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Tara Kangarlou
Illuminate global perspectives with Tara Kangarlou, speaker, international journalist and humanitarian expert. Tara works with organizations to navigate cross-cultural communication, understand global conflicts, and build empathy-driven leadership, delivering award-winning insights from CNN, NBC, and Georgetown University.
Tara Kangarlou is an award-winning journalist and author whose work has illuminated some of the most complex global issues of our time. With experience reporting and producing for CNN, NBC, and Al Jazeera America, she has covered conflicts, humanitarian crises, and international affairs from the Middle East to South Asia and beyond. Her ability to bring depth and humanity to stories often dominated by political headlines has earned her recognition as a trusted voice in international journalism.
Born and raised in Tehran, Tara moved to the United States in her late teens. She went on to earn a degree in English Literature from UCLA and a Master’s in Journalism from USC. Her career has included frontline reporting on the Syrian refugee crisis, the Rohingya displacement in Bangladesh, and unprecedented access inside Iran during the nuclear negotiations. She has interviewed world leaders, covered US presidential inaugurations, and reported on global events that shaped recent history.
In 2016, Tara founded Art of Hope, the first US-based nonprofit dedicated to the mental health and psychosocial support of refugees in Lebanon. Her humanitarian work is matched by her academic role as an adjunct professor at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. Her debut book, The Heartbeat of Iran, has been widely praised for offering nuanced perspectives into the everyday lives of Iranians. She sits on the board of the International Women’s Media Foundation, advises global health and refugee organisations, and continues to advocate for mental health support in conflict-affected regions. Her work combines storytelling with a commitment to bridge divides and foster understanding across cultures.
Audiences gain practical frameworks for understanding global conflicts beyond headlines, tools for building cross-cultural communication in diverse environments, and strategies for addressing humanitarian challenges with empathy and effectiveness.
Book Tara to transform your understanding of global affairs through compelling storytelling that connects cultures and inspires meaningful action.
Tara Kangarlou brings unparalleled expertise in global affairs journalism, offering organizations rare insights into complex geopolitical landscapes through powerful storytelling that humanizes international headlines from the Middle East to Ukraine. Book this award-winning former NBC, CNN, and Al Jazeera America journalist to transform your team's understanding of cross-cultural communication and global conflicts through compelling narratives that inspire meaningful action.
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frequently asked questions
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Tara Kangarlou draws on her frontline reporting experience — covering crises such as the Syrian refugee crisis and Rohingya displacement — to structure talks around narrative-driven case studies that move from ground-level human experience to broader geopolitical context.
Tara Kangarlou speaks on international conflict and humanitarian crises, refugee mental health and psychosocial support, cross-cultural communication, and the human dimensions of geopolitics. She is an award-winning journalist with reporting experience at CNN, NBC, and Al Jazeera America, covering the Syrian refugee crisis, the Rohingya displacement, and Iran's nuclear negotiations, and is the author of The Heartbeat of Iran and founder of Art of Hope, the first US-based nonprofit dedicated to mental health support for refugees in Lebanon.
No. PepTalk adds no booking fee, so you pay the speaker's fee and nothing beyond it. The service, from shortlist through to contracts and event-day logistics, is included. For repeat or multi-event bookings, PepTalk can agree preferential rates with your procurement team.
Share your event date, audience, format, objectives and budget, and PepTalk sends a hand-picked shortlist within 24 hours. Each suggestion comes with a profile, a fee and a recommendation on the strongest fit. Once you choose, PepTalk handles contracts, travel and logistics through to event day.
The typical fee range is the speaker's standard in-person fee in their home market, shown in their local currency. It moves with format, location, date and session length: virtual sessions and shorter slots usually cost less, while international travel and peak dates cost more. Send your brief to PepTalk and the team will confirm the exact fee in your currency.
Not all of them, and it makes no difference to your booking. PepTalk's network of 15,000+ speakers covers talent the team works with directly alongside speakers represented by agents and agencies worldwide. PepTalk approaches the speaker, negotiates the fee and handles contracting either way.
Three to six months ahead is comfortable for most events, and 12 months is better for large conferences, peak-season dates or one specific in-demand speaker. Shorter timelines are workable, and PepTalk regularly fills last-minute and replacement bookings within days. Availability is the constraint, so get in touch as soon as you have a date.
