An interview with CDSN Military Personnel co-directors, Irina Goldenberg and our very own Stéfanie von Hlatky discussing the exciting plans they have coming up in this research theme.

Irina Goldenberg: Co-Director of CDSN-RCDS & Acting Director Research Operational and Organizational Dynamics (DROOD) in the Director General Military Personnel Research and Analysis (DGMPRA) in the Department of National Defence. Her research focuses on recruitment and retention in the armed forces and military-civilian personnel collaboration in defence organizations.

Steve speaks with Rachel Schmidt about her PhD research on female rebel disengagement.

Rachel Schmidt is a PhD candidate in International Conflict Management and Resolution at the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs. She is currently completing her fieldwork in Colombia, which involves interviewing ex-combatants from various non-state armed groups. Her research focuses on why combatants defect from insurgent groups, with comparative analysis of men and women’s pathways out of violence, as well as comparisons of defectors with ex-combatants who demobilize collectively through peace processes. Rachel also works as a senior editor for OpenGlobalRights, a leading online human rights forum. She holds an MA from NPSIA and a BA from the University of British Columbia.

Episode 15: Looking Ahead

In the 15th episode of Battle Rhythm, Steve and Stef discuss the implications of the US airstrike for the Canadian led NATO mission in Iraq, along with new year resolutions and Pokemon infrastructure. Steve speaks with Rachel Schmidt [22:55] about her PhD research on female rebel disengagement and we have an interview with CDSN Military Personnel co-directors, Irina Goldenberg and our very own Stéfanie von Hlatky [29:00] discussing the exciting plans they have coming up in CDSN Military Personnel Theme. Meanwhile, Steve [52:55] is peeved about international relations media coverage.

Episode 14: 2019 Highlights

In this end of year episode, Steve and Stef reflect back on a few of their favorite moments during the inaugural year of Battle Rhythm. A big thanks to everyone who has given Battle Rhythm a listen, subscribed and shared! If you haven’t listened to an episode yet, this is a great intro to what its all about.

Thomas Hughes talks about his PhD research on NATO military exercises.

Thomas Hughes: Having graduated with a BA(Hons) in History from Durham University, UK, in 2009, Thomas spent almost five years working in financial services before commencing an MA degree in International Studies (with a focus on International Security) in Denver, Colorado. Graduating from the two-year programme at the Josef Korbel School of International Studies in 2016, he is now working on a PhD in the Political Studies programme at Queen's University.

An interview with Stephanie Hofmann from this past summer in Lisbon, where she discusses regional security organizations with Steve.

Stephanie C. Hofmann is Professor in the Department of International Relations and Political Science at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies. She received her PhD from Cornell University and her M.A.s from Cornell University and Bath University. She held visiting research positions at the European University Institute, the Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik, Columbia University and the Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung. As a visiting professor, she has taught academic and policy-oriented audiences in places such as Jerusalem, Rome, Tbilisi and Yerevan. And she conducted consultancy work for national governments and international organizations in places such as Burundi and Geneva. Her research centers on international/regional organizations, European and international security, networks, and global order. Her first book European Security in NATO’s Shadow. Party Ideologies and Institution Building appeared with Cambridge University Press (2013). Other research has appeared or is forthcoming in European Journal of International Relations, Journal of Common Market Studies, Journal of Strategic Studies, Journal of Peace Research and Perspectives on Politics.

Episode 13: International Order

In the 13th episode of Battle Rhythm, Steve and Stef discuss the NATO leadership summit, along with the highlights and lowlights of the past year including this podcast! Spoiler alert: it’s a highlight. Stef speaks with Thomas Hughes [19:00] about his PhD research on NATO military exercises and we have an interview with Stephanie C. Hofmann [27:35] from this past summer in Lisbon, where they discuss regional security organizations.

Chiara Ruffa & Steve Saideman discuss ‘forever wars’ at the ERGOMAS conference in Lisbon.

Chiara Ruffa is Academy fellow at the Department of Peace and Conflict Research at Uppsala University and associate professor in War Studies at the Swedish Defense University. Chiara's research interests lie at the cross-road between political science and sociology with a specific focus on military organizations in nonconventional operations. Her work has been published in Security Studies, Acta Sociologica, Armed Forces and Society, Security and Defence Analysis, Small Wars and Insurgencies, Comparative European Politics, and several edited volumes.

Rebecca Jensen discusses her research on operational adaption as a dissertation fellow at Marine Corps University.

Rebecca Jensen is a doctoral candidate at the University of Calgary’s Centre for Military and Strategic Studies, and a dissertation fellow at Marine Corps University.

