THE TEAM
Carice Witte
Founder and Executive Director
Carice Witte is the Founder and Executive Director of SIGNAL Group. In 2011, Ms. Witte initiated Chinese-Israeli Track II exchanges and launched an annual program in Israel for Chinese faculty on teaching Israel Studies, leading to the establishment of Israel Studies Programs at universities across China.
Having conducted over 1,500 briefings in both China and Israel, Ms. Witte established an annual conference on Israel’s China policy in 2016 and, in 2017, a semi-annual China-Israel and annual China-Israel-U.S. Track II dialogue, fostering high-level policy discussions between key global players. In 2019, she introduced a seminar series tailored for international experts, government officials, and policy professionals focused on China’s evolving geopolitical role.
As China’s global influence has grown, Ms. Witte has expanded SIGNAL Group’s work to include the Indo-Pacific region and is often a speaker at international security conferences across Asia. A recognized authority on China and China-Israel affairs, she has made significant contributions to the academic and policy fields, publishing numerous articles, research papers, and policy analyses on topics such as Sino-Israeli relations, China’s policy reforms, and the impact of these developments on Israel and the broader Middle East. Her research also explores China’s role in global governance, including the United Nations, the Global Security Initiative, and the Global Civilization Initiative, with a focus on China’s strategic involvement in the Middle East.
Ms. Witte serves on the board of the Israel Council on Foreign Affairs. She immigrated to Israel from the U.S. in 1987 and is a graduate of Yale University. She has five children and four grandchildren.
Tommy Steiner
Policy Director
Tommy Steiner is the Policy Director of SIGNAL Group. Since joining in 2020, Tommy has led policy research and convening regarding Israel’s strategic positioning vis-à-vis the Indo-Pacific, China, and great-power competition. He oversees flagship initiatives, high-level dialogues, and international conferences, shaping policy engagement with Israeli and global stakeholders and officials.
Based in Israel, Tommy is concurrently an Honorary Fellow of the Middle East Institute (MEI) at the National University of Singapore and an Adjunct Lecturer on International Relations and Strategic Studies at the Lauder School of Government, Diplomacy and Strategy at Reichman University (IDC) in Herzliya.
Before joining SIGNAL Group, Tommy was a Senior Research Fellow at Reichman University’s Institute for Policy and Strategy. He was a member of the founding team of the Annual Herzliya Conference Series (www.herzliyaconference.org).
Tommy previously served as Executive Director of the Atlantic Forum of Israel, where he played a central role in advancing NATO-Israel ties. His areas of expertise include global politics and international security, transatlantic relations, Israel’s foreign policy, and regional dynamics in the Indo-Pacific and the Middle East. In these fields, Tommy regularly advises Israeli authorities, international organizations, business leaders, media, and think tanks.
Tommy earned his MA (cum laude) in International Relations from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and is the recipient of the Yehoshafat Harkaby Award from Hebrew University’s Leonard Davis Institute for International Relations.
Tommy resides in Herzliya, Israel, and is the proud father of three children.
Julia Rose Cole
Director of Operations and Communications
Julia Cole is the Director of Operations and Communications at SIGNAL Group, where she oversees projects, events, operations, and communications across all departments. She has been with SIGNAL Group for 5 years, starting as a Research Associate.
Immigrating to Israel from the United States in 2017, Ms. Cole served in the Israel Defense Forces as a non-commissioned officer in the International Cooperation Unit—Military Strategic Information Section (MSIS), completing her service with the rank of Sergeant. This experience laid the foundation for her deep understanding of cross-cultural communication, which she has continued to refine through both her professional and academic endeavors.
She earned her MA from the University of St Andrews in International Relations and an MSc from the London School of Economics in Comparative Politics, specializing in Middle Eastern History and Politics.
Guan Yuan (Helen)
China's Program Coordinator
Ms. Guan Yuan joined SIGNAL Group as an intern in translation in 2012. She officially joined the SIGNAL Group team as a professional translator in late 2013 after attaining her MA in English Translation and Interpretation from China University of Petroleum. Ms. Guan focused on translating materials for the Israel Resources Center, a SIGNAL Group on-line library of introductory to scholarly materials about Israel. Ms. Guan’s years of association with SIGNAL Group have provided important insights into Israel that facilitate the subtly accurate translations. In 2014, Ms. Guan’s role at SIGNAL Group expanded to include ISP (Israel Studies Program) Coordinator in China in March 2014, assisting SIGNAL Group in establishing and supporting the study of Israel at universities across China. In 2016, Ms. Guan became SIGNAL Group’s China coordinator, adding to her area of responsibility the management of SIGNAL Group’s quarterly delegations of scholars and experts from Israel to Beijing. Ms. Guan visited Israel in 2013 on an academic exchange program at Ben Gurion University to expand her expertise on Israel. She returned to Israel in 2019 to accompany the Chinese delegation from the School of International Studies (SIS) of Renmin University for the SIGNAL Group-SIS China-Israel-US annual track II dialogue.
Ms. Guan has over 9 years of experience in international business and translation.