Lieutenant-Colonel John Benson was born in Toronto, Ontario. After completing his studies at the Royal Military College of Canada in Kingston, he was posted to the 2nd Battalion, Royal 22e Régiment in 2004, where he was employed as a platoon commander during the build-up of TF 2- 06 as well as a reconnaissance platoon commander for a few months. He was also deployed to KANDAHAR in 2006-2007 as a mentor to an Afghan National Army (ANA) company commander as part of Roto 0 of the Operational Mentoring and Liaison Team (ELMO/OMLT).

After a short assignment as Director Land Resource Requirement (DBRT/DLR), he was again deployed to KANDAHAR in 2009, this time as J33-3 of Task Force Kandahar (TFK), coordinating day-to-day operations at the brigade level until September 2010. Upon his return to Canada, he was again posted to the 2nd Battalion, Royal 22e Régiment as an operations officer. In this position, he participated in the domestic operation LOTUS during the floods in Montérégie. He also implements the TF 3-12 build-up training plan. Promoted to the rank of major in 2012, he had the privilege of commanding an infantry company during the build-up.

After completing his assignment as Company Commander, he held the positions of Study Group Director at the Canadian Army Command and Staff College, Deputy Director of the Center for National Security Studies at the Forces College Canadian Forces, Chief of Staff for the Commander of the 1st Canadian Division and Section Chief at the Army Doctrine Centre. He is also deployed to Baghdad for a year to initiate the NATO mission in Iraq from October 2018 to November 2019.

Lieutenant-Colonel Benson holds a bachelor's degree in military and strategic studies as well as a master's degree in defense studies. He is also a graduate of the Land Force Technical Staff Program (LMTP). His wife Caroline is a CELE officer, and they have a daughter (Mia) and a son (William) together. In addition to traveling around the world as a family, they enjoy practicing many sports.

The Canadian-led NATO enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) Battle Group Latvia completed an evaluation of its capabilities as a “force package” to meet NATO standards during Exercise Silver Arrow in September. The multinational exercise involved almost 3,000 troops and 200 vehicles from 12 NATO allies and was designed to test the battle group’s ability “to plan and conduct operations with the Latvian Mechanized Infantry Brigade” and enhance their readiness, said its commander, Lieutenant-Colonel John Benson.

Ben Rowswell has been President and Research Director of the Canadian International Council since November 2018. Prior to the CIC, Ben served as Canada’s Ambassador to Venezuela from 2014 to 2017. This capped a 25 year career as a professional diplomat including assignments in Canada’s embassies to Egypt, to the United States, and in Canada’s Permanent Mission to the UN. He served Canada’s first diplomatic envoy to Baghdad, Iraq, after the fall of Saddam Hussein from 2003 to 2005, as Deputy Ambassador to Afghanistan and as head of the NATO Provincial Reconstruction Team in Kandahar between 2008 and 2010. As a practitioner of international relations, Ben’s thematic interest has been in human rights and democracy. He founded the Democracy Unit at Global Affairs Canada, and worked closely with human rights activists in Iraq and Afghanistan. As Ambassador to Venezuela, Ben was an outspoken advocate of the restoration of the popular sovereignty of Venezuelans after the suspension of constitutional order in early 2017.

These experiences abroad awakened an interest in the role of citizens in our own democracy. In Ottawa, Ben supported the Cabinet process as a member of the Privy Council Office during the tenures of Jean Chrétien and Stephen Harper, experiences that exposed him to the far-reaching impact that public opinion has on decision-making at the highest levels of government. Ben brings that passion for the role of individual citizens to the CIC, a platform for everyday Canadians to participate in the national conversation about our nation’s role in the world.

• Canadian International Council

• The Battle to Save Democracy, Podcasted.

Guest Biography

M.E. Sam Samplonius has over 40 years of CAF Reserve Force service and is a Military Sexual Trauma (MST) survivor. Like many other survivors, her first assault happened during her Basic Recruit training when she was 17 years old.

