Born in Belfast, Steve has thirty years of policing experience, twenty three of which he practiced in the operational delivery, development and training of covert operations and specialist tactical command in both hostile and normalising policing environments in Northern Ireland. For the last two and a half years of his service he had tactical command for the delivery of high risk CT covert policing and threat management operations in the northern region of the province. Steve has extensive teaching experience across specialist policing, command, threat management and contingency planning. He has instructed and lectured to a variety of diverse institutions such as: the Norwegian Police University College, Oslo; Georgetown University Washington DC; The Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence, University of St Andrews; the ATLAS Programme, Europol; Bureaux of Counter Terrorism, Warsaw and was an associate lecturer in Criminology at the University of Ulster in Belfast. Steve was a UK liaison officer on the ATLAS CT programme for the sharing of information and a Programme Manager on the ‘Five Eye’ Leadership in Counter Terrorism (LinCT) programme for the past four years. He has a MA in Violence, Terrorism and International Security from Queens University Belfast and a Certificate in Education from Canterbury Christ Church University, England. In 2013 he was awarded the Queens Police Medal by her Majesty the Queen in her New Year’s Honours list for services to policing.

Gina M Bennett is a retired CIA seasoned counterterrorism specialist and member of the Senior Analytic Service who authored the earliest warnings in the 1990s about the growing danger of the movement Osama bin Laden fomented. She served for 34 years in the counterterrorism mission in numerous roles that spanned both tactical and strategic. These roles included serving as a terrorism targeter, management positions at both CIA’s Counterterrorism Center and the National Counterterrorism Center, the Program Manager for Analytic Tradecraft Program of the CIA’s Directorate of Analysis, deputy National Intelligence Officer at the National Intelligence Council, and Senior Strategist and Advisor to the Directorate of Strategic Operational Planning, where she contributed to authoring and monitoring the implementation of national security strategies.

Ms. Bennett is often featured in documentaries and other media profiling her role in counterterrorism and as a pioneer for women in National Security and Intelligence careers, which she now continues as the Strategic Advisor for Girl Security, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization which seeks to empower, secure, and advance young girls into national and international security missions.

Ms. Bennett is an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University’s Center for Security Studies, where she teaches both Ethics in Intelligence Support to National Security and Hunter-Gatherer National Security. She is a member of the Board of Directors of the Alturas Institute, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing American Democracy by promoting the Constitution, civic education, gender equality and equal protection of the law.

She is the mother of five children, who were the source of inspiration for her two "National Security Mom" books comparing national security to parenting: "National Security Mom: While Going Soft Will Make America Strong," and "National Security Mom 2: America Needs a Time-Out." She has written numerous articles for a variety of journals.

Ms. Bennett earned her Bachelors degree in Economics and Foreign Affairs from the University of Virginia and her Masters in Security Studies as a Distinguished Graduate of the Marine Corps War College.

David W. Brannan retired from a career in domestic law enforcement due to injuries sustained fighting in the line of duty. During that time, he served in a variety of positions with a six-year emphasis on SWAT. David was a political scientist for the RAND Corporation for five years working on areas related to terrorism, insurgency and law enforcement with particular interest in theologically motivated political activism. He served in Iraq at the request of the Department of Defense as the Director of Security Policy for the CPA/MOI where he was wounded by an insurgent mortar attack during operations related to his expertise outside Baqubah, at FOB Warhorse. His work in Iraq provides a unique perspective on creating internal security forces specifically designed to deal with insurgency and terrorism in a lawless climate. David lectures on terrorism, ethics, discourse analysis and other homeland security issues for the Center for Homeland Security and Defense at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey CA. He blends a rigorous analytical approach based on Social Identity Theory and Social Identity Analytical Method with his practical field experiences leading students to an informed and highly useable understanding of the issues related to terrorism and homeland security. David holds a Joint Honours MA in International Relations and Theology as well as a PhD in Theology from the University of St. Andrews, Scotland. His dissertation was entitled, Violence, Terrorism and the role of Theology. His book, A Practitioner’s Way Forward: Terrorism Analysis is a result of 10+ years of working with practitioner students at the Naval Postgraduate School.

Jeff provides organizational and leadership development for leaders in a wide range of organizations. Most recently his primary work has been with the US Intelligence Community for whom he has written several internal case studies and delivers executive education. He has delivered programs on leadership in over twenty-five countries. Jef is an adjunct professor in the Center for Security Studies at Georgetown University where he facilitates the National Security Critical Issue Task Force graduate seminar. For twenty years Jef was the CEO of a large professional service organization and, for over twenty-five years, was a Lecturer on Organizational Behavior at Harvard Medical School and the Graduate School of Education where he co-taught a seminar on Organizational Diagnosis. Jef received a master’s degree in psychology from Boston College, and a Ph.D. in administration, policy, and research at Brandeis University. He is also a guitar and furniture builder.

