Northern CaliforniaBusiness Executives for National Security
Kathy Denzer
Peter Ohtaki California’s entrepreneurial business
leaders are bringing new ideas and solutions to enhance the
nation's security. BENS Northern California boasts nearly
100 members and continues to grow in both membership and
activity. California members of BENS understand
that our nation faces entirely new kinds of security threats.
Through BENS, government and business leaders work together to
improve crisis management operations in the State Department,
enhance intelligence capabilities, and protect critical
infrastructure, for example. If you are interested in
learning more about BENS, please contact Kathy Denzer at (415)
690-6254 or
kdenzer@bens.org. In 2005, BENS began building a
public-private partnership to improve disaster response and
homeland security in Northern California, called the Bay Area
Business Force. During the October 2007
Southern California wildfires, BENS served as a crucial bridge
between the public and private sectors at the request of the
Governor’s Office of Emergency Services. BENS worked
side-by-side with federal, state and local officials inside
emergency operations centers to quickly match local needs with
business assets. In that role, Business Force
staff helped route millions of dollars worth of food and
supplies to affected areas.
Scott R. Broomfield,
EVP, Sand Hill IT Security Neill H. Brownstein,
Special General Partner, William J. Campbell,
General Partner, Marbill Management, LLP Peter Carpenter,
Founder, Frank Caufield,
General Partner and Founder, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers Robert S. Cohn, Chairman
of Wellington Management Michael R. Gaulke,
President and CEO, Exponent, Inc. Franklin P. Johnson,
Jr., General Partner, Asset Management Company Stephen T. McClellan,
Golden Gate Advisors Dr. J. Leighton Read ,
General Partner, Alloy Ventures Paul M. Wythes, Founder, Sutter Hill Ventures
On February 22nd, BENS will
co-sponsor an event with the Asia Society that explores The
Future of Democracy in Southeast Asia at the Julia Morgan
Ballroom, On February 29th BENS
members will have the opportunity to visit Camp Pendleton
Marne Base in On March 26th, a luncheon featuring Richard Mathews, Associate Professor of International and Environmental Politics in the Schools of Social Ecology and Social Science at the University of Irvine, and Director of the Center for Unconventional Security Affairs. Richard will speak on The Environment as a National Security Issue. Time and location to be announced. On April 16th Chevron staff will talk about Energy Security: the realities, challenges and issues facing the oil industry. This will be a luncheon with time and location to be announced.
On February 13th, BENS
co-sponsored a conference with the Asia Society, entitled “Nuclear
North Korea and the Future of Northeast Asian Security”, a
few hours after the Six-Party Talks concluded in On March 3rd, Stephen Flynn, Senior Fellow for National Security Studies at The Council on Foreign Relations and well-known for his work in port security, discussed his latest book, The Edge of Disaster: Rebuilding a Resilient Nation, On March 30th, Director Henry Renteria of the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services spoke at the BENS Bay Area Business Force meeting, hosted by Cisco Systems. On April 20th, BENS co-organized
the Bay Area Summit on Cross-Sector Pandemic Influenza
Planning with the American Red Cross, California Department
of Public Health, and the On September 20th, BENS members
Bill and Marjorie Campbell shared their experiences
during a recent trip to On September 25th, John
Taylor, Stanford Economics Professor, author and former
Under Secretary of Treasury for International Affairs, spoke on
International Finance Post 9/11: The Untold Story. A
fascinating talk at the lovely Allied Arts Guild in On October 30th, a special
dinner was held to celebrate BENS 25th Anniversary,
and to give a special tribute to On November 14th, the Bay Area
Business Force participated in the Golden Guardian ’07
disaster exercise in On November 27th, General
John Abizaid spoke to BENS members on Strategic
Challenges for the Middle East at the Circus Club in On December 4th,
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