Sam was an active member of IJ700 since 2015 when she became involved in the Hands Project and maintained the IJ700 Instagram account for inspirational messages. At that time she felt she had dealt with her multiple sexual assaults and constant sexual harassment well, and was enjoying a successful Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) career happily married to a Regular Force CAF spouse. However in 2016 she was again a victim of MST that was so traumatizing that it caused the loss of her full-time military position. The mental and physical trauma of this incident also led to the breakdown of her marriage as she tried to cope with the added release of unresolved previous MST, depression and hypervigilance.

Diagnosed with complex PTSD in 2018, through regular therapy Sam has taken on the challenge of dealing with the sexual and gender harassment she has experienced, and the military sexual trauma inflicted from domestic violence, kidnapping and unlawful confinement incidents. She finds helping others is one her best healing practices.

As a Reservist, Sam maintained a federal Public Service career concurrently while serving in the CAF. While her career was in Materiel Management, she also volunteered for many workplace initiatives relating to Employee Wellness and Diversity, gaining extensive experience in Joint Occupational Health & Safety program development as a Master Trainer and Union Shop Steward. For ten years she co-facilitated for the Treasury Board JLP Anti-Harassment course for Managers. Collaboration not confrontation has been a personal mantra stemming from her Union Local Executive days.

As a Public Servant, Sam sought out many opportunities for full-time CAF contracts on regional and national projects that made full use of her repertoire of skills and experience in training development and facilitation, conflict management, policy review, ethics and diversity.

In May 2021 when IJ700 disbanded, Sam agreed to join Dr. Lori Buchart in creating a new informal peer support group to ensure MST survivors would still have a safe and secure place to go for peer support and healing resources. Through discussions they found a shared passion and professional experience in promoting and facilitating positive organizational change that has created an amazing synergy for influencing culture change and the creation of It’s Not Just 700.

Now retired from the Public Service and facing a medical release from the CAF, Sam will be increasing her work in the area of CAF Veteran advocacy that she began in 2007. In addition to volunteering as the Co-Chairperson with INJ700, she also volunteers as a Senior Advisor with the Canadian Military Sexual Trauma Community of Practice, and an Advisor for the Centre of Excellence on PTSD.

The 2021 Class of the Halifax Peace With Women Fellowship convenes 12 diverse and accomplished women from 12 countries. All Fellows are senior, active-duty military officers from NATO member and partner countries. The 2021 Class represents more than 330 years of combined service to their countries and a wide range of expertise. HFX is proud to welcome its fourth class of distinguished leaders to the Halifax network.

Group 3: Education & Instruction

• Lieutenant Colonel Monika Mertinaitė: Senior Advisor, Defense Policy Group, Ministry of National Defense, Lithuania

• Brigadier General Catherine Bourdès: Deputy Director of French Higher Military Education, Directorate for Higher Military Studies

• Colonel Anna Siverstig: Commanding Officer, Swedish Air Warfare Center, Swedish Air Force

Group 4: Field Operations

• Group Captain Louise desJardins: Director Joint Effects/J3E, Royal Australian Air Force

• Colonel Danielle Willis: Commander 93 Air Ground Operations Wing, United States Air Force

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The 2021 Class of the Halifax Peace With Women Fellowship convenes 12 diverse and accomplished women from 12 countries. All Fellows are senior, active-duty military officers from NATO member and partner countries. The 2021 Class represents more than 330 years of combined service to their countries and a wide range of expertise. HFX is proud to welcome its fourth class of distinguished leaders to the Halifax network. 

Group 1: Leadership Strategy  

• Colonel Krista Bouckaert: Director of Canadian Forces Grievance Authority, Department of National Defence  

• Commodore Judith Terry: Deputy Director People, British Royal Navy 

• Colonel Katherine Lee: Assistant Chief of Army (Delivery), New Zealand Defence Force 

Group 2: Gendered Perspectives 

• Colonel Biljana Blazheska; Aide-de-camp to the Supreme Commander, Armed Forces of the Republic of North Macedonia 

• Lieutenant Colonel Diana Morais: Senior Advisor to the Minister of National Defense, Ministry of National Defense, Portugal 

• Colonel Jennifer de Poorter: G3 of the Operational Headquarters, Royal Marechaussee, Netherlands 

