Violence prevention specialist with expertise in countering violent extremism, community-based resiliency models, and strengthening women’s roles in peace and security
Part time Professor at George Washington University
Governance Technical Expert Counterpart International
Mehreen Farooq (“She, her”) specializes in developing collective impact initiatives that emphasize gender and social inclusion, religious and faith-based engagement, and positive youth development to support social change.
Mehreen brings more than 15 years of technical expertise providing governmental and non-governmental actors with needs assessments, community engagement, strategic guidance for project implementation, and training to improve public policy and programming to advance peace and security.
As a Part-Time Faculty at George Washington University and previously an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service, she offers graduate and undergraduate courses on “Community-Based Terrorism Prevention,” “Gender and Terrorism” and “Conflict Resolution.” Ms. Farooq is also currently the Governance Technical Expert at Counterpart International supporting programs in fragile, conflict-affected environments.
Previously, Ms. Farooq served as the Vice President of the World Organization for Resource Development and Education (WORDE) and led policy analysis, research, and programming to enhance the capacity of civil society organizations to promote peace and counter violent extremism. She led field-based research across South and Central Asia to identify drivers of conflict and opportunities for building strong, resilient communities. Applying international best practices, she helped establish the first evidence-based community-led program in the United States to build resilience against radicalization.
Ms. Farooq has advised and conducted briefings at the United Nations (Geneva) and with US Embassies in Macedonia, Tunisia, Slovenia, and Germany. Domestic engagements included briefings for the Department of Defense, Joint Chiefs of Staff, Defense Intelligence Agency, National Defense University, National Counterterrorism Center, Foreign Service Institute, State Department’s Center for Strategic Counterterrorism Communications / Global Engagement Center, Af-Pak Interagency Task Force, and policymakers in the Congressional Anti-Terror Caucus.
Ms. Farooq has also worked with the University of Maryland’s Center for Health and Homeland Security and McGill University’s Institute for Health and Social Policy.
She received her Master of Arts in International Affairs (magna cum laude) from American University, Washington, D.C., and her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science (cum laude) from Christopher Newport University, Virginia.