Mr. Moustapha Soumaré

Président du Conseil D'administration

Moustapha Soumaré a pris sa retraite des Nations Unies à l'issue de 40 ans d'expérience dans le maintien et la consolidation de la paix, le développement et le leadership. De 2015 à 2020, il a occupé le poste de représentant spécial adjoint (politique) de la mission des Nations Unies en République du Sud-Soudan (MINUSS). De 2012 à 2015, il a été le représentant spécial adjoint du Secrétaire général de la Mission de l'Organisation des Nations Unies pour la stabilisation en République démocratique du Congo (MONUSCO), le coordinateur résident des Nations Unies, le coordinateur humanitaire et le représentant résident du Programme des Nations Unies pour le développement (PNUD). Auparavant, il a été le représentant spécial adjoint du Secrétaire général chargé du redressement et de la gouvernance au sein de la Mission des Nations Unies au Libéria (MINUL) de 2009 à 2012. Il a été administrateur assistant adjoint du PNUD et directeur régional adjoint du Bureau régional pour l'Afrique à New York de 2007 à 2009. Il a été coordinateur résident des Nations Unies et représentant résident au Rwanda de 2005 à 2007, et au Bénin de 2000 à 2005. Il a été directeur de recherche d'avril à octobre 2006 au sein du secrétariat du Groupe général de haut niveau sur la cohérence du système des Nations Unies dans les domaines du développement, de l'aide humanitaire et de l'environnement. M. Soumaré est diplômé de l'Université de Belgrade, en Yougoslavie.

Mr. Kevin S. Kennedy

Vice-président du conseil d'administration

M. Kevin S. Kennedy a commencé à travailler au Secrétariat des Nations Unies en 1977 et a rempli différents postes en mission et au siège de l’ONU à New-York (UNHQ). En 2007, il a rejoint la division Afrique du Département des opérations de maintien de la paix, où il a dirigé l’Équipe opérationnelle intégrée Grands Lacs. En 2011, il est devenu Chef du Service de formation intégré, et à partir de 2013-2014, il a servi en tant qu’officier en charge de la division Politique, Évaluation et Formation. En décembre 2013, M. Kennedy a dirigé l’Équipe opérationnelle intégrée Mali au UNHQ, qui était en charge de la supervision stratégique et de la coordination de l’assistance pour la Mission multidimensionnelle intégrée des Nations Unies pour la stabilisation au Mali (MINUSMA). De 2000 à 2007, il a travaillé au Bureau exécutif du Secrétaire Général Kofi Annan.

M. Kennedy a travaillé dans des missions de terrain de l’ONU en République Démocratique du Congo et en Afrique du Sud, et a fait partie de l’équipe de démarrage de la Mission de l’ONU au Kossovo. Il a également participé à plusieurs missions politiques et de maintien de la paix, y compris au Burundi, en République Centrafricaine, en République démocratique du Congo, en ex-Yougoslavie, en Haïti, au Timor Oriental et au Sahara occidental.

M. Kennedy est diplômé de la Catholic University of America de Washington, D.C., et a étudié les relations internationales de l’Université de New York.

Général Awale Abdounasir

General Awale Abdounasir has 21 years of experience in international and national policing. He has worked extensively with the United Nations: He was Police Commissioner for the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) from 2016 to 2020, led the Police Component of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) from 2013 to 2016, and was Acting Police Commissioner with the United Nations Operation in Côte d'Ivoire (UNOCI) from 2008 to 2013. At the national level, he has served as Director of the Forensic Laboratory, Director of the Police Academy, and Chief of Cabinet of the Ministry of Interior of Djibouti.

He is a graduate of the National Police Academy of Saint Cyr au Mont d’Or in France, and he holds a master's degree in Law and Security Policy from the University of Lyon III.

Currently, he serves as the Senior Advisor for Humanitarian Access with the United Nations Resident Coordinator’s Office for Yemen, a role he has held since 2021. He received the United Nations Secretary-General Award for Change Agents in 2019.

Brigadière Générale (En Retraite) Adrian Foster

Major General (Ret.) Adrian Foster retired in 2018 after almost four decades of military service. He commanded a regiment in Bosnia and Herzegovina and was awarded a Queen’s Commendation for Valuable Service for his efforts.

He has worked extensively with the United Nations in Africa, including as the military’s Chief of Staff for the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) and Deputy Force Commander for the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO). He spent four years at MONUSCO, eventually becoming the Acting Force Commander of 18,000 multinational military peacekeepers at the start of the “M23” conflict.

Currently, he is involved in consultancy work for the United Nations and various international think tanks.

