Nikki Hinshaw
Global Policy Programs Coordinator
Contact
- nhinshaw@upenn.edu
Email:
Biography
Nicole (Nikki) Hinshaw is the Global Policy Programs Coordinator at Penn Washington. Hinshaw is a global communication and strategic partnerships professional with expertise in public and citizen diplomacy and international education. She is deeply committed to amplifying the role of higher education institutions in shaping global policy and strengthening connections between local and global solutions to complex challenges.
She joins Penn Washington from Purdue University’s Institute for Tech Diplomacy, where she built cross‑sector partnerships with industry leaders, diplomatic missions, academic institutions, and the U.S. government to advance democratic values through technology policy.
Previously, she served as a Program Coordinator at Arizona State University’s Leadership, Diplomacy, and National Security Lab. In that role, she led digital strategy efforts and supported ASU’s global research and education portfolio. An advocate for media literacy and countering mis- and disinformation, she also sat on the Board of The Disinformation Project, helping expand media literacy education for students across the United States.
Hinshaw holds a Master of Arts in Global Communication from The George Washington University, where she received the Walter Roberts Award for excellence in Public Diplomacy studies. While at GW, she conducted research through its Global Education Lab on virtual international exchange. A native of Tempe, Arizona, she earned her Bachelor’s degrees in Political Science and Communication from Arizona State University’s Barrett Honors College, where she focused on subnational diplomacy and the impact of Sister Cities on local and global engagement. She continues this work through independent research on how Sister City relationships have continued to evolve in an era of Great Power competition.
Outside of her professional work, Hinshaw is an enthusiastic supporter of Washington, D.C.’s sports community—especially the Washington Spirit—plays in a recreational soccer league, enjoys the city’s music scene, and regularly takes advantage of D.C.’s wide array of community events and classes in crafting, wellness, and more.