Meet our Speakers
Our expert speakers come from both the security industry itself and from the world of academia. They come together on our stage to share best practice on behaviour detection in action and the outcomes of research providing proof of concept.
To find out more about the speakers who have addressed previous Behavioural Analysis conferences, click here.
Sandra Adiarte | PhD Researcher, Tactical Research Unit,
Bond University, Australia

Sandra is an internationally trained specialist for structured movement analysis (Laban Movement Analysis, Kestenberg Movement Profile ®) and the analysis of video footage in a forensic context. After a professional career in dance and pedagogy, she started her academic dive into psychology, dance and movement therapy and the behavioural sciences.
Currently, Sandra is enrolled as a PhD candidate at the Tactical Research Unit in Health Sciences and Medicine with Bond University, Australia. She investigates the practices of behaviour observation and threat assessment via human observers. Her research and lectures apply interdisciplinary and mixed-method approaches for the training of security, law enforcement and military personnel with the aim of supporting trainees and professionals in health care and security management through practice-based and field-oriented research.
Prof. Nazar Akrami | Department of Psychology, Perception and Cognition, Uppsala University, Sweden

Nazar Akrami is a professor of psychology at Uppsala University. His research interest falls within the area of personality and social psychology and includes attitudes, stereotyping and prejudice, personality niche-building processes, personality assessment, and extremism and radicalisation processes.
Over the past five years, he has been working on multidisciplinary projects on machine-learning models of personality assessment based on text, hate speech detection, and prediction of suicide risk, but mostly on digital risk assessment. He has more than 60 publications to his name, mainly in leading psychology and personality science journals.
Lt. Col (Retd.) Itzik Ashkenazi | Former Head of Security, Israel Broadcasting Authority; Head of Security, Eurovision Song Contest 2019 and Miss Universe 2021; and, Business Development Manager, VIP Security

Lieutenant Colonel (Retd.) Itzik Ashkenazi is the co-founder of Contego Security, which specialises in providing tailored, holistic homeland security solutions to its clients. With more than 30 years of experience in the defence and security arenas, Itzik gained practical knowledge in areas such as: governmental facilities security, security fieldwork, security architectural design of office buildings, critical site defence, residential compound security, VIP protection, advanced technologies integration and operations.
Prior to Contego Security, Itzik was the Head of Security for the Israeli Broadcasting Authority for more than 20 years. Before that, he was the Head of Security for the Israeli embassy in Mexico.
In 2019, he was in charge of security for the Eurovision Song Contest Security (Tel Aviv, Israel); in 2021, he was Head of Security for the Miss Universe beauty pageant held in Eilat; and, in 2021 he commenced his role as head of security for the Maccabiah. Last year, he was responsible for the challenging role of securing the Israeli media covering the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. Itzik continues to serve as the security coordinator for the ‘Hapoel Jerusalem’ basketball team.
Itzik holds two Bachelor’s degrees, one in Law and the other in Public Policy & Philosophy, and Masters in Public Policy and Administration. He is a professional mediator, helping to solve disputes between companies, organisations and individuals.
Dr. Aynabat Atayeva | Chief, International Hub on Behavioural Insights to Counter Terrorism, United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism,
Doha, State of Qatar

Dr. Atayeva is a national of Turkmenistan with over 20 years of experience of working with United Nations system. She is the Head of UNOCT Office in Doha, the State of Qatar, that performs three core functions: research in behavioural sciences to better understand the drivers and factors contributing to radicalisation leading to violent extremism and terrorism; capacity-building assistance to Member States, regional organisations and civil society partners to develop and implement programmes, projects and initiatives that integrate behavioural insights to counter terrorism; and communication, outreach and partnerships to share knowledge, expertise, experiences and lessons learned on behaviourally informed counter-terrorism interventions.
Prior to the current assignment, Aynabat worked an UNFPA Representative in Honduras, acting UNFPA Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Country Director for Serbia, the Republic of North Macedonia and Director for Kosovo, and a Programme Specialist in the Policy and Standards Division, UNFPA Headquarters in New York. Previously she served in the Office of the UNFPA Executive Director as a Special Assistant to the Deputy Executive Director of Programme, and as a Programme Specialist in the Division for Oversight Services at UNFPA HQ. She also served in various positions in the geographical divisions for Arab States, Europe and Central Asia, and conducted oversight and programme support missions in various field locations including Sudan, India, Vietnam, Turkey and Central Asia.
Dr. Atayeva carries MD in Internal Medicine from the Turkmen State Medical University and MSc. in Demography and Health from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, UK. She has published and contributed to over 15 works on medicine, public health and international development.
Philip Baum | Chair, Behavioural Analysis 2023; Managing Director, Green Light Ltd; and, Visiting Professor, Aviation Security, Coventry University

