Keynote

Dr David Matthews  

STaR Shot Leader Information Warfare  

David Matthews is the Lead for Information Warfare in Australia’s Defence Science and Technology Group (DSTG) as part of their Science, Technology and Research (STaR) Shots initiative. He leads a multidisciplinary and mission-focused research programme that seeks to develop new concepts and capabilities to enable the Australian Ministry of Defence to prevail in and through contested information environments, including across the physical, cyber and cognitive domains. 

David’s personal research background has centred on the politics and sociology of conflict and has seen him conduct field research within a number of highly sensitive contexts. He has authored over 60 publications dealing with a range of conflict and security issues and is a recipient of the NATO Medal and Best Public Sector Evaluation Prize for his assessments of the situation in Afghanistan and Iraq. He has a PhD from the University of Adelaide and has held several adjunct and visiting scholar appointments within both Australia and the UK. 

Prior to his current role David established the Influence & Conflict Analysis Group, providing social science research to underpin Australia’s approach to influence operations. Previously, David was Australia’s inaugural Science Counsellor for the Office of National Intelligence and was responsible for the first innovation, science and research strategy for the ten agencies that comprise Australia’s National Intelligence Community (NIC). He has spent a decade supporting Defence operations, including establishing Australia’s deployable social science capability and leading DSTG’s ‘support to operations’ programme. In 2008 and 2009 David was embedded within the UK Ministry of Defence and was the primary author of a range of UK policy and doctrine publications related to stabilisation and statebuilding. 

Professor Brooke Rogers OBE 

Professor of Behavioural Science and Security & Vice Dean, SSPP – King’s College London 

Brooke Rogers is a Professor of Behavioural Science and Security and Vice-Dean (People & Planning) of the Faculty of Social Science & Public Policy (SSPP) at King’s College London (KCL). Brooke is a social psychologist specialising in risk communication, public and practitioner attitudes to, perceptions of, and responses to health and security risks and threats. Her multi-disciplinary, collaborative projects explore psychological and behavioural responses to low likelihood, high-impact events such as chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) incidents, public delivery of first aid during extreme events, communication with vulnerable groups, community and organisational resilience, the role of schools in building resilience, protecting crowded places, and the psychology of violent radicalisation. 

Brooke chairs the Home Office Science Advisory Council (HOSAC) where she led a recent restructure to enhance the diversity of skills and voices contributing to, and transparency of scientific input into the HO science ecosystem. She has chaired the Cabinet Office Behavioural Science Expert Group (BSEG) since 2013, where her research and experience have enabled her to provide science advice across the diverse range of National Security Risk Assessment (NSRA) risks and threats. Professor Rogers is an independent participant in the UK’s Science Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE), co-chair of SAGE’s behavioural science sub-group (SPI-B), and a member of the Welsh government Technical Advisory Group during the COVID-19 pandemic. She inputs formal advice into the heart of strategic-level decision-making about current and future science and technology research and development priorities through the Prime Minister’s Council for Science and Technology (CST), science advisory roles with Defra, UKHSA, Greater London Authority, and contributions to learned societies and professional bodies. 

Brooke also contributes evidence-based strategic and operational advice to international organisations including the OECD, NATO, Department of Homeland Security, International Atomic Energy Association (IAEA), The International Olympic Committee, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, and more. 

Professor Martin Innes 

Co-Director (Lead) of the Security, Crime and Intelligence Innovation Institute 

Martin Innes is a Professor at Cardiff University, where he is Co-Director of the Security, Crime and Intelligence Innovation Institute. His work on policing, counter-terrorism and disinformation has been internationally influential across the academic, policy and practice communities.

He is author of the books: 'Neighbourhood Policing' (2020, OUP),  ‘Signal Crimes’ (2014, OUP) ‘Investigating Murder’ (2003, OUP) and ‘Understanding Social Control (2003, Open University Press), as well as numerous scholarly articles. Between 2004-13 Innes was Editor of the journal ‘Policing and Society’, and he has written for Prospect Magazine, and The Guardian newspaper.

Martin has achieved particular renown for his research and policy development work on: reassurance and Neighbourhood Policing; ‘Prevent’ counter-terrorism; and the conduct of major crime investigations. He has acted in an advisory capacity to policing and security agencies, and governments in the USA, Canada, Australia and Holland. For the last five years he has been leading a large-scale, international research programme investigating the causes and consequences of disinformation and other information threats.

More details about the talks will be confirmed soon.