Episode 12: Forever Wars: Resilience and Readiness

In the 12th episode of the Battle Rhythm Podcast, Steve and Stef discuss WIIS-France and the Arctic and of course Trump. For our feature interview, we head back to the summer when Steve interviewed Chiara Ruffa [25:30] at the ERGOMAS conference in Lisbon discussing her book, Military Cultures in Peace and Stability Operations. This week’s Emerging Scholar interview is with Rebecca Jensen [19:00] who discusses her research on operational adaption as a dissertation fellow at Marine Corps University. In Steve’s Peeves [48:10], Steve shares some of his thoughts on silencing student criticism of China on campus.

Episode 11: Past Wars and Today’s Peace Fellows

In the 11th episode of Battle Rhythm Podcast, Steve and Stef reflect on Remembrance Day and events supporting Canada’s veterans. The feature interview [21:45] is extra special this episode as we have 11 guests for our 11th episode! Our guests are the 2019 Peace with Women Fellows who discuss a wide variety of issues from leadership and learning to recruitment and retention. Steve shares some of his thoughts on actively remembering through war museums in Steve's Peeves [53:30].   

Fellows in order of appearance:

• 23:20: BG Lisa Ferris, NZ Defence Legal Services & Paz Magat, Director, Peace With Women Fellowship

• 29:10: Colonel Tracey Onufer, USAF, CoS SOF South & Commodore Solveig Krey, Norweigan Navy, Dep ACOS Ops

• 34:00: Colonel Debra Lovette, USAF, Human capital, Joint Force Space & Air Commodore Elanor Boekholt-o’Sullivan, Netherlands, Cyber Defence

• 38:20: LtColonel Joana Polekauskiene, Lithuania, instructor mil academy & Colonel Lysane Martel, RCAF professional development

• 42:30: Colonel Dr. Lale Baroschek, Germany, Recruitment & Colonel Solene le Floch, French Air Force, Human Resource manager

• 48:00: Captain Rachel Durbin, Australia, Navy, Future Force & Captain Fiona Shepherd, RN, ACOS Logistics, Operations and Plans

Lindy Heinecken discusses transitions of peacekeepers when they come home.

Lindy Heinecken was formerly a researcher and Deputy Director of the Centre for Military Studies (CEMIS) at the South African Military Academy. She now serves as Associate Professor of Sociology in the Sociology and Social Anthropology Department, Stellenbosch University where she lectures in political and industrial sociology. The main focus of her research is in the domain of armed forces and society where she has published on a range of issues including gender integration, civil-military relations, military unionism, HIV/AIDS and security and more recently on the impact of private security on the military profession. She holds a MSocSc from the University of Cape Town and a PhD from Kings College, Department of War Studies, University of London. She serves on numerous academic boards, including the Council of the Inter-University Seminar on Armed Forces and Society (USA) and the International Sociological Association's (ISA) Armed Forces and Conflict Resolution working group. She is also one of the pool of specialists conducting research for the South African Army.

Elikem Tsamenyi talks about about his research on security governance mechanisms within Africa.

Elikem Tsamenyi, originally from Ghana, he earned his BA and master’s degrees in political studies from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana, and the University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, respectively. Currently a PhD candidate at Dalhousie University’s Department of Political Studies, Elikem Tsamenyi’s research interests focus largely on Sub-Sahara Africa. He is interested in issues of African development & security governance mechanisms. His research explores the scope and nature of current security threats and challenges to peace, as well as developmental troubles in Africa. He is concerned with how these issues challenge African states’ capacities to anticipate, prevent, and deal with threats to peace, security and development. His PhD dissertation explores the ‘African solutions to African problems’ rhetoric in security governance on the continent by using the English school’s international society approach to understand how Africans endeavour to own and deal with the continent’s governance and security issues as a sub-society within the larger global international society. Elikem is also interested in Canadian security and defence (foreign) policy towards sub-Sahara Africa. He explores how Canada can most effectively support and contribute to peace and security in Africa.

Episode 10: Security Transformations for Africans, By Africans

In the 10th episode of Battle Rhythm Podcast, Steve and Stef reflect on the recent Canadian election and consider what Canada’s defense and security policy might look like under a Liberal minority government. They also discuss recent protests in Iraq, their recent trips to Denver, Hamburg and Belgium and all things Halloween. The feature interview guest is Lindy Heinecken [22:30], who discusses transitions of peacekeepers when they come home, South Africa's Post-Apartheid Military: Lost in Transition and Transformation. Our Emerging Scholar segment has Stef speaking with Elikem Tsamenyi [15:00], about his research on security governance mechanisms within Africa. Steve shares some of his thoughts on the film adaptation of World War Z in Steve's Peeves.

