Staff

Jerry Fowler

President

Jerry Fowler leads the Save Darfur Coalition and its staff of 30 professional organizers, policy advisors and communications specialists. Fowler coordinates joint Darfur advocacy efforts among the coalition’s more than 180 member organizations and directs communications with more than one million Darfur activists, more than one thousand community coalitions, and joint efforts within a strong global movement in 50 different countries.

Mr. Fowler is recognized as an authority on the problem of responding to genocide and related crimes against humanity. Before coming to the Save Darfur Coalition, he was the founding director of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum's Committee on Conscience. He has taught law at George Washington University, George Mason University, and American University. He also served for four years as an officer in the United States Army.

Mr. Fowler's publications include "Out of that Darkness: Preventing Genocide in the 21st Century," in Century of Genocide: Eyewitness Accounts and Critical Views (Routledge, 2004). He also directed the short film A Good Man in Hell: General Romeo Dallaire and the Rwanda Genocide.

Click here to read Jerry Fowler's complete bio. 

Colleen Connors

Chief Operating Officer

Colleen Connors provides direction and leadership toward the achievement of the coalition’s mission, goals and objectives.  She leads all internal operations and bridges the work of the coalition’s campaigns, communications, international programs, development and administration teams.  

Ms. Connors specializes in building global information and advocacy campaigns on behalf of issues, ideas and causes. She has supported democracy movements, human rights campaigns and anti-genocide efforts in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Eastern Europe. Prior to joining the coalition, Ms. Connors managed and directed communication projects for the United States Central Command Air Forces, the U.S. Joint Staff, the U.S. European Command and the Government of Portugal. Ms. Connors' work has dealt with campaigns in Iraq, the Balkans, East Timor and the Gulf Cooperative Countries.

Amjad Atallah

Senior Director, International Policy and Advocacy

Amjad Atallah is responsible for designing and leading implementation of the coalition’s outreach to foreign governments and non-governmental organizations to advocate on behalf of the people of Darfur.

Before joining the coalition, Mr. Atallah was president of Strategic Assessments and a senior expert with the Public International Law and Policy Group. Mr. Atallah is also a co-founder and member of the Board of Directors of Women for Women International, an international women’s development and aid organization with women centers in conflict and post-conflict zones around the world. As an activist and as an attorney, Mr. Atallah has worked on a host of conflicts including pre-democracy South Africa, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Rwanda, Israel/Palestine, Sri Lanka and Sudan.

Alex Meixner

Director of Government Relations

Alex Meixner leads the coalition’s efforts to directly petition the U.S. government, focusing on Congress, the White House, the State Department and the National Security Council.

Prior to joining the Save Darfur Coalition in September 2005, Mr. Meixner worked on a variety of legislative issues for former Congressman Robert Matsui (D-CA) and Congresswoman Doris Matsui (D-CA). Preceding his work with Congressman and then Congresswoman Matsui, Mr. Meixner worked on political affairs for former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, serving as the Deputy Political Coordinator of the Senator’s Leadership PAC.