In the Caribbean, several countries have been disrupted by the increase of “Problems Without Passports” (PWPs). Join us in this episode of the JGI Policy Pulse, as Dr. Ivelaw Griffith sits down with us to break down his insights from his recent publication: Challenged Sovereignty: The Impact of Drugs, Crime, Terrorism, and Cyber Threats in the Caribbean. Dive into the intricacies of sovereignty disputes within CARICOM and where the stability of these nations currently stand.

Ivelaw Griffith is a Fellow with the Caribbean Policy Consortium and Senior Associate with the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC. He has published numerous scholarly articles and seven books, including Drugs and Security in the Caribbean, The Political Economy of Drugs in the Caribbean, and Caribbean Security in the Age of Terror. The University of Illinois Press will publish his next book, Challenged Sovereignty: The Impact of Drugs, Crime, Terrorism and Cyber Challenges on Security and Sovereignty in the Caribbean. Recipient of the Dr. William J. Perry Award for Excellence in Security and Defense Education, named in honor of former U.S. Defense Secretary Dr. William J. Perry, Professor Griffith, has testified before the U.S. Congress on Caribbean security issues. Dr. Griffith also has served in several academic leadership roles, including as Vice Chancellor of the University of Guyana, President of Fort Valley State University in Georgia, Provost of universities in Virginia and New York, and as a Dean at Florida International University. Ivelaw, who holds degrees from The University of Guyana and The City University of New York (CUNY), has been a consultant to the Commonwealth Secretariat, Canada’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade and other agencies, and a visiting scholar at the Perry Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies, the Royal Military College of Canada, and the George Marshall European Center for Security Studies in Germany.

For good or for ill, crypto continues to make global headlines. While cryptocurrencies have been accepted into Exchange Traded Funds, there have also been high profile arrests of crypto tycoons like Sam Bankman Fried and CZ Zhao. In this episode, we delve into the complex world of cryptocurrencies and their potential threats to national security. FIU’s Mike Asencio sits down with Leland to explore how the anonymity and decentralization of digital currencies can facilitate illicit activities, from money laundering to funding terrorism, posing significant challenges to law enforcement and global security. Tune in to understand the true costs of crypto.

Mike Asencio serves as Program Director of Cybersecurity at the Jack D. Gordon Institute for Public Policy. In this role, he manages a statewide cybersecurity for executive leadership professional education program (CyberSecureFlorida Training Initiative), an initiative funded by Cyber Florida. His primary focus areas encompass AI, cybersecurity, cyber infrastructure resiliency, cyber safety, and public policy in cyber, reflecting his commitment to safeguarding digital landscapes.

Artificial Intelligence is revolutionizing every industry in the world, and it has profound implications for the way countries need to think about national security. In today's episode of JGI Policy Pulse, we speak with New America's Senior Fellow, Peter W. Singer, on AI's rapid advancement and how it affects national security. Learn about the opportunities and challenges AI will bring and understand how this emerging technology will shape the world as we know it.

Peter Warren Singer is Strategist at New America, a Professor of Practice at Arizona State University, and Founder & Managing Partner at Useful Fiction LLC, a company specializing in strategic narrative. A New York Times Bestselling author, described in the Wall Street Journal as “the premier futurist in the national-security environment” and “all-around smart guy” in the Washington Post, he has been named by the Smithsonian as one of the nation’s 100 leading innovators, by Defense News as one of the 100 most influential people in defense issues, by Foreign Policy to their Top 100 Global Thinkers List, and as an official “Mad Scientist” for the U.S. Army’s Training and Doctrine Command.

In this special episode celebrating Women’s History Month, our host Leland chats with Dui Mora Turner, a retired Air Force Lt. Colonel who led U.S. Southern Command’s Women, Peace and Security program. Listen as Dui describes her personal and professional journey: coming to the U.S. from Brazil, becoming an Air Force meteorologist, inspiring young service members across LatAm, and launching FIU’s WPS Forum!

Duilia "Dui" Turner is a Leadership and Foreign Affairs Advisor with a special interest in Latin America and the Caribbean. As an international speaker and lecturer, she has collaborated with the United Nations, the Organization of American States, the Wilson Center, and the Special Operations Community. She is also a non-resident senior fellow for the Women in International Security (WIIS) and a contributing author and editor for multiple publications, including “Twenty Years, Twenty Stories: Women, Peace, and Security in the Western Hemisphere” and “Culture Shock: Leadership Lessons from the Military’s Diplomatic Corps.”

A retired Air Force Officer, Duilia held key positions in crisis response, STEM, human capital development, and global management. As a scientist, she supported shuttle missions at Cape Canaveral—including NASA’s STS-95 when Senator John Glenn returned to space—and served as the Chief Meteorologist for President Obama’s Air Force One. As a Foreign Affairs Officer, she promoted military diplomacy, worked on policy and strategy, and became the first Chief of the Women, Peace, and Security Program at the United States Southern Command.

Duilia has been deployed to Bosnia and Herzegovina and Afghanistan. She has received three congressional recognitions and was named New America’s “2020 Latino National Security & Foreign Policy Next Generation Leader”. Duilia is fluent in Spanish and Portuguese and holds a Bachelor of Science in Meteorology, a Master of Business Administration, and a Master in International Relations.

