Two Jackson School affiliates have been named Nuclear Security Fellows, a MacMillan Center program that brings together students, faculty, and global experts to better understand and address the increasingly complex issues surrounding nuclear security.

Pranav Pattatathunaduvil, a student in the Jackson School’s five-year B.A./M.P.P. program, and Tony Cai, a global affairs and computer science major, are among the five fellows chosen this year.

“Pranav and Tony are both exceptional students,” said Bonnie Weir, assistant dean for undergraduate education at the Jackson School. “This fellowship opportunity will allow them to broaden their already impressive range of interests in geopolitics.”

Pattatathunaduvil, who is also in this year’s cohort of the Brady-Johnson Program in Grand Strategy, is focused on the intersection of tech and international relations. He is the co-founder and director of the Geopolitics of Technology Initiative, an organization that brings together students from Yale and the College of William and Mary’s Global Research Institute to explore ways global emerging technology strategy can be more creative, inclusive, and responsible. In 2024, he received the Jackson School’s Beck Prize, which is presented to Yale juniors with a demonstrated passion for global affairs and national security.

A sophomore from China, Cai is particularly interested in the link between international conflict, history, military affairs, and culture. He is currently working with universities in China to design courses that focus on nuclear politics and, as a fellow, he aims to further explore the effects of China’s domestic political landscape on its nuclear strategy.