Photo by Scott Robinson
Over the course of her career spanning leadership roles within the White House, the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Congress, major international non-profit organizations, and the private sector, Maria Alexandra (Alex) Arriaga has worked at the global, national, and local level crafting solutions and achieving priorities
Alex is Founder and Partner at Strategy for Humanity, an international firm that works with mission-driven organizations and those who fund them to develop effective strategies, conduct smart advocacy and analysis, and achieve meaningful results. The firm is woman, minority, LGBTQI+, survivor, and person with disabilities – led. Grounded in the belief that how you do business is as important as what you achieve, the team creates conditions that enable organizations to fulfill their potential, bridge differences, and advance a common agenda. Alex provides vision and direction for this dynamic firm that has worked with over 100 clients, including large and small non-profits, foundations, academic institutions, corporate entities, and governmental agencies.
Prior to launching Strategy for Humanity, Alex was active in the public and nonprofit sector. At the White House, Alex was appointed as Special Assistant to the President of the United States and Chief of Staff to the President’s Special Envoy for the Americas. There she led stakeholder meetings to broker legislation that was signed into law, influencing U.S. trade and rights policy towards countries throughout Latin America. Alex previously was appointed to a senior role advising the Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor at the U.S. Department of State where she was U.S. Delegate to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (twice), a member of the Department’s Bosnia Task Force, and Chair of the Bureau's working group on women's rights. In addition, she was appointed Executive Director of the Secretary of State’s Advisory Committee on Religious Freedom Abroad, where she led systemic reforms within the U.S. government agency, guided a national panel of experts, and was lead content negotiator for the U.S. government on legislation that was eventually signed into law. During her tenure as acting Deputy Executive Director and as Managing Director for government relations, policy and advocacy at Amnesty International USA, Alex's leadership led to a feature article in The Washington Post, A Pragmatic Idealist Pursues Justice for All, and The Hill recognized her team at AIUSA as the top human rights lobby in Washington. Alex began her career in the U.S. House of Representatives as Director of the bipartisan Congressional Human Rights Caucus where she increased participation to involve a majority of the U.S. Congress (across party lines) and focused on over 100 countries and myriad issues.
Alex also has a proven track record working on education issues. In recognition of her strategic and impactful thought partnership, Governor Ralph Northam appointed Alex to serve on the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) where she co-designed the Commonwealth's five year, state-wide strategic plan which focused on improving access for under-represented students so that Virginia can achieve its goal of having 70% of working aged adults complete some type of higher education. In addition, the Arlington School Board recognized Alex as an Honored Citizen for her extraordinary and multi-year contributions to improve the education experience for students with disabilities. She co-authored an award-winning resource for schools and parents to navigate the special education system; this resource manual has been translated into other languages and is utilized throughout Virginia and other states. She also co-created and appears in "La Sopa de La Abuela," an innovative TeleNovela-style series to support Latino families entering the special education system. With Members of the U.S. Congress, Alex worked on the introduction of landmark legislation to provide funding for more teacher training. Alex's work was showcased in a feature article in The Washington Post, More Autism Training for Teachers.
Alex's policy and legislative achievements include negotiating, on behalf of the U.S. government, the International Religious Freedom Act (signed into law), portions of the Caribbean Basin Trade Enhancement Act (signed into law), and rights standards in the Detainee Treatment Act (signed into law). She also initiated and stewarded the coalition that co-designed and campaigned for the International Violence Against Women Act (IVAWA), which became the guiding document for reforms within the U.S. government; co-wrote, mobilized broad stakeholders support for, and supported introduction of the Autism Understanding and Training in School Methodologies for Educators Act (AUTISM Educators Act), which addressed funding gaps in the school system; and co-created strategies for adoption and implementation of the Women, Peace & Security Act (signed into law), and the Native Americans section of Violence Against Women Act (signed into law). In addition, Alex supported foundations to create a pooled funding initiative that facilitates greater collaboration by organizations dedicated to improving outcomes for children globally. This initiative inspired and facilitated a large, diverse, and inclusive coalition to co-design of a joint proposals for U.S. government reforms to integrate and elevate issues affecting children more systemically in relevant U.S. policy, funding, and programming.
