Contributors

Varsha Koduvayur is a senior research analyst at FDD focusing on the Gulf States, where she covers internal dynamics, regional geopolitics, illicit financing, and political and economic reform trends. Varsha was previously a researcher for the Middle East practice at Eurasia Group, and a junior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. She studied Arabic language in Morocco through the Language Flagship program, completing her capstone year in Meknes. Varsha has a BA in International Relations from Michigan State University.

Chloe Thompson is a Research Fellow and Program Officer at the American Foreign Policy Council. She serves as the Managing Editor of the World Almanac of Islamism. Her previous work with AFPC involved research on the military use and strategic implications of unmanned aerial vehicles, as well as militant groups in the Middle East and Latin America. Ms. Thompson joined AFPC in June 2016 after graduating with High Honors from Carnegie Mellon University. She majored in Global Studies and Hispanic Studies, is proficient in Spanish, and is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society.

Leisel Bogan works in the private sector on global strategy and cybersecurity. Leisel’s career has focused on driving programs and initiatives across the international policy, technology, and national security sectors. Prior to her current role she was a Research Fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution where she focused on cybersecurity and international policy, and led the initial strategic outreach and coalition efforts of the Hoover Institution’s Washington D.C. office. From 2009-the end of 2012 she worked for Dr. Condoleezza Rice in a variety of capacities including as her deputy and interim Chief of Staff, ending her tenure as Director of Research, while concurrently working for private clients in emerging markets at the boutique geostrategic consulting firm, RiceHadleyGates, LLC. Leisel has also worked on new media technologies and strategy at Warner Bros. Entertainment and business advisor strategy, communications, and philanthropy at Palantir Technologies. She has lived in worked in Germany, and conducted Fellowships in Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Japan, and Egypt. She holds a master’s degree in Public Policy with concentrations in economics and international relations from Pepperdine University, and has guest lectured at the undergraduate school’s study abroad program in Florence, Italy. Leisel began her career in television advertising as a child actor and trained professionally in ballet before teaching it for more than ten years. She is Term Member in the Council on Foreign Relations and is a 2016 Gabr Foundation Fellow.

Steve Miller is a Research Associate at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) and co-author of Facebook Fatwa: Saudi Clerics, Wahhabi Islam and Social Media. He is fluent in Arabic and as part of his research at FDD; he monitors and analyzes the Arabic language press. He also conducts research related to extremism, ideology, and online media in Saudi Arabia. Prior to his time at the FDD, Mr. Miller was a policy analyst at the Institute for Gulf Affairs in Washington, DC. He received his BA in Economics and Near Eastern Languages and Cultures, including classical Arabic from Indiana University.

Steve Miller is a Research Associate at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) and co-author of Facebook Fatwa: Saudi Clerics, Wahhabi Islam and Social Media. He is fluent in Arabic and as part of his research at FDD; he monitors and analyzes the Arabic language press. He also conducts research related to extremism, ideology, and online media in Saudi Arabia. Prior to his time at the FDD, Mr. Miller was a policy analyst at the Institute for Gulf Affairs in Washington, DC. He received his BA in Economics and Near Eastern Languages and Cultures, including classical Arabic from Indiana University.

Jonathan obtained his BA in history, politics, and French from the University of Toronto, where his studies focused on sub-Saharan Africa. Prior to joining McLarty Associates, he served as the Associate Director of the Atlantic Council’s Africa Center, where he concentrated on geopolitical, commercial, and security issues in Central and West Africa and managed the Center’s publications and events portfolio. He has also worked at Oxfam France, helping to plan the organization’s annual Trailwalker fundraiser. Jonathan was born and raised in England. He is fluent in French.

A member of Haverford College's faculty since 1960, Glickman was the first director and campus co-ordinator of African Studies, part of the four college Consortium on African Studies, headquartered at University of Pennsylvania. He has served as visiting professor at universities in Tanzania, South Africa, Israel and in several states in the USA. He has authored, and edited and contributed to six books and numerous articles and reviews for a number of scholarly journals in political science and international relations. He is now a Fellow of the Foreign Policy Association, has served as Secretary of the American Political Science Association, and continues to serve as manuscript reviewer and book reviewer for several publishers and scholarly journals. He also consults for several government agencies and non-governmental organization.

J. Peter Pham is Vice President for Research and Regional Initiatives at the Atlantic Council as well as Director of the Council’s Africa Center. From 2008 to 2017, he also served as Vice President of the Association for the Study of the Middle East and Africa (ASMEA) and was founding Editor-in-Chief of its refereed Journal of the Middle East and Africa. He is currently on a leave of absence from the Atlantic Council to serve in the U.S. Department of State. Dr. Pham’s contributions were made before his entry into government service.

J. Peter Pham is Vice President for Research and Regional Initiatives at the Atlantic Council as well as Director of the Council’s Africa Center. From 2008 to 2017, he also served as Vice President of the Association for the Study of the Middle East and Africa (ASMEA) and was founding Editor-in-Chief of its refereed Journal of the Middle East and Africa. He is currently on a leave of absence from the Atlantic Council to serve in the U.S. Department of State. Dr. Pham’s contributions were made before his entry into government service.

J. Peter Pham is Vice President for Research and Regional Initiatives at the Atlantic Council as well as Director of the Council’s Africa Center. From 2008 to 2017, he also served as Vice President of the Association for the Study of the Middle East and Africa (ASMEA) and was founding Editor-in-Chief of its refereed Journal of the Middle East and Africa. He is currently on a leave of absence from the Atlantic Council to serve in the U.S. Department of State. Dr. Pham’s contributions were made before his entry into government service.

