The first day was dedicated to meetings with US government representatives, including those from NNSA GMS and ORS.  Second, third, and fourth days of the program included meetings with DC-based NGOs and the Institute of Nuclear Materials Management (INMM), with focused discussions on nuclear energy developments in MENA and the future development of AWN-CBRNS, including its mentorship program, strategic vision, branding, and website development.  

Jasmine Auda, AWN-CBRNS President, and Margarita Kalinina-Pohl, Director of CBRN Security at the CNS, Monterey, California, started the day with remarks on AWN’s mission and objectives. From DOE NNSA, Christine Bent, Assistant Deputy Administrator, DOE NNSA Office of Global Material Security (GMS), and Kristina Hatcher, International Programs Director, DOE NNSA, Office of Radiological Security, presented welcome remarks to the AWN members and shared their perspectives regarding the CBRN field, challenges, opportunities, and leadership. The session was concluded with an overview of ORS programs, provided by Molly Martell.

This technical visit was significant in that it marked the first sustained interaction of AWN members as a collective with the US technical and policy community. Ambit Advisory CEO Al-Sharif Nasser bin Nasser talked about utilizing international assistance and cooperation. He discussed the region’s unique context and why it requires dedicated attention towards radiological sources and illicit trafficking of radiological materials. Nasser highlighted the importance of this shared concern and emphasized current regional initiatives, which are improving this situation. He concluded his talk by highlighting the importance of cultural nuances and greater regional partnerships and collaborations to effectively combat these multifaceted threats.

Ms. Safaa Mourad, General Secretary of AWN-CBRNS from the American University in Beirut (Lebanon), took the stage to present a detailed overview of the network and its activities. Following these presentations, John Starkey, Director of Public Policy from American Nuclear Society (ANS), provided an overview of ANS and discussed the opportunities and possibilities for the network members to consider in a roundtable discussion.

Other members of the network also provided presentations on different domains within CBRN security, highlighting CBRN-related activities in their countries and organizations in a session moderated by Jasmine Auda. Ms. Fatema Saeed Alnaqbi, a former employee of the Nawah Energy Company, Barakah Nuclear Power Plant, United Arab Emirates, talked about the UAE mandates and CBRN strategies in the context of national frameworks, regional engagement, and capacity building programs. Dr. Lobna Ben Khelifa, from Applied Science Private University, Jordan, talked about the Next-Gen Nuclear Security and the Power of Artificial Intelligence in mitigating nuclear security threats. Ms. Amnah Ibraheem, from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Kuwait, discussed the importance of crisis coordination and management of radiological and nuclear risks during regional conflicts in the Arab Gulf and focused on the Iran-Israel conflict in July 2025. Lastly, Prof. Amira Zaouak from the National Center for Nuclear Sciences and Technology, Tunisia, talked about the Strengthening CBRN Security through AWN-CBRNS initiatives and collaboration.

The day was concluded with a briefing by William Stewart, Senior Project Leader, Off-Site Source Recovery Program, LANL, and with Dr. Mirvat Abdelhaq, Principal Member of Technical Staff, Sandia National Laboratory. Mr. Stewart provided an overview of radiological sources, followed by a physical demonstration of a few of the sample sources. Ms. Abdelhaq talked about the Sandia Laboratories’ model simulations developed to mitigate insider nuclear security threats.

The second day was focused on visits to the NGO and think tank community in Washington, DC. This included a visit to the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI), where the group was greeted by the leadership team of Global Biological Policy and Programs. The Bio team provided a detailed overview of their projects and activities in the African and Middle Eastern region, including the Global Health Index, which assesses the health security capacities of 195 countries, and the Global Biosecurity Dialogue, which fosters international cooperation among senior officials to advance biosecurity efforts. AWN members were encouraged to collaborate on these initiatives, as applicable.

This was followed by a discussion with the Nuclear Materials Security Team at NTI and their presentation on the Nuclear Scaling Initiative, which seeks to enhance and expand the nuclear energy ecosystem. The NSM team also provided details about their upcoming Nuclear Security Index and discussed the importance of motivating countries to work on their national nuclear security regulations and legislation.

The next visit was to Stimson Center, where the group met with experts from the Middle East program and Christina McAllister, Senior Fellow and Director of the Partnerships in Proliferation Prevention. Ms. McAllister talked about Radseclexis, which is a radiological source security legal index project that periodically reviews the legal requirements for radiological material security, measuring each against important elements of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) guidance for radioactive source security. She also discussed the International Nuclear Security Forum, which is a detailed newsletter, published every month to share the timely nuclear security news, information, achievements of its members, and opportunities for forum members. The AWN-CBRNS members showed great interest in both projects and discussed possible collaboration and involvement possibilities in the Stimson Center’s projects.

The last visit of the day was to the Women in International Security (WIIS). Dr. Karin Johnston, Director of Development, and her team greeted the group. They presented a detailed overview of WIIS history, followed by a discussion on the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) agenda, and on the representation of women in STEM fields more broadly. AWN members proposed to undertake a comparative research study on women in STEM in their region and to explore factors impacting retention in the workplace. The day concluded with many open doors for research, collaboration, and partnerships.

The third day of the technical visit consisted of several important and interesting discussions. It started with an overview of the role of CNS in establishing Women in Nuclear Networks and an overview of Middlebury Institute of International Studies by Shahneela Tariq, Research Assistant at CNS. Nina Wendling, Executive Director, International Cancer Expert Corps (ICEC) joined during the morning session to discuss the importance of nuclear and radiological security. The AWN members had a fruitful discussion with Ms. Wendling on the health sector and radiological security in the MENA region.

