Anna Paternnosto is president and co-founder of NCT Consultants LLC. After completing her Masters in International Relations and Diplomacy at the University of Trieste she worked at the Austrian Mission to NATO in 2014. In 2015 she joined IB Consultancy in The Netherlands, an independent defense and security consultancy firm specialized in CBRNe threats where she covers the role of Director of Governmental Affairs. In addition to her overall managerial role within the company, she is leading the relations with public entities worldwide and manages the relations with some of the firm’s key accounts. Anna is also the Vice President of the CBRNe Society, an international non-profit organization dedicated to providing platforms for the stakeholders of the global CBRNe community to share knowledge and promote innovation. In her position she manages the global relations with governmental stakeholders, facilitates government to government efforts and contributes to the alignment between public and industrial interests within the community. In addition to her MA, Anna holds an Executive Certificate Program in Counter-Terrorism Studies, Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism Operations from IDC Herzliya (Israel). In 2020 she was selected by Forbes as one of Italy’s young leaders of the future under 30.

Ilja Bonsen is president and co-founder of NCT Consultants. Before starting IB Consultancy (the predecessor of NCT), he worked for TNO Defence and Security as a CBRN Project Manager. He has worked for almost twenty years in the field of CBRNe in Europe, Asia and America.

Mr. Josep Font is a Sales Consultant at NCT Consultants, where he maintains relations with industry stakeholders within the military and defense sector.

Prior to NCT, he worked at Novartis and Unlimited Thinking, a healthcare startup consulting firm. His international work experience includes roles in Thailand, the USA, and Barcelona.

Mr. Font holds a MSc in Marketing and Sales Management from ESADE Business School.

Mr. Petar Dragicevic is a Sales Consultant at NCT Consultants. He is responsible for international and domestic business-to-business (B2B) sales within the defense and military sector.

Mr. Petar Dragicevic has received numerous awards for exceptional service during his time in the Croatian Armed Forces, which included a deployment in Lithuania as part of a NATO mission. Following his military service, he worked at Western Union, focusing on anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing, and at the tactical PPE manufacturer SPAR-TAC.

Patrick Norén has been the Editor of CBNW Magazine and the Conference Program Manager of NCT events in Europe, the Middle East, and South America at NCT Consultants since August 2023.He has previously worked as the Deputy Editor of commonspace.eu and LINKS Europe, and was an Intern and Research Fellow at the Georgian NGO, MediaVoice. He has written freelance articles on Central Asia for The Caspian Post, and has worked as an interpreter for Ukrainian refugees living in the Netherlands. He has an MA in Russian and Eurasian Studies from Leiden University, and a BA in Modern Languages and Cultures (German and Russian) from Durham University.

Michele is a Security & Defense Consultant at NCT, holds a double master’s degrees in EU and International Law with a focus on European security and defense. Recognized by the French Embassy in Madrid for his thesis on the EU’s defense capabilities strategic adaptation post-war in Ukraine, at NCT Michele collaborates with government bodies to promote inter-agency and multinational cooperation in defense. He is engaged both in the training sessions side and in the conference program development.

In 2021, Mr. Jesus “JB” Cuartas was appointed to the New Jersey State Senior Executive Service as the Director for the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities Reliability and Security Division where he oversees the State’s utility emergency management response, natural gas pipelines, underground facilities safety, utility cyber security and several other critical infrastructure responsibility on behalf of the President of the BPU.

Prior to joining NJ BPU Mr. Cuartas served as the Department Head for conEdison’s Emergency Preparedness Exercises, Training, and Interagency Coordination Department. In this role, he oversaw the company’s preparedness, readiness, and ability to coordinate with public and private stakeholders before, during, and after disasters strike. In August 2020, his team coordinated interagency efforts following TS Isaias which resulted in the second largest response in company history. Prior to conEdison, Mr Cuartas served as the Chief of Operational Planning for the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Region II covering New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. As the Chief of Operational Planning, Mr. Cuartas managed deliberate catastrophic planning and the Regional Hurricane Program for Region II. Mr. Cuartas was also a member of FEMA’s Field Leadership Apprenticeship Program (Federal Coordinating Officer option) Pilot Cohort. Mr. Cuartas held leadership positions in multiple Presidentially-declared disasters and national and international crisis operations including Branch Director during the response to Hurricane Maria and Infrastructure Directorate Deputy Director responsible for leading Federal infrastructure recovery operations in Puerto Rico. Additionally, Mr. Cuartas served as the Region II Exercise Director for the 2017 National Level Exercise Gotham Shield. Prior to joining FEMA Region II, Mr. Cuartas served as the Chief of Operational Planning for FEMA Region III where he managed catastrophic planning including Improvised Nuclear Device Response Plans for the National Capitol Region and Philadelphia, chaired the Consequence Management Subcommittees for multiple National Special Security Events (NSSE) occurring in the Region to include the World Meeting of Families-Papal Visit, and oversaw the Regional Emergency Communications Program, Regional Geospatial Information Systems Program, and Regional Hurricane Program.

Mr. Cuartas served nine years in the US Army, including two combat tours in Iraq totaling 29 months of combat operations conducting Counter-Improvised Explosive Device (C-IED) operations. He served as a Combat Engineer and Explosives Ordnance Clearance Agent with the 111th Sapper Company, 1st Brigade, 1st Infantry Division and Technical Rescue Operations/Planning Section Chief for the 911th Technical Rescue Engineer Company, Military District of Washington. Following his military service, Mr. Cuartas took on the role of Emergency Preparedness Program Manager for the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. Mr. Cuartas then transitioned into the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Operations Coordination serving as a senior continuity policy analyst drafting multiple Department-wide policies and plans. Mr. Cuartas joined FEMA in 2013 as the Regional Continuity Manager where he worked with multiple States and Federal Departments and Agencies to develop plans and policies, execute continuity exercises, and served as course manager and instructor for FEMA emergency management and continuity courses within the Region and at FEMA’s Emergency Management Institute.

Mr. Cuartas holds an Executive Master’s in Emergency and Disaster Management from Georgetown University, Bachelor of Arts in Emergency and Disaster Management, is a graduate of FEMA’s Emergency Management Academy and Master Continuity Practitioner Level II, was awarded the FEMA Administrator’s Award for Excellence in Emergency Management and holds numerous certifications in the fields of emergency management, continuity, technical rescue and fire services.