BIOGRAPHY

Nadine Maenza is a speaker, writer, and policy expert with more than two decades of experience advocating for working families and advancing international religious freedom.

She serves as Co-Chair of the International Religious Freedom (IRF) Roundtable in Washington, DC, Senior Advisor to Shai Fund, and Chair of the Institute for Global Engagement (IGE). She previously served for four years on the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), including her final year as Chair. She also served as a Global Fellow at the Wilson Center.

Nadine has traveled extensively to assess conditions on the ground, especially in Syria and Iraq, as well as in parts of Africa facing rising religious persecution. She is a frequent speaker on international religious freedom, Middle East affairs, inclusive governance, and U.S. foreign policy. She has also testified before Congress on these issues, most recently in February 2026 at a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing on challenges for U.S. policy in post-Assad Syria. Her writing has appeared in publications in the United States and abroad.

Her advocacy has been recognized by a wide range of communities, including honors from both Christian and Muslim organizations. She has received the Hevrin Khalaf Peace Award from the Future Syria Party in Raqqa, the IRF Impact Award, the Humanitarian Award from the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, the Cedar of God Award from In Defense of Christians, and the Advocacy for All Award from Justice for All.

Throughout her career, Nadine has built distinctive coalitions around issues including paid family leave, health care, tax reform, and religious freedom. Through The Clapham Group, she has advised major organizations on faith engagement, working family policy, and strategic partnerships. Earlier in her career, she worked in fundraising and grassroots organizing, serving as a senior advisor to several presidential candidates, former Senator Rick Santorum, and Patriot Voices. She also worked as congressional staff in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

Nadine currently serves on the boards of Sinjar Academy and the Freedom Research Foundation, is Co-Chair of ADL’s Task Force on Middle East Minorities, and is a member of the Committee on Conscience at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Simon-Skjodt Center for the Prevention of Genocide. She is a graduate of Penn State University, is married with three adult children, and lives in Chester County, Pennsylvania.