Samantha Ravich

Dr. Samantha Ravich is an expert in national security and international political risk. She currently co-chairs the National Commission for the Review of the Research and Development Programs of the U.S. Intelligence Community. In this role, she co-leads a team of national security experts to review, evaluate and articulate program and resource priorities for the full range of R&D programs within the Intelligence Community. Previously, Dr. Ravich served as Deputy National Security Advisor to Vice President Cheney as well as the Vice President's senior policy representative for all federal government matters related to Asia and Middle East Affairs as well as counter-terrorism and counter-proliferation. Dr. Ravich started her career in Los Angeles as a financial analyst in real estate development, working with the largest Japanese banks at the time as well as with significant overseas Chinese investors. From 1996 to 1999, she managed the Asia and Middle East International Security portfolio for the Smith Richardson Foundation helping to address emerging security issues in these important regions of the world. From 1999 to 2001, Dr. Ravich was a Senior Fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, where she worked with former Senator Sam Nunn and his development of the Nuclear Threat Initiative. From 2003 to 2005, Dr. Ravich served as Vice President for The Long Term Strategy Project, a project established to assess security threats facing the U.S. In this role, she led a U.S. Department of Defense funded research project on the foreign policy and military response options available in response to a nuclear attack against the U.S. homeland. Dr. Ravich received her Ph.D. in Policy Analysis from the RAND Graduate School and her BSE/MCP from the Wharton School/University of Pennsylvania. In 2000, Cambridge University Press published Dr. Ravich's book, Marketization and Democracy: East Asian Experiences, which is used as a basic textbook in international economics, political science, and Asian studies college courses throughout the country. Dr. Ravich is currently a member of the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) and was a CFR International Affairs Fellow. Dr. Ravich serves on the boards of the National Counter-Terrorism Center for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), the RAND Graduate School, and the selection committee for the Hitachi Japan CFR International Fellows Program.