Dan Harre is the Deputy Director of Save Armenia: A Judeo-Christian Alliance. Before joining Save Armenia, Dan served as the Leadership Network Associate at The Philos Project. He is a graduate of Regent University’s Robertson School of Government where he earned an M.A. in National Security Studies with an emphasis in Middle East Politics. Prior to attending Regent, he worked as the Statewide Field Director on Josh Hawley’s 2016 attorney general campaign, and as a staff assistant for U.S. Senator Roy Blunt. Dan is passionate about foreign policy, the MENA region, and international religious freedom.

Robert Nicholson most recently served as the President and Executive Director of The Philos Project. He is also co-founder and board member of Passages Israel, an advisory board member of In Defense of Christians, and an adjunct professor at The King’s College in New York City. He holds a BA in Hebrew Studies from Binghamton University, and a JD and MA in Middle Eastern history from Syracuse University. A former U.S Marine and a 2012-13 Tikvah Fellow, Robert founded Philos in 2014 to stimulate a new generation of religious and cultural exchange between the Near East and the West. His written work has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, Telegraph, New York Post, Jerusalem Post, Newsweek, Providence, First Things, The Hill, and National Interest.

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Liel Leibovitz is editor at large for Tablet Magazine and the co-host of its popular podcast, Unorthodox. He's also a columnist for First Things and a frequent contributor to other publications, including The New York Post and the Wall Street Journal. He's the author or co-author of several books, including, most recently, How the Talmud Can Change Your Life: Surprisingly Modern Advice from a Very Old Book. He holds a Ph.D. in communications from Columbia University, and has taught at Barnard and New York University before fleeing academia. A native of Israel and a veteran of the Israel Defense Forces, he lives in Manhattan with his wife and children.

Emily Schrader is the founder ofSocial Lite Creative, a political marketing consultancy firm. Emily is also theformer digital director of one of the largest pro-Israel organizations, whereshe transformed their social media platforms into one of the leading sources ofinformation in English and Arabic about the Israel-Palestinian conflict. Emilypreviously worked in digital marketing on political campaigns, and holdsdegrees from USC (BA) and Tel Aviv University (MA).

An international affairs professional, Armen V. Sahakyan, serves on the Advisory Board of the Philos Project. He brings a wealth of experience in government affairs and advocacy, having served in key organizational roles with the Netherlands Institute for Multiparty Democracy, the Westminster Foundation for Democracy, the Armenian National Committee of America Eastern and Western regional offices, the Eurasian Research and Analysis Institute, among others. His articles and commentary have been featured in various international and national media outlets, including the BBC, The National Interest, The Hill, The Christian Science Monitor, Asia Times, and Providence Magazine.

David Akopyan had dual career - PHDin physics studied complex systems, after for 26 years worked for the UN in 15countries across many regions. Last 10 years of his UN career spent inAfghanistan, Somalia and Syria, worst crisis affected countries, holdingleadership positions as UN Development Program deputy director, countrydirector and Resident Representative. He is also AUA (America University ofArmenia), 2019 distinguished alumnus. Early 2021 David retired from the UN andjoined the Artsakh Government as the Principal advisor to State Ministerhelping to coordinate humanitarian and development assistance. He is also an exofficio advisor to the President of Armenia, the Chair of the Board of Trusteesof reArmenia foundation, member of APRI (Applied Policy ResearchInstitute/AGBU) Board of directors and the Insurance Foundation of servicemen.

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Levon Aronian is an Armenian-Americanchess grandmaster. A chess prodigy, he earned the title of grandmaster in 2000,at age 17. He is a former world rapid and blitz champion and has held the No. 2position in the March 2014 FIDE world chess rankings with a rating of 2830,becoming the fourth highest-rated player in history. Levon is both Armenian andJewish by ethnicity and currently resides in the United States.