Tina Hernandez, President of INMM, joined the group for most of the day. She delivered a presentation on INMM and provided reflections on how her role as President has contributed to her personal and professional development. Her remarks underscored the benefits of active participation in professional networks and emphasized the importance of sustained commitment to maximize these benefits.

Al-Sharif Nasser bin Nasser then moderated an AWN Experts Panel on regional nuclear energy development and the future of nuclear security. Ms. Khadija Bendam, Vice President of AWN – CBRNS, talked about the ‘Powering Africa’s Future: Nuclear Energy Developments Across the Continent’. She focused on Africa’s rapidly growing electricity demand, which is set to increase by 2050, and the critical role of nuclear energy through new builds, SMRs, and regional cooperation. She also highlighted the importance of strengthening nuclear emergency preparedness through regular testing and coordinated exercises to ensure safety and resilience.

Ms. Nesrine Mellat, a Graduate Professional at UNIDIR, Geneva, and Communications Officer at AWN, talked about an integrated view on how the MENA region may embrace nuclear energy. Nesrine highlighted relevant regional characteristics, including lack of infrastructure, national positions and political will, and weak regulatory frameworks. The final panelist, Ms. Reem Khrais, a Research Engineer at Khalifa University, UAE, talked about balancing power and protection regarding the future of nuclear energy in the Arab world.

Prof. Mohamad Al-Sheikhly from the Maryland Energy Innovation Institute also joined the group discussion on this day. He presented on the bright future of nuclear science and engineering and provided a detailed introduction to reactor designs and fuel fabrication. He also offered to arrange a visit to a research reactor during the next technical visit of the group to Washington, DC.

The last day of the technical visit was mostly dedicated to a discussion on strategic planning for the network. Dr. Abeer Ali. Alharbi from the Education and Training Evaluation Commission, Saudi Arabia, presented a regional perspective on building sustainable governance and capacity building.

Following Dr. Alharbi’s presentation, AWN members and the leadership team focused on the network’s branding and marketing. During the inaugural meeting in Cyprus, Dr. Abeer volunteered to develop a branding package for the network, and she presented her work during this last session, which was highly admired by the members. All members unanimously agreed to incorporate her draft on the network’s identity and branding with a few changes to the content, mostly focused on the core objectives and the foundational pillars of the network. Network members also discussed website content and social media marketing and provided their input and feedback on the content developed for the website. A social media team was developed, and tasks were assigned to different network members. Dr. Abeer’s contribution to the network’s branding is remarkable and deserves a very special recognition. 

The participants unanimously agreed that it was a very engaging and informative visit for them. A few of them recommended incorporating more technical visits and hands-on sessions that can add value to these technical visits. Some of them also recommended considering arranging these technical visits in the Arab region and visiting nuclear facilities, i.e., Barakah Power Plant and Research Reactors in other countries, which would provide a unique learning experience to the experts in the MENA region.

Following the conclusion of the technical visit, several AWN members participated in the 66th Annual Meeting of the Institute of Nuclear Material Management (INMM), which was held in Washington, DC, from August 24-28, 2025. This annual meeting provides a professional platform for exchanging technical information and fostering collaboration in nuclear materials management.

AWN members who attended this meeting include Jasmine Auda, Khadija Bendam, Amnah Ibraheem, Samia Litaiem, Nesrine Mellat, Safaa Mourad, Fatema Saeed AL Naqbi, and Reem Khrais. This became possible through the LANL/CNS contract that includes conference support for AWN members.

Two of the network members, Jasmine Auda and Fatema Saeed Alnaqbi, presented their papers in the policy sessions. Ms. Auda presented a paper titled ‘Arab Women Network in CBRN (AWN-CBRN) and its Role in CBRN Security in the Middle East Region’. Her presentation aimed at providing an overview of the Arab Women Network in CBRN Security (AWN-CBRNS). She also examined the network’s strategic objectives, implementation, and achievements to date and elaborated network’s operational structure, lessons learned, and its future directions. Her paper emphasized on the role of professional networks in human capital development, regional cooperation, and long-term CBRN security.

Ms. Alnabqi is a PhD candidate at Purdue University Global, USA, and has volunteered to be the network’s mentorship officer. Her paper was titled ‘Gender Equality and Leadership Development for Women in Nuclear Energy Security’ and addressed the significant challenges of gender inequality and the lack of leadership development programs for women in the Middle East’s nuclear power industry, particularly within newly established Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs). Her paper highlighted that gender inequality in the nuclear sector in the UAE has led to the underrepresentation of international organizations like the IAEA, INMM, WINS, OECD, and NEA. She proposed actionable recommendations, i.e., leveraging reports of international organizations to identify barriers that are preventing women’s full participation in nuclear security for improving equal leadership opportunities for women in the nuclear sector.

Apart from members’ presentation, the whole group had an interactive and fruitful meeting with Kristin Hirsch, Director of the Office of Radiological Security (ORS) within the U.S. Department of Energy, DOE/NNSA Office of Global Material Security. They thanked her for providing the support for their participation in both events and shared their insights on the activities and visits during the technical visit.

Most of the members showed interest in starting an INMM Middle East Chapter and therefore, attended the INMM chapters session, chaired by Jassica White-Horton, Director of the Chapters Committee.

With the conclusion of these very productive two weeks, the network members were encouraged to provide their feedback. The following testimonials provide insights into the major takeaways and propose a roadmap for the future activities of the network.