Our Experts

Experts displayed by Issue: Extremism

Sasha Havlicek

Co-Founder and CEO

Sasha Havlicek is Co-Founder and CEO of ISD, having spearheaded ISD’s pioneering research and data analysis, digital education, policy advisory, training, tech and communications programmes.

Moustafa Ayad

Executive Director; Africa, the Middle East and Asia (AMEA)

Moustafa Ayad is Executive Director at ISD for Africa, the Middle East and Asia (AMEA).

Milo Comerford

Director of Policy & Research, Counter-Extremism

Milo Comerford heads ISD's research approaches and policy responses to extremisms. His writing and research features frequently in international media and he has made recent broadcast appearances on BBC News, Sky News and Al Jazeera.

Jacob Davey

Director of Policy & Research, Counter-Hate

Jacob Davey is the Director of Research & Policy for Far-right and Hate Movements at ISD.

Katherine Keneally

Director of Threat Analysis and Prevention, ISD US

Katherine is the Director of Threat Analysis and Prevention, ISD US, where she leads the strategic thinking and projects that track online to offline threats of political violence across the ideological spectrum at the intersection of extremism, hate and disinformation in the US. She additionally advises civil society, law enforcement and government stakeholders on political violence detection, prevention and rapid response.

Melanie Smith

Director of Research, ISD US

Melanie Smith is the Director of Research for ISD US. Based in Washington DC, she leads a team of analysts focused on detecting, exposing and mitigating the threats associated with online information operations. Melanie was previously the Director of Analysis at the network analytics firm Graphika, re-joining ISD in 2021 to expand the organization’s research portfolio in the US. Her recent work has focused on topics like state-backed influence campaigns, public health misinformation and election-related violence.

Tim Squirrell

Director of Communications and Editorial

Tim Squirrell has extensive experience advising governments and others on counter-extremism and counter-terrorism, particularly far-right and neo-Nazi movements, incels and misogynist communities, and esoteric threats such as school shooters.

Simeon Dukić

Deputy Director of Global Engagement, Strong CIties Network

Simeon Dukić is the Deputy Director of Global Engagement for Strong Cities, overseeing the Network’s Regional Hubs in the Western Balkans and South Asia.

Jakob Guhl

Senior Manager, Policy & Research

Jakob Guhl works within the Digital Research Unit and with ISD Germany. His research focuses on the far-right, Islamist extremism, hate speech, disinformation and conspiracy theories.

Jared Holt

Senior Research Analyst, ISD US

Jared Holt is a Senior Research Analyst overseeing ISD’s work on hate and extremist movements in the US. He draws on his experience as an investigative reporter to help explain extremism's influence on politics, safety and democracy.