Distinguished Fellows-in-Residence

Ms. Fiona Alexander is both Distinguished Policy Strategist in Residence in the School of International Service and Distinguished Fellow at the Internet Governance Lab at American University.  She recently left the U.S. Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) where she served as Associate Administrator for International Affairs.  In this role, she was the principal official responsible for the analysis, development, and execution of international Internet, cyber and communications policy within the Executive Branch of the United States government (USG).  Ms. Alexander is NTIA’s sole Presidential Rank Award winner for her leadership in the two-decade effort to privatize the Internet’s domain name system (DNS).  Ms. Alexander is a member of the High-level Advisory Group for the Global Internet & Jurisdiction Policy Network and was appointed by the United Nations Secretary General to the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) Multistakeholder Advisory Group. Prior to joining NTIA, Ms. Alexander was a Senior Consultant at Booz, Allen & Hamilton.  She has a Master’s Degree in International Relations from American University, Washington, D.C. and is co-founder of Salt Point Strategies, a consulting group that provides public affairs counsel, strategy, and advocacy to clients navigating the emerging high-tech economy.

Dr. Andrea Hackl (non-resident) is a researcher, writer and advocate with a research background in corporate social responsibility and tech policy and human rights. As a freelance researcher, she currently provides research and writing services for non-profit organizations focused on tech policy issues. Previously, she was as a research analyst with Ranking Digital Rights, housed at New America, where she helped develop standards and best practices to determine the extent to which global Internet and telecommunications companies respect human rights. She also served as a research fellow with the LGBT Technology Partnership and Institute where she wrote a White Paper on the technology needs of homeless LGBTQ youth. This paper helped the organization develop a pilot program that places free cellphones in the hands of homeless LGBTQ youth. Andrea holds a Ph.D. in Communication Studies from American University. Her dissertation addressed Internet policy and LGBTQ expression online. Her research has been published in Telecommunications Policy, Information, Communication & Society and the Journal of Homosexuality. Andrea serves on the Steering Committee for the Human Rights Campaign in the Greater Washington, D.C. area.