Kathleen Godfrey

Kathleen “Kat” Godfrey is the Director of the Aspen Institute’s Justice, Society, and Democratic Institutions Initiative where she develops multi-sectoral spaces for collective wisdom and action to emerge in support of more just, capable, and trusted democratic social systems.

She joined the Aspen Institute in 2012, providing specialized leadership training to America’s most promising young political leaders through the Rodel Fellowships in Public Leadership. Before the Aspen Institute, Kat directed programs at the Environic Foundation International, where she co-authored a curriculum for use throughout African colleges and universities in partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and developed pedagogical philosophy and training materials for global, regional, and local sustainability education in college and professional settings. She has also worked on projects ranging from federal initiatives on renewable energy to communication and leadership efforts around social innovations. In addition to authoring articles and lecturing academic and political audiences, she has composed speeches, articles, and book material on behalf of national and international thought leaders.

She earned her Bachelor of Science from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and her Master of Arts from the European University Center for Peace Studies, and lives in Washington, DC.