Mr. Amadu Kamara

Mr. Amadu Kamara has over 25 years of experience in administrative and logistical support of political missions, peace operations, and humanitarian relief with the United Nations. He served as Director of the United Nations Support Office in Somalia from 2012 to 2018, where he collaborated with the African Union, the Federal Government of Somalia, and other stakeholders. He helped deploy, sustain, and operationalize 22,000 African Union troops in Somalia. From 2014 to 2015, he served as Crisis Manager for the United Mission for Ebola Emergency Response in Sierra Leone and Somalia. He took this additional position to fight against the single largest global Ebola crisis. He has also worked with United Nations operations in East Timor, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Haiti, and Lebanon.

Mr. Kamara holds a Bachelor’s in Social & Behavioral Sciences and Economics from the University of New York at New Paltz. He also studied social and behavioural science, economics, and political economy at the New School of Architecture and Design.

Ms. Karin Landgren

Ms. Karin Landgren is a Distinguished Fellow at the NYU Center on International Cooperation. She is the former Executive Director of Security Council Report. She previously led three United Nations peacekeeping and political missions in Liberia (UNMIL), Burundi (BNUB), and Nepal (UNMIN). In 2014, she led UNMIL’s support to the Ebola response in Liberia.

Ms. Landgren has over 20 years of experience working with refugees. She was the Country Representative for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Eritrea, and Singapore. She also served with UNHCR in India and the Philippines. As Chief of Standards and Legal Advice, Landgren helped revive UNHCR’s responsibility for the protection of stateless persons. Additionally, she was UNICEF’s first Chief of Child Protection.

Ms Landgren is a founding member of the Nordic Women Mediators’ Network. She previously taught at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs. She holds a Bachelor’s of Science in Economics and a Master of Laws from the London School of Economics, as well as a Certificate in Public Policy and Governance from the University of Maastricht.

Ambassadeur Michel Rentenaar

Michel Rentenaar, membre du corps diplomatique des Pays-Bas, est actuellement ambassadeur des Pays-Bas en Irak. Auparavant, il a été représentant permanent adjoint des Pays-Bas auprès de l'OTAN et conseiller d'interface civilo-militaire au Grand Quartier général des puissance alliées en Europe de l’OTAN. Il possède une vaste expérience sur le terrain, a co-commandé la Force opérationnelle Uruzgan VII en Afghanistan et a servi dans les ambassades des Pays-Bas en RDC, en Égypte, au Liban, dans les Territoires palestiniens, en Ouganda et au Yémen. Il a effectué deux missions en Irak en tant que conseiller politique du commandant du bataillon néerlandais et du chef de l'Autorité provisoire de la coalition dans la province d’Al-Muthanna (sud de l'Irak). Le néerlandais est sa langue maternelle et il parle l'arabe, l'anglais, le français, l'allemand et l'hébreu.

Colonel (En Retraite) Per Ronning

Colonel (Ret.) Per Ronning served 42 years in the Norwegian Army. His deployments include commanding the Norwegian Contingent in Afghanistan in 2005, as well as positions at the NATO Joint Warfare Centre and NATO Headquarters.

His United Nations experience includes working as Deputy Security Sector Reform Coordinator for the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) from 2009 to 2010. He was Military Advisor at the Norwegian Permanent Mission to the UN from 2011 to 2015. From 2016 to 2021, he was Chief of the Joint Operations Centre (JOC) in South Sudan. He led an integrated JOC section consisting of civilian, military, and police personnel, providing operational coordination and assessments, training, and situational awareness for the mission. He also supported crisis management for mission leadership.

He studied at the French Staff College in Paris and the NATO Defence College.

Ms. Pernilla Rydén

Ms. Pernilla Rydén has extensive experience working with peace and security over the last 20 years. She has served in numerous United Nations peace operations, including large multidimensional missions and special political missions. Most recently, Ms. Rydén was Chief of Staff of the UN Mission to Support the Hudaydah Agreement (UNMHA) in Yemen. Previously, she served as Head of the Regional and Multilateral Section of the Political Affairs Department in United Nations Stabilisation Mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO). She also served in the Office of the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for the Great Lakes, the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), the UN Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), the Secretary-General’s Panel for the Referenda in Sudan, and the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL).

In addition to her work with the UN, she has held positions within the European External Action Services (EEAS) and the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).

Ms. Rydén holds a Master’s in Political Science and Economics from the University of Lund, Sweden. She speaks Swedish, English and French.

Colonel (En Retraite) Girish Sinha

Colonel (Ret.) Girish Sinha is the former Director of the United Nations Department of Field Support. Since 2016, he has been part of the Transition Team of the Secretary General, where he has been responsible for operational management and support during transitional periods in peace operations. From 2014 to 2015, he served as Director of Mission Support for the United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER). He has also served as the Director of Mission Support in several UN peace operations. Additionally, he was a keynote speaker for the Gordon Brown Institute of Management at the World Health and Humanitarian Conference. Currently, he is a management consultant with the Global Dryland Alliance.