Dr. Ani Avetisyan is a former PhD Scholar at St John's College, Universityof Cambridge, and an Ian Karten Honorary PhD Scholar at the Woolf Institute.Her doctoral research focused on two Judaeo-Arabic manuscripts from theMatenadaran Museum, which Brill will soon publish as a monograph. Ani'sacademic journey began at Yerevan State University, where she earned herBachelor's degree and first MA in Arabic Studies. She continued her studies atPaideia – The European Institute for Jewish Studies in Stockholm, and at HFJSHeidelberg University, where she obtained a second MA in Jewish Civilizations.

From 2018 to 19, Ani played a significant role atYerevan Brusov State University, contributing to establishing the Centre forHebrew Language and Culture. She has recently been awarded apostdoctoral fellowship at Ben Gurion University, where she will collaboratewith Dr. Aviad Moreno on a book project exploring Armenian Jewish repatriationdynamics in Egypt during the mid-twenties. Ani remains actively engaged as aresearch affiliate at the Woolf Institute.

Amb. Grigor Hovanissyan servedas the Ambassador of Armenia to the United States from 2016-2018. Prior to his Washington appointment, GrigorHovhannisyan has served as Armenia’s ambassador to Mexico, Costa Rico, and asthe country’s Consul General in Los Angeles.

Hovhannisyan was born in Yerevan in 1971. After completinghis studies at the Yerevan State University, Department of Oriental Studiesspecializing in Arab Studies in 1992, he moved on to study Middle East Politicsat the Haigazian University in Lebanon in 1992-1993 and received his MA fromThe Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University in 2000-2001.

Before a career in the diplomatic service of the Republicof Armenia, Grigor Hovhannisyan held a number of positions in UN programs andspecialized agencies, working in Africa and the Middle East.

Rabbi Dr. Ari Lamm is Co-Founder and President of SoulShop Studios, a media venture for faith-driven Gen Z audiences, and Chief Executive of the Bnai Zion Foundation. Rabbi Lamm is a leading Jewish public intellectual using digital media to bring great Jewish ideas to the wider English-speaking public. He is the host of the top-ranked weekly podcast on the Bible and society, Good Faith Effort. And his popular Twitter threads on “Why Read the Bible in Hebrew?” have garnered over 4 million views to date, and been covered by major international news outlets. For his leadership in the world of Jewish ideas, The Jerusalem Post recently ranked him #38 on its list of the world’s 50 Most Influential Jews. Rabbi Lamm earned his rabbinical ordination from Yeshiva University’s Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary, and his PhD in Religion from Princeton University. He received his Master’s in Judaism and Eastern Christianity from University College London via a Fulbright Scholarship. His writings have appeared in the Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, Tablet Magazine, SAPIR Journal and The Jerusalem Post.

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Rabbi Jeffrey K. Salkin has a nationaland international reputation as one of America’s most quoted rabbis and thoughtleaders. His words have been cited in The New York Times, The New Republic, andUSA Today. He has appeared on many television and radio programs, and hasspoken in more than a hundred communities, including in Israel, Great Britain,Cuba, and Poland.

A native of New York, Rabbi Salkin was ordained at HebrewUnion College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York in 1981. He was one ofthe first Jews to earn the Doctor of Ministry degree from Princeton TheologicalSeminary in 1991. Rabbi Salkin has served on the boards of many national andlocal Jewish organizations, and has been an activist for Israel and Zionism.

Rabbi Salkin serves as the Senior Rabbi at Temple Israel ofWest Palm Beach. He was the prestigious Chautauqua Society scholar in June of2020. His hobbies include playing guitar, reading voraciously, and consumingvast quantities of coffee.

Lara Setrakian is an award-winningjournalist and the President of the Applied Policy Research Center, a thinktank focused on regional stability, sustainable prosperity, and civicengagement in the South Caucasus. Lara is also the Founder and CEO of NewsDeeply. Lara spent more than five years as a foreign correspondent, coveringthe Middle East for television, radio, and digital platforms, reporting for ABCNews, Bloomberg Television, the International Herald Tribune, the BusinessInsider, and Monocle Magazine. She has since focused on the fusion of news andtechnology.

