The Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense will join the Atlantic Council as an initiative within the Council’s Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security
Now in its second decade, the Bipartisan Commission of Biodefense announces a timely new move while remaining committed to its founding purpose: Defending America Against Biological Threats.
WASHINGTON, DC – SEPTEMBER 25, 2025 – The Atlantic Council announced today that the Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense will join the Council as an initiative within the Council’s Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, continuing the commission’s mission to strengthen national and global defense against biological threats.
The commission was established in 2014 to provide a comprehensive assessment of US biodefense efforts and foster critical policy changes that support prevention, deterrence, preparedness, detection, response, attribution, recovery, and mitigation of human-generated and naturally-occurring biological threats.
The commission is co-chaired by Tom Ridge, 43rd Governor of Pennsylvania and 1st US Secretary of Homeland Security, and Donna Shalala, the 18th US Secretary of Health and Human Services.
“The Atlantic Council’s global platform and network make it the ideal home for the commission,” Shalala said. “We look forward to working within the Scowcroft Center to continue our vital work domestically and expand our efforts internationally.”
The nine commissioners are former elected officials and political appointees in the US government. “The world can no longer consider a devastating biological event to be a rare, once-in-a-lifetime occurrence. Every country needs to embrace and overcome the challenges before us,” said Ridge. “It’s a moment that demands strong and decisive leadership.”
“The Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense is the preeminent voice on biodefense issues in the country,” said Atlantic Council President and CEO Frederick Kempe. “We welcome the commissioners, as well as Asha M. George, the commission’s impressive director, and her talented team to the Atlantic Council to continue their critical efforts to address global biothreats.”
Dr. George will continue leading the commission as its director and guiding its work to advance biodefense strategy and policy. George brings with her decades of experience in national defense, homeland security, and public health security. She previously served as a senior professional staffer and subcommittee staff director at the Committee on Homeland Security in the U.S. House of Representatives. She has worked extensively with many federal agencies including the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. A former U.S. Army military intelligence officer and paratrooper, she is a decorated Desert Storm veteran.
“Adding the Commission will allow the Scowcroft Center to address another threat vector of great concern at a time when the biological threat is only increasing throughout the world,” said Dr. Matthew Kroenig, Vice President and Senior Director of the Center.
“Joining the Atlantic Council marks an exciting new chapter for the commission,” George said. “We are proud of the impact we have made over the past decade and at the Atlantic Council, we look forward to deepening our engagement with leaders across sectors and around the world to confront evolving biological threats.”
The commission will host its first public forum at the Atlantic Council’s global headquarters in Washington, DC, on December 9.
The commission is funded by Open Philanthropy and other donors.
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About the Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense
The Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense was established in 2014 to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the state of U.S. biodefense efforts, and to issue recommendations to foster change. The Commission’s 2024 National Blueprint for Biodefense, identified capability gaps and recommended changes to U.S. policy and law to strengthen national biodefense while optimizing resource investments. Other Commission publications have addressed critical needs for an Apollo Program for Biodefense, risk reduction, biodetection, agrodefense, budget reform, diagnostics, biodefense of critical infrastructure, smallpox and orthopoxvirus readiness, military biodefense, and SLTT response capabilities. In 2018 and 2022, the White House released the National Biodefense Strategy, and in 2022 and 2023, the Office of Management and Budget released the Biodefense Budget Crosscut, top recommendations from the Commission’s Blueprint for Biodefense. In 2021, the White House released the American Pandemic Preparedness Plan and subsequently produced executive orders and national security memoranda, taking up recommendations from the Commission’s Apollo Program and Athena Agenda reports. In 2025, the White House took up recommendations from the Athena Agenda in America’s Artificial Intelligence Action Plan. The Commission continues to address biodefense challenges and urge reform. Former Secretary of Homeland Security, Governor Tom Ridge and former Secretary of Health and Human Services Donna Shalala co-chair the Commission.