Heather Gilberds

Chief of Staff

Heather Gilberds serves as Chief of Staff at the National Endowment for Democracy, where she supports the President and CEO and guides institution-wide strategic coordination across the executive team. She brings nearly twenty years of experience in research, evaluation, and organizational effectiveness across diverse contexts. In this capacity, she drives and coordinates execution of the President’s strategic priorities, provides clarity on complex institutional issues, and ensures alignment across the executive team. Her responsibilities include overseeing decision-making processes, guiding cross-departmental implementation, and establishing the systems and workflows that translate executive strategy into organizational action.

Before stepping into her current role, Heather was Deputy Director of the Center for International Media Assistance (CIMA), where she led research partnerships, managed expert networks, and helped shape the media-development field through analysis, publications, and international convenings. She has published and presented widely on topics related to independent media and innovative finance, press freedom, aid effectiveness, and the role of media in democratic transitions. Her broader background includes work in governance and accountability, natural resource management, youth entrepreneurship, and risk communication in global health.

Heather undertook Master’s and Doctoral studies at Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada, where her research explored the growth of Nepal’s community radio sector and the role of independent media in rebuilding trust between citizens and the state during Liberia’s two-decade democratic transition. She has lived and worked in more than a dozen countries across sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, and the Middle East.

She lives in Washington, D.C., with her husband and son. Outside of her professional work, she has published creative nonfiction and poetry.