Our Advisory Board brings decades of experience to the Cultural Diplomacy and Development Foundation (CDDF).
Diana Cohen Altman
Advisory board member
Diana Cohen Altman is the former executive director of the Karabakh Foundation (a cultural organization focused on Azerbaijan and the Caucasus) and a longtime advocate for cultural diplomacy. Her professional experience includes a lengthy tenure as a Smithsonian exhibition editor, several years as director of the B’nai B’rith National Jewish Museum and Archive, and an extended appointment as editor-in-chief of the magazine later acquired by the American Alliance (now known as Exhibitions). She has published in popular media about a broad range of cultural topics.
Paul Michael Taylor
Honorary Advisory member
PAUL MICHAEL TAYLOR, a research anthropologist at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History, is head of that museum’s Asian Cultural History Program, and serves as Curator of Asian, European, and Middle Eastern Ethnology. He has written or edited many books and numerous scholarly articles on the ethnography, ethnobiology, languages, and art (or material culture) of Asia. He has also curated twenty-one museum exhibitions (including five on-line virtual exhibitions). Outside his Smithsonian work he previously served as Senior Consultant to the World Bank Inspection Panel for social safeguard policies; and also as the Director of Ethnographic Film Development for Essential TV (Overseas) Ltd to develop twelve documentary anthropological films. During his studies of rural social, ecological, and poverty-alleviation issues, and his work on documentary films, he lived for over four years in small tribal or rural villages of Southeast Asia. The recipient of numerous international grants and awards, he has served on the Board of Directors of the Association for Asian Studies, and has been a longtime member of the Smithsonian’s Asian-Pacific American Heritage Committee. He has worked closely with many individuals and community organizations to establish “Heritage” projects at the Smithsonian, including the Smithsonian’s Sikh Heritage project, Korean Heritage, Heritage of Thailand, Taiwan Heritage, and others.
Dr. S. Frederick Starr
Advisory board member
Dr. Starr is the founding Chairman of the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute and Silk Road Studies program, a transatlantic research center between Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies and the Institution for Security and Development Policy. Dr. Starr was also the founding Chairman of the Kennan Institute and was involved in planning the University of Central Asia and the Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy. He has conducted extensive research and published both articles and books on the history, development, and domestic situations of greater Central Asia, as well as on US policy in Central Asia. Dr. Starr furthermore writes about the region for media outlets and journals.
Zeba Zebunnesa
Advisory board member
Zeba Zebunnesa is an American peace ambassador, a spiritual Diplomat, a cultural bridge-builder, born and raised in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Zebunnesa serves on the Executive Board of the American Muslim Multi‑Faith Women’s Empowerment Council, the first Muslim women civil rights organization in the United States of America, an organization focused on countering extremism and promoting religious freedom, women’s rights, peace and security. In 2024 she was invited to a White House convening on conflict‑related sexual violence hosted by Vice President Kamala Harris. In 2025 Business Asia named her among the Top 100 non‑resident Bangladeshi women, and she was featured as the cover story of Capital Time Magazine’s December 2025 women’s special edition. A longtime Orange County , California resident who recently relocated to Washington, D.C. Zebunnesa’s work spans humanitarian advocacy, immigrant and refugee support, multifaith diplomacy and women empowerment. She has a long legacy of volunteering for the South Asian communities and collaborated with diverse organizations addressing newcomers, students, women, and refugees – always with a warm heart. A former Californian farmer and fashion stylist, she combined agribusiness experience and creative leadership – serving as a USDA consultant on the Farm-to-School program for Los Angeles Unified school district – while earning a Bachelor’s degree with honors from UC Irvine’s Claire Trevor School of the Arts (2007). In 2018 she participated and led the Orange County’s Me Too women’s march, and during the COVID‑19 crisis she was honored as a Muslim “Shero” for frontline volunteer service. A former fashion stylist, a South Asian American fashion icon, she remains celebrated for her fashion sense, elegance and influence in South Asian fashion here in the United States as well. Zebunnesa states that “Fashion is not just about external glamour; it can be a dialogue of cultures, a source of economic dynamism, and a source of social strength”. Rooted in a family tradition of public service from Bangladesh, Zebunnesa credits her late parents as guiding stars in her life. Zeba Zebunnesa’s journey from Dhaka, Bangladesh, to becoming a peace ambassador in the United States is truly inspiring. Her multifaceted background illustrates how her diverse experiences have shaped her into a leader and advocate for various American communities. Zeba Zebunnesa exemplifies the essence of community leadership and cultural bridge-building in America. Her contributions to society highlight the importance of resilience, advocacy, and the need for strong, compassionate voices in immigrant communities. As she continues her journey, her work serves as a beacon of hope and inspiration for many.
