Discussion Group Chair Biographies

Discussion Group Director: Laura Hammami
Laura.Hammami@ypfp.org

Laura Hammami is an international affairs generalist with broad expertise ranging from international education to gender issues with an emphasis on global economic and political trends. She spent six years with the Global Summit of Women, most recently as Associate Director; in this role she managed key componets of a high-level annual summit bringing together top government officials (including heads of state, ministers) with key executives from the business world. A graduate of a Top 25 business school, she has experience in both corporate and non-profit environments in an global setting. Laura's interests include US foreign policy, especially the Middle East/ North Africa region. She speaks fluent French and intermediate Arabic.

Defense Discussion Group Chair: Joshua Huminski
Joshua.Huminski@ypfp.org

East Asia Discussion Group Chair: TBD
East.Asia.Discussion@ypfp.org

Energy & the Environment Discussion Group Chair: Jennifer Silvi
Jennifer.Silvi@ypfp.org

Jenn Silvi is currently the Manager of Government Affairs at AHRI - the trade association representing more than 300 manufacturers of air conditioning, heating and commercial refrigeration equipment. Prior to her work at AHRI, she consulted on a variety of renewable and energy efficiency projects focused on emerging technologies and China. Additionally, she has field experience working in India where she conducted and designed an independent quantitative and qualitative study of a training program for the Vidya Bhawan Society, a local NGO.

Her policy interests include: political risk and energy markets, scaling emerging renewable technologies and energy security. She has a Master of International Affairs focusing on International Energy Management and Policy from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Political Science from Villanova University.

Europe Discussion Group Chair: Nueteki Akuetteh
Nueteki.Akuetteh@ypfp.org

Nueteki Akuetteh is the Director for Washington, DC Activities with Global Concepts & Communications, LLC, a firm specializing in political and academic consulting.

Gender in Foreign Policy Discussion Group Chair: Michael Anthony Cole
Michael.Cole@ypfp.org

Global Development Discussion Group Chair: Sofie Leon
Global.Development@ypfp.org

Global Health Discussion Group Chair: Hiliary Critchley
Hiliary.Critchley@ypfp.org

Hiliary Critchley is currently an Area Manager of Public Health for Vestergaard Frandsen, a global social enterprise with eleven offices worldwide. Hiliary has lectured on the role of innovative product development in Public Health at the University of Pennsylvania, at the Emerson Summer Institute, and at NGOs ranging from Pathfinder to Project Concern to CHF International. She has had field experience in South Africa, Kenya, and Vietnam. Hiliary was previously a management consultant specializing in growth strategy for private sector multinational Life Sciences clients, and is from Washington, DC. She graduated from Dartmouth College.

Grand Strategy Discussion Group Chair: Patrick Magee
Patrick.Magee@ypfp.org

Patrick Magee is a defense analyst at BAE Systems. His academic work lies in the area of U.S. foreign policy and grand strategy. His 2005 Ph.D. dissertation (Grand Strategy Analysis: A Proto-Theoretical Approach) created a methodology for understanding strategic behavioral choices. He also is the author of a U.S. grand strategy blog at www.USGrandStrategy.org (previously www.irtheory.net). Dr. Magee holds a Ph.D. in International Studies from Old Dominion University, an M.A. from the same program, and a B.A. in Government and Foreign Affairs from the University of Virginia.

Immigration, Refugees, & Human Rights Group Chair: Robert Tenorio
Adam.Lichtenheld@ypfp.org

Human rights and transnational migration represent the human impact of the intractable issues of the day: Ethnic conflict, global health, climate change, and countless more. Now more than ever, it is essential for young professionals working in the international arena to be cognizant of the impact of policy decisions on human beings in an increasingly globalized world. With this in mind the Human Rights, Refugees & Immigration discussion group encourages open and informed discussion on the human element of foreign policy.

Latin America Discussion Group Chair: Sarah King
Sarah.King@ypfp.org

Sarah King recently received a Masters of Science in Foreign Service at Georgetown University During her time at Georgetown she served as Sen. Chuck Hagel's Research Assistant and worked for Chevron. She also worked at the Department of State in the office of the Assistant Secretary of State for the Western Hemisphere and currently in the Office of the Secretary of State on 21st Century Statecraft.

