Dr. Yagoub Al-Kandari is member of the Advisory Board. Dr. Al-Kandari is a Professor of Sociology and Anthropology. He is the Director of Gulf and Arabian Peninsula Center in Kuwait University. He was the former Dean of the College of Social Sciences. Dr. Al-Kindari was a Chief Editor of several academic journals and research centers in the GCC states. Also, he served as Dean Assistant of College of Graduate Studies of Academic and Acting Chair of Sociology and Social Work Department at Kuwait University. He has 145 published works (30 books and has 70 published scientific papers in refereed journals with many other publications in conferences proceedings). Dr. Al-Kandari is a member of many local, regional, and international associations. He received his Master and Ph.D. degrees from The Ohio State University, USA, Major in Anthropology. He is the Recipient of six scientific awards; one of them is the State Award for Scientific Production Award.

His Excellency, Dr. Mohammed Bin Saleh Al-Sada is member of the Advisory Board. His Excellency was Minister of Energy and industry and Chairman of the Board of Qatar Petroleum during the period from 2011 to 2018.  He was also Managing Director of QP during the period from 2011 – 2014. Earlier, from 2007 to 2011, H.E. was Minister of State for Energy and Industry Affairs and Member of the Cabinet.

During his tenure, His Excellency assumed leading roles in various government and semi-government organizations. He was a member of the Supreme Council for Economic Affairs and Investment, Chairman of RasGas, Chairman of Qatar Gas Transport Company Ltd. (NAKILAT) and Qatar Electricity & Water Company (QEWC). H.E. was also the Chairman of the Permanent Water Resources Committee (PWRC) at Qatar General Electricity and Water Corporation (Kahramaa).

H.E. Dr. Al-Sada has over 35 years of experience in the energy sector.  In 1983, he joined Qatar Petroleum (QP) and started a lifetime career in the oil and gas business. He moved up the corporate ladder and assumed a number of managerial positions. In 1997, he was appointed QP Technical Director, where he successfully directed the execution of a number of major oil, gas and infrastructure projects. In 2006, he was appointed Managing Director of RasGas Company Limited (RasGas).

In 2017, the Energy Institute of the UK presented Dr. Al-Sada with The International “Oil Diplomacy Man of the Year” Award. The award was in appreciation of Dr. Al-Sada’s efforts and contribution to the restoration of balance to the oil market during Qatar’s tenure as President of OPEC Conference in 2016.

In November 2020, His Majesty Emperor Naruhito of Japan awarded HE Dr. Al-Sada the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun, the highest decoration conferred by the Japanese Government, for his efforts in developing and further strengthening friendship and cooperation between Qatar and Japan. His Excellency currently holds the position of “Chairman of Qatar Solar Technologies” (QSTec).

An active member of the Qatari community, His Excellency was a member of the Qatar Foundation Board of Directors. In addition, he is the Chairman of the Joint Advisory Board (JAB) at Texas A & M University Qatar (TAMUQ) and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the University of Doha for Science and Technology. And a member of the Advisory Board of GCC Supreme Council.  He is also the Chairman of the Advisory Committee of the Children’s Museum,  and He was the Chairman of the Qatar University Alumni Association.

H.E. Dr. Al-Sada was a founding member of the National Committee for Human Rights. He also served as a member of the Permanent Constitution Preparation Committee and the Supreme Education Council.

His Excellency holds an MSc degree and a PhD from the University of Manchester in the UK and a BSc degree in Marine Science and Geology from Qatar University.

His Excellency is married and has five children.

Dr. Abdulaziz Sager is a member of the Advisory Board. Dr. Sager is a Saudi strategic expert specializing in international politics and regional security issues relating to the Middle East and North Africa region. Dr. Sager is the founder and chairman of the Gulf Research Center. Dr. Sager is a member of various councils, advisory and academic committees, institutes, and international research centers. He is also a guest professor at several universities.

Dr. Sager participates in a wide range of international and regional conferences that address issues pertaining to the Gulf region. Notably, he has authored and edited numerous publications and has many articles in local and international newspapers relating to Gulf affairs and regional issues, and he frequently contributes to major international media outlets. He is also the editor-in-chief of both Araa, a monthly Arabic-language magazine focused on Gulf affairs, and The Gulf Yearbook.

Dr. Sager holds a PhD in politics and international relations from Lancaster University, a master’s degree from the University of Kent, and a bachelor’s degree from the Faculty of Economics and Administration at King Abdulaziz University.

Professor James Gavrilis is member of the Advisory Board. Professor Gavrilis has a diverse background in academia, business, and the military. He is a former U.S. Army officer with over 24 years of experience in command and staff. He has served overseas in Africa, Europe, and the Middle East in training, peacekeeping, and combat operations, and he has served in the Pentagon on the Joint Chiefs of Staff. After retiring from the Army, Jim worked for DRS Technologies, Inc. and other private sector defense contractors. He has taught graduate courses at Georgetown University and George Washington University, and has taught at the State Department’s Foreign Service Institute. Jim has worked as a Senior Adviser for the Center of Naval Analyses and the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics laboratory. He frequently lectures at universities, think-tanks, private companies, and government agencies, and he provides commentary and conducts interviews with numerous news organizations.

His Excellency Dr. Abu Bakr Al-Qirbi is member of the Advisory Board. Dr. Al-Qirbi is a former Minister of Foreign Affairs for the Republic of Yemen. He is the longest-serving Foreign Minister of Yemen, occupying the post from 2001 to 2014. From 1982-1987, he was the Dean of the Medical School of Sana’a University. In 1993, he was appointed Yemeni Minister of Education. He has a background in medicine, and received degrees from the Universities Edinburgh, Liver- pool and London.

