Michele Piercey
Michele is a stabilization and governance development practitioner with 17 years of professional experience, including more than 10 years working on political transition and counter-violent extremism (CVE) programs in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Tunisia. After corporate change management and training appointments with the Australian Department of Defense early in her career, she worked with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on small-scale community engagement projects across Iraq from 2005 to 2008. Upon joining DAI, she partnered with Provincial Reconstruction Teams and Iraqi civil society on local development and voter education projects to support the democratic process, reinforce legitimate local governments, and counteract the influence of extremists throughout south and west Baghdad in 2008 and 2009. From 2009 to 2012 she served as Deputy Chief of Party on DAI/USAID – Office of Transition Initiatives Afghanistan Stabilization Initiative, during which she developed and piloted the District Stability Framework, a counterinsurgency planning tool that was later mandated for use by military engaged in stabilization operations throughout Afghanistan. As Chief of Party of the Tunisian Transition Initiative from 2012 to 2014, Michele led 30 local and expatriate staff in the design and development of an innovative small grants program to support Tunisians in their pursuit of a democratic society, a program that was notable for its creative use of art, music, film, social, and new media to reach a wide cross section of Tunisians and support democratic change. She piloted an innovative new CVE programming strategy that focused on fostering a sense of belonging to moderate Tunisian society for at-risk youth, in response to the disconnection and hopelessness that many young Arabs experienced in the aftermath of the Arab Spring.
- B.A., political science, Australian National University
- Graduate diplomas: maritime security, management (defence studies), project management, training development, and international and community development
