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Dr. PL de Silva

Professor Purnaka L. (“PL”) de Silva, PhD, lectures at the School of Diplomacy and International Relations, Seton Hall University, South Orange, New Jersey, USA.  He is Visiting Professor of History and Research Fellow at the Faculty of Humanities, Sol Plaatje University, Kimberley, Northern Cape, South Africa.  Dr. de Silva is a Founding Trustee and Director at the Institute for Strategic Studies and Democracy (ISSD) Malta, a think-tank covering Libya, human trafficking and forced migration https://issdmalta.org.  He is Senior Policy Advisor at the Lead Integrity Consultancy: Serving Wisdom Globally https://lead-integrity.com

Awards

  • Faculty and University Adjunct Faculty Professor of the Year 2022 for exceptional leadership and achievement in teaching.

  • Adjunct Professor of the Year 2024-2025 for exceptional effectiveness and impact in teaching.

  • Adjunct Professor of the Year 2025-2026 for exceptional effectiveness and impact in teaching.

Publications

  • Single-authored Routledge book (2026) Billionaire Media Ownership, International Relations, and National Security: AI versus Humanity in the Age of Big Tech – forthcoming November 2026.

  • Co-editor, with Robin Andersen (2018) The Routledge Companion to Media and Humanitarian Action.

  • Co-editor with Ronaldo Munck (2000) Postmodern Insurgencies (Macmillan).

United Nations

Previously he was Senior Advisor, United Nations Global Compact and Principal Officer in the Executive Office of Secretary-General (EOSG) of Secretary-General Kofi Annan.  Post 9/11, Dr. de Silva was a Member of the UN Terrorism Committee in the Special Sub-Group on Weapons of Mass Destruction and Terrorism headed by Dr. Jayantha Dhanapala (Under-Secretary-General Disarmament Affairs), and also the Policy Working Group on the UN and Terrorism chaired by Sir Kieran Prendergast (Under-Secretary-General Political Affairs).  In 2009 he gave a keynote address at the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) “Future Operational Environment Seminar.”

Experience

Over 40-years of experience in back-room diplomacy, mediation/negotiation, dealing with complex emergencies, deeply divided societies, and civil wars.  Dr. de Silva’s work on conflict and peace studies focuses on political violence, paramilitaries, counterterrorism, transnational security, and the role of diplomacy within the UN system. He has taught Political Science, International Relations, Diplomacy, and the United Nations Studies at several universities in the U.S., and he was a Lecturer at the School of Politics at The Queen’s University Belfast in Northern Ireland during the negotiation of the Good Friday Agreement. Dr. de Silva’s current research focuses on AI, Big Data, International Security and Global Affairs, and his work bridges academia, diplomacy, and humanitarian practice – offering a unique perspective grounded in both theory and action.

Media

  • Regular current global affairs contributor and panellist (since 2024) – covering the Persian Gulf, Middle East and North Africa, Israel-Palestine-Iran-Lebanon, Ukraine-Russia, and Asia – for QNews Egyptian Satellite TV channel and media platform in English, and AlQahera News Egyptian Satellite TV channel and media platform in Arabic – broadcasting from Cairo with a high political focus, presenting accurate and quick news service 24/7, and is the most watched news channels in Egypt.

  • Weekly Op-Ed contributor in Arabic for Al Jazeera Opinion Net.

  • Op-Ed writer in English for Inter Press Service (IPS) UN Bureau; and InDepth News (IDN).

  • Full length two-part interview in English (2025) on “The Grey Zone” on Al Jazeera conducted by Yehia Ghanem; and in Al Arabiya.

  • Weekly host of “Worldwide” on “Wealthy Wednesdays” on the Jesse Jackson Jr. Show on KBLA Talk 1580.