Sonia Ospina

Sonia M. Ospina is Professor of Public Management and Policy at the NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, sociologist by training, and an expert in qualitative and participatory research. Her interest in dynamics of democratic governance has motivated research on social change leadership, social innovation, and public accountability in various geographical settings.  She is presently working with Indigenous women leaders in Colombia to support their leadership and develop insights about collective leadership.  Her publications include Advancing Relational Leadership Research: A Conversation Across Perspectives (2012, co-edited); Social Innovation and Democratic Leadership: Communities and Social Change from Below (2017, co-authored) and a Human Relations Special Issue on Collective dimensions of leadership: Connecting theory and method (co-edited, 2020).  She co-founded an international network of leadership scholars, Co-Lead Net (2015) and the Research Center for Leadership in Action (2003), which she led until 2015. Among other service positions, she has been President of the Inter-American Network of Public Administration Education (INPAE), is a member of CLAD’s Scientific Council, a Latin American UN state reform body, and a Board member of the Public Management Research Association (PMRA). Born in the U.S. to Colombian parents, Sonia grew up in urban Bogotá, and now has lived more than half her life in New York City. Her transnational and multicultural approach to life embodies her bicultural experience and her strong ties to both countries.