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Farah Pandith

Senior Advisor, ADL

Farah Pandith is an author, foreign policy strategist and former diplomat. A world-leading expert and pioneer in countering violent extremism (CVE), she is a frequent media commentator. Her book is How We Win: How Cutting-Edge Entrepreneurs, Political Visionaries, Enlightened Business Leaders, and Social Media Mavens Can Defeat the Extremist Threat. She served as a political appointee under Presidents George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama, and most recently she was the first-ever Special Representative to Muslim Communities, serving both Secretaries Clinton and Kerry. She has served on the National Security Council, at the U.S. Department of State, and USAID in various senior roles. She has also served on the Department of Homeland Security’s Advisory Council, chairing its task force on CVE.

Currently she is an adjunct senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and a senior advisor at the Anti-Defamation League. She has been a senior fellow with the Future of Diplomacy Project at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at the Harvard Kennedy School and a fellow of Harvard’s Institute of Politics. In fall 2020, the Muhammad Ali Center named Pandith the first-ever Muhammad Ali Global Peace Laureate for her proven track record of and commitment to promoting diversity, cohesion and respect. She teaches at Georgetown University and is a member of various boards including Mercy Corps, We Are Family Foundation and the Excelerate Foundation. She is co-chair of The Asian American Foundation Advisory Board, and is a member of the advisory boards of Starts With Us and Council for Responsible Social Media.

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