Riley holds a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration from Auburn University at Montgomery. She has been privileged enough to work with the U.S. House of Representatives, the State Department, and the state legislature within the Alabama House. These positions have provided her with a comprehensive understanding of legislative processes and international relations. She is particularly passionate about intelligence, domestic terrorism, and extremism.

Andrea holds a Bachelor in International Politics, Law, and Economics at the University of Milan, where he wrote a thesis on the New EU Pact on Migration and Asylum. His main areas of interest are migration issues and regional security issues related to the MENA region and Latin America. As an IMSISS student, he has started to focus on Securitization and the protection of Cultural Heritage in Conflict and Post-conflict scenarios. 

Giuditta, from Italy, holds a Bachelor’s degree in Linguistic Mediation, with a specialization in the field of Criminology. She is really keen on languages and in the past has studied Arabic, French, and Spanish. In the years, she has developed a strong interest in the cyber field and in the impact of technology in IR and National Security, and that’s where she would like to focus during the IMSISS programme. She is also really passionate about global warming and environmental threats and how this could be strictly related to security.

Katerina holds a bachelor's degree in Political Economics from the University of California, Berkeley, with a concentration in International Relations and Global Inequality. She studied abroad at Istituto Venezia and Sciences Po. Katerina also earned a Certificate in Entrepreneurship and Technology from the Sutardja Center at UC Berkeley. She was an International Intelligence and Security Research Fellow at the University of Cambridge in 2022 and conducted research on disinformation and media literacy. While at Stanford University, she focused on nuclear technology and national security; at Harvard University, she wrote a paper on the intersection of gender, peace, and security. She is particularly interested in studying and researching radicalization in the U.S and exploring the links between gender and security throughout her time in IMSISS.

Alfryd holds a bachelor’s degree in international affairs from the George Washington University, concentrating in the Middle East and minoring in Arabic and History. He is interested in American grand strategy, conflict resolution, and Middle Eastern politics. He has also studied at UC Berkeley and Amman, Jordan. Alfryd wants to use his time at IMSISS to study the root causes of conflicts and innovative ways of preventing them.

Alberto holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and International Relations from the University of Pavia. His passion for dynamic, multicultural environments has led him to pursue the IMSISS master’s program, where he focuses on transnational and domestic threats posed by terrorism. He is particularly interested in analyzing the impact of government-led counterterrorism and deradicalization measures on the incidence of terrorism and their efficacy to neutralize this complex concern.

Shannon has an academic background in international relations and law, with a strong focus on human rights. While studying law in Mexico, she worked as a paralegal in criminal and family law, supporting women in marginalized communities. During her BA in International Relations in Germany, she interned at Germany’s Permanent Mission to the UN in Geneva, where she deepened her expertise in minority rights, especially women’s rights. Passionate about bridging policy and advocacy, she is dedicated to advancing gender equality and human rights on a global scale.

Flavio holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and International Relations from Sapienza University in Rome. His final thesis explored French emergency legislation, focusing on its constitutional basis for domestic counterterrorism practices. Driven by curiosity about different cultures and perspectives, Flavio has pursued international experiences across Europe. Fluent in five languages, he acquired a rich global outlook, which has proved essential in multicultural work environments. His inclination for connecting with people, combined with a passion for intelligence and the broader security field, led him to assume the role of Events Team Coordinator at the Security Distillery.

Iasmina holds a Bachelor's degree with First-Class Honours in Diplomacy in Business from the University of Babeș-Bolyai and has pursued an exchange semester in European and Global Studies studies at the University of Padua. With a strong foundation in international relations, negotiations, and international law, she is passionate aboutintelligence,terrorism and counter-terrorism, with a keen interest in policing and investigations, especially the role of psychology in understanding how human behaviour shapes decision-making in these areas.

Giuditta, from Italy, holds a Bachelor’s degree in Linguistic Mediation, with a specialization in the field of Criminology. She is really keen on languages and in the past has studied Arabic, French, and Spanish. In the years, she has developed a strong interest in the cyber field and in the impact of technology in IR and National Security, and that’s where she would like to focus during the IMSISS programme. She is also really passionate about global warming and environmental threats and how this could be strictly related to security.

With a background in International Relations and a Master’s in Negotiation, Mediation, and Conflict Resolution, Cova loves multicultural interactions and can fluently speak five languages. Passionate about intelligence analysis, conflict resolution and the integration of gender perspectives in security studies, she approaches complex issues with a commitment to inclusive and thoughtful solutions.

Joshua, from Indonesia, holds a Bachelor’s degree in Applied Police Science from the Indonesian National Police Academy. He is deeply interested in intelligence, having written his thesis on how intelligence gathering can reduce terrorist attacks through Islamic deradicalisation. He met with real-life sources, including terrorist suspects and Indonesian intelligence operatives. Currently a 1st Lieutenant in the Indonesian Paramilitary SpecOps under the Indonesian National Police, his expertise is in counter-terrorism, dealing with weaponised targets, explosives, and related threats. Driven by his passion, he is now pursuing a master's degree in the IMSISS program and joining the events team to explore security issues.

Aldo holds a bachelor of arts in International Relations, (minoring in security studies) from Satya Wacana Christian University in Indonesia. His professional interest is in conflict studies. He wrote his final thesis on contentious politics within a framework of conflict, and has been involved in the discourse of intergenerational trauma transmission to the post-memory generations, through research work and cross religious and cultural project initiatives, especially in his own community, which had suffered from sectarian conflict in the past.

Jiaman, with a Bachelor’s degree from Shanghai International Studies University, spent a year in Italy as an exchange student, which deepened her passion for international organizations, border security, and cybersecurity. With experience in digital media, she founded a global network of international relations scholars, connecting more than two hundred academics from around the world. Curiours by nature and open to diverse cultures, she thrives in international environments.

Candela is a graduate in International Relations from Blanquerna University in Barcelona, specializing in Foreign Policy, the European Union, and the Middle East and North Africa region. Fluent in Catalan, Spanish, English, and French, she has also studied Arabic and Chinese. Her thesis explored the role of masculinities and femininities in individual radicalization processes and how these dynamics are exploited in ISIS recruitment strategies. Her academic interests include intelligence analysis, terrorism and radicalization, gender studies, and diplomacy and Mediterranean geopolitics, the latter of which she has explored through different internships.