Insha Rahman is the Vice President of Advocacy and Partnerships at the Vera Institute of Justice and the Director of Vera Action, its independent 501(c)(4) sister organization. She guides the organization’s advocacy strategies and campaigns, working alongside governments and communities to reduce mass incarceration, protect immigrant rights, uphold dignity for those behind bars, and build safe and thriving communities. She also supervises place-based initiatives in California, Louisiana, and New York, ensuring that local needs shape national reform. She is nationally recognized as an expert on criminal legal reform. Rahman has been featured in major outlets such as The New York Times, NPR, City and State, Mother Jones, PBS’s MetroFocus, and The Nation. Over the past year, she has played an essential role in shaping the national dialogue on safety, accountability, and justice. By challenging outdated “tough-on-crime” narratives, she has worked to promote solutions that are cost-effective, evidence-based, and humane. At the 2024 Masters of Scale Summit, Rahman spoke about why punitive approaches fail and shared a vision focused on rehabilitation, restorative justice, and investments in communities. Rahman’s introduction to this work began while she was a student at Vassar College, where she took part in a college-in-prison program. That experience revealed the deep failures of the current system in providing fairness or safety. Learning about Vera Institute’s research on alternatives to incarceration inspired her belief that practical and evidence-based solutions could make a difference. Since then, she has held several roles at the organization, including leading bail reform nationally, directing reform efforts in New York, and now shaping advocacy at the national level. Earlier in her career, Rahman worked as a staff attorney at The Bronx Defenders, representing clients facing challenging cases and supporting families through difficult circumstances. She also worked as an Associate Planner at the Center for Alternative Sentencing and Employment Services and as a Program Associate at Vera Institute’s Center on Immigration and Justice. These experiences gave her a strong foundation in combining legal expertise with community-based strategies to bring about lasting change. Outside of her leadership positions, Rahman serves on the boards of the Aspen Institute’s Criminal Justice Reform Initiative and Dignity and Power Now, where she also chairs the board. She regularly mentors people interested in criminal justice and social justice careers, offering the same kind of support that helped her early on. With a Bachelor of Arts in Africana studies from Vassar College and a JD from the City University of New York School of Law, she has nearly 25 years of experience dedicated to criminal legal and immigration reform. For Rahman, the work has always been about creating better futures, supporting families, and ensuring justice for all.