Suzanne Palmieri is Director of Strategic Initiatives at the Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems at Arizona State University. She brings substantial policy experience through her many years of public service at the federal level. Prior to joining ASU, Palmieri was Senior Fellow at the George Washington University Food institute.
She served for eight years at the U.S. Department of Agriculture in senior leadership positions from 2009 to 2017. As Chief of Staff to Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan, she managed annual budget preparations, regulatory agendas, strategic planning and performance activities. She led the Office of Congressional Affairs during critical farm bill preparatory hearings. She served as Associate Administrator of the Foreign Agricultural Service where she coordinated USDA’s global food security efforts and trade facilitation work in developing countries and managed the trade promotion programs for U.S. agriculture. From 2016-17, she was Minister Counselor for Agriculture at the U.S. Mission for the United Nations in Rome, where she worked to reduce global hunger and improve food security with the Food and Agriculture Organization, World Food Program and International Fund for Agricultural Development.
Earlier in her career, Ms. Palmieri held senior positions at Peace Corps, U.S. Agency for International Development, U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Senate.