We hope you had a warm and meaningful Thanksgiving. At SPSN, our November was filled with numerous exciting developments for both our own efforts and our partners.

On November 13, SPSN was featured as a keynote partner at the International Stability Operations Association (ISOA) annual summit. SPSN principal investigator Steve Miska interviewed Amb. Ryan Crocker on the importance of protecting soft networks and the viability of current protection measures. Crocker drew on his experience as the U.S. ambassador to Iraq and Afghanistan to explain how critical our local national allies are to mission success and the pitfalls of failing to protect them from harm. The summit audience expressed great interest in the issue and asked Amb. Crocker insightful and interesting questions. We appreciate the opportunity to participate in this forum and are grateful to ISOA for allowing us to do so.

Thank you for supporting our work in strategically protecting soft networks. We hope you have a lovely holiday season and we look forward to sharing more exciting updates as our research progresses.

The SPSN Team

Suggested Readings:

• Fmr. Amb. Crocker: We Must Keep Our Promises to Those Who Serve With Us, By Ryan Crocker and Matt Zeller, Fox News, 11/11/18
• Should Iraqi and Afghan Special Immigrant Visa Applicants Be Allowed to Sue the Government?, Center for Immigration Studies, 10/31/18
• American evangelicals give $58K to save persecuted Muslim family; US still denies asylum, Christian Post, 11/25/18
• Is your Lyft Driver an Unlikely Hero?, Las Vegas Sun, 11/17/18