George Mason The Pulse

JAMES DANOY BRIEFS PRESIDENT OBAMA. PHOTO BY PETE SOUZA.

@GEORGEMASON

TRACCC STUDY ILLUSTRATES 4 ‘HUBS’ OF ILLICIT TRADE— AND THE REASONS THEY FLOURISH

A major new Schar School study highlights four geographic hubs of illicit trade for organized crime and specifies how each of the hotspots shares an enabling environment for criminals. In identifying the locations and the lax regulation and governance gaps that create the illicit trade zones, law enforcement and policymakers can take action to curtail the massive human, economic, societal, and security harms across the world. The study, Smugglers’ Paradises in the Global Economy: Growing Threats of Hubs of Illicit Trade to Security and Sustainable Development, was released at the 2023 International Law Enforcement Intellectual Property Crime Conference organized by Interpol in Oslo. “This study underscores the critical need for governments and the private sector to prioritize the fight against illicit activities and to crackdown on organized crime within their Free Trade Zones and other hotspots,” said University Professor Louise Shelley, director of the Schar School’s Terrorism, Transnational Crime and Corruption Center (TraCCC) and Hubs of Illicit Trade project director. TraCCC’s Anti-Illicit Trade Institute (AITI), codirected by former U.S. diplomat David M. Luna, also participated in the project. The study reveals that four global hubs—South America (the Argentina-Brazil-Paraguay tri-border area), Central America (Panama, Guatemala, and Belize), the Middle East (Dubai), and Eastern Europe (Ukraine)—share an enabling environment that fuels illicit trade, facilitated by regulatory laxity, and are points of convergence for different types of criminality, such as corruption, money laundering, and other security threats that contribute to the movement of illicit goods and contraband in Europe and the United States, amongst others. —Schar School Staff

JAMES P. DANOY: ADJUNCT, ALUM, AND FORMER PRESIDENTIAL INTELLIGENCE BRIEFER W hen it comes to supporting senior-level decision makers with intelligence, Schar School adjunct professor and George Mason graduate, James P. Danoy reached the pinnacle: For more than a year, Danoy met with President Barack Obama each morning to present the President’s Daily Brief—the PDB— the Intelligence Community’s daily assessment on national security issues produced for the president. Danoy, who teaches intelligence policy in the international security program, has two degrees from George Mason that he says prepared him for what’s been called “the most important job in the Intelligence Community.” He received a bachelor’s degree in government and international politics in 1979 and a master’s degree in modern European history 11 years later.

“My degrees at George Mason were a great foundation for what I was later going to do, which is serve as an intelligence officer,” he said. “They really gave me a solid foundation to be an intelligence analyst specializing in Europe, but also an understanding of how the government operates and what the role of the Intelligence Community was in supporting decision making.” On occasion, he said, he made sure to wear a George Mason necktie and badge lanyard “because I’m a proud George Mason graduate.” Obama, he said, took notice when he wore the green and gold and was fond of the university. While in office both Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama paid visits to George Mason. —Buzz McClain

LOUISE SHELLEY

For more than a year, Danoy met with President Barack Obama each morning to present the President’s Daily Brief—the PDB— the Intelligence Community’s daily assessment on national security issues produced for the president.

NEW BOOK DEBUNKS MYTHS OF NONPROFIT DYNAMICS I n a new book, Standing Up for Nonprofits , Schar School professor Alan J. Abramson challenges the notion that large national organizations dominate political power over smaller local groups. Written with coauthor Benjamin Soskis and funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the book is freely available online. Through case studies and interviews, Abramson offers strategies for nonprofits to enhance their political influence, emphasizing the importance of local connections in advocacy efforts. —Schar School Staff

POINT OF PRIDE

14 | The Pulse Winter 2024

The Pulse Winter 2024 | 15