A security professional with an international civil aviation background, Philip’s reputation is built on his common-sense approach to risk management. He encourages others to think outside the box and develop effective security solutions capitalising on human intuition and the intelligent use of technology.
In 2021, he was the recipient of the Lifetime Service to Aviation Security Award presented by Emirates Group Security and Edith Cowan University.
Philip devised and developed T.R.A.P.® (Tactical Risk Assessment of People), a risk-based security system based on non-racial profiling, observational and questioning techniques. He has developed and chaired the Behavioural Analysis series of conferences, as well as the DISPAX World series, addressing unruly airline passenger behaviour, and Body Search. He was an expert witness in the United Kingdom’s House of Commons’ Home Affairs Committee inquiry into aviation security in the aftermath of the attempted downing of an aircraft by a suicide bomber on Christmas Day 2009.
He is a visiting professor of Aviation Security at Coventry University. He is an accredited instructor and courseware developer for both the Airports Council International (ACI) and the International Air Transport Association (IATA), for whom he has led projects around the globe. Currently he is working on both UNODC and UNOCT projects relating to behaviour detection and the behavioural sciences.
Philip was editor-in-chief of the global journal of airport and airline security, Aviation Security International, between 1997 and 2021. He also appears on CNN, Sky News and the BBC, providing expert comment on aviation security issues and is the first port of call for event organisers in need of a dynamic speaker or conference chair, regularly being called upon to facilitate debates at international symposia. In 2016, his book, Violence in the Skies: a history of aircraft hijacking and bombing, was published.
Sgt. Dominique Boulianne | Air Domain Program Manager,
Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Canada

Sergeant Dominique Boulianne is a French-Canadian police officer currently serving as the Air Domain Manager for Federal Policing Criminal Operations-Border Integrity Program with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). He is also the National Coordinator for the Canadian Airport Human Behaviour Investigative Technique Course (Jetway). During his service, he has lead multi-facet investigations. He has planned, organised and deployed several undercover operations, conducted numerous searches, and taken suspects, witnesses and victims’ interviews.
He has extensive experience in the area of human trafficking and organised crime, having participated in complex multi-jurisdictional and international criminal investigations in partnership with Canadian and foreign partners. His commitment to a specific international human trafficking investigation was recognised in 2014 when he was nominated by his peers and received the Quebec Police Award from political and public safety leaders.
Col. Dr. Mariusz Chmielewski | Assistant Professor,
Department of Cybernetics, Military University of Technology
and Deputy Commander, Cyber Defense Forces Component, Poland

Col. Mariusz Chmielewski, Ph.D., serves as Deputy Commander Polish Cyber Command and Assistant Professor at the Department of Cybernetics, Military University of Technology.
Since 2003 he has been actively involved in scientific and research tasks for decision support methods applied to medicine, security and national defence. He is the Chairman of the PL-US Communications Committee and expert in capability technology areas (CAPTECH) for the European Defence Agency (EDA) in the fields of new communication and IT technologies as well as simulation. Col. Chmielewski is responsible for the construction, implementation and maintenance of key ICT systems aimed at securing the key needs of the command and control system as well as the management of armed forces resources. He has managed eight, and developed 30, R&D projects in domain of battlefield modeling, computer simulation, command support, medical diagnostics and telemedicine.
Col. Chmielewski has been awarded (between 2010 and 2022) more than 110 medals and special awards at international invention competitions and exhibitions, of which four are Grand Prix.
Jiří Cmunt | Head of Production, Signal Festival, Czech Republic

Jiří Cmunt is Head of Production for the Signal Festival, the biggest event in the Czech Republic having around 500,000 visitors over four days; it takes place in Prague, mostly in public space.
One of the key aspects of Jiří’s job is implementing all the security precautions; this includes cooperation with the Integrated Rescue System (IRS – Police, Ambulance and Fire Department) of Prague, transport departments, and the public transportation company in order to secure safety for all the visitors whilst also maintaining the functionality of city traffic despite the restrictions. Security responsibilities also include the protection of artworks and performances, managing huge light installations and the display of art – presented in public space in night-time hours – that evokes emotion and controversy. The production of the Signal Festival is a complex task that needs a special approach; that is Jiří’s field of work.
Tim Colehan | Assistant Director, External Affairs,
International Air Transport Association (IATA), Switzerland

Tim is Assistant Director, Member and External Relations for IATA based in Geneva, Switzerland. He is responsible for policy analysis and development and working with member airlines, and other stakeholders to articulate and advocate industry positions to governments and regulators. He leads IATA’s advocacy work on unruly and disruptive passengers, human trafficking, data protection and the promotion of international air law treaties and recently led the safely reopening borders advocacy campaign in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Tim led the development of IATA’s policy, guidance, training materials, and awareness campaigns and to mobilize IATA’s global airline membership in the fight against human trafficking. He has participated in ICAO and UN OHCHR working groups that developed Circular 352 and 357 for states and operators.
Tim holds a Master’s in Air Transport Management from Cranfield University, UK and a Batchelor’s in Transport Management from Aston University, UK.
Sébastien Colmant | Director Aviation and Cyber Security,
ACI EUROPE (Airports Council International), Belgium

Sébastien Colmant joined ACI EUROPE in 2021 where he is responsible for aviation and cyber security. Sébastien has spent a whole career in aviation, predominantly in aviation security operations, policy and development.
He previously worked at IATA where he first supported the Smart Security project and later went on to supporting AVSEC advocacy efforts and delivering consulting support around the globe.
Prior to this, he was responsible for developing and maintaining efficient and compliant airport security processes at Charleroi Airport, Belgium.
Holding a Master’s degree in law, Sebastien started his career as a legal advisor for the Belgian Civil Aviation Authority.
Ng See Chong | Head TOPSIS, Centre for Protective Security,
Singapore Police Force, Singapore

