Emma Sky

Emma Sky, OBE is a British expert on conflict, reconciliation and stability, who has worked mainly in the Middle East. She served in Iraq as the political advisor to US General Ray Odierno and General David Petraeus during the surge. She is currently Director of the Yale University World Fellows program and a Senior Fellow at Yale's Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, where she lectures on Iraq and Middle East politics.

Emma Sky
Emma Sky
Born1968 (age 52–53)
England
OccupationDirector of Yale World Fellows
Jackson Institute for Global Affairs Senior Fellow
Notable work
The Unraveling: High Hopes and Missed Opportunities in Iraq (2015)

She is the author of The Unravelling: High Hopes and Missed Opportunities in Iraq (2015) and In a Time of Monsters: Travelling in a Middle East in Revolt (2019).

Early life and education

Sky was born and raised in England. She attended the Ashfold School and Dean Close School and earned her undergraduate degree in Oriental studies at Somerville College, Oxford University.[1][2] She also studied at Alexandria University in Egypt, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in Israel, and the University of Liverpool.[3]

Career

Following Oxford, Sky spent about ten years working for non-governmental organisations in development and conflict resolution.[1][3]

Emma Sky (second from left) accompanying Gen. Ray Odierno (centre) on a visit to a local market in Khalis, Iraq, January 2009.

During this period, Sky primarily lived and worked in Israel, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip, managing projects for the British Council to help build up the capacity of Palestinian institutions, and to promote co-existence between Israelis and Palestinians.[1][4][5] In 2001, Sky returned to the UK and continued working for the British Council, where she remained until the launch of the 2003 Iraq War.[4]

Although opposed to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Sky volunteered to join the Coalition Provisional Authority and served as the Governorate Coordinator of Kirkuk from 2003 to 2004.[1][4][6][7]

Sky served in 2005 in Jerusalem as the Political Advisor to General Kip Ward, the US Security Co-ordinator for the Middle East Peace Process. In 2006, she was based in Kabul, Afghanistan as the Development Advisor to the Italian and British Commanding Generals of NATO's International Security Assistance Force.[4][8]

From 2007 to 2010, Sky served as the Political Advisor to US General Raymond T. Odierno when he was the Commanding General of Multi-National Corps – Iraq and Commanding General of US Forces Iraq.[1][4][6][7] She also advised General David Petraeus on reconciliation.[9]

Based on her experiences in Iraq, Sky testified before the Iraq Inquiry in January 2011.[10][11]

Sky was a Spring 2011 Fellow at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. From 2011–2012, she was a Visiting Professor at King's College London and a Fellow at Oxford's Changing Character of War Programme.[3]

Since August 2012, Sky has been a Senior Fellow at Yale's Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, where she lectures on Iraq and Middle East politics.[3][12] Since 2015, Sky has been Director of the Yale World Fellows international leadership development program. Sky oversaw the transition of the program to the Jackson Institute for Global Affairs,[13] and in 2016 secured a $16 million contribution from the Starr Foundation and Maurice R. Greenberg.[14] She also serves as the Director of Yale's Leadership Forum for Senior African Women.[15]

Sky is a member of the Wilton Park Advisory Council.[16]

Books

Sky is the author The Unravelling: High Hopes and Missed Opportunities in Iraq (2015),[17] which was one of the New York Times 100 notable books of 2015,[18] and shortlisted for the 2015 Samuel Johnson Prize for Nonfiction,[19] the 2016 Orwell Prize,[20] and the 2016 Council on Foreign Relations Arthur Ross Book Award.[21] She also wrote In a Time of Monsters: Travelling in a Middle East in Revolt (2019).[2]

Awards

Sky was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire in 2003 and an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 2008 in recognition of her service in Iraq.[8]

References
  1. "In Iraq, a Blunt Civilian Is a Fixture by the General's Side". The New York Times. 21 November 2009. p. A6.
  2. "Emma Sky interview: why the 2003 Iraq invasion changed the world for the worse". The Times of London. 24 February 2019.
  3. "Emma Sky". Yale Jackson Institute for Global Affairs.
  4. "Emma Sky". Harvard University Institute of Politics.
  5. "Activist, Advisor, academic". Yale Journal of International Affairs. 26 February 2013. Archived from the original on 7 August 2013.
  6. "Inside Iraq: the British peacenik who became key to the US military". The Guardian. 15 July 2012.
  7. "Inside Iraq: 'We had to deal with people who had blood on their hands'". The Guardian. 16 July 2012.
  8. "Visiting Staff: Emma Sky". King's College London. Archived from the original on 20 March 2013.
  9. Sky, Emma (2015). The Unraveling: High Hopes and Missed Opportunities in Iraq. PublicAffairs. pp. 247–248. ISBN 9781610395939.
  10. "Emma Sky" (PDF). Iraq Inquiry. 14 January 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 November 2013.
  11. Lewis, Tim (14 June 2015). "When I arrived in Kirkuk, I was told:'You are in charge of the province'". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
  12. "The Jackson Institute for Global Affairs at Yale is pleased to announce the 2012-2013 Senior Fellows". Yale MacMillan Center. 14 August 2012.
  13. "International activist Emma Sky to direct World Fellows Program". Yale University. 8 January 2015.
  14. "The Starr Foundation names the Yale World Fellows Program". Yale University. 16 June 2016.
  15. "Leadership". Yale University Leadership Forum for Senior African Women. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  16. "Advisory Council". Wilton Park. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  17. "'The Unraveling,' by Emma Sky". The New York Times. 8 July 2015.
  18. "100 Notable Books of 2015". The New York Times. 27 November 2015.
  19. "The 2015 Shortlist". The Samuel Johnson Prize. 11 October 2015. Archived from the original on 14 February 2016.
  20. "Orwell prize shortlist dominated by books on Middle East". The Guardian. 21 April 2016.
  21. "Niall Ferguson's 'Kissinger: 1923-1968: The Idealist' Wins 2016 CFR Arthur Ross Book Award". Council on Foreign Relations. 5 December 2016.
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