Dr. James Bohland, PhD, is an emeritus professor in the School of Public and International Affairs at Virginia Tech. His areas of specialization include resilience, health policy and the transition from democracy to authoritarianism. He was a founding member of Defending Democracy, an organization that advocates for policies to strengthen democracy. He serves as a member of the steering committee for the group and is editor of their newsletter, The Democracy Advocate. He has helped organize over ten educational events intended to inform citizens about threats to democracy. He also regularly teaches courses for the Lifelong Learning program at Virginia Tech on wealth inequality, authoritarianism and digital technology challenges to democracy.