Chidi Blyden is the new executive director of the Harvard University Center for African Studies (CAS), an interdisciplinary university-wide center that broadens knowledge about Africa and brings African perspectives to the scholarship of the Harvard community and beyond.
An expert in foreign policy and security, Blyden has held key leadership positions across four U.S. presidential administrations and has served as the senior advisor for peacekeeping at the Pentagon to the African Union and United Nations. Under the Biden administration, she was deputy chief executive officer of the Millennium Challenge Corporation and deputy assistant secretary of defense for African affairs. Throughout her career, she has also taught as an adjunct faculty member and guest lecturer on Africa’s human security issues.
“Harvard’s role is to be a catalyst for educating the world about Africa today, not Africa of the past. CAS is central to this as Africa continues to shape global conversations and contribute its many strategic resources to the world, particularly its human capital, talent, and intellect,” said Blyden. “I’m glad to be here to share my network and experience in the public and private sector, and I look forward to joining a distinguished and seasoned team of colleagues focused on promoting Africa’s vast rise in prominence at this dynamic time in history.”
Blyden is a graduate of Texas A&M University, where she majored in sociology. She holds a master’s degree from the Carter School of Conflict Resolution at George Mason University in Virginia.
