Professor Clive Williams is one of Australia’s leading media commentators on national security issues, particularly terrorism – and, more recently, the national security implications of climate change.

He was a career intelligence officer in both the Australian Army and Australia’s Defence Department, where he was a senior manager, at one stage running the imagery intelligence organisation. His last job was Director of Security Intelligence.

Along the way he worked in Vietnam, the UK, Hong Kong and the US, and collected a Medal for Gallantry and tertiary qualifications at honours level in political science, psychology and criminology. He is the author of the bestselling book 'Terrorism Explained'.

Since the end of 2002 he has been mainly involved in running Masters level university programs at the Australian National University, Macquarie University, University of NSW at the Australian Defence Force Academy, and overseas at the University of California, George Washington University, the UN University in Tokyo, Cheng Chi University in Taiwan, and the University of Jakarta.

He is regularly called upon to speak to international conferences and high-level business and public service study groups on a range of national security related topics, particularly addressing future prospects. Speaking Topics:

Terrorism/counterterrorism. I have worked on terrorism issues since 1980. Terrorism is a very old strategy of the weak. Sometimes it has been successful in achieving the terrorists’ objectives. Contrary to what is promoted by some governments, terrorism cannot readily be defeated, but it can be managed and contained. The main problem it creates for modern societies is when governments erode our human rights to deal with it.

National security. National security is an all-embracing term that relates to the wellbeing of the nation state, rather than the old fashioned notion of its survival. National security today goes beyond conventional defence to issues like community harmony and trust in fair government. Education should be part of our approach to national security to reduce bigotry and prejudices. Climate change will affect our national wellbeing in very many ways. Our children may be the first Australian generation to suffer from a lower standard of living than ourselves.

The future security environment. We can make realistic predictions about the future based on existing trends in areas like economics, population demographics, refugee flows, degradation of the environment etc. These in turn have national security implications that we ignore at our peril. We tend to think this is the province of academic gurus and intelligence agencies, but the insurance industry and financial institutions, among others, also rely on their ability to predict the future accurately.

Protective security. Protective security encompasses information security, personnel security, and physical security. I am continually seeing organisations spend lots of money on research, for it to walk out the door and be exploited by someone else - because they have neglected the security basics, or are not aware of their vulnerabilities.

Intelligence and espionage. I worked in intelligence for over 35 years. It may not be the oldest profession, but it comes close! The West’s focus on terrorism since the end of the Cold War and 9/11 has seen counter-espionage put on the back burner, but espionage poses an increasingly significant threat in Australia. And the threat now comes from some unexpected quarters.

Current security concerns. I follow current strategic issues closely because I am still required to provide up-to-date briefings and analysis. Most recently (in January/February 2008) this has involved Benazir Bhutto’s assassination and its implications for the West.

Safe travel. Many Australians travel overseas, or see their children off on their first big trip, with little thought given to basic safety precautions or to what could go wrong. What would you do if a family member disappeared overseas? A few sensible precautions can make that overseas trip much more relaxing for those who travel – and for those who wait at home.

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