Dr. Megan MacKenzie is a feminist scholar interested in war, security studies, post-conflict recovery and reconstruction, and military culture. Her work is broadly focused on the ways that gender matters in understanding war and insecurity and the ways that experiences of war and insecurity are shaped by gendered norms and sexism. Megan has been studying military culture and gender integration in the military for over a decade, which includes projects on military sexual violence, the integration of women into combat roles, and military suicide. She also has worked on issues related to post-conflict transitions and feminist solutions to ending war. This work includes projects on disarmament programs, amnesty provisions in peace agreements, truth and reconciliation commissions, and a series and edited book on feminist solutions to ending war. She is the author of Beyond the Band of Brothers: the US military and the myth that women can’t fight (Cambridge University Press 2015) and co-editor, with Nicole Wegner of Feminist Solutions for Ending War (Pluto Press 2021).

Eleanor Taylor is a native of Antigonish Nova Scotia who completed a 25 year career as a regular force infantry officer and now runs Eleanor Taylor Consulting, a company that supports the development teams and leaders who thrive in adversity. While in uniform, she had many rewarding experiences at home and abroad. Chief among them was her deployment to Kandahar Afghanistan during which she led operations with soldiers from the Canadian, US, and Afghan armies and her work with Special Operations Forces Command developing interagency partnerships.

Eleanor has been asked to share her experiences on Women in Combat and the integration of women into non-traditional trades with academics and Armed Forces of other nations who are studying the issues. In 2013, she was named by the Women's Executive Network (WXN) as one of Canada's Top 100 Women. In 2019 she was invested into the Order of Military Merit Order of Military Merit which recognizes exceptional service. Eleanor evolved from a shy high-school kid to a successful combat leader in a male dominated profession and believes that equally significant transformations are accessible to everyone with the right training and mentorship. Eleanor lives in Halifax, Nova Scotia with her children, Isaac and Beth. She is passionate about projects in support of veterans’ wellness and women in leadership.

Links:

• To donate: vtncanada.org

• To volunteer: amanlara.recovers.org

• To support resettlement: truepatriolove.com

Thomas Juneau is Associate Professor at the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Ottawa and the author of Squandered Opportunity: Neoclassical Realism and Iranian Foreign Policy (Stanford, 2015).

Stephanie Carvin is Associate Professor at the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs at Carleton University and the author of Stand on Guard: Reassessing Threats to Canada's National Security (2021)

Links:

• Intelligence Analysis and Policy Making: The Canadian Experience

The aim of the Canadian Forces College’s Joint Command and Staff Programme (JCSP) is to prepare selected senior officers of the Defence Team for command and staff appointments in the contemporary operating environment across the continuum of operations in national and international settings.

First, the winner of this year's Bell Prize, Maj D.E. Hogan, wrote his Directed Research Project (DRP) on lethal autonomous weapons systems. His DRP is entitled: "Sleepwalking into a Brave New World: The Implications of Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems."

Second, Maj M.R. Kieley, winner of the Generalissimo José-Maria Morelos Award as the JCSP graduate having obtained the highest standard across the programme, wrote his DRP interrogating the concept of the combat capable army. His DRP is entitled: "Constraining Ambition: The Delusion of a Combat Capable Army."

Third, Maj S. Leblanc, winner of our annual "DRP Slam" (modelled on the 3M Thesis Competition) wrote on telecommuting in the CAF. Her DRP is entitled: "Post-Pandemic Potential: Deliberate Implementation of Telecommuting to Support Member, Family and CAF Interests."

Stephanie Houle is currently completing her PhD in Clinical Psychology at the University of Ottawa. Her research interests center around the psychological impact of extremely stressful military experiences, with a particular focus on understanding the nosology and clinical utility of the moral injury construct. She completed part of her clinical training at the Operational Trauma and Stress Support Clinic at Canadian Forces Health Services, and she is currently completing her pre-doctoral internship at the Centre for Psychological Services and Research. Stephanie is a member of the Moral Injury Outcome Study Consortium, an international group of researchers whose objective is to study and measure moral injury as an outcome. She was the 2018 recipient of the Wounded Warriors Canada Doctoral Scholarship, and has also received funding from the Institute of Mental Health Research in support of her work on moral injury.

