Pratima Narayan

Pratima is an Advocacy Director at Open Society Foundations, leading the U.S. Foreign Policy Team's work on Asia and the Pacific. Prior to this, she served as a Deputy Director with the Global Initiative for Justice, Truth and Reconciliation at the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience where she managed several programs in transitional justice and atrocity prevention in Asia and the Pacific and Africa. Pratima previously served as the Chief of Investigations for the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan.

In 2018, she was one of 18 investigators selected globally to participate in a U.S. Department of State investigation into atrocities allegedly committed against Rohingya communities in Myanmar. Pratima has also held various other positions with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Mali (MINUSMA) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Geneva, Switzerland.

In addition to working as an attorney with corporate law firms in New York, Pratima has successfully counseled internally displaced persons and asylum-seekers in Greek migrant camps, South Africa and Japan. A Bronx native, she began her career representing families in eviction prevention cases with the Legal Aid Society in 2002. Pratima earned a Post Graduate Diploma in Education and Curriculum Development from the Open University of Tanzania, a Juris Doctor from Boston University School of Law and a Bachelor of Science in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University.

Pratima is a member of the Justice Rapid Response Expert Roster. In addition to WCAPS, she serves on the Board of Directors for the United Nations Association (NNJ Chapter) and Freedom Now.