Leigh Morris Sloane

Leigh Morris Sloane is Managing Director of International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) -Americas.  In this role, she manages operations and outreach for the Washington office and works closely with her IISS colleagues around the world to ensure that constituents based in the Americas connect with the Institute’s world-leading research and convening power. Leigh has over 20 years of experience working in the international affairs arena at the nexus of research, higher education and policy making.  Prior to joining IISS, Leigh served as Chief of Staff at the Brookings Institution where she managed the executive secretariat and activities of the president, Strobe Talbott.  From 2008-2013, Leigh served as the Executive Director of the Association of Professional Schools of International Affairs (APSIA). In this role, she managed programs and services and developed new initiatives for APSIA's 70 plus full and affiliate member schools around the world.  Additionally, Leigh has managed the Congress and US Foreign Policy Program at the Council on Foreign Relations and helped establish the Middle East Initiative at the Harvard Kennedy School with Ambassador Robert D. Blackwill. Leigh is particularly committed to encouraging and increasing the opportunity for the next generation of talent from underrepresented groups to pursue careers in the international affairs field.  In her spare time, she serves as treasurer for the board of directors for the Public Policy and International Affairs fellowship program (PPIA).

Leigh spent nearly two years studying and working in Hungary in the early 1990s at Budapest University of Economics and later at Veszprém University, followed by time working for the American University in Bulgaria both in the US and in Blagoevgrad. She has a Master’s degree from the London School of Economics in History and Theory of International Relations with a focus on Cold War history and a Bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service.