Ana C. Rold is an award-winning media executive and entrepreneur. She is the Founder of Diplomatic Courier, the flagship media network and magazine for top diplomats in Washington, DC, New York, Brussels, Geneva, and key capitals around the world.
In 2012, Rold founded the global futuristic think tank/do tank, World in 2050. The think tank has convened over 20,000 multi-stakeholders in the private and public sectors, partners and futurists, through a series of global summits and forums, research papers and reports, and digital and print media, to stimulate discussion and solutions on five key megatrends.
From 2006 to 2021, Rold taught Comparative Politics and Political Science at Northeastern University’s College of Professional Studies. At Northeastern, she also served as Director of the Cyprus Program and co-Director for the Egypt Program for Northeastern’s Dialogue of Civilizations Initiative.
Her advocacy and mentorship on behalf of women and women’s global issues extend around the globe. In 2012, Rold was invited to serve as a Mentor for the inaugural cohort of women fellows of First Lady Laura Bush’s Women’s Initiative at the George W. Bush Presidential Center and the George W. Bush Institute. In addition, since 2011 Rold has served as a Member of Women’s Democracy Network Advisory Council, chaired at the time by Cindy McCain. As part of her position at WDN, in 2012 and 2016 Rold convened a group of women leaders from Afghanistan and Pakistan through a program funded by USAID called Pakistan-Afghan Women’s Forum for Peace and Democracy (PAWFPD). Through her formal background in peace and conflict resolution she served as a convener and mediator to the groups’ two meetings—one in Istanbul and one in Dubai. During the meetings, Rold held a negotiation and mediation skills training for the women. In the 2015 meeting, Rold served as the editor and publisher of the women’s policy brief Women, Peace and Security Policy Brief, which was published by the Diplomatic Courier.
Rold is the recipient of the 2018 American Women for International Understanding (AWIU’s) Internationalism Award for her exceptional work as an advocate for women’s global issues and a mentor to women leaders at home and abroad.
Rold is a board member of the Smithsonian Science Education Center, a board member and co-founder of Learning Economy Foundation, and serves on the XPRIZE Brain Trust. She received a Master’s in International Peace and Conflict Resolution at American University and a Bachelor’s Degree in International Affairs at Northeastern University. She speaks five languages.