Alex is the recipient of many awards for her leadership and service, including the U.S. Secretary of State’s Superior Honor Award, the Minority Business & Professionals Network Award for Outstanding Leadership, Service and Achievement, and the University of Virginia’s Distinguished Alumna Award. For her alma mater, the University of Virginia, Alex has served as Chair and Trustee of The Jefferson Trust, a HNW alumni led grant making initiative; inaugural Member of the Advisory Board of the Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy; President of the Bolivar Network; Manager on the Board of the UVA Alumni Association; and member of the university president’s task force to address campus sexual assault.
Alex currently serves as Co-Chair of the Women's Refugee Commission, Secretary of the Institute for International Law and Human Rights, and Member of the World Learning Global Advisory Council. Previously Alex served as an advisor to The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and The Smithsonian Institutions on initiatives to improve access for children and adults with disabilities. Earlier in her career, Alex was a scholarship recipient with The Joffrey Ballet.
Alex has written numerous published articles and reports and is a bilingual spokesperson in English and Spanish. She is first generation American of Spanish and Chilean descent.
RECENT CLIENTS
The Children’s Policy and Funding Initiative--a pooled donor fund at Panorama Global, Oak Foundation, GHR Foundation, MacArthur Foundation, The Center for Victims of Torture, Futures Without Violence, Elevate Children Funders Group, Global Women’s Institute at the George Washington University, Amnesty International USA, The International Republican Institute’s Women’s Democracy Network, Our Secure Future at Pax Sapien.
SELECT PUBLICATIONS & EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS
Joint Proposal for a White House-led Initiative for Children and Youth Globally. Children’s Policy and Funding Initiative at Tides, 2024. Lead author of this this memorandum delivered to US President Joseph Biden Jr.
La Sopa de la Abuela (Grandma’s Soup), A Special Education Telenovela. Contributing scriptwriter for series. Episode:“What Do We Need to Know?”, Actor. This series is now distributed nationwide to support families and school systems. Access: here.
How U.S. Funding and Policy is Addressing Gender-Based Violence: Focus on Tanzania and Uganda, Futures Without Violence, 2018. Contributing author, editor, production manager. Access: here.
Linking Security of Women & Security of States: Policymaker Blueprint 2017, Futures Without Violence, May 2017. Principal author, editor, production manager. Access: here.
Violence and Insecurity in the Northern Triangle of Central America: Dangerous Choices for Women and Girls, Policy Brief, U.S. Civil Society Working Group on Women, Peace and Security, 2016. Access: here.
Special Education Family Resource and Information Binder. Arlington Public Schools, Virginia. Recipient of 2012 Award of Excellence, National School Public Relations Association. Co-author. Access: here.
Guía de Información y Recursos de Educación Especial para Familias. Co-author and Spanish co-editor. Access: here.
“International Human Rights: A Legislative Agenda”, in William F. Schulz, The Future of Human Rights: U.S. Policy for a New Era, University of Pennsylvania Press, 2008, pp. 251-257. Chapter author.
“Support Ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women,” in Restoring American Leadership: 13 Cooperative Steps to Advance Social Progress, Open Society Institute, 2005. Chapter author.
“HIV/AIDS and Violence Against Women,” in American Bar Association’s Section of Individual Rights and Responsibilities, Summer 2002, Vol.29, No.3. Author. Access: here.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS AND CITATIONS
Pathways to Opportunity: The Virginia Plan for Higher Education, State Council for Higher Education of Virginia, January 2021. Access: here.
Reagan, Congress, and Human Rights: Contesting Morality in US Foreign Policy, Rasmus Sinding Søndergaard. Cambridge University Press, 2020. Pages 83, 90-91, 98, 108-109, 115.
Gender-Responsive Policymaking Handbook, Women’s Democracy Network, International Republican Institute. Editor. 2020. Access: here.
A Retrospective, 20th Anniversary of the International Religious Freedom Act. 21Wilberfoce. 2018. Access: here.
Gender-Based Violence Research, Monitoring, and Evaluation with Refugee Affected Populations: A Manual and Toolkit for Researchers and Conflict Affected Populations, The Global Women’s Institute of the George Washington University, September 2017. Access: here.
Recognizing Rights, Promoting Progress: The Global Impact of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. International Center for Research on Women. 2010. Access: here.
World of Faith and Freedom: Why International Religious Freedom is Vital to American National Security, Farr, Thomas F., Oxford University Press, 2008. Page 144.
