Elmira Bayrasli is Interruptrr’s CEO. She writes about global entrepreneurs and is a professor at Bard College’s Globalization and International Affairs Program. She is the author of From the Other Side of the World: Extraordinary Entrepreneurs, Unlikely Places, a book that looks at the growth of innovation beyond Silicon Valley, focusing on talented individuals around the world who have overcome insurmountable obstacles to lead high-growth businesses. She has lived in Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina where she was the Chief Spokesperson for the OSCE Mission. From 1994-2000 she was presidential appointee at the State Department, working for Madeleine Albright and Richard Holbrooke, respectively. In addition to entrepreneurship, Elmira writes about foreign policy. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Forbes, Fortune, Reuters, The New Republic, TechCrunch, and VentureBeat.

Proudly from Brooklyn (pre-hipsters), she practices yoga, loves potato chips and roots for the Mets. Follow her tweets on all things foreign policy, gender, innovation, and entrepreneurship @EndeavoringE.

Isobel Coles is a rising junior at the College of Charleston studying Political Science with a concentration in politics, philosophy and law. Born and raised in New York, Isobel attended the Millbrook School and graduated in 2019.

Zina Dolan is a student at Brown University studying International Relations. She became interested in global politics while attending an international high school called the United World Colleges. Her academic interests lie at the intersection of gender and migration, and she is preparing to write a senior thesis. Outside of FPI, Zina serves as an editor of the Brown Journal of World Affairs, volunteers at a legal clinic for asylum seekers, and leads backpacking trips for students.

Ninar Fawal is a fourth-year undergraduate student at the University of Toronto, double-majoring in international relations and political science. She is interested in foreign affairs, multilateral diplomacy, and politics in the Middle East-North Africa region, and looks to center gender equality in her engagement with these topics. Alongside her studies, she is a Compliance Director with the G7 Research Group, the leading source of independent information and analysis about the G7, based at the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy. She is also the Advisory Council Chair for Platform, a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing Black, Indigenous, and racialized young women and gender-diverse youth’s capacity in civic engagement and leadership.

Sarah Jarvis edits FPI’s weekly newsletter and is a reporter with The News-Press and the USA Today Network in southwest Florida. A desert girl at heart, she is a graduate of Arizona State University, with degrees in journalism and global studies. She has reported for The Arizona Republic, The Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting, The Seattle Times, and The Star Tribune in Minneapolis. She’s passionate about traveling, local news, free college courses on iTunes, mac and cheese and the Phoenix Suns. Follow her tweets on Florida and news media @SarahJarvisNP.

Catherine Lovizio is a senior at Bard College where she majors in human rights with a concentration in gender and sexuality studies. She started as an intern at FPI in the fall of 2019 when she was at BGIA. At Bard, Catherine is one of the captains of the ultimate frisbee team. The focus of her senior thesis is Eleanor Roosevelt’s role in drafting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).

Tina Luchetta is a rising senior at St. Lawrence University and is a History major with minors in African Studies and Creative Writing. Her academic interests pertain to gender relations, creative expression and postcolonial studies with a focus on Senegal and Kenya. She is planning to complete a senior thesis on the representation of women in Kenyan media and print culture and the gender dynamics of national discourse in the decade following independence from British colonial rule. She hopes to work on this project while studying in Kenya  during the fall 2021 semester. Tina is currently a managing editor for the Hill News. She has also assumed other roles for the student run newspaper, such as copy-editor, staff writer and co-chief news editor. As an aspiring journalist she hopes to learn as much as possible throughout her life and empower women through sharing their perspectives and expertise.

Frances Nguyen is a freelance writer and editor of Women Under Siege (which reports on gender-based and sexualized violence in conflict and other settings) for the Women’s Media Center. She covers migration, identity, othering, and upending the American Dream.

Erin O’Brien is a Master’s student of Journalism and Near Eastern Studies in New York University’s Global and Joint Studies program. She graduated from Princeton University with a bachelor’s degree in Near Eastern Studies in 2016, then lived in Istanbul for three years prior to starting her Master’s program. She speaks Turkish and Farsi, and her independent research has focused on a range of topics, including gender studies, the study of violence, human rights, and black market trade. After she graduates from NYU, Erin hopes to return to Turkey and become a researcher and reporter full-time. She can’t wait to be reunited with her cat, Thelonious, who is currently living the mediterranean lifestyle in Izmir, Turkey.

Leen Rhazi is a rising senior at Mount Holyoke College, double-majoring in Politics and Sociology and minoring in Law, Public Policy, and Human Rights. She was born and raised in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and also lived in Amman, Jordan for her senior year of high school. Leen recently interned at the Embassy of Jordan in Washington D.C., where she wrote daily reports on political developments in the Middle East/North Africa region and U.S. foreign policy for distribution to diplomats and government officials in Jordan. After college, Leen aims to become an international human rights lawyer in order to advocate for communities around the world who are rendered invisible.

Lizzie Norris Zoeller is a Senior Analyst at the International Rescue Committee (IRC). Previously she served as a Program Officer with both the IRC and the U.S. Department of State’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, covering South and Southeast Asia, Central Asia, Europe, and global programs. Lizzie has an MA in International Relations from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) and a BA in Political Science and Human Rights from Barnard College. In addition to foreign policy and feminism, she loves traveling, learning new languages, and reading mystery novels.

Emily Smith a sophomore at Bard College where she studies global and international studies with a concentration in gender and sexuality studies. Global relations came into her view during high school, when she did Model United Nations. Outside of FPI, she enjoys playing volleyball for Bard’s team and spending time outdoors.

Pin-Shan is a junior at Bard College majoring in Political Studies and Literature. She is interested in how political issues are demonstrated in literary work. Her academic interest falls under the gender equality issue, utopia construction, and authoritarian regime. As a native of Taiwan, she is particularly enthusiastic to see how Western and Eastern political values collide. Her seven years in Hong Kong mark her interest in East Asian politics and how regime changes function in reality. She is currently a mentor at Beyond Taiwan. She is hoping to complete her law school degree in the States.

Sammy is a Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning Officer with the International Rescue Committee’s Violence Prevention and Response unit. Before working at the IRC, Sammy interned with the Carter Center’s Syrian Conflict Mapping Project and worked as a Peace Corps Volunteer in South Africa. Sammy has an MPA from Indiana University and a BA in Political Science from the University of Florida. Sammy loves dried mangoes, young adult fantasy novels, and Ethiopian food.