Samira Benz, Director of Strategic Planning, specializes in preventing and countering violent extremism. She previously worked with the Strong Cities Network, advising cities across Europe and North America on strategies to reduce hate and violence. As Head of the Coordination Unit for Returnees at the Senate Department for the Interior and Sport in Berlin, she launched and oversaw Germany’s first comprehensive rehabilitation and reintegration network for citizens returning from ISIS in the Middle East. She has also served as an interventionist, directly supporting individuals at risk of radicalization. Samira co-authored a book on deradicalization and disengagement from Islamist extremism. She holds a BA in Middle Eastern Studies from the Free University of Berlin and an MA in Terrorism and Political Violence from the University of St Andrews, UK.

Aaron Erb, Program Director, is a mediator, facilitator, and restorative justice practitioner dedicated to conflict transformation at a systems level. He co-founded and served as Executive Director of Just Mediation Pittsburgh, a nonprofit organization that provides community mediation services focused on eviction prevention and housing stabilization. Earlier in his career, Aaron managed restorative justice programs in partnership with the juvenile justice system at Center for Victims and in the public school system at the University of Pittsburgh’s Just Discipline Project in the Center on Race and Social Problems. Aaron holds an M.A. in Conflict Transformation from the Center for Justice & Peacebuilding in Harrisonburg, VA, and has lived in the Pittsburgh area for 10 years.

Toby Fraser, Trainer, (he/him) is the Director of Violence Prevention at La Salle University. He has been a trainer and facilitator in the movement to end gender-based violence since 2009. Toby comes to this work through non-violent direct action-based activism and movements for social justice. His work has ranged from doing workshops with youth about the roots of violence and social change, to training professionals in concrete skills such as screening, safety planning and supporting survivors, to direct action trainings in the environmental movement. Toby's approach is grounded in Direct Education, believing that individuals and groups contain the expertise and experiences needed to help create a world free of violence.