Meg Clifford Poole serves as Director of Business Development and Partnerships for the Center for Global Leadership and Program Director for the Study of the U.S. Institutes (SUSI), and annual in-person and virtual exchange program for international university students. She has worked at Meridian International Center since 1999 in numerous capacities, working primarily on people-to-people exchanges, including the State Department’s International Visitor Leadership Program, Pan Africa Youth Leadership Program, and a variety of professional exchanges for U.S. embassies overseas and private partners. Over the years, Meg has designed and implemented over 240 programs for nearly 1500 visitors from around the world. Among other themes, her programs focus on social entrepreneurship, civic engagement and volunteerism, promotion of arts and culture, and inter-faith dialogue. In addition, Meg has experience as team lead for numerous overseas leadership development programs, including conferences and convenings in South Africa, Spain, and Jamaica. In 2015, Meg lead the design and implementation of the inaugural cohort of the Meridian Social Innovation Fellows – challenging emerging leaders to identify solutions to social and economic challenges in their communities and supporting them via training and mentorship while they implement projects at home. In 2020, Meg joined the Meridian Task Force for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion and annually leads the organizations efforts around MLK and other community service efforts.

Prior to joining Meridian, Meg lived in West Africa and volunteered for the Association for Rural Development, a small indigenous agricultural development organization in Freetown, Sierra Leone. She earned her Master of Arts in International Relations from Webster University, St. Louis, Missouri and Regent’s College, London.