Derrick Flakoll

Derrick Flakoll studies and works at the intersection of technology policy, global security, and political economy. He's returning to the Kennedy School from a pandemic gap year spent supporting a European public sector innovation consultancy, a global venture capital firm, and an African Union COVID-response public-private partnership. At Harvard, he's proudly served as a Digital Managing Editor and writer for the Kennedy School Review, and learned much from student groups like the Cross-Harvard Project on the Future of the Workforce, Kennedy School Negotiation Project, and Emerging Technology Policy Network. Prior to Harvard, he held roles managing operations for a Cleveland Clinic-affiliated global health startup, algorithmically optimizing small donor lists for a progressive campaign finance startup, researching China's Belt and Road Initiative for the Asia Foundation Myanmar, and interning for the Truman National Security Project. He holds a BA in Peace, War, and Defense from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.