Lion-Archer is building a bridge between the Development and Defense sectors of the U.S. government by pairing hand selected veterans with the right international development partners to provide expeditionary leadership over international development and stabilization projects.  These projects are not to be just anywhere, but in areas of the world that pose the greatest security, social and logistical challenges.  Lion-Archer began as a means of pursuing what has provided many veterans the greatest satisfaction in their careers: traveling to far off lands with the right team-mates to share some of the spirit, capacity and know-how that the U.S. has to offer.

Over the last several years the U.S. government has struggled to find interagency solutions to the challenges of international development and stabilization.  During this time, conflicting authorities, bureaucracies and agendas often hindered interagency execution and, in turn, prevented many cooperative and committed professionals from achieving their interagency goals.  While the pursuit of this interagency ideal has proven immensely frustrating, many of the individuals pursuing this ideal, both military and civilian, have served as a tremendous inspiration.  Such determination, spirit and expertise can flourish given the right environment.  Lion-Archer is simply a private sector platform where these talented people can pursue international development and stabilization projects while continuing to serve their Nation.

Lion-Archer began with this specific objective, but soon encountered powerful currents moving in its favor.  First, there was a growing pool of veterans with tremendous international experiences who wanted to get back to the "good ole' days" of working with foreign partners but lacked the appropriate mechanism.  Second, the U.S. government gradually shifted from fighting a Global War on Terror to executing a Global Counter-Insurgency resulting in greater foreign policy and fiscal support for international development and stabilization efforts.  Lastly, despite some immensely talented people in the international development profession, there was still a lot of work to be done and not enough qualified people to do it.  These conditions have created a historical opportunity for Lion-Archer to contribute to the goal of enhancing global stability through international development.