General Philip “Phil” Breedlove, a retired four-star general of the United States Air Force, former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO and one of six US geographic combatant commanders during the pinnacle of his service, will present the Dean’s Lecture at the College of Engineering on Thursday, Nov. 21.
The lecture is sponsored by the AJ Drexel Institute for Energy and the Environment (IExE), and is open and free to all members of the CoE community. Breedlove’s talk, “Intersections of War and Peace: Framing Thoughts,” will be held at the Hill Conference Room beginning at 9 a.m. A reception follows at 10 a.m.
General Philip “Phil” Breedlove
“I invited General Breedlove to Drexel to gain insights into the challenges posed to NATO regarding the continued war in Syria, the refugee crisis in Europe, and the potential for education and research at Drexel to benefit from his experience as the NATO Supreme Allied Commander,” said Joe Hughes, founding director of IExE and distinguished university professor in the Department of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering.
“General Breedlove now serves as a leader in Georgia Tech’s Sam Nunn School for Foreign Policy, and is a civil and aerospace engineer by education. Students will benefit from learning of his unique career path: engineer to pilot to oversight of the Air Force, to NATO commander.”
IExE was founded to conduct research and scholarly activities that advance energy policies, systems, and technologies in the rapidly changing energy landscape of the 21st century.
The lecture is also being presented in support of CoE’s new master’s program in Peace Engineering, which seeks to train graduate students in the application of science, engineering, and technology to promote and support peace.
During 39 years of service, Breedlove commanded all US and Allied troops in Afghanistan and Kosovo, as well as all NATO operations across Europe and the Mediterranean. He has led large-scale, diverse, global operations across two theaters of combat. In his US capacity, he answered directly to the President of the United States and to the Secretary of Defense.
In addition, Breedlove served as commander of the US Air Forces Europe and Air Forces Africa; as vice chief of staff of the Air Force; as assistant chief of staff for Air Operations; and in a variety of assignments throughout his career, including command of a squadron, three fighter wings and a Numbered Air Force in service across three continents. His extensive command and control experience in wartime, contingency, and humanitarian relief actions includes operations in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East.
Breedlove earned his Bachelor of Civil Engineering from The Georgia Institute of Technology, and a Master of Science in Aerospace Technology from Arizona State University. He also completed an MS in International Security Affairs from the National War College.
Today, he serves on the Georgia Tech Advisory Board as a distinguished professor in the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs, and as the senior advisor of Emerald Coast Strategic Solutions. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the Atlantic Council.