The focus of Canada’s National Security has been foreign relations and national defence. The understanding of what constitutes Canada’s National Security should evolve and encompass its broader and deeper interests, as Canada copes with changes in technology, global relationships, and its physical environment.
A significant argument can be made that Canada’s strategic interests with respect to how it is governed, its democratic institutions, its economic and human concerns, and its energy and food supplies, are vital to how it approaches the future as a matter of national security.
To explore this matter, the PIF has established the National Security Studies Program.
Through a series of podcasts, conferences, and research projects, the National Security Studies Program will focus on how Canada’s National Security interests need to be redefined for the digital era.
By analyzing Canada’s National Security through the lenses of specific elements – threats, foresight, resilience, and protection – the Program aims to provide a broader outlook and transcend traditional approaches to raise awareness and facilitate informed discussions regarding current and future National Security risks.
Geoffrey St. John is Program Director for the National Security Studies Program (NSSP) at the Policy Insights Forum. Geoffrey served for nearly forty years in the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) and the Department of National Defence (DND). Prior to his retirement from the military, he served as a senior member of the Canadian Armed Forces Intelligence Branch. He was responsible for the CAF imagery intelligence directorate, was director of transnational intelligence issues, and he was Chief of the Middle East / North Africa sections at National Defence Headquarters (NDHQ).
While in service, Geoffrey was a Commonwealth exchange intelligence analyst at the US Defense Intelligence Agency. He was also the Deputy Executive Secretary of the Intelligence Advisory Committee at the Privy Council Office (PCO). Geoffrey completed two United Nations (UN) tours and was the head of the Global Affairs Canada peacekeeping policy section. He served two postings as the Canadian Defence Attaché for Italy, Greece, Albania and Israel.
He is a graduate of Collège Militaire Royal de Saint-Jean, with a bachelor's degree in business administration.
geoffrey.st-john@policyinsights.ca
Louis E. Romet serves as a Business Policy Analyst and Researcher at the Samuel Group of Companies and Policy Insights Forum (PIF) and is the 2023 recipient of the Dr. Robert Spencer Transatlantic Award in Strategic Studies. As a fully bilingual (FR/EN) professional, Louis’s work focuses on strategic consulting and government relations relating to the defence, security, and technology sectors as well as responsibilities within the PIF dealing with NATO, EU, and foreign government engagements.
Prior to joining the Samuel Team and the PIF, Louis held various progressive positions in the consulting industry covering government relations and law. His experience has led him to work with numerous companies in the defence, aerospace, energy, mining, and healthcare sectors.
Louis completed a Master’s degree in Political Science (MSc) at the University of Montreal and wrote his Master’s essay on defence policy, procurement, and strategy in the Canadian Arctic.
Louis holds a Bachelor’s degree in Law with a Minor in Economics and Management from Paris-Panthéon-Assas University and a joint degree in U.S. Law from Emory University School of Law, Georgia State College of Law, and the University of Warsaw Center for American Law Studies. He also completed a Certificate in Oil and Gas Operations and Markets from Duke University.