Nora Abusitta is a global public diplomacy leader and strategic advisor whose career spans diplomacy, international governance, and executive leadership. For more than 20 years, she has guided governments, multilateral bodies, and private-sector organizations through complex geopolitical, technological, and reputational challenges, always grounded in a commitment to cross-cultural dialogue, institutional trust-building, and effective global engagement.

Nora began her career in diplomacy as Chief of Staff to the Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates in Washington, D.C., and later served as Advisor to the UAE Ambassador in Los Angeles, where she played a pivotal role in establishing the first UAE Consulate in the United States. In these roles, she led major public diplomacy initiatives to strengthen bilateral relations, broaden the UAE’s footprint in the United States, and build cultural, academic, and policy bridges across diverse American audiences.

Nora later joined the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), serving first as Director of International Organization Relations and subsequently as Senior Vice President of Development. In this capacity, she established ICANN’s first corporate social responsibility (CSR) department, using CSR as a strategic public diplomacy tool to expand ICANN’s global reach and deepen engagement in emerging and underserved regions. She led the creation of cornerstone programs, including the Newcomers Program, and ICANN Learn, which helped cultivate the next generation of global internet governance leaders from more than 160 countries.

During the historic IANA transition, Nora led a number of high-level panels and convenings to ensure broad international participation, clarity of communication, and alignment across governments, civil society, and the technical community. Her work contributed to one of the most important institutional evolutions in modern internet governance, reinforcing the legitimacy and inclusivity of the multistakeholder model. Beyond ICANN, Nora has contributed to global agenda-setting through her work with the World Economic Forum, where she has supported initiatives at the intersection of technology, governance, and societal impact. Her engagement has focused on advancing responsible digital innovation, strengthening governance models for emerging technologies, and elevating diverse voices in global policy conversations.

In the private sector, Nora serves as Partner at Ethos Capital, a private equity firm focused on digital infrastructure and technology-enabled platforms. She led cross-portfolio initiatives on responsible technology, governance, organizational culture, and executive communications, while advising boards and CEOs on strategy, stakeholder engagement, and long-term positioning.

Nora holds an MBA from UCLA Anderson, a master’s degree in Linguistics from Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, and a master’s degree in French Literature from Arizona State University. She also holds professional certificates from the University of California, Berkeley, the USC Center for Public Diplomacy - including completion of the prestigious USC Summer Institute on Public Diplomacy - and a certificate in Corporate Governance from UCLA. She is currently based in Amman and continues to advise leaders and mission-driven organizations across the Middle East, Europe, and the United States on public diplomacy, global communications, and responsible governance.