Sarah is a proud first-generation Iranian American, and has been involved with NIAC since 2016, when she was an intern for the DC office. She was born and raised in Arizona, and considers Tehran to be a second home. After moving cross-country to New Jersey, where she earned my Bachelor’s degree in Public Affairs and Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University. Upon graduation, she moved to New York, where she currently lives. She’s earned a Master’s degree at Columbia University (SIPA) and specialized in humanitarian policy, tech, and media, with a focus on the Middle East. Over the past few years, she has gained experience across the public and private sector, from philanthropy and tech to local and national government to international development.
For several years now, Sarah has been very involved in the Iranian-American community, in terms of social and political activism, and hopes to increase the diversity of voices traditionally present in US policymaking in the long term. Her senior thesis was an exploration of the integration of Iranian refugees and asylees in Sweden – formerly the largest expat community – to draw from for US policymaking. She’s explored the impacts of sanctions on Iran, from the humanitarian to tech space. And built on a background in journalism, writing on the othering of Iranians in America, and how and when we have been perceived as “white.” As a volunteer and chapter leader for the NYC chapter, Sarah helped plan and lead events on Iranian culture, from our poetry to our food.
She currently works on humanitarian aid and financing reform, with a focus on decolonizing the system, at the International Rescue Committee (IRC), and do research at the nexus of human rights and tech in the public and private sector on the side.