Global Issues
Middle East
Middle East:
CNN Global Affairs Analyst & Middle East Expert
After years of shaping US policy in the Middle East as an advisor to the State Department, speaker Aaron David Miller is currently Vice-President for New Initiatives and Director of the Middle East Program at the Woodrow Wilson Center.
NYT Correspondent & Filmmaker
Adam Ellick is a Senior Video Journalist at The New York Times known primarily for “Class Dismissed: Malala’s Story.” Ellick has visited more than 70 countries, often earning a front row seat to historic events.
Journalist & Author
The author of Standing Alone in Mecca: An American Woman's Struggle for the Soul of Islam, she is a former Wall Street Journal correspondent. Her character figures promptly in the film A Mighty Heart.
Arms Control & Nonproliferation Expert
During his time working with the government, Jon Wolfsthal had his hands in virtually every aspect of U.S. nuclear weaponry, arms control, nonproliferation, and security policy.
Foreign Correspondent & Author
Author of War is a Force That Gives Us Meaning and a foreign correspondent in Latin America, Africa, the Middle East and the Balkans, Chris Hedges speaks on war, religion and the conflict in the Middle East.
Director, The Dickey Center, Dartmouth College
Daniel Benjamin, who is the Director of The Dickey Center at Dartmouth College and served as Ambassador-at-Large and Coordinator for Counterterrorism at the US State Department, has become the go to expert in assessing the complex terrorism trends.
Former Pakistan Ambassador to the United States
Husain Haqqani served as Pakistan's ambassador to the United States from 2008-2011 and is widely credited with managing a difficult partnership during a critical phase in the global war on terrorism.
Founder of the Arab American Institute
Speaker James Zogby is founder and president of Arab American Institute and hosts the award-winning Viewpoint with James Zogby.
Academy Award Nominated Director
Noujaim's controversial documentary Control Room, about the Arabic-language news station Al Jazeera, called into question the prevailing images and positions offered up by the US news media about the war in Iraq.
Award-Winning Journalist
Speaker Josh Rushing has gone from US Marine Corps Captain to military correspondent and analyst for Al Jazeera English to author of Mission Al Jazeera.
NYT Investigative Reporter, Host, The Coldest Case in Laramie Podcast & Author, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot
In her hit podcast, The Coldest Case in Laramie, the first collaboration between Serial Productions and a reporter from The New York Times, Kim Barker opens the series by discussing the case that haunted her since childhood.
Hamas Whistleblower, Star of The Green Prince
Mosab Hassan Yousef is the bestselling author of The Son of Hamas, as well as the star of the film, The Green Prince, which chronicles his intense journey as a spy for the Israeli Shin Bet against Hamas.
Pulitzer Prize-Winning NYT Columnist
How good do you really have to be, to be christened the reporter’s reporter…by other reporters? You have to be Nicholas Kristof – good.
Foreign & Security Policy Expert
The former president of the World Bank and former US Deputy Secretary of Defense of Policy, speaker Paul Wolfowitz is a crucial voice in foreign and security policy.
Chair of Arab Studies, University of Columbia
Rashid Khalidi is the Chair in Arab Studies at Columbia, the past President of the Middle East Studies Association, President of the American Committee on Jerusalem, and editor of the Journal of Palestine Studies.
Author & Atlantic Monthly Correspondent
Robert D. Kaplan is a senior fellow at the Center for New American Security and a national correspondent for The Atlantic. He was recognized on Foreign Policy magazine's Top 100 Global Thinkers list.
White House Advisor on ISIS & the Middle East
One of the most respected experts on the Middle East, Robert Malley was the Coordinator for the Middle East, North Africa and Gulf Regions and Senior Advisor to the President for the Counter-ISIS campaign.
Nobel Peace Prize-Winning Activist & Lawyer
Iranian lawyer and activist Shirin Ebadi is the first Muslim to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. She speaks about democracy and the fundamental rights of women, children and every individual.
Israeli Foreign Minister
Renowned for his efforts in the ongoing peace process in the Middle East, Shlomo Ben-Ami was a key participant in Israel-Palestinian peace talks and now speaks on Middle Eastern affairs.
Award-winning Correspondent / Author
Stephen Kinzer is an award-winning correspondent who has reported from more than 50 countries. His book, Overthrow, is an account of the fourteen times the United States has overthrown foreign governments.
Senior Advisor for National Security
As the senior advisor for national security at the New America Foundation, Ricks spent time in Iraq and wrote a bestseller. He also won the Pulitzer Prize for his coverage of the US military and counterterrorism.
Executive Director, American Islamic Congress
As co-founder and executive director of the nonprofit American Islamic Congress, Zainab Al-Suwaij works to promote a positive Muslim American voice.
Award-Winning Author & Curator
Samina Ali is an award-winning author, curator, and popular speaker. Her debut novel, Madras on Rainy Days , was the winner of France’s prestigious Prix Premier Roman Etranger Award and a finalist for the PEN/Hemingway Award in Fiction.
Political Economist & Professor, Brown University
Acclaimed for his bold predictions, from Putin’s invasion of Ukraine to the impacts of the Trump presidency to Brexit, Brown University professor Mark Blyth continues to pinpoint the key forces that shape our economic futures.
President and CEO of Global Situation Room, Inc.
The world's leading companies and organizations seek out Bruen for their most Complex Communications® challenges.
U.S. Ambassador to the State of Qatar from 2022 to 2025
Timmy Davis served as U.S. Ambassador to the State of Qatar from 2022 to 2025. A senior national security and foreign policy leader, he has held key roles across the White House, State Department, and in high-pressure international environments.
Afghan American Actress & Activist
Azita Ghanizada began her journey to the U.S. as a political refugee when her family fled Afghanistan, where they gained asylum. It was the world of TV that captured her imagination and set her on a strictly tabooed path for a girl from Afghanistan.
Resilience and Change Navigation Expert, Physician and Thought Leader
Resilience expert Deborah Gilboa, MD, aka “Dr. G” is an award winning physician and educator who has spent her career researching the impacts of stress and the solutions to that damage, and bringing those solutions to corporate leaders, underserved communities, Army recruits and Olympic athletes.
Specialist in China’s Belt & Road Initiative & Trade Strategy
With China on track to overtake America’s global dominance, there is no better analyst of the economic, political and trade implications than acclaimed international relations specialist and author Sarwar Kashmeri.
Acclaimed Author & Editor-in-Chief of The Jerusalem Post
Yaakov Katz is the Former Editor-in-Chief of The Jerusalem Post and author of Shadow Strike – Inside Israel’s Secret Mission to Eliminate Syrian Nuclear Power.
Author & Founder of Moral Courage TV
Professor Irshad Manji role models the key teaching of moral courage: that doing the right thing in the face of our fears makes us whole. A senior fellow at the USC, she is an educator at heart.
Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Founder & President of Nadia's Initiative
Human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Nadia Murad became a leading advocate for survivors of genocide and sexual violence after surviving the horrific Yazidi Genocide in Iraq carried out by the Islamic State (ISIS).