Mr Ng See Chong is from the Centre for Protective Security, a staff department under the Singapore Police Force. He is in charge of the Threat-Oriented Person Screening Integrated System or, for short, TOPSIS.
TOPSIS is a security enhancement programme conceptualised in 2007 and subsequently progressively implemented at Singapore’s border checkpoints from 2009 onwards. Since 2018, Singapore has expanded TOPSIS to inland locations – on the homefront – enhancing security in sectors such as tourism, public transportation, energy, religious organisations and at institutes of higher learning.
As Head TOPSIS, Ng See Chong leads a team of TOPSIS consultants, who are subject-matter-experts in TOPSIS training and implementation. The main skillset that TOPSIS promulgates is behavioural analysis, focussing on techniques to detect suspicious indicators and resolve concerns arising via security questioning.
Kim Covent | Advisor, Ghent Local Police Force, Belgium

Currently serving as a police advisor, Kim Covent has over 12 years of experience in communication and policy in local law enforcement. She combines her background in education and journalism to graft courses on observation skills, non-verbal communication, and the theory of mind using gamification techniques.
Kim is one of the creators of the cross-disciplinary programme ‘Behind Enemy Minds’, teaching first-line police officers in spotting and understanding deviant behaviour. Furthermore, she advises and supports colleagues in the fields of situational crime prevention, museum security, and customer safety.
Alan Crawley | Universidad del Salvador; Academic Coordinator, Behavior & Law; Psychologist and Disseminator of Nonverbal Communication, Argentina

Alan graduated with an Honours in Psychology from the Universidad del Salvador (USAL) and has a diploma in Non-Verbal Communication from the Graduate School of Communication, Universidad Austral, Argentina (where he was a teaching assistant 2017-2018).
He is the academic coordinator of the postgraduate course “Analysis of Non-Verbal Communication” at the Heritage University, USA. He is a university professor in Research Methodology; postgraduate teacher in Spain for a Master’s programme in Non-Verbal Behaviour. Alan is the academic director of the 2021 online congress of Non-Verbal Communication organised by the Behavior and Law Foundation, Spain.
Alan has a certificate of specialisation in Recognition and Coding of Facial Movements with the FACS Method (Facial Action Coding System), whilst also being a scientific researcher for the Universidad del Salvador, a speaker and disseminator on social networks (YouTube and Instagram) under the pseudonym Sin Verba.
Dr. María Carmen Feijoo Fernández | Chair, ECAC Behaviour Detection Study Group and Head of Behaviour Detection, Adolfo Suárez Madrid Barajas Airport, Spain

Carmen is a First Corporal with 33 years of experience working at the Guardia Civil and she is currently working within the Madrid Airport Unit (Guardia Civil Customs and Borders Police Unit). She is Head of the Guardia Civil behaviour detection group and responsible for the ICARO (Identification of Anomalous Behaviour and Operative Response) project which develops and implements Spain’s behaviour detection programme.
Additionally, Carmen is the Chair of the ECAC (European Civial Aviation Conference) Behaviour Detection Study Group.
Carmen is a negotiator for crisis situations and an AVSEC trainer certified by Civil Aviation Authority in Spain (AESA).
Her university degree is in Clinical Psychology and Carmen has a Master’s degree in Forensic Psychology. She has a PhD in Psychology, for which her doctoral thesis was entitled, “Criminal behaviour analysis and deception detection in the airport context”.
Jacqui Hames | Detective (retired), Metropolitan Police; Co-Presenter (former) Crimewatch, BBC; Security Consultant; and, Psychotherapist, UK

Jacqui Hames is one of the United Kingdom’s most best-known real-life detectives having co-presented the BBC’s Crimewatch for 16 years in which she presented live television appeals to solve some of the country’s highest-profile crimes.
She has also reported on high profile cases for all the leading British television news channels, covering topics such as women’s safety, as well as analysing real-life crime stories including the Ipswich Murders, Raoul Moat, and the disappearance of Madeline McCann, whilst also working as a presenter for the BBC in series such as Break-in Britain.
Jacqui’s media role was borne out of her experience as a uniformed detective with the Metropolitan Police. Commencing in 1977, she performed general uniformed duties across London, providing or conducting victim support, missing persons and sudden death enquiries, public order duties, and serious crime investigation. She was appointed a detective in 1984, with various postings in south-west London, including at Heathrow Airport, Scotland Yard’s Organised Crime unit, Crimestoppers and the national Serious Crime Analysis Section. The latter assisted officers investigating murder, rape and abduction across the UK using behavioural, geographical, and statistical analysis; she eventually retired in 2008.
Investigations included missing persons, drugs, sexual offences, serious assaults, fraud, murder, serial rape enquiries, and infanticide. Jacqui was also attached to the anti-terrorist branch for Philbeach Gardens and Harrods bombing enquires.
Jacqui was actively involved in the UK’s Leveson Enquiry, pursuant to a media phone-hacking scandal of which she was herself a victim. In tune with the theme of Behavioural Analysis 2023, she also acted as a spokesperson for the Network for Surviving Stalking in broadcast media for their Trust Your Instinct campaign which aimed to raise awareness of how to recognise stalking behaviour.
She has been a regular host of the National Personal Safety Awards for the Suzi Lamplugh Trust, has hosted a seminar at the House of Commons on Cyber Security for the National Centre for Cyber Skills and was a regular presenter at Firefighters Charity Awards. Previous conferences include a two-day National Freight Crime Conference at Heathrow, and a two-day Road Haulage Association conference.
Qualified in integrative humanistic counselling by the Metanoia Institute, away from the media spotlight, Jacqui has her own private psychotherapy and counselling practice.
Neville Hay | Director of Training, INTERPORTPOLICE, UK

