Policy & Advisory

For over a decade, ISD has driven international debate and pioneered innovative policy-making to counter extremism, hate, disinformation and polarisation.

ISD formulates and advocates policy change at the international, national and local levels. We do this in order to support central and local governments, cities and international organisations in designing and delivering targeted responses to hate, extremism, terrorism, polarisation and disinformation.

We have delivered strategic advice and training to over 44 governments and 135 cities worldwide, providing both the subject-specific expertise and local insights to drive effective action across the civil society, private and public sectors.

ISD’s approach is rooted in rigorous data analysis, as well as experience pioneering and evaluating new approaches in contexts across the globe. Combined, these allow us to navigate the sensitivities and complexities of such topics as they evolve.

Our policy leadership has led the charge on many emerging areas and threats, including:

ISD is uniquely positioned to consult and convene a wide spectrum of stakeholders from the grassroots through to government. We contribute to policy reform and consultation with platforms like the EU, United Nations and national ministries, while maintaining an ongoing partnership with the community organisations, activists and youth groups who can enact change from the bottom up.

Policy & Advisory Programmes

Strong Cities Network
ISD recognises that cities are uniquely placed to safeguard their citizens from polarisation and radicalisation to create stronger and safer communities. Our global network of mayors, municipal-level policy makers and practitioners to build social cohesion and resilience to counter violent extremism in all its forms.

Digital Policy
Our digital policy analysis and advice seeks to create a safer online space that encourages free speech whilst championing human rights. We use our position as an independent expert organisation to help governments, tech companies and researchers generate coordinated responses to these issues.

Global Counterterrorism Forum
ISD co-chairs the Global Counterterrorism Forum’s initiative on ‘Strategic Communications and Social Media Aspects in Preventing/Countering Violent Extremism’.

Good Web Project
We advise governments, cities and tech companies on policies and strategies to mitigate the online harms we face today and achieve a ‘Good Web’ that reflects our liberal democratic values, prioritises safety and public health, and sanctions harmful activity online.

The FREE Initiative
The FREE Initiative is the first pan-European resource to offer practical guidance on countering far-right extremism across Europe. It aims to inspire and promote cross-border learning among those working against violent far-right extremism.

ISD’s Policy & Advisory team

Eric Rosand
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Eric Rosand

Director of the Strong Cities Network

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Eric Rosand
Eric Rosand

Director of the Strong Cities Network

Eric is the Director of the Strong Cities Network. He has nearly two decades of experience working on international counterterrorism and countering violent extremism issues, including as a senior counterterrorism and countering violent extremism official in the U.S. Department of State. There, he played a leading role in developing and launching a number of multilateral platforms, including the Global Counterterrorism Forum, GCERF, and the SCN. Among other roles, he previously served as legal and counterterrorism adviser at the US Mission to the UN in New York and a co-director of the Global Center on Cooperative Security. In addition to his current affiliation as a non-resident Senior Associate Fellow with the Royal United Services Institute, Eric has held similar appointments at the Brookings Institution and NYU’s Center on International Cooperation.
Milo Comerford
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Milo Comerford

Head of Policy & Research, Counter-Extremism

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Milo Comerford
Milo Comerford

Head of Policy & Research, Counter-Extremism

Milo Comerford is Head of Policy & Research, Counter Extremism, leading ISD’s work developing innovative research approaches and policy responses to extremism. Milo regularly briefs senior decision makers around the world on the challenge posed by extremist ideologies, and advises governments and international agencies on building effective strategies for countering extremism. He was previously Senior Analyst at the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, where he led major research projects on Salafi-jihadi propaganda, international educational responses to extremism, and the transnational far right. His writing and research features frequently in international media and he has made recent broadcast appearances on BBC News, Sky News and Al Jazeera.
Jiore Craig
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Jiore Craig

Head of Digital Integrity

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Jiore Craig
Jiore Craig

Head of Digital Integrity

Jiore Craig is the Head of Elections and Digital Integrity at ISD where she works across elections, democracy, and the wider impact of online harms on society. In addition to leading election programming, Jiore advises global leaders on mitigating online harms in general, including work to advance tech policy reform and tech accountability at a global scale. She has extensive international experience, previously spending eight years helping elected officials, political leaders, media organizations, academic institutions and civic society organizations across five continents to research, measure, and effectively mitigate the impact of disinformation and influence operations on public opinion and elections. She previously built a digital research and communications practice serving Europe, Asia, Africa, South and Central America, and the US at a global political consulting firm. Jiore’s work informed the design of major coalition efforts to counter disinformation in the 2020 US and 2019 European Parliament elections. In 2022, Jiore testified for the U.S. Congressional House Administration Elections Subcommittee Hearing on “A Growing Threat: Foreign and Domestic Sources of Disinformation”. She is a member of Issue One’s Council for Responsible Social Media. Her work is cited in The Washington Post, New York Magazine, The L.A. Times, The New Yorker, The Atlantic, and she has been a featured guest in election broadcast programs around the world, including the election podcast Pod Save America.
Jacob Davey
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Jacob Davey