Lara has served as an inaugural fellow with the PeterJennings Program at the National Constitution Center and was named a YoungGlobal Leader by the World Economic Forum. She was also dubbed one of the TopWomen of 2012 by Marie Claire Magazine and is a Life Member of the Council onForeign Relations. Lara graduated Magna Cum Laude from Harvard University.

Dor Shabashewitz is aRussian-Israeli journalist and political analyst who writes about ethnicminority rights in the ex-USSR for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. He holds aBA in History and an MA in Social Anthropology. He is a co-founder of the NorthCaspian Institute, a think tank exploring ethnic and political processes in hisoriginal home region of Astrakhan at the crossroads of Russia, Central Asia andthe Caucasus. Since 2021, when he was forced to leave Russia by theauthorities, he has been splitting time between Israel and Armenia, where hiswife is from. His analytical articles have appeared in New Eastern Europe,Voices on Central Asia and Eurasia Review. He is also a regular freelancecontributor to The Forward’s Yiddish section, Forverts.

Simone Rizkallah is theDeputy Director of Education at The Philos Project. As a first-generationAmerican of Egyptian-Armenian descent, Simone has a particular interest inmatters of religious freedom, culture, and the Eastern roots of the Faith. Hergraduate degree is in Theological Studies from Christendom College. Herundergraduate studies and professional background include marketingcommunications, media, radio, and theatre. She is a frequent guest on CatholicAnswers Live and a faculty member of the Avila Institute.

You can find her talks, publications, and podcast episodeson her website www.culturalgypsy.com.

Nathaniel Trubkin is a Jewish journalist and activist from Moscow, Russia. Since 2022 - Founder and President of Yerevan Jewish Home community in Armenia. Nathaniel graduated from the Institute of Journalism and Literary Creativity (the course of writer and researcher of multiculturalism Lev Anninsky). He organizes many lectures on Jewish culture, history and tradition in Yerevan, and is also the author of the film "Armenian Happiness: between Ararat and Jerusalem", which tells about the common history of Jews and Armenians.

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Torgom (Tom) Varzhapetyan, born in Armenia, holds Master's Degree from Yerevan State Economic University. He is an entrepreneur and senior executive with over 25 years of experience, specializing in FinTech and HealthTech. Torgom combines professional occupation with social and community activities. He is a Board of trustees member of the Jewish Community of Armenia since 2007 and a WJC Jewish Diplomatic Corps member since 2017.

Rabbi Diana Fersko is theSenior Rabbi of The Village Temple in downtown Manhattan where sheserves as spiritual leader for hundreds of families.  She is the author ofthe prominent book We Need to Talk About Antisemitism and her voicehas been published widely in the press.  She is a member of theCentral Conference of American Rabbis, the New York Board of Rabbis, and servedas National Vice President of the Women’s Rabbinic Network. Rabbi Ferskoreceived her rabbinic ordination from Hebrew Union College – Jewish Instituteof Religion, where she also earned a master’s degree in Hebrew literature. Sheis known for her love of Israel, for fighting antisemitism, and her dedicationto securing continuity in the liberal Jewish world. 

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Michael Rubin is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, where he specializes in Iran, Turkey, and the broader Middle East. A former Pentagon official, Dr. Rubin has lived in post-revolution Iran, Yemen, and both pre- and postwar Iraq. He also spent time with the Taliban before 9/11. For more than a decade, he taught classes at sea about the Horn of Africa and Middle East conflicts, culture, and terrorism, to deployed US Navy and Marine units. Dr. Rubin is the author, coauthor, and coeditor of several books exploring diplomacy, Iranian history, Arab culture, Kurdish studies, and Shi’ite politics, including “Seven Pillars: What Really Causes Instability in the Middle East?” (AEI Press, 2019); “Kurdistan Rising” (AEI Press, 2016); “Dancing with the Devil: The Perils of Engaging Rogue Regimes” (Encounter Books, 2014); and “Eternal Iran: Continuity and Chaos” (Palgrave, 2005). Dr. Rubin has a PhD and an MA in history from Yale University, where he also obtained a BS in biology.