Brian Michael Lione

Brian Michael Lione is the International Cultural Heritage Protection Program Manager at the Smithsonian’s Museum Conservation Institute (MCI). Lione is the focal point for the Smithsonian’s ad hoc ‘Iraq Team,’ which includes partners from the Smithsonian Cultural Rescue initiative (SCRI) and Office of Global Affairs. Together, the Team implements several projects in Iraq, including capacity-building courses at the Iraqi Institute for the Conservation of Antiquities and Heritage (IICAH) in Erbil, and on site, post-ISIS recovery efforts at the Mosul Cultural Museum and at the ancient archaeological city of Nimrud. In addition to his work in Iraq, Brian serves on the Smithsonian’s Rural Initiative Working Group, supports MCI training of US law enforcement in support of anti-trafficking activities, and collaborates with SCRI on response and recovery training for domestic and international heritage specialists. Prior to joining MCI in 2017, he worked in various capacities in support of the Iraqi heritage sector, including serving as the founding Director of the IICAH from 2009-2011.

Brian spent the first decade of his professional career managing heritage sites and policy for the Department of Defense, culminating in his position as the Pentagon’s first Deputy Federal Preservation Officer from 2005-2008. Lione is an Army intelligence veteran, having served in active and reserve capacities in the US and throughout the Middle East. He holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in historic preservation from the Mary Washington College and Goucher College, respectively, in photographic arts in sciences from the Rochester Institute of Technology, and in Arabic language and culture from the Defense Language Institute and Foreign Language Center.