Neville has 38 years’ diverse experience within the security environment. He has wide-ranging operational and tactical experience at the heart of the UK’s strategic security sector and has worked closely with many key stakeholders within the aviation industry, UK government departments, and law enforcement agencies both domestically and internationally.
He was a member of the operational risk assessment group at Gatwick Airport and instrumental in the development of the National Crime Agency (NCA). His functional expertise lies in risk and threat assessment and its mitigation; operational situational and intelligence analysis; and, law enforcement within the aviation, transport, and infrastructure security environments.
Neville has worked with the UK government’s Centre for Protection of the National Infrastructure (CPNI) and that of national organisations’ strategic security management. He is part of the Airports Council International (ACI) global faculty and was instrumental in the compilation of INTERPORTPOLICE’s community security best practices for air and seaports.
Bishop Donna L. Hubbard | Director of Human Trafficking Education & Awareness, Airline Ambassadors International; Founder & Executive Director, Woman at the Well Transition Center; Flight Attendant, American Airlines; and Survivor Leader, USA

Donna Hubbard is employed as a flight attendant by American Airlines and is the Founder and Executive Director of Woman At The Well Transition Center based in Atlanta, Georgia. Donna Hubbard is a Survivor Leader and certified trainer in the fight against human trafficking with Airline Ambassadors International (AAI).
AAI leverages partnerships with the airline industry to help address their three primary projects: medical escort for vulnerable children, humanitarian aid to communities around the world, and advocating for awareness of human trafficking prevention in the aviation industry. Donna is AAI’s Director of Human Trafficking Education and Awareness and has facilitated trainings in locations as diverse as Hungary, Latvia, Kenya, Japan, Thailand, Philippines, Colombia, Iceland, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and South Korea.
Donna’s personal story is one she shares to help motivate and educate others from experiencing a similar fate. After falling into the hands of a pimp, she was sold to a gang, trafficked, and finally became gang property. Donna realised her only escape was imprisonment or death. Fortunately, Donna found her freedom in prison.
Once released, she founded Woman at the Well Transition Center, which provides training, counselling, and direct services to formerly incarcerated women and girls, including street intervention with trafficked girls and women, relapse prevention and employment readiness. Since 1998, WATWTC has served 10,000+ women, girls and families.
Donna has served on the ICAO Working Group to develop Human Trafficking Awareness protocols for cabin crew and, as a speaker for the Santa Marta Group at the United Nations where she received a standing ovation before the General Assembly. In January 2023, Donna received the ‘Sword and Shield Award’ from the Attorneys General Alliance.
Samuel Juchtman | Chief Security Officer, ACTS-Aviation Security, Inc., USA

After completing his military service in Israel, Sam started his aviation security career at the airport in Tel Aviv where he worked for several years in various different capacities. He was later to become the head of security for El Al Israel Airlines and the Israeli Embassy in Cyprus and, thereafter, head of security for El Al in the Czech Republic.
Sam was part of the group that developed the first behavior detection programme in the USA in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks and he also delivered training to many airports and police departments around the world. He joined the ICTS Europe group in 2005 and worked for ICTS UK as the Station Manager at London Heathrow and Birmingham airports before moving with ICTS Europe back to the USA. Sam is currently the Chief Security Officer for ACTS Aviation Security and President of ACTS Airport Services providing security services to both airports and airlines in the United States.
Thomas S. Karat | Behaviour Analyst, The Netherlands

Thomas is a senior manager for one of the world’s largest tech innovators, a company responsible for critical federal IT infrastructure. To accommodate for corporate business requirements related to credibility assessments and negotiations, Thomas obtained a string of certifications and diplomas related to behaviour analysis and deception detection. In addition, Thomas holds a Master of Science in Communication and Credibility Analysis from Manchester Metropolitan University and he conducted academic research related to deception in high-stakes negotiations.
Dr David Keatley | Professor in Criminology, School of Law, Murdoch University, Perth, Australia

