Lizzy Shackelford

Elizabeth Shackelford leads out IGA’s Summer Geopolitics Academy, a college prep leadership pipeline for high school juniors from underserved areas. She is also a lecturer at Dartmouth College and foreign affairs columnist for the Chicago Tribune. Currently under contract with Stanford University Press to co-author an undergraduate textbook entitled How US Foreign Policy Really Works, she brings both scholarly depth and real-world diplomatic experience to her work in education around geopolitics and global affairs.

As a former U.S. diplomat with assignments in Poland, South Sudan, Kenya, Somalia, and Washington, DC, Shackelford navigated the complex realities of international relations, conflict resolution, and governance challenges. Having served as senior policy director at the Dickey Center for International Understanding, she understands how to translate diplomatic experience into educational frameworks which prepare students to engage with geopolitical challenges.

Before joining Dartmouth, she was a senior fellow at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, where she co-hosted the Deep Dish on Global Affairs podcast, demonstrating her commitment to making complex global issues accessible to diverse audiences. Her book The Dissent Channel: American Diplomacy in a Dishonest Age won the Douglas Dillon Book Award. Prior to government service, she practiced law at Covington & Burling LLP in Washington, DC.

Through her teaching, writing, and media appearances—including interviews with the likes of Jon Stewart and Christiane Amanpour—Shackelford continues to bridge the gap between academic theory and diplomatic practice, preparing students to understand and shape the global challenges that will define their generation.

The Summer Geopolitics Academy is a college-prep leadership pipeline for high school juniors from underserved rural and urban areas, this initiative will equip students with the skills, networks, and mentorship to imagine and pursue careers in global affairs, diplomacy, national security, and international economics. In doing so, it will help diversify the next generation of – and reduce distrust in – America’s foreign policy leadership. To learn about how you or your organization can make a tax-exempt gift of support for this initiative, please email: development@instituteforglobalaffairs.org.