On this episode, Innocents at Risk Founder and Director Deborah Sigmund talks to Michael Camal, who currently serves as a Senior Advisor at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Blue Campaign, the department’s national public awareness campaign to combat human trafficking. In this role, Michael leads the Blue Lightning Initiative (BLI) to address human trafficking within the aviation industry. Under his leadership, BLI has tripled in size, expanded its reach to airports, aviation businesses, and the general aviation community. BLI has trained over 200,000 aviation staff on trafficking indicators and how to report the crime. Michael also supports the newly established DHS Center for Countering Human Trafficking
(CCHT), where he coordinates across 16 DHS components to further support the department’s domestic anti-trafficking mission. In collaboration with the U.S. Department of State, Michael engages foreign officials on public awareness, instituting a victim-centered approach, and recommendations on how foreign governments can improve their laws and strategies for combatting human trafficking. Michael has been with DHS for five years. He is originally from New Jersey and holds a bachelor’s degree in Sociology with a concentration in Criminal Justice from the University of Rhode Island.