2018 Europe Security Seminar Recap
“We are all born with two buckets over our hips. Your right bucket is full of luck, and your left bucket is full of experience.”
Major General Jack Briggs’ welcoming remarks to the more than 130 attendees of OSAC’s 2018 Europe Security Seminar set the tone for the second annual meeting of OSAC’s Europe Regional Council (ERC), which partnered with the Academia Working Group (AWG) for this joint event. The event was held April 9 and 10 at New York University’s School of Law. Due to generous contributions of our sponsors, another 100 virtual participants tuned in to view select live-streamed sessions on the first day of the seminar.
“Over time, we take our luck and move it to experience,” explained the 31-year Air Force veteran and Associate Vice President for Emergency Preparedness and Security Systems at New York University. “OSAC is all about experience…Your individual experience is not enough. OSAC fills that in with mentoring and sharing experiences.”
The program for the two-day conference provided an in-depth look at today’s security and safety issues for companies, organizations, colleges and universities doing business or offering programs in Europe.
In his opening remarks, Charlie Brandeis, Special Agent-in-Charge of New York’s Field Office in the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service and Co-Chair of the ERC, echoed Major General Briggs’ comments and underscored the impact of the security industry on the lives of the thousands of U.S. students studying abroad each year: “Students are traveling abroad in record numbers. As universities prepare our next generation of college students for their lives in the global marketplace and as citizens of the world, keeping those intellectually curious minds connected, informed and safe is a vital and evolving specialty.”
Speakers and Sessions
- Keynote Address: Countering Violent Extremism by Peter Neumann, King’s College, London
- Country Spotlight: Turkey Post-Referendum by Aaron Stein, Atlantic Council
- Impact of a Weakening ISIS in Syria and its Affiliates in Europe: Panel included Peter Neumann, Aaron Stein, Johannes Saal of University of Lucerne and moderator M. Rebecca Brattskar, UN Security Council’s Counter Terrorism Directorate
- Tactics, Techniques and Procedures (TTPs): Evaluating Car-Ramming Attacks in Western Europe by Brian Michael Jenkins
- Changes in U.S. Department of State Travel Advisories and Travel Alerts by Michelle Bernier-Toth, U.S. Department of State
In addition to Monday’s keynote address and speakers, the first day of the Europe Security Seminar included an information-packed afternoon of optional tracks:
Information Security Track:
- Fireside Chat: Convergence of Physical and Cyber Security with Chris Vickery, UpGuard, and Alex Soukhanov, Moran Shipping Agencies, Inc., moderated by Munish Puri, Teribium Labs
- Cyber Hygiene While Traveling by Leroy Terrelonge III, Flashpoint
- Electronic Crimes Task Force by Jim Brenneman, U.S. Secret Service Electronic Crimes Task Force
Emergency Communication Track, designed specifically for the Academic Working Group participants:
- Duty of Care Tabletop: Sexual Violence and Incident Response, led by Anne Marie McLaughlin, New York University
- Emergency Preparedness Case Study and AWG Resources: Barcelona by Laura Provencher, University of Arizona; Kalpen Trivedi, University of Massachusetts Amherst; Marcia Heinsz, Drexel University
- Emergency Communication Tools and Tactics by Kara Amoratis, Arcadia University; Joya Helmuth, Notre Dame University; Julie Ann Friend, Northwestern University; moderated by Will Huser, New Your University
Tuesday, April 10, offered participants in-depth analysis of several key security topics:
- Global Internet Forum to Counter Violent Extremism by Han Soal Park, UN Security Council’s Counter Terrorism Executive Directorate
- Country Spotlight: Russia Post-Election by Alex Melikishvili, IHS Markit
- General Data Protection Regulation: How to Prepare Your Organization by Mike Baukes, UpGuard
- Travelers Guide: Mitigating Risks in the HomeShare Economy by Nick Shapiro, Airbnb
Thank you to the ERC and AWG Committees, the speakers, Tom Scanlon, OSAC Executive Director,the talented OSAC staff and NYU School of Law and its Center of Law and Security. We especially are grateful to our generous sponsors whose support made the 2018 Europe Security Seminar a possibility and a success. In addition to ISF funding, the seminar was supported by:
Platinum Sponsors
New York University
The Center on Law and Security, NYU School of Law
Silver Sponsors
Collette Travel Services, Inc.
I-On Asia
Bronze Sponsor
Drum-Cussac, Inc.
Get the details on sponsoring a Common Interest Council event or contact Peggy O’Neill, Executive Director of the ISF.
