An Cosantóir

www.military.ie THE DEFENCE FORCES MAGAZINE | 29 THE NATIONAL SECURITY SUMMIT IRELAND BY DR. GERRY WALDRON, DIRECTOR SLÁNDÁIL T he National Security Summit Ireland was launched in September 2019 with a series of interesting and provocative presentations and a panel discussion on 'Protecting Democracy in the age of disinformation'. The speakers at the launch included The Hon. Mr Justice John L. Murray former Chief Justice of Ireland, Deputy Eamon Ryan Leader of the Green Party, Mr Ben Nimmo Head of Inves- tigations at Graphika, Ms Liz Carolan Executive Director of Digital Action Ireland and Dr Jane Suiter Head of the DCU Institute for Future Media and Journalism. The panel exam- ined the prevalence of disinformation and fake news and the readiness and ability of government and state agencies including the Defence Forces to respond to that threat. The event was a warm up for 'Slándáil 2020' Ireland's inaugural national security summit which will take place on the 25th and 26th February 2020. Slándáil is the Irish language term for security and its broader meaning includes concepts of safety, protection and future stability. The summit will con- nect government, academia, the public and the business community in order to encourage discussion and debate of our national security needs and requirements. In the age of climate chaos, emerging disruptive technologies, and greater connectivity in cyber space, Ireland's geographical position no longer guarantees the safety and stability that we have become accustomed to. The time to discuss and debate our future security needs is now and members of the Defence Forces, Gardaí and other services need to be part of that conversation. The summit will take place in the iconic Helix venue on DCU campus and includes Ireland's first defence, intelligence and security conference. This conference is aimed at Defence Forces and Garda members, government officials, academics and interested members of the public. The conference aims to highlight current Irish capabilities and examine the future direction, roles and needs of all our security services. Within the wider summit there will also be forums examining global security, cyber security and emergency preparedness. The summit aims to provide an independent platform for members of the defence and security community to engage with senior leaders in government, the civil service and aca- demia and to increase engagement with the Irish public on se- curity issues. This event is a unique opportunity for leaders in the Defence Forces to engage directly with their peers in other services, valued colleagues in academia and the wider public. The summit is organised by volunteers on a not-for-profit basis. Tickets are free for members of all uniformed and emergency services in Ireland but registration is required. For more information check out our website on www.nssi.ie, the Slándáil LinkedIn page or @slandail_nssi on twitter.

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