The Shadow
ARLINGTON, Va. – The Commonwealth Cyber Initiative (CCI) is strengthening international collaboration by engaging embassy representatives from around the world to address widespread cyber threats.
“International collaboration in cybersecurity is critical,” said Luiz DaSilva, CCI executive director. “Cyberattacks cross borders. Working with other countries that have the same values and principles around cybersecurity is fundamental to addressing these challenges. International collaboration will help make our neighborhoods safer, both locally and globally.”
CCI hosted its first networking and discussion breakfast — Exploring International Collaboration in Cybersecurity — April 28 at the Virginia Tech Research Center — Arlington. Embassy representatives from 13 countries included Canada, Chile, Denmark, France, India, Italy, Japan, Latvia, the Netherlands, Slovakia, Sweden, Taiwan, and Turkey.
“We already have extremely strong research collaborations with countries like Japan, Finland, Ireland, and the UK,” DaSilva said. “This event allows us to expand these collaborations to new places.”
Helping support momentum for Virginia Tech’s global distinction priority, CCI has co-organized other successful international workshops, including one in Belgium in 2024 that brought together 60 cybersecurity experts from 10 countries, said Dan Sui, the university’s senior vice president and chief research and innovation officer. Another workshop will be held in Istanbul, Turkey, in June to discuss artificial intelligence and cybersecurity.
“The work of CCI has reached national as well as global impact,” Sui said.
Tatsuya Kurosaka, a project associate professor at the Graduate School of Media and Governance at Keio University in Japan, is part of a Japanese group working with CCI on cybersecurity and talent development challenges. The group is studying how the CCI blueprint can be applied to Japan.
“We need to build these kinds of capabilities, especially for the younger generation,” Kurosaka said.
At the local level, Virginia is invested in supporting companies, especially in the cybersecurity ecosystem, said Charlotte Teeling, software and cybersecurity business manager at the Virginia Economic Development Partnership. In addition to a top cybersecurity workforce, there are more than 42,000 Virginia residents holding active security clearances.
“Cybersecurity is a critical industry in Virginia from a talent perspective but also in terms of critical infrastructure,” Teeling said. “We know to remain the ‘future state,’ we have to collaborate broadly and that’s what makes Virginia so exciting.”
