense Laboratories and US Federally Sponsored Research,” by Jeffrey Stoff, Non-Resident Senior Research Fellow at ISDP and founder and president of the Center for Research Security & Integrity, John Sava, Senior Investigator for the Congressional Select Committee on China and LJ Eads, Director of Research Intelligence at Parallax Advanced Research. SCRIS’s Melita Phachulia will moderate the discussion.
Based on scientific publications from 2019-2025, the study examines US collaborations with PRC-designated national defense laboratories and quantifies related federal research funding in sensitive technology areas. It presents key data, laboratory profiles, funding analysis, and case studies, concluding that existing safeguards have not sufficiently protected federally funded research and require stronger policy responses.
Why this publication matters: the report provides rare, evidence-based insight into concrete collaboration patterns and funding flows, moving beyond compliance debates to address structural research security risks. While focused on the US, the findings carry clear relevance for Europe and transatlantic partners.
Organized by the Stockholm Center for Research and Innovation Security, this webinar series promotes dialogue and exchange on research and innovation, aiming to deepen understanding of the policies and factors shaping security developments. Scholars and experts from diverse fields and backgrounds are invited to join the conversation, moderated by SCRIS staff.
Speakers:
Jeffrey Stoff is the founder and president of the Center for Research Security & Integrity, a US non-profit organization dedicated to the protection of research and innovation from harmful foreign influence and interference. He previously spent over 18 years in the US government as a China analyst and linguist. He advised the US White House, senior Department of Defense leaders; the departments of Commerce, Energy, and State; the National Science Foundation; and the National Institutes of Health. Mr. Stoff has presented at dozens of conferences and seminars for US and foreign government, academic, and private sector leaders on research security and technology protection issues.
Mr. Stoff is a contributing author of China’s Quest for Foreign Technology: Beyond Espionage (Routledge, 2020), coauthor of “Global Engagement: Rethinking Risk in the Research Enterprise” (Hoover Institution, 2020), coauthor of “Eyes Wide Open: Ethical Risks in Research Collaboration with China” (Hoover Institution, 2021), author of Should Democracies Draw Redlines around Research Collaboration with China? A Case Study of Germany (Center for Research Security & Integrity, 2023), and coauthor of “Transparency and Integrity Risks in China’s Research Ecosystem: A Primer and Call to Action” (Center for Research Security & Integrity, 2024).
John Sava is the Senior Investigator for the Congressional Select Committee on China, where he leads investigations and legislative initiatives focused on research security, foreign influence, technology transfer, and intellectual property theft. He is widely recognized within the US intelligence and law enforcement communities as a subject-matter expert on the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC’s) technology transfer apparatus and defense research and industrial base. Mr. Sava previously served as a special agent/criminal investigator within the Department of Defense, where he conducted counterintelligence investigations and operations. From 2019 to 2025, Mr. Sava served as Co-Chair of the Foreign Influence Investigations Working Group for Inspectors General and law enforcement across the US Government. He is currently a lecturer on China, research security and due diligence, and technology protection at the Department of Defense Joint Counterintelligence Training Academy, private industry, and institutions of higher education.
LJ EADS is the Director of Research Intelligence at Parallax Advanced Research, where he develops advanced analytics and intelligence capabilities for state, federal, and national-security customers, and is the Founder of Data Abyss, a platform used across the intelligence community, government, and academia to map adversary technologies, military-civil fusion, procurement networks, and research networks. His career includes roles with Booz Allen Hamilton, MITRE, and the US Air Force, where he supported digital transformation, led AI and data-science programs, and conducted Signals Intelligence (SIGINT) and space-network warfare analysis. Eads’ research has informed congressional inquiries and national media investigations on topics such as PLA cognitive warfare, Arctic competition, Chinese supercomputing ties, dual-use technology, and research-security threats.