Ryan Pereira

4310 SW 140th Ave Davie, Fl 33330 (954) 605-2357 rmp74@georgetown.edu

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New Jersey Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness
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EDUCATION

GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY, Walsh School of Foreign Service Washington, DC

MA in Security Studies GPA: 3.9 December 2016
Relevant Coursework: Counterinsurgency, Terrorism/Counterterrorism, Roots & Trajectory of Extremism,
Violent Non-State Actors, Disruptive Analytics, Research Seminar, Arabic Study Abroad at Qasid in Amman
COUNTERING VIOLENT EXTREMISM: Drafted numerous articles and memos on domestic and international
CVE, including a Small Wars Journal article advocating tailored, direct interventions in the United States and a
recent memo for the State Departments Transition Team on CVE in the Middle East and North Africa. Received
a Boren Fellowship to the United Arab Emirates to help Hedayah set up a network of former violent extremists.
TERRORIST USE OF THE INTERNET: Conducted research and published a 34-page paper on the Islamic
States social media and recruitment strategy. The article shows how the group leverages social media to garner
mainstream media coverage, project a winners narrative, and mobilize supporters to action. The report
outlines how the Islamic State implements an online recruitment strategy that follows sympathizers from first
contact, through a careful pruning of their social networks, before culminating in a call to action, such as social
media activism, migration to Islamic State territories, or terrorist attacks.
JIHADIST PROPAGANDA: Over a three-month period, monitored, catalogued, and translated the Islamic
States Arabic-language propaganda on Telegram. Using statistical analyses of the large-n dataset and structured,
focused case studies, demonstrated how the Islamic State tailors its propaganda to sympathetic, uninvolved, and
hostile audiences around the world. The soon-to-be-published report deconstructs the Islamic State propaganda
into five key themes (war, utopianism, victimhood, mercy, and international terrorism) and four primary
metanarratives (there is a global war against Islam, the Islamic State has military momentum, the Caliphate is an
Islamic utopia, and all Muslims have a religious duty to the Caliphate).
GLOBAL JIHADISM: Translated statements and speeches from radical Islamist and jihadist ideologues and
leaders including Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, Abu Muhammad al-Adnani, Ayman al-Zawahiri, Abu Muhammad al-
Jolani, Turki al-Binali, Abu Muhammad al-Maqdisi, and Abdallah Muhammad al-Muhaysini. Used Abu Musab
al-Suris writings and Ayman al-Zawahiris General Guidelines for Jihad as frameworks for explaining
divisions within the global jihadist movement between the Islamic State and al-Qaeda linked groups. Received a
Boren Fellowship to the United Arab Emirates to work at Hedayah Center and help build up a network of former
violent extremists.
METHODOLOGICAL TOOLS: Through the research seminar and course work, gained hands-on experience
with quantitative and qualitative methodologies. Practiced using Analysis of Competing Hypotheses, social
network analyses, sentiment analyses, GIS analyses, statistical analyses, and quantitative research. Gained
familiarity building and coding datasets, using SPSS and Excel, and utilizing Tableau and Excel to visualize
longitudinal, geospatial, and quantitative data.
University of Florida GPA: 4.00 Gainesville, FL
BA in Political Science and Arabic Language, summa cum laude May 2013
Relevant Coursework: Highest Honors Thesis on the use of terrorism within civil wars, Independent Research on
al-Qaeda and affiliated movements, Arabic Language.
Al-Qaeda and Affiliated Movements: For the Honors Department, drafted a research paper on the origins of al-
Qaeda, the groups expansion through affiliates, and its campaign of international terrorism. Examined jihadists
use of password-protected Internet forums and compared Osama bin Ladens speeches and statements with
Anwar al-Awlakis speeches and al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsulas English-language magazine Inspire.
EXPERIENCE

CO-FOUNDER AND ADVERTISING LEAD 05/2016-Present

Objective Zero Non-Profit 30 Hours per Week
Supervisor: Christopher Mercado (clm260@georgetown.edu)
DISRPUTIVE THINKING: Came up with the early idea for Objective Zero, a mobile phone application that will
instantly connect veterans-in-need to a community of Objective Zero Ambassadors, composed of veterans,
current service members, spiritual counselors, and psychologists, in order to address the issue of veteran suicide.
LEADERSHIP: Worked alongside a team of six to develop a promotional video and solicit mainstream media
interest for a kick-starter campaign to raise $35,000 to develop the mobile application.
SOCIAL MEDIA ANALYTICS: Manage the Objective Zero blog, lead the teams social media strategy, and
design metrics for assessing early outreach and fundraising efforts.

TRANSLATION INTERN 07/2015-Present

Aaron Zelin- Jihadology.net 20 Hours Per Week
Supervisor: Aaron Zelin (aaron.zelin@gmail.com)
ARABIC LANGUAGE SKILLS: Translated Under the (al-Auqab) Vultures Banner: Tunisian Salafi Jihadists in
order to help Aaron Zelin understand al-Qaeda and the Islamic States influence within Tunisia.
EXPERTISE ON TUNISIAN JIHADISM: Published a Jamestown Foundation article that examined the Islamic
States impact on jihadist violence within Tunisia. Utilized a multi-year dataset of attacks attributed to Uqbah
ibn Nfi, the Islamic State, and other groups and data visualization techniques to demonstrate the level and
geospatial spread of jihadist violence in the post-Arab Spring period.

