Behind The Shield

Ian has 23 years of international professional experience in health, safety and business improvement within military, mining, rail, oil and gas, utilities and elite athletes. Combining scientific research and operational leadership, he supports organisations in reducing risk, lowering cost, and optimising productivity and performance. Ian applies Lean/Six Sigma and other scientific methodologies in significant projects to drive step-change improvement in performance while ensuring sustainability through associated culture change.In the mining, oil, and gas sectors, he has worked internationally as an advisor to major companies including Rio Tinto, Woodside, BHP, Anglo Gold Ashanti, South 32, Karara Mining, Peabody and Goldcorp. Other sectors include agriculture with CBH group and rail with Metro Trains Melbourne. He has been responsible for the development of global practices, integration, and project management across multiple product groups. This has entailed the quantification, analysis, and interpretation of multiple data streams to support health, safety, financial strength, and productivity. Within elite athletic groups, he has worked with the Australian Institute of Sport, West Australian Institute of Sport, Super Rugby, Australian Rules Football and Formula 1 to optimise human performance in preparation for international competition and the Olympics.Ian is a regular speaker/chair at universities and international conferences in mining, transport, sports performance and physiology. He regularly contributes articles to media outlets such as the Australian Financial Review, The Australian, Men’s Fitness, Blitz Martial Arts, BJJ Scout and Huffington Post. He has spoken on the Health Report on ABC radio in Australia, ABC radio national and numerous podcasts. In addition, he has appeared on ABC television, Channel 7, 9 and 10 in Australia, and was a TEDx Perth speaker in 2017. He is author and co-author of numerous technical reports, scientific articles, and industry guidelines, and a regular reviewer for scientific peer-reviewed journals.An active athlete, I have completed over 20 ultramarathons to date, including the Ultra-Trail Australia 100km (7 times), Leadville 100 miler, numerous marathons and trail running events. My current focus is on improving my swimming to undertake long-distance open water swimming events (10-20km).

LT Kegan "SMURF" Gill miraculously survived the fastest ejection in Naval Aviation history. Despite severe injuries, he overcame the impossible to return to the cockpit of the F/A-18E Super Hornet, and that was just the beginning of his journey. Despite years of struggle with physical and mental health challenges, Kegan has unlocked the key to overcoming the impossible.In this second conversation, we discuss the tolls he's amassed to continue healing after a pyschedelic retreat, writing his autobiography "Phoenix Revival", hormone therapy, sleep and so much more.

Keith Hanks is a retired Firefighter and EMT that dedicated 21 years of his life to the service of others. He serviced his community as a firefighter, EMT, certified educator and training officer along with fire prevention and code enforcement. Keith worked both inner-city EMS as well as municipal fire. Like many in the first responder community the job has its cost. From childhood trauma and sexual abuse, traumatic calls, the tragic passing of his first wife, Keith has faced many trials and tragedies that resulted in self-harm, substance abuse, lies and multiple suicide attempts. After decades of damage Keith began to put the pieces of his life back together. Keith was diagnosed with Complex PTSD in 2015. The job, the service, his dedication caused this injury, and consequently his retirement. What PTS didn’t change was the love and devotion to his community and to his fellow first responders. Keith has since dedicated his life to advocating for mental illness, substance and alcohol abuse recovery, and suicide awareness. Since starting this mission Keith built an international support group through Facebook for First Responders and Veterans for PTSI and other job-related mental health issues. Keith was asked to be a part of the Deconstructing Stigma Project and has a Billboard that hangs in the International Terminal at Logan Airport in Boston MA, along with the Manchester Regional Airport. In March 2022 he completed the filming of his 1st feature length documentary focusing on PTSD in the first responder community titled First Responders in Crisis and has since been featured in two other related documentaries. Keith is an international speaker/podcast personality, and published author. He is a contributing author at Fire Engineering, Firefighter Nation, The Volunteer Firefighter, Crackyl, and Smoke Showin’ magazines/forums. He also wrote a featured chapter in the ongoing Amazon best-selling series Scars to Stars Volume 3. He is known for saying that his life goal is to reduce suicide in the first responder community through education, support resources and to make it OK to reach out for help. In 2023, he launched his own LLC, Traumatic Strength, with its mission to bring proactive education, training, and action to combat the stigma on mental health. In June 2024, Keith released his first book, Allen, which tells the tragedies and triumphs throughout his life and how resilience was what led him to ultimate victory. He resides in New Hampshire with his wife and is the proud father to three incredible children.

