The WIIS team is comprised of dedicated thought leaders who are committed to advancing the role of women in the field of international peace and security.
Ariela Blätter
Ariela Blätter is the President and CEO of WIIS. She has more than 20 years of experience in the peace and security field as an international lawyer, grantmaker, social entrepreneur and nonprofit leader.
Most recently, Ariela served as a senior grantmaker on mass atrocity prevention and response for the Wellspring Philanthropic Fund. Here, she spearheaded new philanthropic investments in civilian protection, women peace & security, and launched a local action fund with conflict-affected community partners in Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Myanmar.
Ariela co-founded the consulting firm Strategy for Humanity, stewarding its growth to an 8-person staff serving over 30 public and private sector clients. Ariela’s work included creating the inaugural research agenda for the Georgetown’s Institute for Women Peace & Security and strategically re-launching the George Washington University’s Global Women’s Institute.
Ariela has held senior management roles at Amnesty International USA, Citizens for Global Solutions and Refugees International. She has twice served as an NGO Permanent Representative to the United Nations, working on the negotiations on the Arms Trade Treaty and the International Criminal Court’s Rome Treaty.
While at Amnesty, Ariela founded its award-winning global center for preventing and responding to human rights violations in armed conflict. Brokering a groundbreaking public-private partnership, she secured Amnesty’s place as the first human rights organization to use commercial satellite technologies for preventative conflict and displacement monitoring. In recognition of this work, she was appointed by former Secretaries Madeleine Albright and William S. Cohen to serve on the U.S. Genocide Prevention Task Force, resulting in the establishment of the U.S. Government’s Atrocities Prevention Board.
Ariela has served as adjunct faculty at the School of International Service at American University in Washington DC and has published peer-reviewed scholarly articles.
She holds a law degree from Trinity College (Dublin) and a Master of Laws from the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Karin Johnston
Dr. Karin L. Johnston is the Research Director at Women In International Security (WIIS) and adjunct professor at the School of Public Policy, University of Maryland-College Park, and American University. She is an experienced policy analyst and project manager with government, non-profit, and academic experience in international security, foreign and security policy analysis, U.S.-European relations, and gender, peace and conflict analysis.
Dr. Johnston has served as a WPS trainer at the Naval Postgraduate School’s Institute for Security Governance in Monterey, California and Bogota, Colombia, and as a speaker on gender and WPS for the Inter-American Defense College and the William J. Perry Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies in Washington, D.C.
A recipient of the U.S. Department of State’s Franklin Fellowship, Dr. Johnston served in the Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations, focusing on the Bureau’s security sector portfolio and stabilization strategies. She helped expand CSO’s security sector expertise in security sector reform (SSR), Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) of armed groups, and foreign assistance and stabilization strategies. While at CSO, Dr. Johnston co-authored a practitioner’s guide on DDR and defections with the UK Stabilization Unit that has been utilized in SSR efforts in Cameroon, Mozambique, and West Africa.
Dr. Johnston has written on German policy decision-making and the politics of military intervention, international public opinion and media and politics, U.S. and transatlantic foreign and defense policy, and gender equality in the European Union. Fluent in German, Dr. Johnston was a Mercator Fellow at the University of Duisburg-Essen and a former fellow of the Robert Bosch Foundation Fellowship Program. She received a Ph.D. from the University of Maryland-College Park and an M.A. in International Studies from the University of Denver’s Josef Korbel School of International Studies.
Layla Hashemi
Dr. Layla M. Hashemi is the Director of Programs and Partnerships at Women In International Security (WIIS). Previously, Layla was a researcher and data analyst at the Terrorism, Transnational Crime and Corruption Center (TraCCC) focusing on international supply chains, cybercrime and illicit trade. She earned her PhD in Public Policy at George Mason University’s Schar School and her Masters in International Relations and Comparative Politics at New York University with a concentration in Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies. She has held positions at governmental and non-governmental organizations including Forum 2000 and the Journal of Civil Society where she is currently Managing Editor. She was a professor at Montgomery College’s History and Political Science department for over 10 years and currently teaches at George Mason University and George Washington University. Her volunteer work includes moderating the Anti-Corruption Advocacy Network (ACAN), board member and research manager at the Security, Gender and Development Institute (SGDI) and Political Economy Project (PEP) coordinator at the Arab Studies Institute (ASI). She has presented her research — among other places — at NATO, the United Nations and professional conferences. Her work has been published in the Washington Post, academic journals and other outlets and she co-edited the Routledge volume Antiquities Smuggling in the Real and Virtual World (2022).
