KidnappingSurvival.com is a network of trainers with different professional background, including law and law enforcement, pedagogics and psychology.
THE LEAD TRAINER
An attorney by trade, the lead trainer Olav Ofstad has worked as a public prosecutor, deputy judge, criminal defense attorney, senior partner in a private law firm and a lecturer.
In 1992 Olav was hired as a diplomat at the Norwegian Embassy in Pakistan, with responsibility for development aid programmes. He later worked at Norwegian Embassies in India and Nepal, with UNHCR in Bosnia and the Norwegian Refugee Council in Serbia.
He held senior international positions within the Red Cross Movement in different countries in Asia and the Balkans and was responsible for IFRC’s International Disaster Response Law program in Asia Pacific, negotiating legal reform with governments.
Between his humanitarian missions, he spent time on conflict related research, while providing training in conflict management and communication for peace-keeping officers, police officers and others. He specializes in the application of Social Psychology as a means to resolve conflicts, including in cases of kidnapping and hijacking
KIDNAPPING SURVIVAL BACKGROUND
In 2003, Olav was assigned by the Norwegian Defence International Centre (NODEFIC) to write a conflict management handbook for peace-keepers. The book was to include a chapter on kidnapping survival, a subject that would require extensive research, given the lack of scientific literature on the topic.
Olav made it clear that his book would differ from existing conflict management literature in that it would draw much more on Social Psychology, a science he had found essential but under-utilized both in practice and theory.
Through his research, Olav found that many of the psychological mechanisms he recommended for resolution of conflict also held huge potential as survival tools in the case of kidnapping or hijacking.
The first book, initially exclusively in Norwegian, was followed up by a further developed English version in 2006, entitled ‘Conflict Management in the Field. A handbook for Officers and Soldiers’.
As a result of his book, Olav's application of Social Psychology in response to conflict, kidnapping included, won the praise of internationally acclaimed psychologists see the Home Page and A Book For Clients, and he followed up with Surviving Kidnappers, Precautions, Influence, Strategic tools in 2017.
As Olav observed that none of the kidnapping survival training available on the market appeared to offer insight into the psychological methods he had found to be so invaluable, he decided to develop his own kidnapping survival training.
PEACEBUILDING AND CONFLICT MANAGEMENT RESEARCH
Olav has also contributed to peace-building research. In 2011 he spent time as a Visiting Research Fellow at Oxford University, where he conducted a project on UN peacebuilding in East Timor compared to UN peace operations in Africa. His Research also included a range of peacebuilding aspects, which later fed into his book 'Conflict Management in International Missions.A Field guide', published in January 2015.
Olav is a devoted and caring trainer who always makes it a point to adapt to the participants’ situation and level of understanding. Together with highly skilled team members he has developed courses that are intensive, hands-on (they even include actual past kidnapping victims), and highly effective.
Mostly he is in charge of the training himself, drawing on other team members to the extent needed.
THE LEAD TRAINER
An attorney by trade, the lead trainer Olav Ofstad has worked as a public prosecutor, deputy judge, criminal defense attorney, senior partner in a private law firm and a lecturer.
In 1992 Olav was hired as a diplomat at the Norwegian Embassy in Pakistan, with responsibility for development aid programmes. He later worked at Norwegian Embassies in India and Nepal, with UNHCR in Bosnia and the Norwegian Refugee Council in Serbia.
He held senior international positions within the Red Cross Movement in different countries in Asia and the Balkans and was responsible for IFRC’s International Disaster Response Law program in Asia Pacific, negotiating legal reform with governments.
Between his humanitarian missions, he spent time on conflict related research, while providing training in conflict management and communication for peace-keeping officers, police officers and others. He specializes in the application of Social Psychology as a means to resolve conflicts, including in cases of kidnapping and hijacking
KIDNAPPING SURVIVAL BACKGROUND
In 2003, Olav was assigned by the Norwegian Defence International Centre (NODEFIC) to write a conflict management handbook for peace-keepers. The book was to include a chapter on kidnapping survival, a subject that would require extensive research, given the lack of scientific literature on the topic.
Olav made it clear that his book would differ from existing conflict management literature in that it would draw much more on Social Psychology, a science he had found essential but under-utilized both in practice and theory.
Through his research, Olav found that many of the psychological mechanisms he recommended for resolution of conflict also held huge potential as survival tools in the case of kidnapping or hijacking.
The first book, initially exclusively in Norwegian, was followed up by a further developed English version in 2006, entitled ‘Conflict Management in the Field. A handbook for Officers and Soldiers’.
As a result of his book, Olav's application of Social Psychology in response to conflict, kidnapping included, won the praise of internationally acclaimed psychologists see the Home Page and A Book For Clients, and he followed up with Surviving Kidnappers, Precautions, Influence, Strategic tools in 2017.
As Olav observed that none of the kidnapping survival training available on the market appeared to offer insight into the psychological methods he had found to be so invaluable, he decided to develop his own kidnapping survival training.
PEACEBUILDING AND CONFLICT MANAGEMENT RESEARCH
Olav has also contributed to peace-building research. In 2011 he spent time as a Visiting Research Fellow at Oxford University, where he conducted a project on UN peacebuilding in East Timor compared to UN peace operations in Africa. His Research also included a range of peacebuilding aspects, which later fed into his book 'Conflict Management in International Missions.A Field guide', published in January 2015.
Olav is a devoted and caring trainer who always makes it a point to adapt to the participants’ situation and level of understanding. Together with highly skilled team members he has developed courses that are intensive, hands-on (they even include actual past kidnapping victims), and highly effective.
Mostly he is in charge of the training himself, drawing on other team members to the extent needed.