Alice Pannier shares her expertise in European security politics.

Alice Pannier is an expert on European security. Her research interests cover security and defense cooperation in Europe, transatlantic relations, and contemporary military interventions, with a particular focus on France, the UK and Germany. A graduate from King’s College London and Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, Alice received her PhD in International Relations from Sciences Po Paris, with joint supervision from King’s College London. Her work has appeared, inter alia, in International Affairs,the Journal of Strategic Studies,European Security,and Global Affairs. She is currently preparing a book, co-authored with Olivier Schmitt (University of Southern Denmark) on French defense policy since the end of the Cold War (under contract with Routledge) and a manuscript based on her dissertation on contemporary Franco-British defense relations.Pannier is an Associate Research Fellow at the Security Studies Center of the French Institute of International Relations, IFRI. She is also a member of the strategy committee of the German Marshall Fund (GMF) Paris. Before joining SAIS, she was a postdoctoral fellow at the Institute for Strategic Research of the French Ministry of Defense (IRSEM, Paris). In France, she has also been involved with the Association for the Study of War and Strategy (AEGES), as secretary-general of the association and as a board member of the European Initiative for Security Studies. She is a member of the Nuclear and Strategy next-generation network (Réseau nucléaire et stratégie - Nouvelle génération) of IFRI and the Fondation pour la Recherche stratégique (FRS).

Harleen Atwal talks about the NATO Field School and Simulation Program.

Harleen Atwal is an MA student at Simon Fraser University. She received the Alumni Association Outstanding Student Leadership Award for her service to Simon Fraser University. Atwal’s service involved volunteer work she performed for the 2018 NATO Field School and Simulation Program , of which she is now manager.

Episode 9: The View From Europe

In this episode of Battle Rhythm, Steve and Stef talk about Turkey’s recent incursion against Kurdish forces in Northern Syria. They explore how the Trump administration’s foreign policy led to this moment and elaborate on the implications for NATO. In light of the impending Canadian election, Steve and Stef discuss the foreign policy positions of the main parties. In the Network Highlights segment, Steve speaks with Harleen Atwal [21:00] about the NATO Field School and Simulation Program. The feature interview is with Alice Pannier [25:45] who shares her expertise in European security politics. Finally, in Steve’s Peeves, some thoughts from Steve on the NBA pandering to China.

Philippe Lagassé talks about defence procurement in Canada and shares his peeves.

Philippe Lagassé is an associate professor and the Barton Chair at the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs. His research focuses on defence policy and military procurement, as well as civil-military relations and the role of institutions in international policymaking in the Westminster tradition. He teaches courses on defence policy and strategic studies. Between 2012-2014 he served as a member of the Independent Review Panel overseeing the evaluation of options to replace Canada's CF-18 fighter aircraft, and he is currently a member of the Independent Review Panel for Defence Acquisition within the Department of National Defence.

Timothy Choi discusses his fascinating research on Maritime Strategy.

Timothy Choi is a doctoral candidate at the University of Calgary's Centre for Military, Security and Strategic Studies, where he also received his Master of Strategic Studies in 2013. Before that he graduated from Simon Fraser University with a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies and History. He is interested in maritime and naval issues, both historical and contemporary, with writings appearing in the Canadian Naval Review, the Journal for Military and Strategic Studies, the CDA Institute's On Track and Forum, as well as with the Centre for International Maritime Security (CIMSEC). His doctoral dissertation examines the nature and character of sea power as part of the modern maritime strategies of countries with small navies during peacetime; his case studies involve the Nordic countries of Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Iceland.

Episode 8: Navigating Boundaries

In this episode of Battle Rhythm, Steve tells of his adventures in Petawawa as part of a military exercise:Exercise Collaborative Spirit Blogpost. Steve and Stef then comment on the Trudeau brownface/blackface scandal dominating Canadian headlines. They also discuss the United Nations General Assembly as well as the Ukraine scandal and impeachment proceedings rocking the Trump administration. In light of the recent Climate Marches across Canada, Steve and Stef highlight the defence and security implications of accelerating climate change. In the Emerging Scholar segment, Stef chats with Timothy Choi [17:30] who discusses his fascinating research on Maritime Strategy. The feature interview is with Philippe Lagassé [23:50] who talks about defence procurement in Canada and shares his peeves.