09/18/2026
The USC Center on Public Diplomacy and the U.S. Department of State have announced Ann Mangold, Public Diplomacy Officer with the Belarus Affairs Unit at U.S. Embassy Vilnius, as the 2026 recipient of the Ameri Prize for Innovation in Public Diplomacy.
🔗: https://uscpublicdiplomacy.org/story/ann-mangold-named-2026-recipient-ameri-prize-innovation-public-diplomacy
Mangold played a central communications role in a series of U.S.-negotiated political prisoner releases in 2025, including the release of Nobel Peace Prize recipient Ales Bialiatski. Using an AI-powered platform to track more than 500 traditional and digital media channels, she provided real-time sentiment analysis and strategic guidance to U.S. officials, helping identify emerging narratives and shape messaging for audiences inside Belarus, the Belarusian diaspora, and regional partners.