Rather than simply responding to a crisis after it starts, geospatial intelligence could help humanitarian organizations pinpoint troubled locations in advance, said Mina Chang, CEO of Linking the World, during her GEOINT 2018 keynote.
We must encourage a global mindset by offering the public more in-depth exposure to international affairs and national security issues, which will help put a stop to the idea that we should isolate ourselves from global problems. The "us vs. them" narrative adds further traction to polarization, so we must exchange our nationalist tone for a global one and stop using rhetoric that sends "the other" to the fringes — that's exactly what terror groups want.
In our increasingly interconnected world, the effects of violent extremism won't be contained to the front lines of the fighting. Extremist groups have the ability to spread their ideologies beyond borders and inspire extremists in our own backyards. But if we recognize that we each have a role as citizens of our global community, we can prevent the spread of violent extremist groups' influence.
Read More
Originally published in The Observer here
Want to know how to beat terrorists? We have to understand how they "go global" and it is eerily similar to how corporations grow. But we can beat the competition and win
Read More
Many of you have watched the organization evolve over the past few years from a pure humanitarian response organization, to now a more proactive organization tackling root causes of major issues.
Redeveloping our entire strategy wasn’t easy, but it was necessary to innovate our approach to address the changing situations we deal with worldwide; and truly make a lasting difference!
Change is inevitable and you can apply my "what if" approach to look at where your company can innovate, and identify trends on the horizon!
Read More
Violent extremist groups are not America’s greatest threat. The real threat is an increasingly influential kingdom with a powerful military capability that does not share America’s values of freedom for all, human dignity, and justice.
Are we trading in our leadership and values for short term gains that will bear unintended consequences?
Read More
"Why should we care?" "Let them take care of their own problems." "We have enough problems in our own backyard!" Those are sentiments echoed on all sides of the political divide when the public is asked about spending their tax dollars on foreign aid. ]But at a cost of less than 1% of our entire federal budget, foreign aid is a bargain, given its ability to bolster our national security.
A real cost calculus actually shows that cutting funds for resilience-building solutions would inevitably sacrifice more with blood, through military intervention, when a conflict hits a boiling point; or toward emergency and disaster response when there are food shortages, refugee influxes, and health epidemics.
Prevention must be the objective key part of our national security strategy. Then, and only then, will aid no longer be seen as charity -- but as an essential, modern tool of US national security, and an investment in our economic prosperity.
Read More
The U.S. has a long history of winning hearts and minds around the globe. Core to this effort should be building local economies and institutions, bolstering neighborhoods and communities, and providing tangible incentives to everyday Afghans to avoid the path that leads to extremism.
Even the Taliban knows how important these soft power/localized economic efforts can be in winning this conflict. As part of the recent announcement of their spring offensive, Afghanistan’s Taliban pledged to focus violent attacks on development institutions as part of their effort to build popular political support. This is a direct attempt to undermine the U.S. mission on ground. The U.S. needs to counter the Taliban by redoubling our soft-power activities and focusing on approaches that are more likely to create lasting economic opportunities and success.
Read More
Entrepreneurship can be a powerful force for creating economic stability and weakening extremist groups but entering new and developing markets paves the way for global expansion. But for entrepreneurs in this global age, the next step of building required infrastructure can also entail enormous obstacles, like government corruption, a local lack of education and violent extremism.
Read More
Analyzing the wide spectrum of anonymous data available, whether it's quantitative or qualitative, can identify regions and communities that may be susceptible to instability or conflict. This can help agencies identify trends and growing vulnerabilities indicative of a possible extremist recruiting ground.
Read More
The ongoing conflict in Syria — currently in its sixth year — is responsible for the death of approximately 300,000 individuals, 12,000 of whom were children. Millions of others have been displaced from their homes. The conflict has caused one of the largest refugee movements in recent history, with more than 4.8 million refugees registered by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
Read More
For people living in fragile states like Afghanistan, joining groups like the Taliban might well be one of their only options to provide for loved ones. Libyan intelligence chiefs, for example, say that the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is building an "army of the poor" by offering upward of $1,000 in cash to those who join the radical group. For people living in countries where annual salaries equal a couple of hundred dollars, such economic incentives easily trump ideological barriers. While government employees in Afghanistan earn less than $2 a day, the Taliban pays equivalent of $10 to $20for a day of action.
Read More
According to a recent study, unemployment, poverty, misinterpreted Islamic teachings, and manipulation by extremist heads are leading Nigeria’s young men down the road to radicalism. But what, specifically, are terrorist groups like Boko Haram doing to lure them in?
Read More
Broadly, stability operations can be considered successful if the state in question sees a decrease in violence from initial kinetic intervention and then a move toward normalization as NGOs enter. The U.S. military bases all its stability operations on four guiding principles that, when combined and executed effectively, produce long-lasting stability.
Read More
Our world is increasingly complex: Gone are the days when a nongovernmental organization could operate in conflict zones or areas of instability without significant risk of unintended physical and reputational consequences.
Today more than ever, with an estimated 40 to 60 fragile states, militaries and NGOs are embracing the need for stability operations that deliver a holistic interagency approach unified behind the common goal of sustained peace.
Read More
“We are honored to support the great work of Linking the World, an organization with great leadership that works tirelessly to build resilient communities in areas of instability and conflict,” says Pete Haas, Managing Partner, AlliedBarton. “We know that our security is dependent upon proactive measures overseas, and that’s why we are today pledging an additional $10,000 of support.”
By clandestinely rebranding aid from outside sources with its own labels, ISIS fools surrounding populations into believing the insurgent state is a benevolent entity that protects and cares for its people.
This poses a huge moral dilemma for those of us who work at humanitarian organizations: If we know the aid will likely be diverted, should we not try to help suffering people? If we stop the aid, many belligerents will use it as propaganda to blame the West for the area’s suffering and hunger. But if we provide aid, aren’t we abetting terrorist organizations?
Read More
Under Taliban reign, Afghanistan is the most dangerous place in the world to be a woman. Rape, infanticide and desperate poverty permeate their lives. Sadly, many feel trapped and choose to take their own lives rather than suffer. As a result, suicides — the majority of which are committed by women — outstrip the annual combat and homicide death tolls combined.
Read More
“Most people don't realize that's harder than anything, the stuff that's going on here, when we are over there and we can't do anything about it,” said Young.
But in Afghanistan, he found a protector in Rocky, a Dutch Shepherd trained to sniff out explosive devices.
Read More
As leaders, we tend to approach business challenges with tactical, battle-ready mindsets. However, with this mentality, relational obstacles can often separate us from our teams and the goals we hope to accomplish. Here are three ways to practice empathy and triumph over interpersonal barriers:
Read More
Our world is increasingly complex. Gone are the days when an NGO could operate in conflict zones or areas of instability without significant risks and physical, reputational and/or unintended consequences. Today more than ever, militaries and NGOs are embracing the need for stability operations that deliver a holistic interagency approach unified behind the common goal of sustained peace.
Read More