Charles E. Davidson directs the Political Leadership Academy and is research faculty at George Mason University’s Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution. He is also scholar-practitioner of conflict resolution focusing on civil war, insurgency, and vulnerable populations with over a decade of experience in economic peacebuilding in war-torn countries working most recently in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and previously in Iraq, Afghanistan, Uganda, Colombia, and Burundi. He has conducted scholarly research in Iraq, Jordan, Indonesia, Tunisia, and across Europe. Charles joined the Carter School as research faculty in June of 2020 after completing his Ph.D. at the same institution. His doctoral research focused on insurgent group collective action frames among Iranian Kurdish rebels. His past research also included Syrian refugee / government relations in Jordan, religion in the United States, and community level peacebuilding in war-torn societies.
He is the co-founder and co-director of the Carter School’s Praxis Conference of peacebuilding scholars and practitioners and has organized multiple international peacebuilding conferences and educational experiences for American college students. He also sits on the board of a community development organization in Arkansas, served as an English Teacher for NATO in Kabul, Afghanistan, and is a published children’s book author.
Charles also serves as the founder and President of Innovations in Peacebuilding International, an organization which works to creatively accompany peace in war-torn countries. His current professional pursuits with IPI include the economic reintegration of former child soldiers in the Eastern D.R. Congo.
Email: cdavids5@gmu.edu
Melvin Hardy is a practitioner in the arts, culture, and the humanities eco-system from his base in Washington, DC. A self-described “Creative Class Theoretician”, Mr. Hardy writes about and catalyzes artists to present their creative works evidencing their power and prowess as valued observers and envisioners of a global society predicated on human flourishing and human betterment. Mr. Hardy chairs Millennium Arts Salon, dedicated to advancing cultural literacy, and has board accountabilities and associations with numerous arts, culture, and humanities institutions. Mr. Hardy is a globalist, having graduated from Columbia University’s School of International Affairs where he took his Masters in International Affairs degree with Certificates in African Studies and Development Economics. He was a Ralph Bunche Fellow of the United Nations Foundation, and an International Fellow at Columbia University writing on African Agricultural Policy and Currency Management. He also serves as an advisor to American University’s Anti-Racism Research and Policy Center and is credentialed at the UN Office of Disarmament Affairs with a focus on the Role of the Arts in Nuclear Weapons Abolition in furtherance of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. Mr. Hardy is lead curator for the “Hiroshima Children’s Drawings” Project,, advancing the role of the arts in Nuclear Weapons Abolition with an exhibition roster throughout the United States and in Hiroshima, Japan. In the arena of classical music, Mr. Hardy serves on the leadership team of the PostClassical Ensemble (Washington, DC) and Opera Ebony (NYC).
Email: mhardy9@gmu.edu
Julianna Donahue is a recent graduate of the Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution. She currently serves as the Political Leadership Academy’s Program Administrator. She is interested in political leadership, environmental justice, and local peacebuilding. During her time in undergrad, she served as a peer mentor for the Honors College and as a Resident Assistant. Julianna is also an intern for the Bipartisan Leadership Project. She is excited to engage with peacebuilders and practitioners through the Political Leadership Academy while continuing to support the meaningful work of the Carter School. She is continuing on at The Carter School for her Masters degree.
Email: jdonahu@gmu.edu
Linda served as CEO of the American Red Cross in the National Capital Region until June 2020 when she wrapped up her distinguished career with the Red Cross where she served at the local, regional and national levels beginning in 1973. Linda currently serves as the Special Advisor for the Bipartisan Leadership Project (BLP) where she co-leads the BLP’s partnership with the Political Leadership Academy at George Mason University’s Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution and is co-chair of the Carter School Dean’s Council. She manages the community Working Group assisting Fairfax County Public Schools in creating the John Lewis leadership program to prepare students for public service and leadership roles.
Linda serves on the board at Innovations in Peacebuilding International and at the Institute for Sustainable Development. She is co-chair of the DC Advisory Council for the National Museum and Center for Service, Executive Mentor for the Global Good Fund, member of the International Women’s Forum-DC (2020/21 Board member/Treasurer), and member of the Tiffany Circle for the American Red Cross. She has served on several boards, has received numerous awards for accomplishments as an innovative leader, and has worked on local, state, and Congressional campaigns.
Linda received a Bachelor of Arts, cum laude, from Vanderbilt University and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Southern California. She is a graduate of the FBI Citizens Academy and Partners in Organizational Leadership at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
Email: lindamathes1120@gmail.com
Bob Mitchell is the founder of the Michigan Political Leadership Program that has been operating at Michigan State University for the last 30 years and now volunteers as Founder and President of the Bipartisan Leadership Project. Bob is an educator and business innovator having initiated the nation’s first independent electric transmission company. He has had an extensive partisan career in campaigns and government service in the cabinet of Gov. Blanchard, as Chief of Staff for US Sen. Gravel, and as head of an agriculture agency in Michigan for President Carter. Bob also has been campaign manager for gubernatorial, U.S. Senate, Congressional, and state legislative campaigns, and was a candidate for Congress himself.
Email: rmitchell@bipartisanleadership.org