Chuck Liddell is an MMA legend, author and actor. We discuss his early life, overcoming physical challenges, his grandfather's mentorship, altruism, his journey into the martial arts, intrinsic motivation, transitioning out of professional fighting and so much more.Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell burst onto the MMA scene in 1998 during his UFC debut fight win against Noe Hernandez in UFC 17. His rise to UFC champion includes most notable TKO wins against Randy Couture (UFC 52 & 57), Tito Ortiz (UFC 47 & 66), Wanderlei Silva (UFC 79) and the KO win that catapulted him into UFC stardom at UFC 31 against Kevin Randleman. Chuck reigned as UFC World Light Heavyweight Champion for two years, defending his title five times.

Doug White is a veteran law enforcement officer whose career spans from working with the Specal Operations community to bomb disposal in Florida. We discuss his journey into the military, force protection, civilian policing, terrorism, his powerful mental health story and so much more.Doug's journey of service began in 1993 when he enlisted as a Security Forces specialist in the U.S. Air Force. His dedication led him to the 919th Special Operations Wing and later to the U.S. Special Operations Command. On 9/11, Doug volunteered for active duty, becoming a founding member of the command’s Protective Services Detachment, supporting Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom.Following his military service, Doug dedicated 25 years to a major law enforcement agency in west-central Florida. He served as a patrolman, field training officer, instructor, and certified bomb technician, ultimately rising to the rank of lieutenant. Along the way, he developed a deep understanding of leadership under pressure and the complexities of serving in high-stress environments.Doug’s journey hasn’t been without its challenges. Years of selfless service took a toll, leading to a moment of crisis in 2019 when he faced the invisible costs of trauma and overidentification with his professional roles. That moment became a turning point, not an ending. Through resilience, grace, and grit, Doug transformed his experience into a mission of growth and empowerment.Today, Doug uses his story to inspire and guide veterans, first responders, and their families. Through authentic storytelling and actionable insights, he shares lessons on resilience, mental fitness, and finding purpose after transitions. Doug’s journey isn’t just about overcoming challenges—it’s about thriving beyond them and helping others do the same.

Kiran Pital and Peter Holme Jensen are the founders of Cambiotics and are developing a probiotic that will remove PFAS from the human body. We discuss their early lives in India and Denmark, Parkinson's Disease, the healing power of the microbiome, the dangers of PFAS in firefighting clothing and foam, and so much more.Kiran studied Chemical Engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology (Mumbai, India). He moved to the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) to work with Prof. Jens Nielsen and obtained his PhD in Systems Biology. Kiran was then appointed as Assistant Professor at DTU where he worked on transcriptional regulation and metabolic engineering.In 2010, Kiran joined the Structural and Computational Biology Unit at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL-Heidelberg, Germany). He was appointed Director of Research at the MRC Toxicology Unit in 2019 and appointed as Professor of Molecular Systems Biology in October 2022.Peter Holme Jensen is the Founder & CEO of Cambiotics. He is a serial entrepreneur with more than 20 years' experience from the biosolutions industry, having raised EUR ~80 mill in equity financing & lead Initial Public Offering at Nasdaq Copenhagen in 2021.He is active in various board positions, including Innovation Fund Denmark & Aquaporin, driven by purpose of creating a more sustainable world by using nature & biotechnology as a starting point for creation of future technologies. Peter is a passionate freeride skier and ready to break a leg if the situation requires. He holds a PhD in Structural Biochemistry from University of Copenhagen.

Lee Burton has a Doctorate Degree with an emphasis in health and wellness, is a certified athletic trainer and is the co-creator of the Functional Movement Screen. He presents on numerous sports medicine topics nationally and internationally, has produced instructional videos and consults with a wide variety of organizations including NFL, NHL, MLB, NBA, military/government entities, as well as the Cooper and Mayo Clinics on injury prevention and performance enhancement.