Cesar Jaramillo’s work has focused on such program areas as nuclear disarmament, outer space security and conventional weapons control. As an international civil society representative, Cesar has addressed, among others, the UN General Assembly First Committee (Disarmament and International Security), the UN Conference on Disarmament, the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS), as well as states parties to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and to the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT). He has also given guest lectures and presentations at academic institutions such as the National Law University in New Delhi, the China University of Political Science and Law in Beijing, and the University of Toronto. An occasional columnist on matters of disarmament and international security, Cesar graduated from the University of Waterloo with an MA in global governance and has bachelor’s degrees in honours political science and in journalism. Prior to joining Project Ploughshares, Cesar held a fellowship at the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI).

As the Founder and Chief Strategist in Foresight & Design for Purple Compass, Donna Dupont brings skills and insights developed over 20 years working with leaders in healthcare, emergency management, government public policy, strategic planning and program design. She has facilitated a range of foresight and design activities for clients in healthcare, emergency management and military.

Donna’s interests are at the intersection between climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction and sustainable development. Her aim is to collaborate with communities and organizations, and use strategic foresight and design methods to empower and strengthen local capacity, health services, public safety and security.

Prior to Purple Compass, Donna held a variety of senior roles within Ontario’s Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care in both healthcare and emergency management. She also worked on the front-lines as a Registered Respiratory Therapist during the SARS crisis. Donna is a recipient of seven government awards at the provincial and federal level for outstanding achievement, excellence and partner relations in policy and strategic planning.

Lieutenant-General (Retired) Chris Whitecross enrolled in the Canadian Forces in 1982, joining the Canadian Military Engineers. Successive postings have taken her from Germany to almost every province in Canada, notably to undertake a range of staff duties such as those of A4 Airfield Engineering Operations at 1 Canadian Air Division, Winnipeg; Executive Assistant to the Chief of the Air Staff at National Defence Headquarters, Ottawa; Director of Infrastructure and Environment Corporate Services for the Assistant Deputy Minister (Infrastructure and Environment); Joint Engineer, Canada Command; and Chief of Staff for Assistant Deputy Minister (Infrastructure and Environment).

Lieutenant-General Whitecross has also performed the duties of G1/G4 for the Force Engineers of the United Nations Protection Force (Yugoslavia) while deployed to the Former Republic of Yugoslavia; Wing Construction Engineering Officer, Greenwood; Commanding Officer, 1 Construction Engineering Unit, Moncton; Commander, Joint Task Force (North), Yellowknife; Deputy Commander, Canadian Operational Support Command, Ottawa; Deputy DCOS Communications, ISAF HQ, Kabul, Afghanistan; and Canadian Armed Forces Chief Military Engineer at National Defence Headquarters, Ottawa.

Lieutenant-General Whitecross has a Bachelor in Chemical Engineering from Queen's University and a Masters in Defence Studies from the Royal Military College of Canada. She is also a graduate of the Advanced Military Studies Course and the Command and Staff Course, both conducted at the Canadian Forces College. Awarded the Order of Military Merit at the level of Commander (CMM), she was also presented with the United States Defense Meritorious Service Medal (United States) for her service at ISAF HQ, and the Canadian Meritorious Service Medal for her service as the International Military Sports Council (CISM) Secretary General. Lieutenant-General Whitecross was named one of Canada's Top 100 Most Powerful Women of 2011 and then again in 2016, and she is the 2018 recipient of the CDAI Vimy Award.  Also in 2018, the Canadian Prime Minister appointed her as a member of the G7 Gender Council during Canada’s G7 Presidency.

In February 2015, Lieutenant-General Whitecross was appointed Commander of the Canadian Forces Strategic Response Team on Sexual Misconduct, and assumed the duties as Commander, Military Personnel Command in June 2015 upon promotion to Lieutenant- General. In November 2016, Lieutenant-General Whitecross was appointed Commandant of the NATO Defense College in Rome, Italy.  She retired in December 2020.

In retirement, Lieutenant-General Whitecross is committed to help develop and mentor future Canadian and Military leaders.  She was appointed the first Senior Mentor for the Athena Network of the Royal Military College of Canada, and is active in offering personal mentoring to a number of junior and senior leaders. 