Tim Constantine is member of the Advisory Board. Tim Constantine hosts “The Capitol Hill Show” every weekday from Washington, D.C., broadcasting to listeners all across the United States. He combines his background in TV and radio, his experience in public office, his controversial fall from grace and his hard-nose business approach with his understated sense of humor for the most-entertaining radio program anywhere.

Tim has the unique position among talk radio’s elite as having been on the other side of the interview microphone almost as much as he’s been the one asking the questions. Never mean, but always seeking truth and accuracy, he is a breath of fresh air in today’s world of mindless talking points from the left or the right. He is “America’s Voice of Reason.”

Dr. Sheikha Abdulla Al-Misnad is member of the Advisory Board. Dr. Al-Misnad is Qatar University’s fifth President and one of Qatar’s leading educators and a partner in many initiatives toward the fulfillment of national development strategies.

A distinguished alumnus of Qatar University, Prof. Al-Misnad is a champion of education and life-long learning. She earned a BA in Education followed by a Diploma in Education in 1978 at QU. She received her Ph.D. in Education from Durham University, UK with a thesis entitled “The Development of Modern Education in the Gulf States with Special Reference to Women’s Education” which was published by Ithaca Press, London in 1985.

Before assuming the presidency of QU in 2003, Prof. Al-Misnad served in several positions in teaching, administration, and research, including Vice President for Research and Community Development at QU (2000-2003) and Head of the Department of Foundations of Education (1992-1995). She also served as a member of the University Council (1986-1989 and 1998-2004).

Since her appointment in 2003 Prof. Al-Misnad has made substantial contributions to academic reform at QU and within the education system in Qatar. She has guided substantial academic reforms in curriculum and programs, and in administrative structure and functions at QU, making incremental changes in line with the needs of the community and the vision of the country’s leadership. Under her leadership, the university achieved international accreditation for a wide range of Masters and doctoral-level graduate programs featuring subjects of critical importance to Qatar and the region. She presides over the steady progress of efforts to establish the university as a regional leader in research.

Ambassador John Limbert is member of the Advisory Board. Ambassador Limbert is a retired Foreign Service Officer and academic. In 2018 he ended twelve years as Class of 1955 Professor of Middle Eastern Studies at the U.S. Naval Academy. During a 34-year dip­lomatic career, he served mostly in the Middle East and Islamic Africa (including two tours in Iraq). He was Ambassador to the Islamic Republic of Mauritania and served as deputy assistant secretary of state responsible for Iranian affairs. Beginning in 1964, he worked in Iran as a university and high school teacher, and later served at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, where he was held hostage in 1979-81. He has authored numerous books and articles on Middle Eastern subjects.

Ambassador Anne W. Patterson is member of the Advisory Board. Previously, Ambassador Patterson was the Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern and North African Affairs at the Department of State (2013-2017). She served as Ambassador to Egypt (2011-2013), to Pakistan (2007-2010), to Colombia (2000-2003) and to El Salvador (1997-2000). She retired in 2017 with the rank of Career Ambassador after more than four decades in the Foreign Service. Ambassador Patterson also served as Assistant Secretary of State for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs and as Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations.

Patterson was named one of Foreign Policy’s 100 Top Global Thinkers in 2011. She is a two-time recipient of the State Department’s Distinguished Service award. She has been appointed to two congressional commissions: the Commission on National Defense Strategy in 2017 and the Syria Study Group in 2019.

Ambassador Frances Dee Cook is member of the Advisory Board. Ambassador Cook is a career Foreign Service Officer, was sworn in as the U.S. Ambassador to the Sultanate of Oman in 1995. Ambassador Cook joined the Foreign Service in 1967. Her first assignment after language training was Special Assistant to Sargent Shriver, Ambassador to France from 1968-1969. Her language skills included fluent French and Arabic. She served in virtually all the professional fields of the Foreign Service. Ambassador Cook is a Senior Advisor at GardaWorld Federal Services. Ambassador Cook has served in the following capacities: member of the U.S. Delegation to Paris Peace Talks on Vietnam, 1970-1971; U.S. Consulate General, Sydney, Australia, 1971-1973; U.S. Embassy, Dakar, Senegal, 1973-1975; Personnel Officer for Africa, USIA, 1975-1977; Director of the Press Office, Bureau of African Affairs, Department of State, 1978-1980; Ambassador to the Republic of Burundi, 1980-1983; Consul General, Alexandria, Egypt, 1983-1986; Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for International Assistance, Bureau of Refugee Programs, 1986-1987; Director, Office of West Africa Affairs, Department of State, 1987-1989; Ambassador to the Republic of Cameroon, 1989-1993; Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Regional Security Affairs, Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, 1993-1995.

Stavro G Soussou is member of the Advisory Board. He specializes in the U.S. Government contracts for both DOD and DOS. He graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering from University College Of Cardiff, Cardiff, Wales, United Kingdom now known as the University of Wales. In 1982 he immigrated to the United States and took residence in New Jersey, and in the same year he started a career as a Mechanical Sales Engineer for international construction projects, namely the Middle East, the Far East and South East Asia. In 1993 he established Cimmaron International Corporation, a U.S. based international engineering sales company that represents several manufacturers and supports U.S. and International contractors working on international construction projects. Over the years developed strong business relationships and ties with numerous companies in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, Japan, Korea, Singapore, Greece, Spain, Italy, the United Kingdom, Germany, to name a few.