Before joining United Nations, Mr. Sinha served in the Indian Army for 20 years. He is a graduate of India’s National Defense Academy and the Defense Services Staff College Wellington. He was also trained in Supply Chain Management at the Sloan Management School of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Brigadier (En Retraite) Alejandro Gustavo Szejner

Brigadier (Ret.) Alejandro Gustavo Szejner served in the Argentine Air Force for 39 years, specializing in aeronautical logistics. He served as Head of the Argentina Air Force's Peacekeeping Operations Department, responsible for coordinating the enlistment and deployment of Argentine air units and staff to United Nations missions. He was Military Liaison Officer for the United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) from 2002 to 2003 and Chief CIMCOORD for the United Nations Stabilisation Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) from 2004 to 2005.

He has worked as an instructor at Centro Argentino de Entrenamiento Conjunto Para Operaciones de Paz (CAECOPAZ) and the Joint Training Center for Peace Operations Chile (CECOPAC). Since November 2020, he has been a Course Leader for online courses.

He holds a legal degree, a Bachelor's in Air and Space Law, and a Bachelor's in Aeronautical and Aerospace Systems.

Colonel (En Retraite) Roberto Gil de Vargas

Le colonel (à la retraite) Roberto Gil de Vargas a effectué 40 années de service militaire actif au sein des forces armées urugayennes. Au cours de sa carrière, il a occupé des fonctions de commandement et de gestion, aussi bien en Uruguay qu'à l'étranger, notamment aux postes de commandant de troupes, d'officier d'état major, d'administrateur académique et d'instructeur.

Il a également été déployé sur plusieurs opérations internationales de paix en Afrique, en Asie, en Amérique latine et dans les Caraïbes.

Le colonel Gil dispose de plus de 35 ans d’expérience internationale dans le domaine de l’instruction et de la formation d'officiers militaires et de police ainsi que de personnel civil.

Il a publié plusieurs ouvrages et articles portant sur les opérations de paix ainsi que des méthodologies et évaluations relatives à l’instruction et à la formation, notamment “Education & Training of the American Region Personnel to deploy in Peace Operations” (2015), “Methodological Guidance for Peacekeeping Operations Training” (2009), “Liberia crisis, Peacekeeping Operation Lessons Learned” (1994), “Training and Evaluation Schemes” (1992), et “Methodology for Military Instruction and Training” (1985).

Ms. Leila Zerrougui

Ms. Leila Zerrougui has more than 40 years of experience in rule of law and protection of civilians. She served as the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic in the Congo (MONUSCO) from 2018 to 2021. She also held the position of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict from 2012 to 2017. Prior to this appointment, she was the Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Deputy Head of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC/MONUSCO) from 2008 to 2012. Her most recent position was as a member of the Independent High-Level Panel on Security and Development in the Sahel from 2022 to 2024. A legal expert in human rights and the administration of justice, Ms. Zerrougui has sought to strengthen the rule of law and protect vulnerable groups, especially women and children.

At the national level, Ms. Zerrougui has had a longstanding legal career in Algeria, where she was appointed Supreme Court Judge in 2000. She holds a degree from the Ecole Nationale d’Administration in Algiers.

Dr. Harvey Langholtz

Conseiller du Conseil d'administration

Le Dr. Harvey Langholtz était le fondateur et le directeur de l’Institut de formation aux opérations de paix. Il a effectué toute sa carrière dans l’US Coast Guard, et a pris sa retraite en 1993 avec le rang de Commandant. Il a ensuite rejoint le Département d’État américain, où il a travaillé dans la Délégation américaine auprès des Nations Unies de 1991 à 1993, et représenté les États-Unis au Comité spécial des opérations de maintien de la paix des Nations Unies (C34). En 1993, il a rejoint le corps enseignant au College of William & Mary à Williamsburg, Virginie, États-Unis, où il enseigne la Théorie des décisions et porte le titre universitaire de Professeur. Le Dr. Langholtz a écrit plusieurs livres et articles, dont The Psychology of Peacekeeping et The Psychology of Diplomacy. Il a également occupé le poste de rédacteur au Journal of International Peacekeeping. Il est titulaire d’un M.A de la New School for Social Research de New York, d’un M.S. de l’US Navy Postgraduate School de Monterey, Californie, et d’un doctorat de l’Université d’Oklahoma.

Ramona Taheri

Directrice Exécutive

Mme Ramona Taheri est la directrice exécutive du POTI. Elle est responsable de la gestion de l’Institut conformément à sa mission et a travaillé 10 ans dans le domaine de la formation aux opérations de paix. Elle est titulaire d'un baccalauréat en affaires étrangères de l’université de Virginie et d’une maîtrise en sciences politiques de l’université de Columbia.

Membres du Conseil

Elisabeth Rosenbaum Maurer, Secrétaire

Emily Neal, Trésorière