The Arizona Junior Fellows and the Arizona State University School of Civic and Economic Thought and Leadership are collaborating with the American Enterprise Institute to host a panel on cybersecurity.

The panel will examine how Arizona has adapted to new cybersecurity threats, how those efforts compare to other states and jurisdictions, and how the public and private sector can work together to prevent cyberattacks and better protect consumer privacy.

National cybersecurity expert Klon Kitchen will join policymakers, business leaders, and university students and faculty for the event. Kitchen is a Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute who has previously worked at the National Counterterrorism Center and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

Joining Klon is Tim Roemer, the Director of the Arizona Department of Homeland Security. Director Roemer recently led the effort to create the Cyber Command Center, which serves as the state’s headquarters for cybersecurity operations.

The event will be moderated by Eileen Klein, former Treasurer of the State of Arizona and President Emerita of the Arizona Board of Regents; former Fortune 25 healthcare executive.

Data is the new gold

Cybercrime the world a collective $3 trillion in 2015 and is expected to cost $10.5 trillion by 2025. Arizona has been no stranger to the danger presented by cyber-attacks, as estimate that data breaches from 2005 to 2020 cost the state $1.6 billion. In that time frame, Arizona had 181 data breaches, putting over 10 million records at risk. 

Despite these attacks, Arizona is for a community-based and cross-sectoral approach to cybersecurity that emphasizes trust and collaboration between government agencies and private companies. 

This includes the recent establishment of the command center, which will serve as Arizona’s headquarters for coordinating cybersecurity operations. 

As more personal data like banking information and medical records are transferred into the digital world, there is an increased risk of cyber-attacks that undermine public and private enterprise. People, companies, and governments are looking for new solutions to rising cybercrime as it becomes a more prominent issue.

About the event

The Future of Arizona Democracy: Cybersecurity and the Future will be hosted from 5:00-6:15pm at ASU’s Old Main (400 E Tyler Mall, Tempe, AZ 85281) on Monday, March 21st, 2022.

The event is free and open to the public. Registration is available .

This event is a part of the series, “,” which is produced by the Arizona Junior Fellows in partnership with the School of Civic and Economic Thought and Leadership at Arizona State University. The Arizona Junior Fellows are a project of the Arizona Â鶹´«Ă˝Ół»­ Foundation and conduct research in a variety of fields in order to communicate important issues to policymakers and business leaders.

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Arizona remains in the center of national headlines following the 2020 election, exposing the tension between two competing interests: access and accuracy. New laws aimed at reforming the voting process have been proposed and implemented at the federal and state level. As the debate rages on over ballot access and election integrity, Americans of all stripes are curious about how the election system works and what problems exist.

On November 9, elections expert Dr. John Fortier, along with state and local officials will explore Arizona’s election system and opportunities for reform. Dr. Fortier is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and is the co-author of “Lessons Learned from the 2020 Election,” a special report made for the U.S. Elections Assistance Commission. 

“Studying elections at the American Enterprise Institute, I’ve had the opportunity to explore this issue from a national level,” Fortier said. “The 2020 presidential election had record voter turnout across the board, including record turnout by mail. People care that their votes count, and they deserve to understand their election system. I commend the Arizona Junior Fellows and ASU SCETL for bringing about this thoughtful discussion on how to ensure voter access and build a trustworthy elections system.”

Fortier will be joined by respected and experienced state and local experts, including Hon. Kirk Adams, former Speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives and chief of staff to Gov. Doug Ducey; and, Hon. Lisa Marra, president of the Election Officials Association of Arizona and the elections director for Cochise County. The discussion will be moderated by Hon. Eileen Klein, former state treasurer of Arizona and president emerita of the Arizona Board of Regents.

“As a local elections official, nothing is more important than upholding elections laws and protecting people’s right to vote,” Marra said. “I look forward to talking about ways to ensure Arizonans can have confidence in their elections system.”

The event is the second in the series “The Future of Arizona Democracy” produced by the Arizona Junior Fellows, a project of the Arizona Â鶹´«Ă˝Ół»­ Foundation in partnership with the School of Civic and Economic Thought and Leadership at Arizona State University.

The event is free and open to the public.

Event Details

November 9th, 2021 

5:00 – 7:00PM

ASU Memorial Union – Turquoise Room (2nd Floor)

For updates and further information, follow the Arizona Junior Fellows on , , , and .

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