Dr Keatley is an Associate Professor in Criminology and Chair of Crime Science at Murdoch University, Australia. David is also the Director of Researchers in Behaviour Sequence Analysis (ReBSA), Cold Case Review (CCR), and Forensic Linguistics Analysis Group (FLAG). David is a consultant to police departments around the world including Cold Case Task Forces in multiple countries. He has consulted on a number of current and cold criminal cases and has appeared on major television networks and podcasts. David collaborates on a number of international research projects into violent crime, including atypical homicide, sexual assault and rape cases, and interpersonal violence. This has resulted in over 70 academic publications and case reports. David has also published 3 books on criminal behaviour analysis.
Colonel Richard Kemp CBE | United Kingdom

Richard Kemp has spent most his life fighting terrorism and insurgency, commanding British troops on the front line of some of the world’s toughest hotspots, including Afghanistan, Iraq, the Balkans and Northern Ireland. He is now a writer, a prolific journalist, media commentator and motivational speaker. He provides strategic consultancy services on leadership, security, intelligence, counter-terrorism and defence.
Richard joined the British Army the day after he left school, spending the next 30 years in some of the world’s most notorious trouble spots. He first came under enemy fire on the Falls Road in Belfast and, during one of the eight tours of duty in Northern Ireland that followed, was wounded in a terrorist mortar attack in South Armagh. In 1993 he was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire by the Queen for intelligence work in Northern Ireland. He took part in the invasion of Iraq in 1991 and was decorated for bravery with the United Nations Protection Force in Bosnia in 1994.
Richard was sent to Kabul in 2003 to take command of British Forces in Afghanistan. To counter the increasing terrorist threat, Richard put together an unconventional force of British troops and US Marines. The Canadian general commanding international forces at the time said: “His [Richard’s] efforts led directly to the most successful offensive counter-terrorist operations in Kabul, with several key terrorist leaders now under arrest, significantly setting back the enemy campaign.”
Most of the last five years of Richard’s military career were spent in Downing Street as head of the international terrorism team at the Joint Intelligence Committee, where he was responsible for producing assessments on the growing global terrorist problem for the Prime Minister and the Cabinet. In 2005, he spent three months on a special intelligence assignment in Baghdad, Fallujah and Mosul.
He was also a member of Cobra, the UK government’s top-level crisis management committee. He Chaired the Cobra Intelligence Group, responsible for coordinating the work of the national intelligence agencies, including MI5 and MI6, during the July 2005 London bombings, the Madrid and Bali attacks and a number of high-profile political kidnappings. He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire for his work.
Since retiring from the Army, Richard has been responsible for security of one of the most threatened terrorist targets in London, has advised on countering the terrorist threat in New York and Mumbai, and was appointed special adviser on terrorism to the House of Commons Home Affairs Select Committee. He is a Senior Associate Fellow of the Royal United Services Institute, the world’s longest-established military think-tank; and a board member of Friends of Israel Initiative, Advancing Human Rights and NGO Monitor.
In 2007 and 2008 Richard led a campaign to recognise the sacrifice of British troops killed and wounded in action by the award of a medal similar to the US Purple Heart. This gained support of the majority of Members of Parliament as well as widespread support among serving and retired military personnel, and resulted in the institution by Her Majesty The Queen of The Elizabeth Cross, awarded now to the next of kin of all British servicemen and women killed on operations since the end of the Second World War.
Richard has undertaken speaking tours in the United States, Australia, South Africa and Europe, and shared platforms with former US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and former Australian Prime Minister John Howard. He is in great demand as a motivational, keynote and after-dinner speaker, covering topics including leadership, decision-making, crisis management, terrorism, intelligence, conflict and the challenges facing the Middle East.
Dr. Cliff Lansley | Director, Emotional Intelligence Academy, UK

Cliff is a Director of the Emotional Intelligence Academy (UK) – providing consultancy and related psychological services for emotional intelligence and high-stake deception detection contexts (including military/commercial /intelligence/security/fraud/police). His company delivers online, live/virtual behaviour analysis training up to MSc level (in partnership with Manchester Metropolitan University). He is the Scientific Advisor to Warner Bros/Discovery Channel (‘Faking it: Tears of a Crime’ now in Series 6). He is the author of a range of peer-reviewed publications, plus his book ‘Getting to the Truth’, which covers the behaviour analysis system his team and clients use.
He has been a keynote speaker for the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, ABRESCE, SRI, ECAC, AvSec(Rom), ICF, ICC, ASTD(ATD), the Chartered Institute for Professional Development, Euro Air Marshals, the Greater Manchester Police, DSI (UK), the Law Society, the International Bar Association, Euro Chamber of Commerce, plus multiple corporate/agency conferences globally. His recent Ph.D. research generated a new ability model for emotional intelligence, which is the basis for new diagnostic and assessment instruments that will measure EQ in a similar way to IQ – first for adults and later this year for children.
Aaron Le Boutillier | Regional Vice President (South-East Asia), ASIS International; PhD. Candidate, Rangsit University; and,
CEO, Le Boutillier Group, Thailand

