Colin Powell School
After exploring editorial and culinary careers, Ariana Smith found her passion for international humanitarian law and human rights and enrolled in the joint program in law and international affairs offered by the Colin Powell School and CUNY Law. A course on nuclear policy taught by Dr. Jean Krasno, the program director, led Ariana to complete an internship in nuclear policy advocacy. Smith graduated in 2020 and recently became executive director of the Lawyer’s Committee on Nuclear Policy, which strives for a world free of nuclear weapons.
Where are you from and what is your background?
I’m originally from Vienna, Virginia, just outside of Washington D.C. I moved to New York City in 2008, though, and this has been home ever since! I explored a few different career paths—including magazine editorial work and cooking/baking (I worked and studied at the International Culinary Center for a few years)—all while knowing that I wanted to center my life’s work on social justice and influencing change in some way. I’d volunteered on various initiatives through my church and other local groups over the years; ultimately, though, I realized that to pursue the social and political change I was passionate about, a law degree would be too useful to pass up. I returned to school to become a lawyer focused on international human rights and humanitarian law.
What brought you to City College and the Colin Powell School?
I was in the inaugural dual-degree J.D./M.A. in International Affairs program at the Colin Powell School. I learned of the program my first week of law school at CUNY Law program and knew it would be a perfect fit, as I had planned to focus on international law.
What was your concentration at the Colin Powell School, what was your passion or purpose behind pursuing this concentration?
As a dual-degree student, my full-time term at the Colin Powell School was limited to one year, and my core courses were selected based on the program. Some of the electives I chose that were particularly interesting and valuable to me, though, included Nuclear Security and Non-proliferation, Terrorism and International Relations, and Brazil in a Global Context. The Nuclear Security course propelled me to my current career path.
How would you say the Colin Powell School has helped you to get to where you want to be professionally?
The Colin Powell School was integral to my current career trajectory. I chose Dr. Jean Krasno’s inimitable Nuclear Security and Non-proliferation course my fall semester based on intrigue alone. Studying the development of nuclear energy, the violent colonialism underlying nuclear weapons testing, and the rationale behind misguided and risky deterrence policies drove me to pursue further opportunities to research and strategize against the nuclear iteration of the omnipresent military-industrial complex. Not only was this course instrumental along my professional path, but Dr. Krasno’s investment in her students and willingness to make connections for us were as well. Dr. Krasno introduced me both to a lawyer mentor with international experience and to an earlier graduate of the master’s program working in nuclear abolition advocacy.
What can you tell us about your new role as Executive Director of the Lawyers Committee on Nuclear Policy and about your internship with the Committee in the fall of 2018?
I sought my internship with the Lawyers Committee on Nuclear Policy shortly after I finished Dr. Krasno’s Nuclear Security course at CCNY. I connected with John Burroughs, the executive director of over 20 years, through another friend and mentor, Camille Massey, at the Sorensen Center for International Peace and Justice. I wanted to explore the legal side of nuclear security issues and how we can wield the law to achieve nuclear disarmament and abolition. I was grateful to spend the fall of 2018 researching the legality of threats of nuclear force, culminating in a paper published by LCNP and an invitation to speak on a panel about the right to life and nuclear weapons. During my internship, I also spent time monitoring the First Committee sessions at the UN and writing for Reaching Critical Will, the disarmament programme of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom.
After my internship I kept in touch with LCNP, which is how I ended up ultimately pursuing the executive director role when it opened earlier this year. As ED of our small organization, I manage all programmatic aspects of LCNP as well as all administrative and organizational tasks. A sampling of my responsibilities includes monitoring, reporting on, and advocating to the United Nations, including the General Assembly, First Committee, and various treaty bodies as well as human rights mechanisms. My role also doubles as the Director for the UN Office of the International Association of Lawyers Against Nuclear Arms. On the national level, I also manage congressional and presidential policy advocacy. And, of course, I head-up all our fundraising efforts as well.
As LCNP is a mighty organization with a history of significant accomplishments, I certainly have big shoes to fill and much to learn along the way, and I am humbled and grateful to lead the organization into the future. During my tenure, I hope, among other things, to highlight the intrinsic connection between nuclear weapons and fundamental human rights violations.
What advice would you give future and current students who are also looking to pursue these sorts of opportunities and experiences?
The core of my advice is to practice proactive persistence (alliteration unintended). High engagement in class discussions is not to be overrated! Take advantage of the small class sizes at CCNY, the brilliant faculty, and a diverse student base. You’ll get out what you put in both in terms of class preparation and participation. Make relationships with your student colleagues and maintain them with your professors as well—these relationships are inherently valuable and can also be quite productive when it comes to making the right connections or receiving helpful advice and/or recommendations.
Also, when it comes to pursuing internships and jobs post-graduation, remember that you are good enough. Imposter syndrome may be hard to shake (I speak to myself here, too!), but I often recall Michelle Obama’s quote, revealing the “secret” to feeling worthy of a seat at the table when it may feel like others are smarter or more competent. She said: “I have been at probably every powerful table that you can think of, I have worked at nonprofits, I have been at foundations, I have worked in corporations, served on corporate boards, I have been at G-summits, I have sat in at the U.N.: They are not that smart.”