Advisory Committee on Religious Freedom Abroad Interim Report to the Secretary of State and President of the United States. 1998. Access: here.
Alex is Founder and Partner at Strategy for Humanity, an international firm that works with mission-driven organizations and those who fund them to develop effective strategies, conduct smart advocacy and analysis, and achieve meaningful results. The firm is woman, minority, LGBTQI+, survivor, and person with disabilities – led. Grounded in the belief that how you do business is as important as what you achieve, the team creates conditions that enable organizations to fulfill their potential, bridge differences, and advance a common agenda. Alex provides vision and direction for this dynamic firm that has worked with over 100 clients, including large and small non-profits, foundations, academic institutions, corporate entities, and governmental agencies.
Prior to launching Strategy for Humanity, Alex was active in the public and nonprofit sector. At the White House, Alex was appointed as Special Assistant to the President of the United States and Chief of Staff to the President’s Special Envoy for the Americas. There she led stakeholder meetings to broker legislation that was signed into law, influencing U.S. trade and rights policy towards countries throughout Latin America. Alex previously was appointed to a senior role advising the Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor at the U.S. Department of State where she was U.S. Delegate to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (twice), a member of the Department’s Bosnia Task Force, and Chair of the Bureau's working group on women's rights. In addition, she was appointed Executive Director of the Secretary of State’s Advisory Committee on Religious Freedom Abroad, where she led systemic reforms within the U.S. government agency, guided a national panel of experts, and was lead content negotiator for the U.S. government on legislation that was eventually signed into law. During her tenure as acting Deputy Executive Director and as Managing Director for government relations, policy and advocacy at Amnesty International USA, Alex's leadership led to a feature article in The Washington Post, A Pragmatic Idealist Pursues Justice for All, and The Hill recognized her team at AIUSA as the top human rights lobby in Washington. Alex began her career in the U.S. House of Representatives as Director of the bipartisan Congressional Human Rights Caucus where she increased participation to involve a majority of the U.S. Congress (across party lines) and focused on over 100 countries and myriad issues.
Alex also has a proven track record working on education issues. In recognition of her strategic and impactful thought partnership, Governor Ralph Northam appointed Alex to serve on the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) where she co-designed the Commonwealth's five year, state-wide strategic plan which focused on improving access for under-represented students so that Virginia can achieve its goal of having 70% of working aged adults complete some type of higher education. In addition, the Arlington School Board recognized Alex as an Honored Citizen for her extraordinary and multi-year contributions to improve the education experience for students with disabilities. She co-authored an award-winning resource for schools and parents to navigate the special education system; this resource manual has been translated into other languages and is utilized throughout Virginia and other states. She also co-created and appears in "La Sopa de La Abuela," an innovative TeleNovela-style series to support Latino families entering the special education system. With Members of the U.S. Congress, Alex worked on the introduction of landmark legislation to provide funding for more teacher training. Alex's work was showcased in a feature article in The Washington Post, More Autism Training for Teachers.
Alex's policy and legislative achievements include negotiating, on behalf of the U.S. government, the International Religious Freedom Act (signed into law), portions of the Caribbean Basin Trade Enhancement Act (signed into law), and rights standards in the Detainee Treatment Act (signed into law). She also initiated and stewarded the coalition that co-designed and campaigned for the International Violence Against Women Act (IVAWA), which became the guiding document for reforms within the U.S. government; co-wrote, mobilized broad stakeholders support for, and supported introduction of the Autism Understanding and Training in School Methodologies for Educators Act (AUTISM Educators Act), which addressed funding gaps in the school system; and co-created strategies for adoption and implementation of the Women, Peace & Security Act (signed into law), and the Native Americans section of Violence Against Women Act (signed into law). In addition, Alex supported foundations to create a pooled funding initiative that facilitates greater collaboration by organizations dedicated to improving outcomes for children globally. This initiative inspired and facilitated a large, diverse, and inclusive coalition to co-design of a joint proposals for U.S. government reforms to integrate and elevate issues affecting children more systemically in relevant U.S. policy, funding, and programming.
