Vali Nasr Keynote Speaker

Dean, Johns Hopkins SAIS (2012–2019)
Henry A. Kissinger Distinguished Scholar, Library of Congress (2024–25)
Author, Iran’s Grand Strategy: A Political History (2025)

Vali Nasr's Biography

Vali Nasr is a renowned scholar and recognized thought leader on Middle East politics and international affairs. As Majid Khadduri Professor of International Affairs and Middle East Studies at Johns Hopkins SAIS, he couples rigorous scholarship with first-hand policy experience to illuminate the forces reshaping the region and the wider world.

During 2012–2019 he steered SAIS as its eighth dean, expanding its global footprint and strengthening its practitioner-focused curriculum. Earlier, he translated academic insight into diplomacy as Senior Advisor to Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, shaping U.S. strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan (2009–2011). Today, Nasr serves on the Global Board of Trustees of the Asia Society and advises governments, multinationals, and institutional investors navigating geopolitical risk.

A prolific author, Nasr’s titles include Iran’s Grand Strategy (2025), How Sanctions Work (2024), The Dispensable Nation (2013), The Shia Revival (2006), and Democracy in Iran (2006). Each challenges conventional wisdom on power, conflict, and economic warfare, offering frameworks adopted by policymakers and boardrooms alike.

Nasr is a sought-after commentator for CNN, BBC, Sky News, and Al Jazeera, and his analyses appear in the New York Times, Financial Times, Foreign Affairs, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, and Time. His contributions have earned the Carnegie Scholar Award, Guggenheim and MacArthur research fellowships, underscoring his credibility and insight. On stage, Nasr equips audiences with clear-eyed assessments and actionable strategies to anticipate change and seize opportunity in an increasingly multipolar era.

How the Middle East Impacts Global Affairs

Understanding future of conflict and security in the Middle East

America and the Middle East

What Next with Iran

He brings rigorous academic authority and real-world policy credibility as the Majid Khadduri Professor at Johns Hopkins SAIS and former Senior Advisor to Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, helping leaders understand the strategic forces reshaping the Middle East and global order.
He equips boards and executive teams to navigate geopolitical risk with clarity, translating power shifts, conflict dynamics and regional politics into actionable implications for strategy, investment and operations.
He offers a rare insider view of how diplomacy and decision-making work under pressure, drawing on experience shaping U.S. strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan and advising governments and multinationals on risk and opportunity.
He distils complex issues such as sanctions, economic warfare and multipolar competition into clear frameworks, grounded in influential books including How Sanctions Work and Iran’s Grand Strategy.
He delivers sharp, accessible analysis that strengthens leadership communication, informed by his role as a trusted media commentator across CNN, BBC, Sky News and Al Jazeera.