Advisory Board

The CMEPP advisory board provides critical strategic guidance and generous philanthropic support for RAND's Middle East research. The board is composed of public policy, nonprofit, and private sector leaders with active interests, knowledge, and experience in the Middle East.

List updated May 2023

• Ryan Crocker (Chair)

  Former Ambassador to Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Syria, Kuwait and Lebanon
  
  Nonresident Senior Fellow

  Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

• Howard L. Berman (Vice Chair)

  Former U.S. Congressman
  
  Senior Advisor

  Covington & Burling LLP

• Robert C. Adler

  Health Policy Analyst – Middle East

  Middle East Policy Analysis Group

• Goli Ameri

  Chief Executive Officer and Cofounder

  StartitUp

• Nancy A. Aossey

  President and Chief Executive Officer

  International Medical Corps

• Alexander L. Cappello

  Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

  CAPPELLO GLOBAL, LLC

• George N. Chammas

  Director

  Chammas Group of Companies

• Howard Gordon

  Executive Producer

  Teakwood Lane Productions

• Ray R. Irani

  Former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

  Occidental Petroleum Corporation

  
  

  Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

  Ray Investments, LLC

• Ann Kerr-Adams

  Fulbright Coordinator

  UCLA International Institute

• Claire Lee

  Global Brand Ambassador

  SVB Capital

• Don Loeb

  Chief Executive Officer

  Headlands West Advisory LLC

• Elizabeth Hirsh Naftali

  Partner

  The Hirsh Collective

• Jeffrey Neiman

  Vice President and General Counsel

  The Diane and Guilford Glazer Foundation

• John C. Novogrod

  Partner

  McLaughlin & Stern LLP

• Hussain Qaragholi

  Founder and Managing Partner

  Phoenix Finance Partners

  
  

  Senior Advisor

  IFC

• Peter Richards

  Board Member

  Broad Reach Foundation

• Safa Rifka

  OB/GYN & Endocrinology & Infertility Specialist

  Columbia Fertility Associates

• Hasan R. Shirazi

  Managing Director

  Citi Private Bank

Chairman Emeritus