Alex is the recipient of many awards for her leadership and service, including the U.S. Secretary of State’s Superior Honor Award, the Minority Business & Professionals Network Award for Outstanding Leadership, Service and Achievement, and the University of Virginia’s Distinguished Alumna Award. For her alma mater, the University of Virginia, Alex has served as Chair and Trustee of The Jefferson Trust, a HNW alumni led grant making initiative; inaugural Member of the Advisory Board of the Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy; President of the Bolivar Network; Manager on the Board of the UVA Alumni Association; and member of the university president’s task force to address campus sexual assault.
Alex currently serves as Co-Chair of the Women's Refugee Commission, Secretary of the Institute for International Law and Human Rights, and Member of the World Learning Global Advisory Council. Previously Alex served as an advisor to The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and The Smithsonian Institutions on initiatives to improve access for children and adults with disabilities. Earlier in her career, Alex was a scholarship recipient with The Joffrey Ballet.
Alex has written numerous published articles and reports and is a bilingual spokesperson in English and Spanish. She is first generation American of Spanish and Chilean descent.
RECENT CLIENTS
The Children’s Policy and Funding Initiative--a pooled donor fund at Panorama Global, Oak Foundation, GHR Foundation, MacArthur Foundation, The Center for Victims of Torture, Futures Without Violence, Elevate Children Funders Group, Global Women’s Institute at the George Washington University, Amnesty International USA, The International Republican Institute’s Women’s Democracy Network, Our Secure Future at Pax Sapien.
SELECT PUBLICATIONS & EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS
Joint Proposal for a White House-led Initiative for Children and Youth Globally. Children’s Policy and Funding Initiative at Tides, 2024. Lead author of this this memorandum delivered to US President Joseph Biden Jr.
La Sopa de la Abuela (Grandma’s Soup), A Special Education Telenovela. Contributing scriptwriter for series. Episode:“What Do We Need to Know?”, Actor. This series is now distributed nationwide to support families and school systems. Access: here.
How U.S. Funding and Policy is Addressing Gender-Based Violence: Focus on Tanzania and Uganda, Futures Without Violence, 2018. Contributing author, editor, production manager. Access: here.
Linking Security of Women & Security of States: Policymaker Blueprint 2017, Futures Without Violence, May 2017. Principal author, editor, production manager. Access: here.
Violence and Insecurity in the Northern Triangle of Central America: Dangerous Choices for Women and Girls, Policy Brief, U.S. Civil Society Working Group on Women, Peace and Security, 2016. Access: here.
Special Education Family Resource and Information Binder. Arlington Public Schools, Virginia. Recipient of 2012 Award of Excellence, National School Public Relations Association. Co-author. Access: here.
Guía de Información y Recursos de Educación Especial para Familias. Co-author and Spanish co-editor. Access: here.
“International Human Rights: A Legislative Agenda”, in William F. Schulz, The Future of Human Rights: U.S. Policy for a New Era, University of Pennsylvania Press, 2008, pp. 251-257. Chapter author.
“Support Ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women,” in Restoring American Leadership: 13 Cooperative Steps to Advance Social Progress, Open Society Institute, 2005. Chapter author.
“HIV/AIDS and Violence Against Women,” in American Bar Association’s Section of Individual Rights and Responsibilities, Summer 2002, Vol.29, No.3. Author. Access: here.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS AND CITATIONS
Pathways to Opportunity: The Virginia Plan for Higher Education, State Council for Higher Education of Virginia, January 2021. Access: here.
Reagan, Congress, and Human Rights: Contesting Morality in US Foreign Policy, Rasmus Sinding Søndergaard. Cambridge University Press, 2020. Pages 83, 90-91, 98, 108-109, 115.
Gender-Responsive Policymaking Handbook, Women’s Democracy Network, International Republican Institute. Editor. 2020. Access: here.
A Retrospective, 20th Anniversary of the International Religious Freedom Act. 21Wilberfoce. 2018. Access: here.
Gender-Based Violence Research, Monitoring, and Evaluation with Refugee Affected Populations: A Manual and Toolkit for Researchers and Conflict Affected Populations, The Global Women’s Institute of the George Washington University, September 2017. Access: here.
Recognizing Rights, Promoting Progress: The Global Impact of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. International Center for Research on Women. 2010. Access: here.
World of Faith and Freedom: Why International Religious Freedom is Vital to American National Security, Farr, Thomas F., Oxford University Press, 2008. Page 144.
Advisory Committee on Religious Freedom Abroad Interim Report to the Secretary of State and President of the United States. 1998. Access: here.
