Ali Noorani

Ali Noorani joined the Barr Foundation as president and CEO in December 2025. Previously, Ali led the U.S. Democracy Program at the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and he also served for 14 years as president and chief executive officer of the National Immigration Forum. Before moving to Washington, DC, he spent a decade in Boston working on environmental, public health and immigration issues. Over his career, Ali has been recognized for his creative coalition building across political, cultural, and geographic divides, and his work to find common ground, common purpose, and commonsense solutions that help people and communities thrive.

Ali holds a Master of Public Health from Boston University’s School of Public Health, and Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California, Berkeley. He currently serves as Chair of the Board of Directors for More in Common Global and as a member of the Board of Directors for Welcome.US. Ali is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and has held fellowships with the Aspen Institute, Emerson Collective, University of Chicago Center for Effective Government, and Arizona State University’s Social Transformations Lab.

Ali is the author of “There Goes the Neighborhood: How Communities Overcome Prejudice and Meet the Challenge of American Immigration” and “Crossing Borders: The Reconciliation of a Nation of Immigrants.” He has been a guest commentator on outlets as varied as CNN, PBS, and Fox News, a TED speaker, and his writings have appeared in varied local, national, and international publications.