Extra-Ordinary Woman: Carrie Hessler-Radelet

Women of Peace Corps Legacy interviews an “Extra-Ordinary Woman”, Carrie Hessler-Radelet. Carrie is the President & CEO of Global Communities, an international non-profit organization dedicated to bringing together local ingenuity and global insights to save lives, advance equity and secure strong futures.Featured Guest:Prior to Global Communities, Carrie served as the President & CEO of Project Concern International (PCI), which merged into Global Communities on April 6, 2020. Prior to that, Carrie served as the Acting and then Confirmed Director of the Peace Corps (2012-2017) and Deputy Director (2012-2015), leading America’s iconic international volunteer service organization with programs in over 65 countries. At Peace Corps she and her team led historic reforms to modernize and strengthen the agency to meet the challenges and opportunities of the 21st century.Before being appointed to the Peace Corps by President Obama, Carrie worked as the Vice President and Director of the Washington D.C. office of John Snow, Inc. (JSI), overseeing the management of public health programs in 85 countries around the world. Her decades of global health work also included serving as the lead consultant on the first Five-Year Global HIV/AIDS Strategy for the President George W. Bush’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), working in international development in Indonesia on maternal and child health and HIV programming, founding the Special Olympics in The Gambia, and serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer with her husband in Western Samoa.Carrie is passionate about empowering communities to discover their own sustainable, innovative solutions to ensuring positive health and wellbeing and reducing poverty. She holds a Master of Science in Health Policy and Management from Harvard University and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Economics from Boston University.Podcast Host:Maryann Minutillo has an extensive career in international development and public service. She is a founding member of Women of Peace Corps Legacy and a co-founder of the Foreign Service Youth Foundation. She has served as a mentor for mid-level professionals at Peace Corps for WPCL since the program began. Prior to her work at Peace Corps, Maryann was Director of the Department of State’s Family Liaison Office. In this position she oversaw community, education and family support programs at the State Department and United States Embassies throughout the world.  She was Peace Corps Country Director in Bolivia, Acting Regional Director and Chief of Operations for the Inter-America and Pacific Region and Senior Advisor to six Directors of Peace Corps.  Throughout her life, Maryann has had a strong interest in cultural adaptation and the impact of international transition and crisis situations on families and particularly on women’s careers.Women of Peace Corps Legacy (WPCL) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to advance women and girls empowerment to create a more just, equitable, inclusive, and safe world for future generations.  WPCL seeks to partner with and highlight the work of those existing organizations and programs that are effectively addressing the issues of women and girls.