For more than 25 years, Aaron been involved in all aspects of corporate and aviation security, running complex multi-million-dollar fraud investigations to leading close protection details for some of the world’s most well-known names and brands. He runs specialised defensive tactics and self-preservation courses for law enforcement and special forces units and, alongside Dr. Rodney King, developed the ‘Weaponise your Body’ programme.
Aaron is an accredited (International Coaching Federation) coach, holds a master’s in criminology, is currently undertaking a master’s in Neuroscience at Kings College, London, and is a Ph.D. candidate in Criminology at Rangsit University, Thailand. He is the author of ‘And Then One Morning’, which recounts his survival of the 2004 tsunami; he ran the ‘Marathon Des Sables’ across the Sahara Desert in 2015 and the ‘Coastal Challenge’ across the rain forests of Costa Rica in 2017; and, he is the creator and owner of Tree Roots Retreat. In 2019, Aaron received his honorary Thailand Special Forces wings for his involvement in the Chiang Rai cave rescue.
Dr. Karel Lehmert | Head, CBRNe Forensic Sampling Laboratory,
Czech Republic

Karel has been working in the field of global counterterrorism and security for 20 years. He worked as an inspector for the National Office for the Prohibition of Biological Weapons and then, as part of the General Secretariat of INTERPOL, he served as a scientific expert in the field of bioterrorism. Later, as head of the CBRNe forensic laboratory, he led research projects related to nanotechnology, security and natural sciences, as well as contracts for law enforcement.
In addition to forensic work, Karel participates as an expert on security projects for domestic and foreign entities. Beyond CBRNe projects, he also deals with psychology, especially suggestive and manipulative negotiation. Karel developed specific competencies by completing courses in neurolinguistic programming with hypnosis and tactical profiling of persons at risk. Throughout his life, he has been engaged in teaching and research activities both within the security forces and in the academic sphere.
In addition to forensics-related MBA and LLM, Karel has three doctorates – in Forensic Chemistry, Social Work and he is a Doctor of Philosophy in infectious diseases and epizootiology.
Krystyna Ljubymenko | Lecturer, Tomas Bata University (Zlín) Faculty of Applied Informatics & CEO, BD & Protection s.r.o., Czech Republic

Krystyna started as a security technician and security guard, subsequently gaining further valuable experience as a security director of the Clementinum historic complex in Prague in the areas of technical, physical and fire protection, as well as the coordination of social events.
During her studies, she focussed on behavioural analysis and the detection of suspicious behaviour and, as a result, she participated in the creation and training of the BDO (behaviour detection officer) team at Prague Airport. Nowadays, Krystyna focuses on security training, the recruitment of security personnel and developing ways of engaging with, and educating, both the lay public and security professionals in behavioural detection techniques. She works as a consultant and also as an external lecturer at the Tomas Bata University in Zlin.
Dr Sarah Lloyd | Research Consultant and Senior Trainer,
Pace (Parents Against Child Exploitation), UK

Sarah’s professional background is in youth and community work and parent support. She has worked in the voluntary sector within the UK for over 20 years, mainly in the field of exploitation. Her doctorate explored social workers’ understandings of child sexual exploitation (CSE) and sexually exploited girls. She was awarded the Association of Child Protection Professionals Research and Practice award in 2019. Her paper, ‘She doesn’t have to get in the car: exploring social workers’ understandings of sexually exploited girls as agents and choice-makers’, was published in Children’s Geographies in 2019.
Since completing her PhD, Sarah has worked as a trainer and evaluator within a multi-agency child exploitation team in South Yorkshire, UK. She currently works at Pace (Parents Against Child Exploitation) as a senior trainer and research co-ordinator. She has also worked as a trainer for the Contextual Safeguarding Network and as an evaluator on a number of independent evaluations relating to CSE and the abuse of women and girls.
Her main area of interest is contextual safeguarding, supporting both the parents affected by child exploitation and the professionals’ understandings of the agency of exploited young people.
Prof. Galit Nahari | Head of Department of Criminology,
Bar-Ilan University, Israel

Galit is a professor in the Department of Criminology at Bar-Ilan University, Israel. She is currently the head of the department and its M.A. Criminology track and serves as the Editor-in-Chief of Legal and Criminological Psychology (LCP). Recently, she initiated and now manages a graduate programme in investigative interviewing.
Her research spans over a variety of topics in deception, investigative interviewing and decision-making. A prime contribution of her work is the widely recognised Verifiability Approach that has impacted both research orientation and professional training in verbal lie detection. She places a high emphasis on ecological validity and relevancy to the ‘real world’; thus, she works closely with practitioners, promoting fruitful academia-field cooperation in higher education, research and training. She advises, lectures and conducts research and training workshops on verbal lie detection nationally and internationally.
Pauline Norstrom | CEO, Anekanta Consulting, UK