Nina Plateroti
Nina Plateroti is the Programs and Partnerships Coordinator at WIIS and a recent graduate of George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs. She holds a BA in International Affairs and a minor in Italian Language, Literature & Culture. Nina’s BA concentration was in gender in international affairs, as she is passionate about advancing the Women, Peace and Security Agenda, as well as the importance of utilizing a gender lens when addressing issues related to global peace and security. At GW, Nina was part of the Dean’s Scholars Program, where she researched how climate change can exacerbate pre-existing vulnerabilities to human trafficking, focusing on a specific pipeline of trafficking from Nigeria to Italy. This research led her to a semester in Rome, Italy, where she studied European political and immigration systems and interned at an anti-human trafficking organization. As an undergraduate, Nina also served as President of the Student Consortium on Women, Peace and Security and as an Executive Committee Member of the US Civil Society Working Group on Women, Peace and Security. During her final year at GW, Nina served as the Gender Equity Intern at the International Rescue Committee, deepening her commitment to non-profit work and the gender space.
Larissa Abaunza
Larissa Abaunza serves as Deputy Research Project Manager, where she oversees the implementation of WIIS’ research agenda and programming. Larissa received her BA in International Relations, with a concentration in Genocide, Human Rights, and Holocaust Studies from Claremont McKenna College, culminating in her award-winning thesis, titled “Rape and Sexual Violence Used as a Weapon of War and Genocide.” Larissa was selected as a Fulbright recipient through the U.S. Department of State where she conducted research into the segregation and racial discrimination of Roma communities in Eastern Hungary. Upon her return to the United States, Larissa continued her education, receiving her MA in Human Rights Studies from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Her area of focus in her MA program was the intersection of gender and terrorism, specifically on how women and girls are the keys to combatting violent extremism. Her graduate thesis examined the motivations and agency of women combatants in Nicaragua’s Sandinista movement and Sri Lanka’s Tamil Tigers. Larissa is an experienced and dogged researcher with an extensive background in open-source research, data, and policy analysis, as well as rigorous qualitative and quantitative research related to gender and security. Some of her other research and advocacy interests include gender dimensions of emerging and disruptive technologies, indigenous feminism in Latin America, post-conflict transitional justice, racial disparities in maternal healthcare in the U.S., and reproductive health and justice.
Mahathi Ayyagari
Mahathi Ayyagari (she/her) is the Howard S. Brembeck Women, Peace, and Security Fellow at WIIS. Previously, Mahathi worked at the International Peace Institute in the Women, Peace, and Security program, where she contributed to research on a range of issues including women’s political participation in peace processes, environmental peacebuilding, and disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration (DDR); organized events that convened civil society and high-level UN member state representatives; and authored original analysis for The Global Observatory. Prior to joining IPI, Mahathi earned an MSc in Gender, Peace, and Security at the London School of Economics. There, she achieved the Betty Scharf Prize for Best Dissertation in Gender and Religion, which is awarded annually to the best dissertation that not only relates to religion, but is also thought to have the greatest significance for the future of global societies. Her dissertation presented a critical feminist discourse analysis of the construction of gender in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s national public radio program, grounded in gendered understandings of nationalism, militarization, and securitization. As informed by her academic and professional experiences, Mahathi’s thematic research interests include feminist foreign policy, (de)militarized masculinities, the climate-gender-conflict nexus, feminist peace frameworks, and gender, racial, and queer justice. Mahathi completed her BA at the University of Chicago with a double major in Economics and South Asian Languages and Civilizations, and a minor in Human Rights, for which she additionally studied abroad at the University of Vienna.
Claire Pamerleau
Claire Pamerleau is the Program Assistant at WIIS and a current MA student in the Security Policy Studies program at the George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs. Claire’s MA concentration is in conflict resolution, and her research focuses on conflict prevention, stabilization operations, and human rights in conflict-affected communities. Prior to her graduate studies, Claire earned a BS in Political Science and Psychology from the University of Pittsburgh, where she was also a member of WIIS-Pitt. She has held research assistant positions at the U.S. DOS Office of Specialized and Technical Agencies, the DOS Office of the Office of the Science & Technology Adviser to the Secretary of State, the UNDP, Hudson Institute, the Pitt Diplomacy Lab, and the Pitt Psychology Department. Claire has coupled her research experience with programmatic skills, which she gained through internships with GlobalPittsburgh and AmeriCorps.
Kaylyn Oh
Kaylyn Oh is a rising junior at Duke University, double majoring in Public Policy and International Comparative Studies and minoring in Journalism and Media. She brings a diverse range of experience through internships in government, international nonprofits, global organizations, and campus leadership roles. Kaylyn is passionate about combating inequalities and advocating for those who are marginalized and underrepresented.
