Dara Katz

Dara works at the nexus of national security, innovation, and technology. Having worked internationally with national and local governments and domestically on national security policy, Dara brings an understanding of how to translate strategy and policy to action while navigating complex operating environments. From her work at U.S. Agency for International Development’(USAID) scaling digital technology practice into a cross-Agency organization and as a senior advisor on innovation, Dara has developed expertise in understanding how to nurture digital technology and innovation in complex operating environments, including considerations such as political economy, regulatory and governance challenges, and expanding market access. She also has driven organization change around emergent priorities, successfully designing and building organizations and platforms inside USAID, UN missions, and local and national governments. In addition, Dara has more than a decade of experience designing field-based analytical products and using that analysis for executive decision-making. Dara has worked and lived in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Kosovo, Pakistan, South Sudan and Libya as well as focused on the Middle East. Dara is a Distinguished Graduate of Eisenhower School for National Security and Resource Strategy at National Defense University, earning an MS in National Resource Strategy. She also holds an LLM in International Human Rights Law from the University of Essex in the UK and a BA from Wesleyan University.