Ploughshares Fund Chain Reaction 2015

RETIRING THE BOMB AFTER 70 YEARS

Experts Join Chain Reaction 2015 -- An Evening of Conversation Benefiting Ploughshares Fund
Featuring:
General James E. Cartwright, (Ret) – Former Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff & former commander of STRATCOM
Reza Aslan – Author of Zealot
Barbara Slavin – Author, Journalist, Atlantic Council
President of Ploughshares Fund Joe Cirincione
Interactive Pop-Up Exhibit from N Square

Monday, June 8, 2015
The Open Square at Futures Without Violence, San Francisco

Ploughshares Fund will host its annual gala evening, Chain Reaction 2015, on Monday, June 8, 2015 at The Open Square at Futures Without Violence in the Presidio, San Francisco. With the Iran nuclear deal front and center in the news, the evening will feature a timely discussion about nuclear threats over the past 70 years and how to resolve conflicts, reduce threats and retire the bomb. The evening will feature a pre-program reception and bring together experts in the field, including General James E. Cartwright, former Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and former commander of the US nuclear forces who has a unique insider view into the threats posed by a nuclear arsenal; Reza Aslan, the bestselling author of Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth and No God But God: The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam; and Barbara Slavin, a Ploughshares Fund grantee, author, journalist and Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council and noted expert in Middle East issues.

“In periods of heightened tensions and reduced decision times, the likelihood of human and technical error in control systems increases,” said General James E. Cartwright, former Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. “Launch-on-warning is a relic of Cold War strategy whose risk today far exceeds its value. Our leaders urgently need to talk and, we hope, agree to scrap this obsolete protocol before a devastating error occurs.”

“The historic agreement reached with Iran could potentially, for the first time, put that country’s nuclear program in an iron box with a camera on it,” said Joe Cirincione, President of Ploughshares Fund. “We are delighted to bring our guest speakers together in a discussion that explores the broader context of these issues and why it is so important to seize this opportunity with Iran.”
In addition, the evening will feature a special interactive pop-up exhibit from N Square. The special one-night-only exhibit explores how 21st-century innovation can accelerate progress toward the eventual elimination of nuclear weapons. A new initiative sponsored by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Carnegie Corporation of New York, Ploughshares Fund, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Skoll Global Threats Fund, N Square was created to catalyze innovation that moves the world toward disarmament while improving global safety and security in the meantime.
Since 1981, Ploughshares Fund has led and invested in initiatives to reduce and ultimately eliminate the world’s nuclear threats and to promote stability in regions of conflict.


Tickets
Individual tickets for Chain Reaction start at $250. Sponsorships, some of which include access to the VIP reception, tickets and recognition are $2,500, $5,000, $10,000 and $20,000. Call Ploughshares Fund at (415) 668-2244 or visit ploughshares.org/chainreaction2015 for more information or to purchase tickets online.

About Ploughshares Fund:

Ploughshares Fund is a publicly supported foundation that funds, organizes and innovates projects to ensure that a nuclear weapon can never be used again. Over the past several years, Ploughshares Fund has actively worked to promote a diplomatic solution that prevents Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. Working with more than 150 experts and 85 organizations of differing perspectives, they have successfully built a united voice and vision for a peaceful resolution to the impasse over Iran’s nuclear program. Since its founding in 1981, Ploughshares Fund has distributed more than $100 million in grants to NGO’s, individuals and organizations around the world who are working to eliminate nuclear weapons.


HOST COMMITTEE

Rachel Pike, Co-chair
Guy and Jeanine Saperstein, Co-chair
Daniel U. Smith and Lucinda Lee, Co-chair
Lucinda Watson and Ted Bell, Co-chair

Terry Gamble Boyer and Peter Boyer
Becky Draper
Gloria Duffy
Mary Lloyd Estrin
Farshad Farahat
Tabitha Jordan
Lisille and Henry Matheson
Julie and Will Parish
William J. Perry, Honorary
George P. Shultz, Honorary
Robert E. Sims
Jeff Skoll, Honorary
Philip Taubman


SPONSORS

Sally Lilienthal Level
Guy and Jeanine Saperstein
Lucinda Watson and Ted Bell

Owen Chamberlain Level
Terry Gamble Boyer and Peter Boyer
Steven and Roberta Denning
Daniel U. Smith and Lucinda Lee

Albert Einstein Level
Colonial Consulting, LLC
Tabitha Jordan
Nasiri Foundation
Julie and Will Parish

Jonathan Schell Level
Bregante + Company LLP
Becky Draper
Duckhorn Wine Company
Gloria Duffy
Mary Lloyd Estrin
First Republic Bank
ISU Insurance Services of San Francisco
Lisille and Henry Matheson
Waldron

HONORARY CONGRESSIONAL HOST COMMITTEE

Senator Richard Lugar, Ret. (R-IN)
Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi, Democratic Leader (D-CA)
Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)
Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA)
Representative Anna Eshoo (D-CA)
Representative Sam Farr (D-CA)
Representative Earl Blumenauer (D-OR)
Representative Loretta Sanchez (D-CA)
Representative Barbara Lee (D-CA)
Representative Michael Honda (D-CA)
Representative Raul Grijalva (D-AZ)
Representative Jackie Speier (D-CA)
Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR)
Representative John Garamendi (D-CA)
Representative Jared Huffman (D-CA)

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