Dr. Nicomedes Alviar is currently the Program Director of Public Governance and Leadership, School of Politics and Governance at the University of Asia and the Pacific (UA&P). Prior to this position, he was Dean of the School of Politics and Governance for 9 years (2017-2026). He obtained his PhD Political Science from the University of the Philippines Diliman, and MA Political Science and AB Asian Studies from the University of Santo Tomas. He is a member of the International Political Science Association (IPSA), Association for Asian Studies (AAS), Philippine Council for Foreign Relations (PCFR), Foundation for Economic Freedom (FEF), National Research Council of the Philippines (NRCP), Philippine Political Science Association (PPSA), Philippine International Studies Association (PHISO), Galing Pook Foundation, WR Numero Research Scientific Committee. He is a recipient of the 2023 Distinguished Alumnus Award of the College of Social Science and Philosophy, University of the Philippines Diliman, and the 2024 Distinguished Thomasian Alumnus Award, University of Santo Tomas.

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Ms. Aliah Baniaga Adam is the Philippine Director of The Respair Foundation who has spent her career as a peace advocate and civil society practitioner from the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). She also co-leads a project, funded by the Australian National University Philippines Institute, examining strategic competition dynamics in Mindanao. She is also the founder of Singanen o Mindanao and the Bangsamoro Women Peacebuilder’s Network. Ms. Adam has dedicated her work to grassroots peacebuilding and community-based initiatives, particularly among vulnerable and conflict-affected communities in the Bangsamoro. Her areas of engagement include peacebuilding, humanitarian assistance, early warning and early response, gender-based violence prevention, support and creating safe & inclusive spaces for women and youth and development process.

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Francis Neri is a Systems Architect and Fiduciary Trustee with a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science. His work operates at the intersection of autonomous defense technologies, including edge AI, UAVs, and robotics, and constitutional law. Over the past 13 years, he has conducted extensive independent research into the structural and legal foundations of Philippine territorial sovereignty, specifically analyzing the 1898 Treaty of Paris “interim status” and the unresolved documentary chain of the 1764 fee simple title. His research focuses on how unperfected Article 1 Territorial Integrity creates systemic vulnerabilities that paralyze national defense, procurement, and the West Philippine Sea claims. He is currently developing the FIDNT (Fiduciary-Identified Data-Native Trust) protocol, an open-source API and audit engine designed to evaluate systemic risk and legal authentication in government transactions. He attends The Manila Dialogue as an observer to analyze how geopolitical defense strategies align with, or are constrained by, domestic constitutional and fiduciary architectures, and to explore the intersection of hardware, software, and sovereignty in national security.

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Fernando Dysico serves as a 2026 Subic SQUAD Forum Fellow at YCAPS. His research interests include fiscal policy, political economy, and energy policy. He previously contributed to fiscal policy research at the Hoover Institution and the Philippine Department of Finance. He also developed proposed regulations on data centers for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. He holds Bachelor of Arts degrees in Mathematical Economics and International Studies from Susquehanna University.

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Santiago Juditho Emmanuel L. Castillo has a MSc degree in Strategic Studies from the S.Rajaratnam School of International Studies – Nanyang Technological University, an MA degree in International Studies major in Asian Studies from De La Salle University – Manila, and a BA degree in Philosophy from San Beda University. His research specializations and interests touch on defense/security policies, strategic studies, military capabilities and defense technology developments, Japan-Philippine defense and security relations, geopolitical intelligence, and recently emerging technologies relevant to defense innovation. He currently works for KVG, a US-based logistics company initially as Support Manager and now as a Strategic Capture Specialist, where he engages with government and private sector partners and stakeholders on industry and services related or in support of defense logistics and defense technology innovation. He was previously a Planning Assistant and Executive Assistant for the Philippines’ National Security Council for over three years, and part-time assistant lecturer at De La Salle University and the Lyceum of the Philippines University. He has published peer-reviewed articles and commentaries on Philippine defense capabilities, Philippine defense partnerships, and regional geopolitical issues in the Indo-Pacific.

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Atty. John Psalmuel V. Chan is an Associate Solicitor at the Office of the Solicitor General and a faculty member at the San Sebastian College Recoletos – Manila College of Law and the Notre Dame of Marbel University College of Law, where he teaches Public International Law, Dispute Resolution and Arbitration, and Environmental Law. His practice and research focus on public law, dispute resolution and arbitration, and public international law, with particular interest in the law of the sea. He was a Nippon Foundation Fellow at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, where he presented his research on the military activities exception under Article 298 of UNCLOS before the Tribunal’s judges. He also served on the Philippine delegation to the advisory proceedings before the International Court of Justice concerning States’ obligations in respect of climate change. Atty. Chan has published legal articles on the West Philippine Sea, and has pursued further studies through the International Foundation for the Law of the Sea Summer Academy (with Distinction), the Yeosu Academy of the Law of the Sea, and the Advanced Courses of the Hague Academy of International Law. He is also the chief legal officer of the Philippine International Law of the Sea Academy and a Global Fellow of the Bangladesh Center for Ocean Law and Policy. He earned his Juris Doctor from San Beda University College of Law and his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, cum laude, from the University of the Philippines Manila.

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Jenan S. Naz is an MA candidate in International Studies with a specialization in Global Politics at Miriam College (formerly Maryknoll), and holds a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Bicol University. His research interests lie in domestic politics and decentralization, the construction of power, and the intersection of international relations, geopolitics, and foreign economic policy. As an emerging scholar, he is an active contributor to national policy and academic forums on Philippine and regional affairs.

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Frances Damazo currently serves as the National Programme Officer (Maritime Crime) of the UNODC Global Maritime Crime Programme based in Manila, Philippines. She is responsible for implementing initative focused on strengthening regional coordination, capacity building, and introduction of new technology to enhance maritime law enforcement capabilities in the country.

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Venice Erica Villanueva is a Communications Specialist at the Philippine Reclamation Authority under the Office of the President of the Republic of the Philippines. A graduate of International Studies from San Beda College Alabang, she has professional experience in public diplomacy, strategic communications, and international engagement. She has served as a Volunteer Ambassador with the Diplomatic League under the Philippine Consulate General in Melbourne and as an Ambassador with International Model United Nations (IMUN), supporting cross-cultural dialogue and youth participation in global affairs. Her previous experience includes work with the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines and the Department of Foreign Affairs–Office of Public Diplomacy. Venice has also held leadership roles in student and international affairs organizations and has completed certifications in diplomacy, governance, trade, environmental law, and human rights.

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Ivy Ganadillo is the Director of Maritime Programs at the Yokosuka Council on Asia-Pacific Studies (YCAPS) and a Non-Resident Fellow at the Indo-Pacific Studies Center (Australia). She is also a Ph.D. candidate in International Relations at Ewha Womans University in Seoul, South Korea. Her research interests include maritime security, Philippines–China relations, ocean governance, and East Asian security dynamics. She has served as a university lecturer at Philippine universities and has held research, consulting, and program management roles in academia, government, and think tanks.

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