Before graduate school she worked at Kissinger McLarty Associates/McLarty Associates navigating the political, economic, and business landscapes in Latin America, supporting multinational corporations in a variety of industries. Prior to joining Kissinger McLarty she was the Project Director in Paraguay for Amigos de las Americas, where she created and managed rural community development projects with the Ministry of Health, Plan International, and the Fundación Paraguaya/Junior Achievement. She is the President of the Board of AMIGOS Washington, DC chapter.

Additionally, Sarah worked in Senator Diane Feinstein's Washington office on Defense and China affairs, and at the Center for International Policy, supporting their Cuba project. Sarah graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Maryland in 2006 with a B.A. in Political Science and minor in Spanish

Middle East Discussion Group Chair: Scott Weiner
Scott.Weiner@ypfp.org

Scott Weiner is a Research Analyst on Arab media and insurgent propaganda for Fulcra Worldwide, an Arlington, VA based government contractor. Prior to this position, Scott was a research assistant on the Iraq Project at the Institute for the Study of War in Washington D.C. He has published a number of backgrounders and factsheets about Iraqi political developments which were widely circulated among military strategists and members of Congress.

Proficient in both Modern Standard Arabic and Hebrew, Scott lived abroad in Israel for one year where he worked with the indigenous Israeli Bedouin community in Segev Shalom and completed a special track in Peace Studies and Regional Security at Ben Gurion University of the Negev. He graduated from Tufts University in 2008 with a major in International Relations and a minor in Arabic. He will return to school in Fall 2010 to pursue a Ph.D in Political Science from the George Washington University.

Public Diplomacy Discussion Group Chair: Michael Walsh
Mike.Walsh@ypfp.org

Michael Walsh is a Project Director at Forum One Communications. He is adept at constructing digital strategies that take advantage of Web 2.0 technologies, especially as they relate to social media and Gov 2.0. He possesses familiarity with regional affairs in Africa and Asia and a breadth of topical issues, including public diplomacy. Prior to Forum One, Michael served as a Senior Marketing Communications Manager at Microsoft Corporation. He joined Microsoft following a number of years in the public sector, where he worked as both a management consultant and civil servant within the United States federal government. Michael has been the recipient of a number of awards, including a Certificate of Appreciation from the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff and a Patent Award from Microsoft Corporation.

He also has published a number of software innovations papers, served as a regular contributor to TechNet Magazine, and participated on social media panels at major Internet conferences, including Web 2.0 Expo San Francisco. Walsh holds bachelor's and master's degrees in international relations, with concentrations in international law and international economics, from Johns Hopkins University. He also completed executive education programs in business administration at Harvard, Wharton, Chicago and Columbia.

South Asia Discussion Group Chair: Raja Karthikeya
Raja.Karthikeya@ypfp.org

Raja Karthikeya is the Chair of the South Asia Discussion Group. He has previously worked as Researcher at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), and was an International Affairs fellow at the U.S. House of Representatives. He also served as an international observer in Afghanistan’s Presidential and Provincial elections in 2009 and was a Junior Fellow at Georgetown University's Institute for the Study of Diplomacy. He writes frequently on U.S. foreign policy and security issues in South Asia. He received his Master of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University.

Terrorism Discussion Group Chair: Cassandra Smith
Cassandra.Smith@ypfp.org

Cassandra Smith chairs the YPFP Terrorism Discussion Group. She is a Consultant at Booz Allen working on Irregular Warfare issues on the Modeling, Simulation, Wargaming and Analysis team. She supports a range of US government clients develop strategy from the policy planning to the operational and tactical level. Before joining Booz Allen, she worked at CSIS in the International Security Program. While there she was published in the Beyond Goldwater-Nichols report, Facilitating a Dialogue among Senior-Level DoD Officials on National Security Priorities: A Methodological Note. She was also a contributing author to the Brzezinski-Scowcroft initiative, Turkey's Shifting Dynamic: Implications for U.S.-Turkey Relations, and the U.S.-UK Nuclear Cooperation after 50 Years.Prior to that she worked in the Conflict Resolution Program at theCarter Center in Atlanta. She received her M.A. in Arabic and International Relations from the University of St. Andrews inScotland.

Trade and Finance Discussion Group Chair: Patrick Flaherty
Patrick.Flaherty@ypfp.org