Pauline’s background in security technology has led her to research, analyse and apply AI based video analytics technology to solve safety and security challenges across a wide range of sectors , including transportation, aviation, critical national infrastructure, and smart cities. She has held several executive board positions in R & D companies over the last 30 years, and now runs an independent strategic advisory firm which assesses the impact and risks of using high-risk AI technology in the sectors.
She is a champion of the ethical and legal application of AI, playing a significant role in the development of several standards and best practice guides. From digital evidence to privacy enhancing techniques and now the latest guide to the ethical and legal use of facial recognition software, published by the BSIA in early 2021. She is a former chair, honorary member, and strategic advisor on AI technology. She also recently presented the guide for the BSIA to the CoESS general assembly in Brussels. The guide will soon become a new British Standard leading the way in the operationalisation of trustworthy AI principles.
She recently presented research and evidence to the UK’s All Party Parliamentary Group for AI on the use of facial recognition software for national security, and in 2023 returned to the House of Lords to provide evidence of the use of AI by Boards. She is also a fellow of the Institute of Directors and a member of its Expert Advisory Group for Technology, Science and Innovation responsible for the creation of a new “AI in the Boardroom” guide for Directors.
Pauline is a regular author, speaker, awards judge, and contributor about AI, video surveillance, biometrics and cyber security and has also been recognised through a number of awards for her contribution to the security industry.
Diana Nowek | Behavioural Profiler and Trainer in Behaviour Recognition; Director, Institute of Nonverbal Communication; and, Researcher, Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien, Austria

Diana is a behavioural profiler and a researcher investigating behaviour recognition through technology. For many years, she has been running a training and consulting firm called the Institute of Nonverbal Communication, under which she carries out research using biosensors. As a strategic advisor and trainer on behavioural science, she has worked for both the European Coast Guard Agency and the International Organization of Migration. She is currently working for the UNOCT (United Nations Office for Counter Terrorism) International Hub on Behavioural Insights to Counter Terrorism.
Diana Nowek combines academic, psychological, and training knowledge on non-verbal communication and behavioural analysis with a practical command of emotion recognition technologies and lie detectors based on artificial intelligence. She has trained police officers and border guards from many European countries and other regions. In cooperation with the European Agency, Diana developed and conducted specialised workshops on predictive profiling. She is also a co-author of courses on the detection of dangerous behaviours and victims at airports and border crossing points and author of the, ‘Manual for Border-related Behaviour Recognition’.
Catherine Piana | Director General, Confederation of European Security Services (CoESS) and Director General, International Aviation Security Services Association – (ASSA-i), Belgium

Catherine is the spokesperson of the private security industry to the EU and international institutions and stakeholders. She covers a wide range of subjects, including Transport Security, AI, Insider Threat, the protection of Critical Infrastructure and Public Spaces. Catherine was the coordinator of the EU-funded project AITRAP on the Insider Threat – with DHL and Securitas – that led to the creation of the e-learning platform Help2Protect.
A European lobbyist by profession, Catherine has been in a trade association leadership role since 1997. Influence, and understanding how human beings function and communicate is her passion and subject of research.
Academic background and certificates: Masters in Translation (Italian, English, French), Certificates in Counterterrorism, Neurolinguistics (MP NLP), Coaching, Hypnosis, Certified Trainer. She has delivered training in negotiation, charisma, leadership skills and is a guest speaker at Nancy University, France, and at the New Buckinghamshire University’s School of Aviation and Security, UK. Catherine can communicate in six languages (French, English, Italian, Spanish, Dutch and German).
Jiří Pos | Chairman of the Board of Directors, Prague Airport, Czech Republic

Jiří Pos was elected as a Chairman of the Board of Directors on 30 August 2021, having returned to Prague Airport after a seven-years away. He originally joined Prague Airport in 2006 and was Chairman of the Board of Directors and its CEO from 2011 to 2014. From 2014 to 2015, he was a member of the Board of Directors of Czech Aeroholding. After leaving, he developed his private business activities, mainly in the field of civil aviation and tourism. From 2019 to 2021, he also served as Managing Director of Karlovy Vary Airport.
Jiří Pos started his career in aviation in 1986 at Czech Airlines, where he worked for twenty years. He worked abroad for the Czech carrier from 1994 to 2001 and was Vice President for Ground Operations from 2003 to 2006. He graduated from the Czech Technical University in Prague with a degree in economics of aircraft manufacturing from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering.
Mi Ridell | Nonverbal Communication Analyst, Sweden

As an accomplished actress and a nonverbal communication analyst educated by former FBI Special Agent Joe Navarro, Mi Ridell brings together two powerful skills she teaches the Swedish Police Authority, Customs, Military Forces, Security Service and Correctional Service: how to decipher the human behaviour of others and how to behave yourself. Because Shakespeare was right in that, “All the world is a stage” on which we perform. Mi is also brought in by TV and media to decode the body language of politicians and celebrities at speeches, debates, and other public events. By implementing her empirical skills, she teaches her audience how to decipher the nonverbal cues and make the unconscious leakage that we all do more conscious. She authored the Swedish book, “The body never lies – the art of reading body language”, together with former undercover agent Lucas Bruhn (pseudonym).
Dr. Lenka Scheu | Police University of the Czech Republic, Czech Republic

Lenka graduated from the Law Faculty of Charles University in 2017 when she defended her Ph.D, thesis “Common policy on environmental protection in the light of the regulation of the internal market of the European Union”. She started her professional career in 2009 at the legislative department of the Czech Ministry of the Environment. In 2017 and 2018 she lectured on various legal subjects at the Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague. Since 2019 she has been teaching administrative law at the Police University of the Czech Republic. Lenka also leads a number of research projects at the Institute of State and Law of the Czech Academy of Sciences. In her research she focuses on issues of administrative procedure related to security forces, occupational health and safety, illegal employment, and whistleblowing. She has authored or co-authored articles in the above-mentioned fields and she is a co-author of the Commentary to the Czech Administrative Code.
Otomar Sláma | Co-Owner, Crowd Safety s.r.o. & Chairman of the Board, Charles University Innovations Prague a.s., Czech Republic

