Sarah Cohen works at the nexus of politics and religion, serving as Director of the Abrahamic Young Leaders Alliance and Advisor to Rabbi Yehuda Sarna, Chief Rabbi of the Jewish Council of the Emirates. She is the Editor of Warm Peace: How People-to-People Diplomacy Can Build What Governments Cannot (2021), a collection of research papers that offers a blueprint for building people-to-people relations between Israelis and Emiratis, arguing that these connections are the key to ensuring the success and sustainability of the Abraham Accords. After speaking about the Abraham Accords at the inaugural Palm Beach Summit on Countering Anti-Semitism, Sarah published an op-ed in the Miami Herald, titled, “The Arab World is Leading the Fight Against Anti-Semitism.”

Previously, Sarah was Chief Speechwriter for Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, and later Speechwriter for New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo. Sarah also served on Joe Biden’s 2020 and Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaigns, focusing on Jewish outreach in Florida. Before that, Sarah worked for Raytheon Company and consulted to Open Hands Initiative, a foundation dedicated to people-to-people diplomacy, on its “Fellowship for Young Women Entrepreneurs” in New York and Amman, Jordan.

Sarah graduated magna cum laude from Middlebury College in 2015 with a B.A. in Religion, concentrating in Islam, and a minor in Arabic. Her undergraduate thesis, titled, “Religion, Violence and the Apocalypse: The Case of the Islamic State,” received high departmental honors. Sarah spent a semester living in Amman, Jordan as an undergraduate.

Sophie Gray serves as AYLA’s Program Coordinator. She worked previously as a speechwriter for Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations, primarily focused on issues of international security and foreign affairs. In addition to drafting speeches for the ambassador, Sophie also helped edit English language communications including diplomatic letters, press releases, and social media posts and developed profiles in advance of meetings between the ambassador and international leaders. 

Prior to her time at the Permanent Mission of Israel to the UN, Sophie taught fifth grade English Language Arts at Success Academy Midtown West Middle School. She helped to incorporate initiatives to increase reading retention and monitor academic progress. At the end of the school year, Sophie was awarded the 2022 ETHOS Teachers Excellence Award for Success Academy.  

Sophie graduated with honors from the University of Michigan with a B.A. in Political Science and a minor in History. During her undergraduate experience, Sophie worked on the Legislative Team for Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer, performing constituent service work assisting individuals and small businesses in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Sophie also worked as an Administrative Assistant for NYU’s Institute of Judicial Administration & Center for Labor and Employment Law. Sophie spent a semester abroad in Florence, Italy studying politics and government.  

Sophie is committed to service work, specifically volunteering for the Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center.