Lutful Kabir
Advisory board member
Lutful Kabir is a multi-lingual professional and had held numerous senior leadership and management positions with UN Systems for about 12 years, about 21 years with International NGOs (CARE, SCF-UK, Plan International, SCF-USA and IMC) and 7+ years with Academic Institutions, in South Asia, South-east Asia, Africa, South Caucasus and Central Asia. He has undertaken numerous consultancy assignments, successfully established several country/program offices, trained national and international staff of numerous organizations and managed large program and operational budgets. ODM (Organizational Development & Management), Resource Mobilization, Civil Society Development and HICD (Human & Institutional Capacity Development) are some of the courses Lutful regularly taught. On numerous occasions, Lutful had worked as advisor/trainer for WB, ADB, USAID, OSCE, EU, DRC, NRC, numerous INGOs and UN agencies on various aspects of their works.
Ashraf Haidari
Advisory board member
Ambassador Ashraf Haidari is a distinguished diplomat and humanitarian leader, serving as the Founder and President of Displaced International (DI). From 2018 to 2022, he was Afghanistan’s Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Director-General of the South Asia Cooperative Environment Program (SACEP), leading initiatives on regional security, economic cooperation, climate resilience, and sustainable development. At Afghanistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he held key roles, including Director-General of Policy and Strategy and Deputy Chief of Mission and Chargé d’Affaires at the Afghan Embassies in Delhi and Washington, D.C. His leadership is deeply shaped by his personal journey as a former refugee. Overcoming hardship as a street vendor, he worked with UNHCR and WFP, gaining firsthand experience in humanitarian crises. He earned a B.A. in Political Science and International Relations from Wabash College, followed by a Master’s in Security Studies at Georgetown University and a graduate certificate in Refugees, Migration, and Humanitarian Emergencies. Recognized for his expertise in forced displacement, peacebuilding, and post-conflict reconstruction, he has been awarded prestigious fellowships with Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service, New America, and the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) and received the 2021 Roots of Peace Global Citizen Award. At DI, he advocates for policies empowering displaced populations worldwide and highlights their contributions to global stability. As an adjunct faculty member at Arizona State University and Georgetown University and a World in 2050 Senior Fellow at the Diplomatic Courier, he continues to shape international discourse on displacement, security, and development, emphasizing the potential of forcibly displaced individuals as valuable assets to host societies.
Turker Ozdogan
Advisory board member
As a professional artist, Turker Ozdogan has achieved national and international recognition through a variety of research grants and awards, juried expositions, and solo exhibitions. These have had varied venues including, most notable, the Corcoran Gallery of Art, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, Meridian House, and the United Nations Plaza Gallery. His ceramic art has been reviewed and featured on television and in newspapers and periodicals as well as reproduced in texts on ceramics.
Professor Ozdogan’s work has been widely collected and exhibited in Washington’s art galleries and the diplomatic community, as well as many public and private collections in the United States and abroad. Turker Ozdogan traveled to Zibo, China (a center of ceramic art in China) for the 2013 Macsabal International Symposium and Workshop. His artwork was selected for the permanent collection in two different museums. Turker Ozdogan attended the International Golcuk Ceramic Symposium at Koaceli University in May 2015. This symposium, exhibit, and workshop was organized by the Department of Ceramics at Koaceli University. Professor Ozdogan participated in an international ceramic exhibition at the Taksim Gallery, Istanbul Turkey in June 2016. This was by invitation of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. The Taksim Gallery, Istanbul hosted this major exhibition and gallery opening with country-wide coverage in the Turkish media. A large-scale catalog was also published featuring a page with his artwork and a short biography.