Dr. Caroline Colijn is a professor and Canada 150 Research Chair in Mathematics for Infection, Evolution and Public Health at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver. She works on modelling infectious disease and on building methods to use genomic data from infections to understand how they are transmitted. Throughout the pandemic she has advised and collaborated with government and public health institutions about COVID-19.

Colonel Vanessa Hanrahan Col Hanrahan deployed in November 2019 to assume the role of Provost Marshal of Task Force South Sudan, advising the Task Force Commander on all aspects of military policing in South Sudan. Three months into the deployment, Col Hanrahan, who is in charge of the Force Military Police explains that it has been a rewarding challenge. She stated it is an excellent experience in terms of working at the operational level with military police officers of several nations who bring a valued diversity of MP experience and cultural perspective. "Though we bring a variety of methods of addressing the challenges we face, at the end of the day we are all the same - members of our respective militaries working together to provide safety and security to South Sudanese," describes Col Hanrahan. As one of Canada’s senior military police officers, she has served in positions such as the Canadian Army Provost Marshal and Special Advisor to the Canadian Forces Provost Marshal. Col Hanrahan brings a wealth of military policing and leadership experience to UNMISS.

Dr. Sarah Shoker is a postdoctoral fellow in political science at the University of Waterloo where she uses empirical methods to research the security impact of emerging technologies. She is a SSHRC 2020-2022 postdoctoral fellow, along with being the winning beneficiary for the 2019-2020 University of Waterloo Trailblazer Postdoctoral Fellowship. She is also the founder of Glassbox, a social impact firm that trains stakeholders to identify how social values are translated into AI systems. Her work on the social impact of AI is highly requested by government policymakers. Her Glassbox work garnered an invitation from Her Excellency the Right Honourable General Julie Payette to participate in scientific diplomacy as member of the delegation to Lithuania and Estonia. Dr. Shoker is also a member of the Government of Canada’s Advisory Council on Artificial Intelligence as a member of the Public Awareness Working Group. She was recently commissioned by Global Affairs Canada to conduct research on gender mainstreaming Canada’s cybersecurity strategy; the working paper was published on the United Nations portal for the Open-ended Working Group on Digital ICTs in the context of International Security. Her book, Military-Age Males in U.S Counterinsurgency and Drone Warfare was recently published with Palgrave MacMillan. You can follow her on Twitter @SarahShoker.

Links:

• Sarah Shoker’s Military-Age Males in Counterinsurgency and Drone Warfare

• Police in Canada Are Tracking People’s ‘Negative’ Behavior In a ‘Risk’ Database

Dr. Leah West is an Assistant Professor of International Affairs at the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs at Carleton University. Leah practices, studies and publishes in the field of national security law. She completed her SJD at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law in 2020; her research explored the application of criminal, constitutional and international law to state conduct in cyberspace. Leah regularly lectures and engages with the media on her areas of research interest. She is also the National Administrator of the Canadian National Rounds of the Phillip C Jessup International Law Moot, and serves as Counsel with Friedman Mansour LLP. Leah previously served as Counsel with the Department of Justice in the National Security Litigation and Advisory Group where she appeared before the Federal Court in designated proceedings and the Security Intelligence Review Committee.  Before being called to the Ontario Bar in 2016, Leah clerked for the Honourable Justice Mosley of the Federal Court of Canada. Prior to attending law school, Leah served in the Canadian Armed Forces for ten years as an Armoured Officer; she deployed to Afghanistan in 2010.

Sarah-Myriam Martin-Brûlé has a Ph.D. in Political Science from McGill University. Her research focuses on peace operations and security issues related to fragile states. Her doctoral dissertation strived to understand the conditions under which peace operations succeeded or failed. She studied the cases of Somalia, Liberia and Sierra Leone. Her fieldwork was completed in West Africa, Ethiopia (Ogaden region) and South Africa, where she interviewed military commanders, rebel leaders, refugees and experts. Her most recent publications include “Evaluating Peacekeeping Missions: A Typology of Success and Failure in International Interventions”, (Routledge, 2016). Her recent research projects focus on peacekeeping intelligence. She is an associate faculty member of the Center for International Peace and Security Studies (CIPSS), the Montreal Center for International Studies (CERIUM), the Réseau des Opérations de la paix (ROP) and the Interuniversity Consortium for Arab and Middle Eastern Studies (ICAMES).

