Suzanne Nossel was named Executive Director of the PEN American Center in 2013. Prior to PEN she served as Executive Director of Amnesty International USA. Her work led to passage of the Afghan Women and Girls Security and Promotion Act (2012), and drew attention to the chilling climate for free expression in Russia through the case of imprisoned punk band Pussy Riot. Before Amnesty, Suzanne served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for International Organizations at the U.S. Department of State. She played a leading role in U.S. engagement at the U.N. Human Rights Council. She was also Chief Operating Officer for Human Rights Watch. Suzanne has worked in Johannesburg, South Africa, on the implementation of South Africa’s National Peace Accord (early 1990s), and has done election monitoring and human rights documentation in Bosnia and Kosovo. Suzanne has served as vice-president of U.S. Business Development at Bertelsmann Media Worldwide, vice-president of strategy and operations for the Wall Street Journal, and a consultant at McKinsey & Company. She is the author of Presumed Equal: What America’s Top Women Lawyers Really Think About Their Firms. Suzanne contributes to and comments on human rights issues for news outlets including CNN and NPR.