Head of Research & Policy, Far-right and Hate Movements

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Jacob Davey
Jacob Davey

Head of Research & Policy, Far-right and Hate Movements

Jacob Davey is Head of Research & Policy for Far-right and Hate Movements at ISD. Jacob has managed projects focusing on online hate speech, the international far-right and political violence. He has led a number of projects piloting novel models for identifying extremist conversation and hate speech online, including analysis tracking hate groups in the UK, USA, Canada and Australia, and is currently leading a major programme of work mitigating hate threats in the US. He has advised national and local policymakers on right-wing extremism, including the Home Affairs Select Committee and the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament. Jacob has managed and co-authored numerous ISD reports including Between Conspiracy and Extremism: A Long COVID Threat?, ISD’s Gaming and Extremism Series, and A Safe Space to Hate: White Supremacist Mobilisation on Telegram.
Daniel Hooton
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Daniel Hooton

Head of Strong Cities Network International Programmes

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Daniel Hooton
Daniel Hooton

Head of Strong Cities Network International Programmes

Daniel Hooton is Head of ISD’s Strong Cities Network (SCN) International Programmes, with responsibility for strategy and delivery of international cities programmes. This includes current projects to develop institutional approaches to long-term governance, human security and social policy challenges in cities across Africa, Asia, the Balkans and the Middle East. He has advised and worked with numerous international governments, UN agencies and mayors on international counterterrorism and counter-extremism strategy, briefing senior ministers and leaders and shaping multilateral cooperation on grassroots practice in cities around the world. Daniel previously served as policy advisor to the Shadow Minister for Communities in the UK Parliament, developing opposition policy and scrutiny on community cohesion, social exclusion and public services reform. He is the co-author of the ISD report Community Resilience Study: Kumanovo, North Macedonia. He holds a Master’s degree with Distinction from the London School of Economics and a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Bristol.
Jennie King
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Jennie King

Head of Climate Research and Policy

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Jennie King
Jennie King

Head of Climate Research and Policy

Jennie King is Head of Climate Research and Policy, leading efforts to translate ISD's digital research into frontline programming and response. Through ISD, she helped found Climate Action Against Disinformation (CAAD), a coalition of over 50 organisations working to identify, analyse and counter climate disinformation worldwide. She has spearheaded investigations on climate denialism and ‘discourses of delay’ in the contexts of Australia, Canada, Central Europe, Germany, South Africa, the US and UK, as well as co-authored a number of ISD’s flagship reports on this issue. Jennie also helped design, and currently manages, the COP Intelligence Units on behalf of CAAD, leading over 15 partners to produce real-time monitoring of mis- and disinformation around climate summits.
Henry Tuck
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Henry Tuck

Head of Digital Policy

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Henry Tuck
Henry Tuck

Head of Digital Policy

Henry Tuck is the Head of Digital Policy at ISD, where he leads Advisory work on digital regulation and tech company responses to terrorism, extremism, hate and dis/misinformation online. Henry oversees ISD’s Digital Policy Lab (DPL) and engagement on key digital regulation proposals in Europe and Five Eyes countries, advises key governments, international organisations and major private sector tech companies, and collaborates with ISD’s Digital Analysis Unit to translate research into actionable digital policy recommendations. Having joined ISD in 2013, Henry has previously worked across a variety of ISD’s Analysis and Action programmes, including education, on- and offline counter-extremism interventions, and civil society networks. Henry holds a Masters in International Conflict Studies from Kings College London, and a BA in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from Durham University. 
Helena Schwertheim
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Helena Schwertheim

Senior Digital Policy and Research Manager, ISD Germany

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Helena Schwertheim
Helena Schwertheim

Senior Digital Policy and Research Manager, ISD Germany

Helena Schwertheim is Senior Digital Policy and Research Manager at ISD Germany, where she leads the Digital Policy Lab (DPL), a new intergovernmental working group focused on policy responses to prevent and counter disinformation, hate speech and extremism. Helena also leads a team of analysts studying digital threats posed to democracy by disinformation, hate speech and extremism.  Previously, Helena managed digital policy and research projects at Democracy Reporting International. She also has experience working in risk and political analysis in international organizations and think tanks, including at the UN World Food Programme in Rome, and the think tank International IDEA in Stockholm.