Documentary Photographer & Visual Researcher

Hailey Sadler is a National Geographic Explorer, Research Fellow, and award-winning photojournalist based out of Washington, DC who has worked across the Middle East, Africa, Southeast Asia, and the U.S.  Her work explores themes of trauma, memory, and identity through the psychological and emotional experiences of conflict and forced displacement. 

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Since transitioning to photojournalism in 2019, Hailey's work has been supported by grants from the National Geographic Society, Getty Images, Adobe, the IWMF, and Solutions Journalism Network, and published in The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN, PBS Newshour, BuzzFeed News, and more. Her images have been exhibited in Washington, D.C., Tbilisi, Barcelona, Baghdad, Berlin, and Amsterdam. 

Hailey is also a Co-Founder of  The Home Collective, a women-led global collaborative bringing together academics, scientists, community leaders, and new generation storytellers  to create multidisciplinary research and visual projects exploring the intersection of home with geopolitical issues from conflict to climate. She also serves as a non-resident Associate Research Fellow with the Global Counter-Terrorism Institute and a Global Fellow at the Geneva Centre for Security Policy.

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Hailey's reporting and research is rooted in years of prior policy experience as senior staff for legislators serving on the House Armed Services and Intelligence Committees. She holds a Masters of International Public Policy concentrating on international conflict from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies where her capstone research project focused on the long-term impacts of intergenerational trauma after protracted war.

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She is certified in Hostile Environment Awareness Training (HEAT+) and is available for assignments worldwide.  

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