Peter J. Quaranto

Peter J. Quaranto (LinkedIn) is a Visiting Professor of the Practice and Distinguished Global Policy Fellow at the University of Notre Dame’s Keough School of Global Affairs. He is concurrently a Senior Fellow for the Future of Peace and Security with the Alliance for Peacebuilding.

Quaranto has two decades of experience working across the U.S. Department of State, White House, Congress, and with civil society to elevate peacebuilding and conflict prevention in foreign policy efforts. Previously, he served as the acting principal deputy assistant secretary in the Department of State’s Bureau of Conflict & Stabilization Operations (CSO). Quaranto was at the center of implementing the landmark Global Fragility Act law, including authoring the related Strategy to Prevent Conflict and Promote Stability. He also led research initiatives to optimize foreign aid to conflict-affected states, including the Strategic Prevention Project and the Stabilization Assistance Review.

Much of Quaranto’s work has focused on sub-Saharan Africa. From 2021 to 2022, he worked on the White House National Security Council staff as Director for the Horn of Africa & Great Lakes regions. In this capacity, he directed administration efforts to respond to the expanding civil war in northern Ethiopia. Previously, in roles as a congressional staffer and activist, Quaranto spearheaded legislation to shift international policies to better support local violence reduction and peacebuilding initiatives in central Africa.