I took great pleasure in reading the release below regarding the reconstitution of the Terrorism Research Center. The founders of the Terrorism Research Center (Matthew Devost, Brian Houghton, and Neal Pollard) are all highly regarded national security professionals and thought leaders who bring years of proven past performance to helping the nation think through some very complex issues. I knew them well in 1996 when they established the first TRC and watched first hand as they provided the community with prescient analysis on issues associated with asymmetric warfare, counterintelligence, cyber security, mission assurance and counterterrorism research.
By bringing this activity back as a non-profit I believe the founders have established a new foundation for even greater contributions to the community.
For more see the release below from http://www.terrorism.org/2012/04/trc-2012/
Terrorism Research Center Reconstitutes as Non-Profit Organization
WASHINGTON DC, April 19, 2012 – The original co-founders of the Terrorism Research Center (TRC) are pleased to announce the organization has been re-established as a non-profit entity to continue the mission of raising public awareness on terrorism related issues and establish a knowledge-base of security related research and analysis. The new organization’s website and public knowledge base can be found online at www.terrorism.org.
First established on April 19, 1996, the year anniversary of the Oklahoma City terrorist bombing, the TRC operated for 15 years as a commercial entity providing research, analysis, and training on issues of terrorism and international security.
The three original co-founders, Matthew Devost, Brian Houghton, and Neal Pollard, will reconstitute a new board of directors, comprised of researchers, first responders and academic and professional experts.
“The TRC had an incredible legacy as a commercial company,” says Matthew Devost. “We believe there is still a strong need to continue the research and collaboration on such critical topics in the public’s best interest.”
From 1996 through 2010, the TRC contributed to international counterterrorism and homeland security initiatives such as Project Responder and the Responder Knowledge Base, Terrorism Early Warning Groups, Project Pediatric Preparedness, Global Fusion Center, and the “Mirror Image” training program. These long-standing programs leveraged an international network of specialists from government, industry, and academia. Reconstituting TRC as a non-profit will help establish the next generation of programs, research, and training to combat the emerging international security issues.
“Thousands of researchers utilized the TRC knowledge base on a daily basis, says Brian Houghton. “Our intent is to open the dialog, provide valuable counterterrorism resources, and advance the latest thinking in counterterrorism for the public good.”
“We want to put the 15-year legacy and goodwill of TRC to continuing benefit for the public, rather than focus on a specific business model,” says Neal Pollard. “TRC was founded in the wake of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing and made its most significant contributions to the nation and the world after the attacks of September 11, 2001. Now that the War on Terrorism has evolved and the United States is entering a new era of transnational threats, the TRC will maintain its familiar role as the vanguard of next-generation research into these emerging threats.”
ABOUT THE TRC
The Terrorism Research Center (TRC) is non-profit think tank focused on investigating and researching global terrorism issues through multi-disciplinary collaboration amongst a group of international experts. Originally founded as a commercial entity in 1996, the TRC was an independent institute dedicated to the research of terrorism, information warfare and security, critical infrastructure protection, homeland security, and other issues of low-intensity political violence and gray-area phenomena. Over the course of 15 years, the TRC conducted research, analysis, and training on a wide range of counterterrorism and homeland security issues.
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