Thomas Juneau is an assistant professor at the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Ottawa. His research focuses mostly on the Middle East, in particular on Iran and Yemen. He is also interested in Canadian foreign and defence policy, in the relationship between intelligence and policy, and in international relations theory. He is the author of Squandered Opportunity: Neoclassical realism and Iranian foreign policy (Stanford University Press, 2015), editor of Strategic Analysis in Support of International Policy-Making: Case studies in achieving analytical relevance (Rowman & Littlefield, 2017), co-editor of Iranian Foreign Policy since 2001: Alone in the world (Routledge, 2013), and co-editor of Asie centrale et Caucase: Une sécurité mondialisée (Presses de l'Université Laval, 2004). He has also published many articles and book chapters on the Middle East, international relations theories and pedagogical methods, notably in International Affairs, International Studies Perspectives, Political Science Quarterly, Middle East Policy, Orbis, International Journal, and Canadian Foreign Policy Journal. Prior to joining the University of Ottawa, he worked for the Department of National Defence from 2003 to 2014, chiefly as a strategic analyst covering the Middle East. He was also a policy officer and an assistant to the deputy minister.

Lieutenant-General Wayne Eyre grew up on a farm near Wadena, Saskatchewan, and spent his high school years in Medicine Hat, Alberta. He joined Army Cadets at age 12 and has been in uniform ever since. LGen Eyre attended Royal Roads Military College (RRMC) Victoria and Royal Military College of Canada (RMC) Kingston. Upon commissioning in 1988 he joined Second Battalion, Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry, and has had the great privilege of spending the majority of his career in command or deputy command positions, including commanding 3rd Battalion PPCLI, 2 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group, 3rd Canadian Division and Joint Task Force West, Deputy Commanding General – Operations for XVIII (US) Airborne Corps, Deputy Commander Military Personnel Command, Deputy Commander United Nations Command in Korea, and for a short time Commander of Military Personnel Command. He became Commander Canadian Army on 20 August 2019 and was appointed as Acting Chief of the Defence Staff on 24 February 2021.

Jody Thomas was appointed Deputy Minister of the Department of National Defence (DND) in October 2017. Before becoming Deputy Minister, she has had broad and varied experience working at senior levels in the Public Service, including as Senior Associate Deputy Minister for DND, Chief of Business Planning and Administration with Public Works and Government Services Canada’s Atlantic Region, and multiple positions at the Victoria Office of Passport Canada. In 2010, Ms. Thomas joined the Canadian Coast Guard as Deputy Commissioner of Operations, leading the development and implementation of the Coast Guard’s strategic and operational policy frameworks. From September 2014 to January 2015, until she became Commissioner of the Coast Guard. She also served as Special Advisor to the Deputy Secretary to the Cabinet (Operations) at the Privy Council Office. Ms. Thomas currently holds a commission in the Naval Reserve. She also holds a Bachelor of Arts from Carleton University

Links:

• External Review into Sexual Misconduct and Sexual Harassment in the Canadian Armed Forces (Deschamps Report)

• Canada’s Defence Policy: Strong, Secure, Engaged (SSE)

• Report of the Commission of Inquiry into the Deployment of Canadian Forces to Somalia

• Canada’s National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security

Operation REASSURANCE: 

What: North Atlantic Treaty Organization Mission

Where: Latvia/Romania/ Iceland/Mediterranean Sea

Who: Up to 950 CAF personnel, 6x CF18 Fighter Jets, 1x Naval Frigate + Helicopter Air Detachment

When: May 2014 - 01 Apr 2023

Summary: In 2016, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) agreed to enhance its military presence in the eastern part of the Alliance to deter and defend against potential adversaries. As part of these efforts, NATO established three distinct deterrence and defence missions. Operation REASSURANCE is Canada’s contribution to these missions. Canada’s participation in NATO’s deterrence and defence efforts in Europe contributes to European security, stability, and prosperity. Canada’s contributions also reinforce our commitment to the rules-based international order, demonstrate our transatlantic solidarity, and highlight our active leadership in the Alliance.