Working across national security, public health emergencies, and disaster responses, one truth has become increasingly clear: our world is changing at an unprecedented pace, and our traditional organizational structures are struggling to keep up. From responding to 9/11 and the anthrax attacks in 2001 to addressing SARS and monkeypox outbreaks in 2003, and more recently witnessing the complex challenges of global conflicts and domestic crises, I’ve observed firsthand how rigid hierarchies can impede our ability to respond effectively to emergent threats.

The Power of the Edge

The concept of “empowering the edge” shouldn’t be new for those familiar with military doctrine, but its application needs to extend far beyond traditional organizational boundaries. In today’s complex threat landscape, the “edge” must include networks of technical and data experts who operate outside formal institutional structures but can rapidly mobilize when needed.

In responding to crises, I’ve witnessed how decentralized networks of tech-savvy volunteers with expertise spanning data science, cybersecurity, geospatial analysis, and social dynamics have proven invaluable. These networks don’t replace official response mechanisms – they augment them, providing agility and specialized capabilities that formal structures often lack. This is doubly so for responses over the last eight years, to include the efforts of a decentralized group of non-attribution, non-partisan folks who care about making a positive difference when things proverbially “go pineapple” – also known as prickly.

Consider the Silicon Valley Bank crisis. Within hours, parts of this decentralized network of tech and financial experts mobilized to provide non-partisan, non-attribution insights inform options associated with remedying the unfolding crisis. These experts, many of whom worked in or with impacted startups, set aside their personal interests to brainstorm viable short and long-term solutions. Their rapid response provided decision-makers with crucial ground-truth perspectives that might otherwise have taken days to assemble through formal channels.

Pre-established Networks: The Critical Foundation

One of the most valuable lessons I’ve learned is that you can’t build a network during a crisis – it must exist beforehand. The effectiveness of decentralized response networks depends entirely on pre-established relationships and trust, which I define as the willingness to be vulnerable to the actions of an actor you cannot directly control.

When Russia invaded Ukraine, network members that had been cultivating relationships through digital collaborations for months were able to immediately activate. These self-organizing groups successfully assembled open-source information on potential exit routes for Ukrainian civilians. Some group members connected with commercial satellite companies to obtain imagery that could be analyzed by volunteer experts, creating situational awareness packages from commercial data that could be shared.

The key to their success wasn’t just technical expertise – it was the existing relationship and communication patterns they had developed before the crisis. When the moment demanded action, they didn’t need to waste precious time figuring out how to collaborate.

Similarly, during Hurricane Helene’s devastating impact on North Carolina, members of these same pre-established networks were able to coordinate with teams in austere communication environments, where initial contact was only possible through satellite links and electricity came from mobile generators. These networks helped triage needs for restoring critical infrastructure and relayed data communications from the front lines of the response. They also helped connect information inquires directly to local and state government feeds to help steer situational queries to accurate sources of on-the-ground information.

What Responding to 9/11, Anthrax, and Later Time in Afghanistan Taught

My journey with grassroots, bottoms-up approaches to crisis response began earlier than many might realize. I was an early adopter of “The Agile Manifesto” associated with agile development in February 2001, drawn to its emphasis on adaptability, collaboration, and responsiveness to change over rigid planning. 

When the events of 9/11 and the subsequent anthrax attacks occurred, I witnessed firsthand the stark contrast between response efforts that empowered the edge versus those that attempted top-down control. Teams that embraced bottoms-up approaches – allowing those closest to the problem to make decisions and innovate solutions – consistently outperformed centralized command structures that became bottlenecks for information and action. These experiences fundamentally shaped my understanding of effective crisis response.

Later from 2005-2008, my PhD work with Emory University’s Goizueta Business School and subsequent post-doctoral research with the MIT Center for Collective Intelligence provided an empirical framework to understand why these grassroots approaches were so effective. Insights I would later put into practice during my time in Afghanistan in 2009.

While in Afghanistan, I witnessed again how empowering local actors and enabling grassroots initiatives created more sustainable and effective outcomes than purely top-down directives. These experiences across multiple domains – from terrorism response to public health emergencies to conflict zones – reinforced my conviction that giving humans agency to do something amidst turbulent environments and empowering “the edge” can be one of our powerful tools for addressing complex challenges in an increasingly unpredictable world.