Jocelynn Stevenson
Jocelynn A. Stevenson is a cadet at the U.S. Air Force Academy (USAFA) in Colorado Springs, CO. Jocelynn Stevenson is originally from California and entered the Air Force Academy in the summer of 2022, where she studies Humanities with a Spanish minor. Jocelynn has become involved in creative arts programs at the Academy, such as the poetry club and Arts Journal. She also spent the Fall semester of her junior year studying abroad in Colombia, where her interest in International Studies was established.
Duilia Turner
Duilia “Dui” Turner is a Leadership and International Relations advisor focusing on Latin America and the Caribbean. She retired from the United States Air Force after 25 years of service, holding key positions in crisis response, human capital development, science, and global management. As the first Chief of the Women, Peace, and Security Program at the United States Southern Command, she reached 36 countries and over 350,000 people globally in efforts ranging from tactical military exercises to strategic and ministerial-level advisement. Duilia is an international lecturer and speaker who has collaborated with the United Nations, the Organization of the American States, the Wilson Center, and the Special Operations Community. Passionate about women’s professional development and leadership, Duilia has received three congressional recognitions and a City of Doral Women of Legacy Award. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Meteorology, a Master of Business Administration, and a Master in International Relations.
Joan Johnson-Freese
Dr. Joan Johnson-Freese served as a University Professor and Chair of the National Security Affairs Department at the Naval War College (NWC) between 2002-2022. She has also been part of the Government Department faculty of Harvard Extension School and Harvard Summer School since 2004, where she teaches courses on Women, Peace & Security, Leadership in War and Peace, and Grand Strategy and US National Security.
As a political scientist, she has published multiple articles on aspects of Women, Peace & Security, particularly focusing on raising awareness regarding the framework generally and within security communities specifically, believing that you can’t implement what you don’t know about. She is the author of Women, Peace & Security: An Introduction (2018) and Women v Women: The Case for Cooperation (2022). Over the arc of her academic career, her research also focused on space security, authoring seven books in that field and over 100 published articles, many with a particular focus on the Chinese space program. She has testified before Congress on multiple occasions about space issues and served on the National Academy of Sciences Space Studies Board.
Brenda Oppermann
Brenda Oppermann considers herself a “pracademic,” having extensive experience as a practitioner and academic working on conflict, peace, security, and gender equity. A senior advisor and subject matter expert, Brenda has 30+ years of experience — including more than seven (7) years in conflict-affected countries — working with DOD, the U.S. Army, the U.S. Navy, USAID, the United Nations, U.S. Institute of Peace, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), NATO, and assorted NGOs. Specializing in women, peace, and security, stability operations, organizational change, human rights, and traditional justice, she has extensive experience working in Africa, Central Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. Brenda currently serves as an Associate Professor at the U.S. Naval War College and as Chief GameChanger at GameChangers 360, a social enterprise dedicated to creating positive change through gender equity. She has been a guest lecturer at Harvard Law School, the Harvard Kennedy School Carr Center for Human Rights Policy, Yale University, the UN, Naval Postgraduate School, U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, and National Defense University among others. She holds a B.A. in Comparative Literature from the University of California, Irvine, an M.A. in International Relations from Yale University, and a J.D. from Western New England University School of Law.
Tahina Montoya
Tahina Montoya is the Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force Multi-lingual, International Affairs Strategist & Women, Peace and Security Expert working at the tactical, operational and strategic levels within the Continental United States (CONUS) and Outside of the Continental United States (OCONUS). She is a Political/Military analyst in the Air Force Reserves and Doctoral student at Georgetown University.
Ellen Haring
Dr. Ellen Haring is a senior fellow at Women in International Security where she directs the Combat Integration Initiative. Haring’s research and work focus on women and gender in the military. She is a West Point graduate and a retired U.S. Army colonel. She holds a Ph.D. in Conflict Analysis and Resolution and she has taught at the US Army Command and General Staff College, the US Army War College, and Georgetown University. Haring has published numerous articles and papers on a wide array of military and security related topics. She has been a guest speaker on foreign and domestic news shows. She guest lectures and has testified before Congress.
Jana Wattenberg
Dr. Jana Wattenberg is a UKRI postdoctoral fellow (Horizon Europe Guarantee Scheme for Marie Sklodowska Curie Global Fellowship) at American University and Aberystwyth University. She is also a Senior Fellow with Women in International Security (WIIS) and a Lecturer in Security at Aberystwyth University. Jana is a founding member of the Emerging Voices Network of the British American Security Information Council (BASIC) and on the Executive Board of British Student Young Pugwash.
