Karen Rignall is a post-doctoral fellow at the Center for Contemporary for Arab Studies at Georgetown University. She holds a Ph.D. in cultural anthropology from the University of Kentucky and conducts research on rural livelihoods and land tenure in Morocco and elsewhere in the Middle East and Africa. She earned an M.A. in history and anthropology from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor and a Masters in Public Affairs from Princeton University, where she also received her Bachelor’s degree. Dr. Rignall has long experience in community development both in the United States and in the Middle East. She served as country director for the Near East Foundation in Morocco, National Outreach Director for ACCESS (Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services) in Michigan, and as a consultant on strategic planning, monitoring and evaluation, program development, and community development, among other roles in the non-profit sector.