Over the past decade, China has expanded its influence in Latin America and the Caribbean in a plethora of ways. But one area that hasn’t garnered as much attention is its engagement in regional organizations. In this episode of the JGI Policy Pulse, FIU Ph.D. candidate Adam Ratzlaff delves into China’s complex relationship with over 30 regional organizations and forums.

Adam Ratzlaff is a PhD candidate in International Relations at Florida International University and the Deputy Director of Global Americans, a DC-based think tank on Hemispheric affairs. Prior to coming to FIU, Ratzlaff conducted political and economic analysis for organizations including the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, and Southern Pulse Correspondents.

His research interests include U.S.-Latin American foreign policy, Sino-Latin American foreign policy, Pan-American cooperation, the defense of democracy in the Americas, fiscal policy, and economic and social development in Latin America. He has published extensively on these topics in popular venues including Diplomatic Courier, The National Interest, and Charged Affairs among others. Ratzlaff’s dissertation examines how the Organization of American States (OAS) responds to and shapes the evolving threats to democracy in the Americas.

He holds a MA from the Josef Korbel School of International Studies (University of Denver) as well as a BA from Tulane University where he triple-majored in International Relations, Economics, and Latin American Studies.

In this episode of the JGI Policy Pulse we delve into the heart of security challenges shaping the landscapes of Latin America and the Caribbean. In a thought-provoking conversation recorded for FIU students, we explore the nuanced perspectives of a seasoned Admiral on the frontlines of defense.

Our guest, the esteemed Admiral Craig S. Faller, shares insights on the region’s security dynamics, China’s growing influence, and personal values that inspired his service and sacrifice for the greater good.

Craig Faller is a retired four star United States Navy Admiral with nearly four decades of global leadership experience. Faller most recently led United States Southern Command where he was responsible for U.S. military operations in Latin America and the Caribbean with the primary objective of forging strong security partnerships. He has served in the Middle East and Indo-Pacific regions both on large staffs and in Command of a United States Navy Carrier Strike Group and two warships. He has extensive Washington, DC experience in the Pentagon and with Congress as the Department of the Navy's Chief of Legislative Affairs (lead representative to Congress on behalf of the leadership of the Navy). In the Pentagon he served as the senior military assistant to the Secretary of Defense.

A graduate of the United States Naval Academy, Faller earned a bachelor’s degree in systems engineering and a master’s in national security affairs from the Naval Postgraduate School.

In this special final episode for 2023, Dr. Shlomi Dinar, dean of FIU’s Steven J. Green School of International & Public Affairs, joins us with Mario Loyola, a research assistant professor at FIU's Institute of Environment and College of Law. They delve into the complexities of the Israel-Hamas war, unraveling the implications of the conflict through the lens of international and human rights laws. 

Mario Loyola

Mario Loyola is a research assistant professor and director of the Environmental Finance and Risk Management Program in the Institute of Environment, an FIU Preeminent Program. He also teaches environmental law courses at the College of Law and advises law students on environment-related matters. Loyola has worked on environmental policy and regulatory issues for many years, both in and out of government. He is a former associate director for regulatory reform at the White House Council on Environmental Quality and has also served at the Pentagon and in the U.S. Senate. Loyola is a fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, and has published extensively in National Review, The Atlantic and the Wall Street Journal, in addition to academic and policy journals. He received a BA in European History from the University of Wisconsin and a JD from Washington University School of Law.

Shlomi Dinar

Shlomi Dinar is the dean of the Steven J. Green School of International and Public Affairs and a Professor in the Department of Politics and International Relations.

Dinar’s research interests lie at the intersection of international environmental politics, security, and negotiation. In particular, he has published in the area of conflict and cooperation over transboundary rivers (a field popularly known as ‘hydro-politics’). In addition, he works on the linkages between climate change and international water issues, particularly as such a relationship pertains to the resilience and effectiveness of international river basins and institutions, respectively.

Approximately one month after Hamas’ attack on Israel, in this special edition of the JGI Policy Pulse your host is Dr. Shlomi Dinar, Dean of FIU’s Steven J. Green School of International & Public Affairs. Together with Miri Eisin, Director of the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism at Reichman University in Herzliya, Israel, and retired Colonel of the Israel Defense Forces, they go beyond the attack on October 7th to examine additional factors and challenges facing Israel, Gaza, the Palestinians, and the broader Middle East. 

Colonel (Ret.) Miri Eisin

COL (Ret.) Miri Eisin is the incoming Managing Director of the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism. COL (Ret.) Eisin served in the Israeli intelligence community and retired from active duty at the rank of full colonel in 2004. Over her twenty-year career in the military, she served as the deputy head of the combat intelligence corps, the personal assistant to the director of Military intelligence, and as the intelligence officer in combat units and research departments.

Shlomi Dinar

Shlomi Dinar is the dean of the Steven J. Green School of International and Public Affairs and a Professor in the Department of Politics and International Relations.

Dinar’s research interests lie at the intersection of international environmental politics, security, and negotiation. In particular, he has published in the area of conflict and cooperation over transboundary rivers (a field popularly known as ‘hydro-politics’). In addition, he works on the linkages between climate change and international water issues, particularly as such a relationship pertains to the resilience and effectiveness of international river basins and institutions, respectively.