Amena immigrated to the U.S. with her family as a refugee from Afghanistan in the early 1990s, when she was a teenager. Her passion for peacebuilding is rooted in her childhood experience growing up in a war zone in Afghanistan. Those early experiences ultimately led her to become a policy advocate serving as a member of The Peace Alliance’s National Committee for a Department of Peacebuilding Campaign, where she helps shape strategy and engages elected officials and coalition partners. In addition to serving as a Director on the Board of Pathways to Peace, Amena also currently serves on the Board of Directors of The Peace Alliance, a national organization advancing peacebuilding policy and education.

Amena is a CPA with over 25 years of professional experience, holds a B.S. in Accounting and an M.B.A. She began her career at KPMG as a financial auditor and went on to serve in finance leadership roles across multiple tech startups. Drawing on her professional background, Amena brings to her peacebuilding work a strong commitment to transparency, accountability, and sustainability, grounded in core values of integrity, resilience, and adaptability. Having navigated the challenges of the startup world with perseverance and empathy, Amena has developed into a people-centered leader who fosters collaboration, empathetic listening, and a shared sense of purpose within every team she serves.