MADRE Executive Director Yifat Susskind partners with women's human rights activists from Latin America, the Middle East, Asia and Africa to create programs in their communities that meet urgent needs and create lasting change. A lifelong promoter of human rights, Yifat leads MADRE's combined strategy of community-based partnerships and international human rights advocacy.

Under Yifat’s leadership, MADRE has enabled thousands of local women's rights activists in Syria, Yemen, Iraq, Colombia, Haiti, Sudan, Nepal, the Philippines, and beyond to survive and recover from war, climate breakdown, and theiraftermath. In partnership with MADRE, women around the world rebuild their lives and communities, making their voices heard in the halls of power - from village councils to the UN Security Council.

• Yifat’s debut 2019 TED Talk, “Think Like a Mother,” has reached over 2,000,000 views.
• Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Newsweek, The LosAngeles Times, The Guardian, Harvard International Review, The Chronicle of Philanthropy, N.Y.U. Journal of International Law and Politics, and others.
• Yifat has been a featured commentator on CNN, NPR, and BBC Radio.
• Yifat is a founding board member of the Institute for Gender Law and Transformative Peace.

Areas of Expertise

• Peacebuilding
• Human rights
• Care in crisis
• Social and climate justice
• Grassroots activism
• Women's and girls' leadership