Sarah Yager

Sarah Yager is the Washington Director at Human Rights Watch, and leads the organization’s engagement with the United States government on global human rights issues. Prior to joining Human Rights Watch, she was the first senior advisor on human rights in the Chairman’s Office at The Joint Staff of the U.S. Department of Defense and, prior, served as deputy chief of staff for policy at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations under Ambassador Samantha Power. For nearly a decade Sarah was executive director of Center for Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC), leading efforts to advise warring parties on civilian protection and responsible use of force. She has worked extensively with the U.S. military and its allies in Afghanistan, Iraq, Somalia, CAR, Burma, and elsewhere.

Sarah was a member of the Clinton Administration’s White House AIDS Policy team, a senior associate at West Wing Writers, and consulted for Human Rights Watch, Ford Foundation, the William J. Clinton Foundation, and International Committee of the Red Cross. She was a senior fellow on security issues at Open Society Foundations and the U.S. Institute of Peace. Sarah holds degrees from Georgetown and Columbia Universities, is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, a board director at Center for Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC), and an adjunct professor at Georgetown University.