Jana’s research focusses on nuclear weapons, nuclear disarmament, women in the nuclear weapons field and gendered dimensions of nuclear discourses. Her project ‘Women and the Bomb’ was awarded a UKRI postdoctoral fellowship (Horizon Europe Guarantee Scheme for Marie Sklodowska Curie Global Fellowship). For this project, Jana is currently conducting research on the roles and experiences of women in the U.S. nuclear weapons field in Washington D.C.
Loredana Teodorescu
Expert in EU policies and migration, actively involved in gender-related issues, Loredana Teodorescu is the Head of European and International Affairs at Istituto Luigi Sturzo, a foundation based in Rome, and Research Associate of the Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies in Brussels. Since February 2020 she is the Secretary General of WIIS Italy.
After graduating in International Relations, she obtained a PhD in Political Science-European and International Studies at the University of Roma Tre, focusing her research on the link between internal security and external action of the EU in the migration field.
Her areas of interest include migration and asylum policy, link between internal security and external relations, EU’s foreign and neighbourhood policy, security and borders, women’s rights and gender issues. On these topics she develops and coordinates research projects, holds university lectures and participates in working groups and debates, writes articles and analysis.
She collaborates with the chair of EU law and institutions and the Altiero Spinelli Center of excellence (CeAS) of Roma Tre University, and with numerous international think tanks and organizations. In 2014 she worked for the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the occasion of the Italian EU Presidency.
Diorella Islas Limiñana
Dr. Diorella Islas is a security and intelligence advisor for governmental and private entities, lecturer at the School of Social Sciences and Government, Tec de Monterrey in Mexico, and adjunct faculty member in the Countering Transnational Organized Crime (CTOC) program at the Marshall Center. Dr. Islas has more than 15 years of experience working as an analyst and operative in countering transnational organized crime, national security, and intelligence project management. From 2021-2022, she served as Deputy Director of Research at the Mexican Ministry of Security and Citizen Protection in Mexico, where she worked closely with the Ministry’s Gender Unit and as Director of Professionalization of the Graduate School of Intelligence in Nuevo Leon, Mexico. She is an external contributor to Jane’s Intelligence Review, and in 2021 she served as a WPS trainer at the Naval Postgraduate School’s Institute for Security Governance in Mexico City, Mexico. Her research interests include assessing gender equality policies and the role of women in the security community, analyzing intelligence as a tool to forecast and diminish threats, and the evolution of transnational drug trafficking organizations and cocaine routes to Europe. She holds a Ph.D. in Politics, Languages, and International Studies from the University of Bath and a master’s degree in international studies from the Tecnológico de Monterrey, Mexico
Ana Laura Velasco Ugalde
Ana Velasco is a feminist security researcher and consultant with experience in government, media, and civil society. Winner of the international essay contest 1325andBeyond in 2020, Velasco has specialized in the Women, Peace and Security agenda from a Global South perspective and has published on the subject in international and Mexican media. She is co-author of the report “Increasing Security: Women’s Participation in Security Forces in Latin America and the Caribbean” published by Women In International Security (WIIS). Currently, she is a fellow of WIIS and a Research Associate at the University of Bremen.
Kathryn Pilgrim
Kathryn (Kitty) Pilgrim is an award-winning broadcast journalist and thought leader in global affairs and media. During her 25-year tenure as a correspondent and anchor at CNN, she provided in-depth geopolitical and economic analysis, and has become known as one of the top voices in television. She was a correspondent for economic and international affairs, and her thousands of broadcasts and reports were viewed in more than 150 countries. She anchored her own morning show Inside Edition, and became a CNN prime-time anchor, a position she held for more than a decade. She has reported on almost every region of the world and has interviewed countless heads of state and political leaders.
Antonieta Rico
Antonieta Rico is a Combat Integration Initiative fellow at Women in International Security, where she supports research on women’s integration into combat arms units. She most recently worked as a Women, Peace, and Security Gender Advisor for the U.S. Army; and is the former Director of Communications and Policy for the Service Women’s Action Network, the leading national nonprofit advocating for service women and women veterans. She is a former Deputy News Editor at Army Times and has been published in USA Today, TIME, and various military-focused news outlets. She served in the U.S. Army from 2001 to 2008 as a public affairs Soldier and non-commissioned officer (NCO) and has deployed to Iraq, embedding with various infantry units during combat operations. She holds a Master of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University, with a concentration in Global Politics and Security, and a Bachelor of Arts in Communication from George Mason University.