The Role of Generative AI in Network Resilience

While generative AI has limitations, it also offers significant potential for strengthening these decentralized networks. AI isn’t replacing human expertise or judgment – rather, it’s enhancing our ability to synthesize information and maintain institutional memory.

As these grassroots networks of human actors committed to responding to crises grow (some now exceeding 300 members), maintaining cohesion and shared understanding becomes increasingly challenging. In some respects, we humans nowadays are colliding headlong with human biology, where Dunbar’s number of 150-or-so group members often restricts the number of people with whom we can maintain stable social relationships. 

Yet generative AI can excel at listening to and synthesizing what humans in these networks have done and are doing. AI can provide crucial context for new members joining these communities and help synthesize actions across different networks.

For example, when new members join, AI can help them understand the network’s history, values, and operational norms without requiring extensive one-on-one onboarding. AI can document lessons learned from previous activations, making this knowledge accessible to the entire community. And during active responses, AI can help identify patterns across different workstreams, ensuring that insights from one part of the network inform activities elsewhere.

This application of AI certainly is not at all about replacing human connection – it’s about augmenting, ensuring that as these networks scale, they don’t lose the shared understanding that makes them effective.

Building Resilient Networks: Practical Steps

For professionals in national security, disaster response, and intelligence communities looking to foster similar capabilities, several practical steps emerge from these experiences:

First, identify champions within non-governmental organizations, universities, or state-level agencies who understand the value of decentralized, non-partisan networks. These individuals should be well-connected and respected within their fields, capable of initiating the network and attracting initial members.

Second, develop a clear charter that outlines the network’s core values, objectives, and operational principles. Emphasize non-partisan, non-attribution, and non-absolutist approaches to problem-solving. This foundation will serve as a touchstone during crises, helping maintain cohesion when divisive issues arise.

Third, build your network gradually through trusted relationships. Start with a small core group and expand through personal recommendations. Consider implementing protocols that allow for a level of anonymity to encourage open dialogue while maintaining accountability.

Fourth, establish a secure technological infrastructure that appropriately supports decentralized coordination. Encrypted communication platforms are essential, as is training to ensure all members can effectively use these tools and know their limits to include what information is and isn’t appropriate to share on the platforms.

Finally, create opportunities for network members to collaborate on non-crisis projects. These activities build relationships and test capabilities before they’re needed in high-stakes situations.

A Call to Action: Transforming Our Approach to National Security

As we face an increasingly complex and rapidly changing world, our national security, disaster response, and intelligence communities must evolve. The traditional model of centralized command and control, while still necessary, is no longer sufficient. We need to complement it with adaptive, decentralized networks that can rapidly mobilize specialized expertise when and where it’s needed.

This isn’t about replacing existing institutions – it’s about augmenting them with capabilities that formal structures often struggle to provide: speed, flexibility, diverse perspectives, and the ability to operate effectively across traditional boundaries.

For those of us in positions of leadership, this means creating space for these grassroots networks to thrive. It means recognizing their value and finding ways to engage with them that respect their independence while leveraging their capabilities. It means being willing to listen to perspectives that emerge from outside traditional channels.

For practitioners across national security, disaster response, and intelligence fields, I encourage you to participate in building these bottoms-up networks. Seek out communities aligned with your values and expertise. Contribute your knowledge while remaining open to learning from others. Help establish the relationships and trust that will enable rapid mobilization when crises emerge.

The challenges we face, from natural disasters to cyber threats, from pandemics to geopolitical conflicts, require novel approaches. By embracing decentralized, non-partisan networks of technical and data experts committed to the public good, we can build resilience in the face of uncertainty and respond more effectively when “really bad days” occur.

The future of national security isn’t just about advanced technologies or updated policies – it’s about new ways of organizing ourselves to meet emerging challenges. By empowering networks at the edge and fostering grassroots human agency, we can transform how we protect our communities and respond to crises in our rapidly changing world.