Aizat Shamsuddin is the Founder and Director of the Initiative to Promote Tolerance and Prevent Violence (INITIATE.MY). For the past decade, he has been a dedicated analyst and practitioner in traditional and non-traditional security, focusing on crime and ideology. His expertise spans hate and violent extremism in both real and digital spaces, inter-group conflicts—primarily through INITIATE.MY—and transnational organised crime in Southeast Asia with the United States Institute of Peace (USIP).
He has played a key role in organising Track 1.5 dialogues between regional law enforcement agencies and civil societies, developing niche online courses and databases, writing policy reports, and contributing to policy discussions. In doing these, his prioritises are to minimise security threats and promote measures for resilience.
In recognition of his contributions to peace and security, he was awarded the Australia Awards Scholarship by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) and ASEAN in 2018. He holds a Master’s degree from the University of Melbourne (2020), specialising in counterterrorism, conflict studies, and political Islam. He also completed a five-year Bachelor’s degree in Sharia and Law at the Islamic Science University of Malaysia (2016).
Aizat is also an alumnus of the German Institute for Foreign Cultural Relations (ifa) and the American Council of Young Political Leaders (ACYPL) since 2018.