J. Peter Pham is Vice President for Research and Regional Initiatives at the Atlantic Council as well as Director of the Council’s Africa Center. From 2008 to 2017, he also served as Vice President of the Association for the Study of the Middle East and Africa (ASMEA) and was founding Editor-in-Chief of its refereed Journal of the Middle East and Africa. He is currently on a leave of absence from the Atlantic Council to serve in the U.S. Department of State. Dr. Pham’s contributions were made before his entry into government service.

Margot van Loon is a Junior Fellow at the American Foreign Policy Council. She conducts research, editing, and analysis in support of multiple AFPC publications. She currently serves as the Project Coordinator for AFPC's World Almanac of Islamism. A graduate of American University, her research focuses on U.S. foreign policy and public diplomacy. Her commentary has appeared in U.S. News and World Report.

Rafael Bardaji is a member of the Atlantic Council’s Strategic Advisors Group. He has published several books and multiple works for scholarly journals. He was the founder and Director of the Grupo de Estudios Estrategicos until 1996 when he served as the executive adviser to the Spanish Ministers of Defense Eduardo Serra and Federico Trillo. He is also a member of the IISS in London and the International Council of the Institute for Foreign Policy Analysis. Mr. Bardaji is a graduate in Political Sciences and Sociology from the Complutense University of Madrid.

Rafael L. Bardají is CEO of World Wide Strategy LLC, a US based intelligence advisory firm. He was founder of the Strategic Studies Group, GEES, an independent private think tank based in Madrid; served as Senior Strategic Adviser to three different Spanish Defence Ministers and he has also been special adviser to the NATO Special Operations Command. Bardají graduated in Political Science and Sociology at the Universidad Complutense of Madrid and specialized in Strategic Issues and Military Affairs at Oxford University, Harvard and MIT.

Margot van Loon is a Junior Fellow at the American Foreign Policy Council. She conducts research, editing, and analysis in support of multiple AFPC publications. She currently serves as the Project Coordinator for AFPC's World Almanac of Islamism. A graduate of American University, her research focuses on U.S. foreign policy and public diplomacy. Her commentary has appeared in U.S. News and World Report.

Margot van Loon is a Junior Fellow at the American Foreign Policy Council. She conducts research, editing, and analysis in support of multiple AFPC publications. She currently serves as the Project Coordinator for AFPC's World Almanac of Islamism. A graduate of American University, her research focuses on U.S. foreign policy and public diplomacy. Her commentary has appeared in U.S. News and World Report.

Rafael Bardaji is a member of the Atlantic Council’s Strategic Advisors Group. He has published several books and multiple works for scholarly journals. He was the founder and Director of the Grupo de Estudios Estrategicos until 1996 when he served as the executive adviser to the Spanish Ministers of Defense Eduardo Serra and Federico Trillo. He is also a member of the IISS in London and the International Council of the Institute for Foreign Policy Analysis. Mr. Bardaji is a graduate in Political Sciences and Sociology from the Complutense University of Madrid.

Jeff M. Smith is a research fellow in Heritage's Asian Studies Center, focusing on South Asia. He is the author/editor of "Asia’s Quest for Balance: China’s Rise and Balancing in the Indo-Pacific" (2018), and of "Cold Peace: China-India Rivalry in the 21st Century” (2014). He has contributed to multiple books on Asian Security issues, testified as an expert witness before multiple congressional committees, served in an advisory role for several presidential campaigns, and regularly briefs officials in the executive and legislative branches on matters of Asian security.

His writing on Asian security issues has appeared in Foreign Affairs, The Wall Street Journal, Foreign Policy, the Harvard International Review, Jane’s Intelligence Review, The National Interest, and The Diplomat, among others. In recent years his expert commentary has been featured by The Economist, The New York Times, FOX News, The Washington Times, Reuters, and the BBC, among others. Smith formerly served as the Director of Asian Security Programs at the American Foreign Policy Council.

Kyle Orton is an independent researcher focused on the Syrian war and related terrorist groups. His work has been published in various outlets, including Foreign Policy, The Wall Street Journal, and The New York Times. He obtained his masters in social science from Liverpool University, completing his thesis on the conditions of the Syrian refugees in Lebanon, and previously worked at a London think tank.

Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi is a graduate from Brasenose College, Oxford University, and a Jihad-Intel Research Fellow at the Middle East Forum.

Follow him on Twitter at @ajaltamimi.

Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi is a graduate from Brasenose College, Oxford University, and a Jihad-Intel Research Fellow at the Middle East Forum.

Follow him on Twitter at @ajaltamimi.

Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi is a graduate from Brasenose College, Oxford University, and a Jihad-Intel Research Fellow at the Middle East Forum.

Follow him on Twitter at @ajaltamimi.

Matt Brodsky is the Director of Policy for the Jewish Policy Center (JPC) and the editor for the JPC’s journal, inFOCUS Quarterly. Prior to his work at the JPC, Mr. Brodsky was the Senior Geopolitical Analyst for IntelliWhiz LLC and a Legacy Heritage Fellow at the American Foreign Policy Council. He is an expert in Middle Eastern Affairs and Arab Politics, and has on multiple occasions has briefed and advised members of Congress, the Department of State, the Department of Defense and the National Security Council. Mr. Brodsky holds a MA in Middle East History from the Tel Aviv University.