Otomar specialises in crowd safety management, having been active in the field of physical security for over 10 years gaining experience in event, nightclub and discotheque security, as well as in escorting VIPs. He later became involved in crisis and security management. Otomar is currently completing his doctoral studies at the Faculty of Safety Engineering at the Mining University – Technical University of Ostrava.
In addition to safety, Otomar has a passion for the world of innovation and new technologies. He studied public policy in research, development and innovation, as well as international relations and European studies; he holds an MBA in crisis management. Otomar enjoys lecturing about new technologies, innovation and safety – in the Czech Republic and overseas – both within academic settings and within the commercial sphere.
Kanan Tandi | CEO, Cognicue Analytics Private Ltd., India

Kanan Tandi is an MBA from a premier business institute in India and has been always interested in human behaviour. She started her own body language and micro-expressions reading and decoding training firm in 2014 and has also worked as head of human resources in a start-up. Kanan’s love for psychology led to her doing her Masters in the subject and, currently, she is aiming to make the world judgement free and honest through her start-up CogniCue.
Zdeněk Truhlář | Security Strategy and Administration Director,
Prague Airport, Czech Republic

Zdenek graduated from the Czech Technical University and commenced his aviation security career from the regulatory side – with the Ministry of Transport/Civil Aviation Department. Later, he transferred to Prague Airport where, for more than 10 years, he was the Director of Security Control (the unit responsible for screening of passengers and baggage). In 2016,he moved to his current role as Director of Security Strategy and Administration (the unit responsible for maintaining airport security strategy documents, the administration of security technologies, security administrative processes and the Airport Security Training Centre).
In his present capacity, Zdenek is actively engaged in developing the airport’s long-term security strategy, looking for the right balance between risks and mitigation measures, delivering an appropriate combination of different technical and procedural means to maintain the requisite level of security. For many years, Zdenek has been a member of ACI Europe’s Aviation Security Committee.
Elsine van Os | CEO, Signpost Six, The Netherlands

Elsine is the founder and CEO of Signpost Six, a global insider risk consultancy firm. She works on mitigating threats from nation state espionage and organised crime at multinational organisations. She is a regular public speaker at international forums. Elsine has several academic affiliations, among others with the Dutch Defence Academy and she is a peer reviewer of the Counter-Insider Threat Research and Practice in the US.
Elsine has an educational and professional background in psychology and intelligence and security. She has worked on high profile assignments for the Dutch Ministry of Defence and Shell International, where she was responsible for security threat assessment at country, asset and individual levels worldwide. She has worked in various capacities in over 50 countries. She is also the owner of Signpost Film Productions which produced a documentary about Edward Snowden.
Dr. Barbora Vegrichtova | Associate Professor, Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Czech Technical University, Czech Republic

Barbora is an Associate Professor at the Czech Technical University having attained her Ph.D. in Security and Law Studies. Her primary research focus lies in security studies and criminal sciences. She has published several papers on radicalisation, terrorism, gang sub-cultures, criminal symbols and rituals.
Her professional career started in 2000 with the Criminal Police and Investigation Service, and later, at the Organised Crime Unit of the Czech Police, she was responsible for investigating and detecting drug crimes and related criminality, organised crime in the field of extremism and terrorism, as well as money forgery. Since 2011, Barbora has served as an academic employee continuously developing her position as a leading researcher, organising and leading training programmes and courses of further education on topics such as radicalisation, extremist manifestations, online propaganda, indicators of radicalisation in prison facilities, migration, gender and integrated border management. She performs as an expert to, and provides tuition for, the ICMPD, EUROPOL, CEPOL, different law enforcement authorities and prestigious universities in European countries, as well as in Iraq, Pakistan, Lebanon, India, Qatar, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, and Armenia.
Dr. Sagit Yehoshua | Author, ‘Terrorist Minds: from social-psychological profiling to assessing the risk’, and Criminologist, Reichman University, Herzliya and Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel

Sagit is a criminologist, specialising in criminal and terrorist profiling, radicalisation and de-radicalisation processes and the application of risk assessments. Sagit was awarded her PhD by Kings College in London, UK; her doctoral thesis was entitled ‘The social-psychological profile of terrorist leaders in Israeli prisons’.
She is a Research Fellow at the Institute of Counter-Terrorism (I.C.T.), Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel, and in 2009, became an Atkin Research Fellow at ICSR- International Centre for the Study of De-radicalisation at King’s College London. Sagit also lectures at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and is a member of ‘Forum Devorah’ which supports women in national security and foreign policy.
Sagit has extensive experience as a consultant for official intelligence agencies, multi-national corporations and private sector risk management companies. She is a recognised profiler and risk assessor of extremists in both Israel and overseas. Sagit is a qualified NLP therapist, specialising in trauma and difficult life circumstances and a published author of academic book, ‘Terrorist Minds: From Social-Psychological Profiling to Assessing the Risk’.