July 2, 2009 - Washington, DC

Ambassador Nancy E. Soderberg has been named President of the Connect U.S. Fund, the organization announced today.   On July 8, Ms. Soderberg will succeed Eric Schwartz, who has been appointed Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees and Migration.

Ms. Soderberg currently serves as a Distinguished Visiting Scholar at the University of N. Florida in Jacksonville. From 2001-2005, Ms. Soderberg ran the New York office of the International Crisis Group as Vice President.   From 1997 to 2001, Ms. Soderberg served as Alternate Representative to the United Nations as a Presidential Appointee, with the rank of Ambassador.  From 1993-97, Ms. Soderberg served as the third ranking official of the National Security Council at the White House, as Deputy Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs.

Ms. Soderberg publishes and speaks regularly on national security policy. Her second book, The Prosperity Agenda What the World Wants from America--and What We Need in Return, written with Brian Katulis and published in 2008, argues for American leadership in tackling the world's challenges in exchange for the world assisting us with our threat. Her 2005 book, The Superpower Myth, analyzes the use of force and diplomacy over the last decade. She is a regular commentator on national and international television and radio, including NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN, BBC, Fox, National Public Radio, the Lehrer News Hour, CNN Crossfire, and The Daily Show. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, She also served as President of the Sister Cities Program of the City of New York from 2002-2006 and has been an adjunct professor at Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs. In 1984, she received a Masters of Science Degree from Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service, concentrating on international economics and political risk analysis. She received her Bachelor of Arts in 1980 from Vanderbilt University. She speaks fluent French.

The Connect U.S. Fund promotes responsible U.S. global engagement in an increasingly interdependent world through grantmaking and operations that advance critical foreign policy objectives and support an effective, collaborative community of individuals and organizations working toward common objectives.  It is a foundation/NGO initiative led by a professional staff and supported by a donors' collaborative which presently includes the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the Open Society Institute, the Ford Foundation, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, the Atlantic Philanthropies and the Ploughshares Fund, with a grantmaking fund managed by the Tides Foundation.