International Careers Panel: Professionals Across Sectors Share Their Stories

Date/Time
Thursday
25 Apr 2024
5:00 pm - 8:00 pm

Event Type
Non-CSTMS Event

Unsure what career you want to pursue in the international field after graduation? Join the Institute of International Studies for an illuminating panel discussion featuring professionals in international work and service, and across sectors and roles. Panelists will share their personal career stories, offer invaluable insights into their respective fields and the diverse array of opportunities available in the international arena. From tech giants like Meta to leading development organizations like USAID and international NGOs like IIE, our panelists represent a rich tapestry of experiences and expertise. Attendees will participate in a dynamic Q&A session followed by an opportunity to individually and informally connect with our guests afterwards.

Panelists

◑ Bennett Freeman: Bennett has worked at the intersection of governments, International institutions, multinational corporations, responsible investors, and NGOs to promote human rights and sustainable development worldwide. As an Associate Fellow at Chatham House, he advises major entities through Bennett Freeman Associates LLC and holds senior advisory roles at BSR, Critical Resource, and RESOLVE. An innovative leader in the fields of business and human rights, natural resource governance, and responsible investment, he has played key roles in developing several global standards that have strengthened corporate responsibility in industries from extractives to information and communications technology.

◑ Mary Karam McKey: Mary is Head of Corporate and Foundation Programs and Student Emergency Initiatives at the Institute of International Education where she leads a dynamic portfolio of mission-aligned scholarship, fellowship, and small grants programs funded primarily by corporate and foundation partners. She has led the design, development, and management of these programs in the U.S., Southeast Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. In addition, she oversees IIE’s initiatives focused on increasing access to higher education for displaced people worldwide.

◑ LaSean Knox-Brown:LaSean is a Public Affairs Strategic Advisor at Meta Platforms Inc. where he leverages his policy expertise in support of the mission of the Facebook Oversight Board. This independent institution holds Meta accountable for some of the most sensitive and difficult content moderation issues on Facebook and Instagram. LaSean received a B.A. in International Relations from Morehouse College and a MPA in Public Policy and International Development at Princeton University before serving his country as a career diplomat for 11 years.

◑ Gary Soiseth: Gary works for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) at the Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) as the Deputy Team Lead for South Asia. Prior to this role, he worked for the U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan as the USAID Team Lead for Agriculture and as a USAID BHA Support Relief Generalist. He assessed on-the-ground atmospherics to determine the right course of action, implemented life-saving programs for internally displaced people/refugees, and managed aspects of responses to complex emergencies, specifically droughts.

◑ Frishta Qaderi: Frishta is a first-year law student at Stanford Law School focusing on resource governance, human and more-than-human rights, and public international law. She recently completed a three-year ethnographic project examining the relationship between anthropocentrism, transboundary river management, and the rule of law in Uzbekistan’s Zarafshan River Basin. Frishta is a Knight-Hennessy Scholar, Marshall Scholar, and a Fulbright Research Fellow. She holds an M.Phil. from the University of Oxford and a B.A. from Brown University.

◑ Stephanie Stewart: Stephanie is a Research Associate in the Economic Research Department at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, focusing on research on climate change’s economic implications. Before joining the SF Fed, Stephanie was a Research Assistant at the RAND Corporation in Washington DC and a Center for Arabic Study Abroad (CASA) Fellow in Amman, Jordan. Stephanie graduated from the University of Georgia in 2019 with degrees in Economics, Political Science, and Women’s Studies

◑ Nicholas Shafer: Nicholas is a Fulbright Research Fellow at Ashoka University and the U.S.-India Business Council, where he works on U,S,-India Relations, New Multilateralism, and Critical Emerging Technologies. A fifth-generation Californian and Middle East regional specialist, he worked at USAID as a Yemen & Gulf Affairs Desk Officer, a Program Officer at the Meridian International Center, a policy consultant at Mercy Corps working on the Ukraine response, undergraduate internships at the Smithsonian Institution Office of International Relations, and the U.S. Embassy in Algiers.

Attendees are encouraged to RSVP. For more information about this event please visit the Institute of International Studies event directory.

Sponsored by the Institute of International Studies and The International Relations Council of Berkeley

This event is sponsored by: The International Relations Council of Berkeley