Liza Hester Email & Phone Number

Boulder, Co, Us

URI is a global network of over 1200 Interfaith Cooperation Circles in over 110 countries all striving to end religiously motivated violence and create cultures of peace, justice, and healing. In my role, I design and facilitate learning experiences to teach URI's unique approach to violence prevention, which blends the Health Approach, religious wisdom on violence prevention, and collaboration across divides. These experiences help teams take learnings into action to stop violence in… Show more URI is a global network of over 1200 Interfaith Cooperation Circles in over 110 countries all striving to end religiously motivated violence and create cultures of peace, justice, and healing. In my role, I design and facilitate learning experiences to teach URI's unique approach to violence prevention, which blends the Health Approach, religious wisdom on violence prevention, and collaboration across divides. These experiences help teams take learnings into action to stop violence in their communities. Show less

Broomfield, Co

The eXperimental Negotiation Initiative (xNI) is a collaboration between One Earth Future Foundation (an incubator of innovative peacebuilding programs) and Dr. William Ury, one of the world’s leading experts on negotiation and mediation. As a founding member of the xNI team, I led programs to train negotiation practitioners to design effective peacebuilding strategies, then use them in the field. I designed and delivered experiential workshops, online field guides, coaching programs… Show more The eXperimental Negotiation Initiative (xNI) is a collaboration between One Earth Future Foundation (an incubator of innovative peacebuilding programs) and Dr. William Ury, one of the world’s leading experts on negotiation and mediation. As a founding member of the xNI team, I led programs to train negotiation practitioners to design effective peacebuilding strategies, then use them in the field. I designed and delivered experiential workshops, online field guides, coaching programs, and peer-to-peer practice sessions for 260 peace negotiation practitioners across 35+ conflicts. I have also been instrumental in developing and scaling the BB3 negotiation methodology, a preeminent model that fosters more constructive and collaborative conflict resolution.Most notably, this role has strengthened my ability to lead, execute, and strategize in cross-functional partnerships that require a unique set of skills, ranging from project management and strategic planning to creativity and social innovation. Show less

Boulder, Co

In this role, I played a pivotal role in advising key leaders across 10 countries to build more effective negotiation strategies by preparing analytical briefs, meeting summaries, and leave-behind policy memos. I also facilitated multi-day sessions to align teams on their peace negotiation strategies so they could effectively leverage their assets and capitalize on opportunities. Managing a global team while driving initiatives to reduce international conflict has made me a more efficient… Show more In this role, I played a pivotal role in advising key leaders across 10 countries to build more effective negotiation strategies by preparing analytical briefs, meeting summaries, and leave-behind policy memos. I also facilitated multi-day sessions to align teams on their peace negotiation strategies so they could effectively leverage their assets and capitalize on opportunities. Managing a global team while driving initiatives to reduce international conflict has made me a more efficient leader of projects, programs, and people.More specifically, this role taught me how to devise practical negotiation strategies tailored to the right decision-makers at the right moments, create seemingly impossible collaborations among those with very different viewpoints, and get things done even when we don't have all the information we need—all of which are assets to any team that wants to succeed amid ambiguity. Show less

Denver, Co

My introduction to SalusWorld (an international relief organization that supports people affected by trauma and human rights violations), was in a program development internship. I seized the opportunity to offer hands-on support in Yangon, Myanmar, where I led focus groups with former political prisoners, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and individuals living with HIV/AIDS to assess the need for wellness interventions. My work at SalusWorld—which also included driving mental health… Show more My introduction to SalusWorld (an international relief organization that supports people affected by trauma and human rights violations), was in a program development internship. I seized the opportunity to offer hands-on support in Yangon, Myanmar, where I led focus groups with former political prisoners, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and individuals living with HIV/AIDS to assess the need for wellness interventions. My work at SalusWorld—which also included driving mental health and psychsocial support objectives, strategic planning, and assessment—allowed me to humanize the data we collected to improve the provision of mental health services for vulnerable populations, a strength that is highly beneficial in mission-driven organizations across the public, private, and nonprofit sectors.After an impressive run as Program Development Intern, I was recruited to join SalusWorld as a Strategic Consultant. In this role, I was the go-to person for strategic planning—tactically figuring out what we needed to do to serve the communities that depended on us in a way that would maximize positive social impact. One of the key ways I achieved this was by developing data-driven recommendations for meeting the needs of the organization to develop a sustainable and impactful business model. Show less

Washington D.C. Metro Area

Executed copy and content editing and research on diverse topics in a timely manner, requiring great attention to detail and a critical analysis of the most relevant information for the foundation’s president

Washington D.C. Metro Area

Created a graphic tool that visually represents the intersections between the neuroscience and peacebuilding fields to facilitate greater understanding of how these fields can inform one another

Jerusalem

The Abraham Path Initiative is a nonprofit organization that builds intercultural connection and exploration through trail walking; my specific role in the organization was managing our Israeli and Palestinian partners in expanding the walking route, which has since grown to over 2,000 kilometers. While serving as Program Associate, I lived and worked in Jerusalem with minimal supervision, using my initiative and creativity to anticipate the needs of our partners, then proactively… Show more The Abraham Path Initiative is a nonprofit organization that builds intercultural connection and exploration through trail walking; my specific role in the organization was managing our Israeli and Palestinian partners in expanding the walking route, which has since grown to over 2,000 kilometers. While serving as Program Associate, I lived and worked in Jerusalem with minimal supervision, using my initiative and creativity to anticipate the needs of our partners, then proactively devise projects and initiatives to meet those needs. Further, I organized events in the U.S. and Middle East, resolved issues between partners and staff, and cultivated a diverse international network of donors and partners. Perhaps most notably, I learned a great deal about immersing myself in a new place to better serve, lead, strategize, and connect. Communicating effectively across language and cultural barriers was central to my job every day. Today, I am a stronger communicator and relationship builder because of it. Show less

Washington D.C. Metro Area

In this role, I worked with Nobel Laureate Jerry White to launch a start-up to train young global leaders in achieving large-scale systems change. My primary tasks in this position were strategic planning, relationship development, and project management. However, much of my focus was on meeting the quickly changing business needs of a new start-up. This is where I truly learned what it means to be agile and adaptable, but also where I got the chance to balance both sides of myself: creative… Show more In this role, I worked with Nobel Laureate Jerry White to launch a start-up to train young global leaders in achieving large-scale systems change. My primary tasks in this position were strategic planning, relationship development, and project management. However, much of my focus was on meeting the quickly changing business needs of a new start-up. This is where I truly learned what it means to be agile and adaptable, but also where I got the chance to balance both sides of myself: creative and imaginative; strategic and deliberate. This unique combination of skills and attributes enabled me to excel in this role and now, I know I can thrive in any fast-paced environment that requires me to switch directions quickly, think on my toes, and find humor in the hard stuff. Show less

Master Of Arts (M.A.), Conflict Resolution

+ Fellowship Recipient, 2014 + Interdisciplinary academic focus on the intersection of trauma and psychosocial dynamics in peacebuilding +.

Mid-Intermediate Level, Intensive Arabic Program

Completed mid-intermediate level for Arabic language study

B.A., Magna Cum Laude, International Studies

+ Concentration in Middle East Studies + Studied in Jordan (Spring 2008), India (Jan. 2008, 2009), Russia (Jan. 2007), & Spain (Spring.

Arabic, Middle East Affairs

Intensive Level One Modern Standard Arabic I & Ii