Rollie is a 30-year veteran of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) where she held senior executive positions including Director of the CIA’s Leadership Academy, Associate Deputy Director of the National Counterterrorism Center, Executive Director of the CIA Counterterrorism Center, Director of the Office of Foreign Intelligence Relationships, Chief of Station in major posts in Southeast Asia and Latin America, and Clandestine Operations Officer in Africa and Southeast Asia. Rollie is also an adjunct Professor at Georgetown University’s Walsh School of Foreign Service/Security Studies Program where she teaches graduate seminars on intelligence and national security. She serves as Adjunct Staff at Rand Corporation, is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and a senior fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Wellesley College and a Master’s of Science in Cyber Security from University of Maryland/University College.

Elizabeth A. Stanley, Ph.D., is a professor in Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and Department of Government. She speaks, teaches, and writes on topics related to resilience, decision-making, political psychology, civil-military relations, and international security. She is the award-winning author of Paths to Peace, about the domestic politics of war termination, and the international bestseller Widen the Window, about the neurobiology of stress, trauma, and resilience. She also co-edited Creating Military Power, about military effectiveness. She is the creator of a resilience training program, Mindfulness-based Mind Fitness Training (MMFT)®, tested through four neuroscience studies with the U.S. military and taught to many thousands in civilian and military high-stress environments around the world. Earlier in her career, she served as a U.S. Army military intelligence officer in South Korea, Germany, and on two peacekeeping deployments to the Balkans. Her research has been supported by many funders, including the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Defense, the Wilson Center, and the Smith Richardson Foundation. She holds degrees from Yale, Harvard, and MIT, and is also a certified practitioner of Somatic Experiencing, a body-based trauma therapy. (www.elizabeth-stanley.com)

Jacob Ware is a research fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), where he studies domestic and international terrorism and counterterrorism. He was previously a research associate for counterterrorism at CFR. Ware is also an adjunct professor at Georgetown University’s Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, where he teaches a class on domestic terrorism. He serves on the editorial boards for the academic journal Studies in Conflict & Terrorism and the Irregular Warfare Initiative at the Modern War Institute at West Point, and his work has appeared in publications including Foreign Policy, War on the Rocks, National Interest, and the Wall Street Journal. Ware holds an MA in security studies from Georgetown and an MA (Hons) in international relations and modern history from the University of St Andrews.

James D. Madia is a senior energy security and risk management professional with 39 years of experience in the emergency response community. He is currently the Sr. Manager of Infrastructure Security & Compliance at Southern California Edison, and an independent consultant to government and business.

Dr. Madia retired from the Inglewood Police Department in 2014 at the rank of Captain, serving as a command-level executive. During his 29-year law enforcement career, James served in executive and senior management roles directing the Emergency Response Team, Special Operations Division, Scientific Services, Media Relations, and the Hostage Negotiations Team. James is a subject-matter expert in homeland security, including critical incident response, infrastructure protection, and emergency management.

James holds a Doctor of Policy, Planning & Development degree from the University of Southern California and a Master of Arts in Security Studies from the United States Naval Postgraduate School, Center for Homeland Defense and Security.

Rich Tafel is a graduate of Harvard Divinity School who has spent his career bringing unlikely stakeholders together to create sustainable solutions in business, public health, civil rights, social impact, and faith-based community coalitions.

Along with the Dean of Pepperdine School of Public Policy, he co-founded the American Project, which addressed isolation and loneliness in America. He's a senior fellow at George Washington University's Center for Excellence in Public Leadership and holds a Business and Sustainability Program certificate from the University of Cambridge. He co-founded the Workplace Wellness Council of Mexico and launched the nation's first state-wide social impact competition in Michigan in 2014. He's the author of Party Crasher (Simon&Schuster 1999). He served as the co-chair of the Christian-Muslim Dialogues for the National Council of Churches. He served as the founding Director of Raffa Social Capital Advisors. He serves as pastor at the Church of the Holy City in Washington, DC.

Mark Cochrane, M.A.

Mark Cochrane is a former Police Officer with over 28 years service in the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) and the Royal Ulster Constabulary George Cross (RUC GC). He has extensive experience of policing and counter terrorism. He has taught and lectured at diverse venues including: the Swedish Defense College, Stockholm; the Irregular Warfare Course, US Marine Corps University; West Point Military Academy; Combating Terrorism Centre, West Point; the National Executive Institute (NEI) and the National Academy (NA) at Quantico; FBI JTTF Regional training, New York; Bush School of Government at Texas A & M; Georgetown University; the Woodrow Wilson Centre Washington DC; and the RAND Corporation. In 2008 Mark completed a Fulbright Police Fellowship with the Federal Bureau of Investigation in New York.. Mark holds an MA in Violence, Terrorism and Security from Queen’s University Belfast; a BSc (Hons) in Criminology and Criminal Justice from the University of Ulster and a Post Graduate Certificate in Education from Canterbury Christ Church University. He is a self-employed consultant engaged in work with a number of agencies and is an associate lecturer in Criminology at the University of Ulster in addition to lecturing at U.S. academic and law enforcement institutions.