Professional Affiliation

Founder, Art of Hope; Author, The Heartbeat of Iran

Expert Bio

Tara Kangarlou is an award-winning global affairs journalist and author who has previously worked with news outlets such as NBC, CNN, CNN International, and Al Jazeera America. She is a frequent on-air contributor for various international news outlets covering the MENA region and global affairs and writes regularly for TIME magazine as well as other news platforms. She has also spent much time covering humanitarian issues worldwide and is the founder of Art of Hope, the first American nonprofit committed to the mental health and psychological well-being of war-torn refugees, IDPs and vulnerable host communities. She is also the author of the award-winning book "The Heartbeat of Iran", which is the first book available to the western audience that provides an unprecedented insight into the many nuances, textures, and complexities of real life in today's Iran - as told through the stories of ordinary people living inside the country. She is currently an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service teaching at the intersection of journalism and public diplomacy with a focus on the power of humanized storytelling. Tara was born and raised in Tehran, Iran until she moved to the States in her late teens. At the moment, she splits her time between London and Washington. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature from UCLA and a Master’s Degree in Journalism from USC.