ADVANCED RESEARCHER-SPECIAL PROJECTS DIVISION 08/2013-09/2015

National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START) 30 Hours Per Week
Supervisor: William Braniff (braniff@umd.edu) $24 per Hour
OPEN-SOURCE INTELLIGENCE: Monitored jihadist groups social media posts and interactions in order to
help the intelligence community and law enforcement agencies understand terrorists strategic communications.
CASE STUDY RESEARCH: Conducted 15 case studies to be coded for the Profiles of Individual Radicalization
in the United States (PIRUS) dataset in order to identify pathways to radicalization within the United States.
Included case studies of American jihadists and right-wing extremists who radicalized through real-world and
Internet interactions.
POLITICAL RISK MANAGEMENT: Worked collaboratively on a team of 8 to analyze insider and external
threats to international air cargo for TSA by deconstructing the typology of threats, resulting in a series of
recommendations influencing hiring and security protocols for TSA.
MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA PROJECTS: Helped State Department to develop strategies and
methods for preventing and detecting the radicalization of bio-scientists in the Middle East and North Africa.
Compiled the first database of individuals working in the government, academia, or private sector who might
have the knowledge to weaponize biological agents.
BRIEFINGS: Prepared briefings for START CEOs Congressional hearings on the Islamic State and al-Qaeda
to include the differences in ideology and their attack priorities. Argued the Islamic State had eclipsed al-Qaeda
within the global jihadist movement, but al-Qaedas more patient, gradualist vision of an Islamic Caliphate made
the network a resilient, long-term threat.
SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTISE: Special Operations Command Central (SOCCENT) Subject Matter Expert
(SME) on the Islamic State and al-Qaeda; Contributed to a December 2014 SOCCENT White Paper and
participated in SOCCENT simulation on Operation Inherent Resolve in summer 2015.
MIDDLE EAST ANALYST INTERN 01/2013-12/2013
Artis Center for Conflict Studies and Field Research 20 Hours Per Week
Supervisor: Dr. Richard Davis (rdavis@artisresearch.com)
RESEARCH & ANALYSIS: Gathered Middle Eastern leaders and intelligence officials public statements about
Iranian nuclear proliferation in order to anticipate the Gulf states reactions, culminating in a three-day Oxford
conference.
POLITICAL TRENDS AND ELECTIONS INTERN Summer 2010
Brookings Mountain West 40 Hours per Week
Supervisor: Dr. Robert Lang (571-296-1003)
POLITICAL FORECASTING: Made predictions about the 2010 mid-term elections for a Brookings research
report by examining population statistics and recent election results within the Mountain West region.

DISTINCTIONS

Languages: Modern Standard Arabic (advanced professional proficiency)

Big Data Analysis Experience: Constructing Excel datasets, sentiment analysis, social network analysis,
statistical analysis, data visualization techniques
Quantitative Software: SPSS, Excel
Leadership: Co-founder of Objective Zero: Non-Profit For Veteran Suicide, Debate Coach for underprivileged
students at James Logan High School, David L. Boren Fellowship Recipient to the United Arab Emirates
Publications

All Propaganda Is Local: Tailoring the Islamic States Propaganda, Quilliam Foundation, date of publication:
forthcoming March 2017.
Reframing Reversals: The Islamic States Media Jihad, Date of Publication: October 22, 2016, Georgetown
Security Studies Review.
Radical Change: The Impact of the Islamic State on Tunisia, Date of Publication: May 16, 2016, The
Jamestown Foundation Terrorism Monitor, Volume XIV: Issue 10.
The Islamic States Social Media and Recruitment Strategy: Papering over a Flimsy Caliphate, Date of
publication: Fall 2016, Georgetown Security Studies Review Journal.
A Tale of Two Caliphates in Multi-Method Assessment of ISIL for SOCCENT Commander MG Michael
Nagata. Date of Publication: December 2014. Co-authored with William Braniff.
The United Kingdoms Approach to CVE-A Plan Americans Deserve but Will Never Receive, Small Wars
Journal, Date of Publication: August 5, 2015.
Jihadists and WMD: Syria and Iraq, CBRNe World, Date of Publication: December 2014. Co-authored with
Dr. Gary Ackerman.
The Threat of Urban Terrorism, Georgetown Security Studies Review, Date of Publication: March 22, 2015.
A Tale of Two Caliphates, START Discussion Point, Date of Publication: August 28, 2014. Co-authored with
William Braniff.
The Prospective Military Power of al-Qaeda Affiliated Groups in the Syrian Conflict, START e-Newsletter,
Date of publication: December 19, 2013. Co-authored with Aaron Lin and Daniel Smith.