Richard Rice spent three decades in the US armed forces and was one of the founding members of what would become the revered Delta Force. We discuss his journey into the military, being hunted in Vietnam, compassion in combat, Mogadishu, transitioning into education, innovating veterans' education, GORUCK and so much more.Richard retired from the U.S. Army as a Special Forces Senior Non-Commissioned Officer in 1994 after 30 years of service. The last 25 years of which were spent in various Special Operations Forces (SOF) assignments. He was a Program Coordinator, Director and Vice President at Fayetteville Technical Community College from 1994 to 2015.He began his career in the 82nd Airborne Division before joining Special Forces and then MACV-SOG, the most elite and decorated unit to fight in the Vietnam War, where he did two combat tours to begin a long and storied career. Colonel Charlie Beckwith, a fellow Special Forces soldier who he met in Vietnam, became both friend and mentor and personally recruited Rich for a “new unit” that later became known as Delta Force. Beckwith sent Rich to a couple of specialty courses in the U.S. Army and to the British Special Air Service (SAS) Selection course in England.Upon his return to the United States he helped organize, establish and serve in the unit during Operation Eagle Claw (he still has the keys to the garage where all the getaway vehicles were stored in Tehran), Grenada, Panama, Nicaragua, Cuba, Pakistan and Afghanistan where he, his teammates and his favorite animals (donkeys) aided the mujahideen resistance to the Soviet occupation (the story recounted in Charlie Wilson’s War). He also served in the Battle of Mogadishu in 1993 (Black Hawk Down) before retiring from the Army and then working in higher education at Fayetteville Technical Community College where he was nationally recognized for developing a competency-based program for awarding college credits for military education and training.Retiring after completion of 20 years in the North Carolina Community College System as the Vice President of Military Programs, Richard continues to participate in developing leaders by mentoring, speaking at leadership conferences, and addressing post graduate audiences. He holds a Masters in Business Administration with Honors and a Bachelors of Science in Business Administration (with a concentration in management) Summa Cum Laude, both from Campbell University.Rich has lost many friends in service to America and by any rational account he should not still be alive, either. Service and mentorship are his great passions, the ideals of the American way of life remain his northern star, and he’s never been known to turn down a cold beer or a good conversation with anyone who has something important to say. Rich should have several Purple Hearts but he was always too old school to file the paperwork, claiming it to be a “waste of time.”

Kendra Fisher, still laughs as she remembers standing in the Kincardine arena at 4 years old, watching her big brother playing hockey, turning to her parents, and proclaiming, “I don’t want to figure skate anymore. When I grow up to be a boy, I’m going to play hockey.” And after realizing that goalies get to play the whole game and that there was always a chance to be the “hero”, she settled on her position and quickly discovered that girls can play too!And so it began, a journey towards the only dream Kendra had ever known, the dream of pulling that red and white Team Canada jersey over her head, stepping onto the Olympic stage, and becoming part of the golden tradition of Canadian Hockey.In 1999, while at try-outs for Team Canada, Kendra realized she could no longer hide that something was wrong. After a discussion with her coaches, she made the seemingly impossible decision to walk away from her dream in order to seek help, but not before being told that she had already been selected to join Team Canada. With Team Canada’s help, Kendra was guided down a road that nobody had yet considered, and after several appointments with a sports Psychologist, a psychiatrist, and Doctors, Kendra was diagnosed with a Generalized Anxiety Disorder, severe Panic Disorder, Clinical Depression, Agoraphobia and OCD. So began a whole new journey, a fight for her life.The first 5 years of this journey were filled with hopelessness, isolation, and darkness. Although surrounded by support and access to resources, Kendra was faced with a sense of pointlessness that she struggled to overcome. And then she made a decision, she wanted more. She wanted to live. And more than that, she wanted a life worth living.It took the next 5 years for Kendra to achieve a life of recovery. It took 5 years to learn about what resources were available, and in that time, she also learned about all of the ways she could be helping herself. Kendra often speaks of her greatest achievement in getting to this place in her life, and that was her ability to keep it a secret. Kendra, like so many, was embarrassed by her Mental Illness.Until one day when Kendra had a realization, she was part of the problem. Her silence was exactly the reason that people couldn’t realize that there is help, that there is hope. She had learned to live happily and successfully with what felt like a death sentence, and she was embarrassed to let others know. In that moment, she vowed to never be a part of the problem again, and so began her new journey.Shortly after coming out with her story, Kendra was introduced to the many struggles facing others like herself and she was determined to be a part of the change. Having come to realize the importance of lived experience and shared hope, the Kendra has dedicated herself to helping others find tomorrow.When Kendra started sharing her journey with others, she was amazed by the response she received. And then the simple truth became so clear, we are not meant to get through life alone. Sometimes it only takes one person, a subtle gesture, a kind word, and somebody else may find a reason to keep fighting.

Jeffrey Engel is an Air Force Security Forces Veteran, Special Agent and a New Jersey Dectective Corporal. We discuss his journey into the military, serving in Korea, Force Protection, municipal law enforcement, some career calls, his powerful mental health journey, Boulder Crest and much more.Jeffrey Engel began his career in military law enforcement career in 2001 and later separated active duty, where he transitioned into civilian law enforcement. Over the years, he has served as a patrol officer, field training officer, training officer and is currently assigned to the Investigative Bureau. In addition to his law enforcement career, Jeff has continued to serve in the United States Air Force Reserves. He has been honored with several accolades, both military and law enforcement, including Officer of the Year, multiple PBA awards, multiple military awards and recognition from the Prosecutor’s Office with PROCOPs awards. Jeff has two deployments in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and completed his Masters Degree in Cybersecurity.