Sanjay Sethi is the Executive Director of Initiative pour la Liberté Artistique (ILA). With over two decades of experience at the intersection of international human rights, immigration law, and nonprofit leadership, he has built and led initiatives focused on protecting vulnerable populations and expanding legal pathways to safety for artists and cultural workers at risk.
Sanjay is also co-founder and managing partner of Sethi & Mazaheri, an immigration and asylum law firm with offices in the United States and Geneva. Through his legal practice, Sanjay has represented individuals facing persecution and complex cross-border legal challenges, and has developed particular expertise in protection-based immigration frameworks. In parallel, he has served as an Adjunct Associate Professor at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, where he teaches on human rights in Central and Eastern Europe.
Sanjay holds a Master’s degree from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, as well as a Master of International Affairs from Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs. He earned his undergraduate degree from Northwestern University. His academic and professional work reflects a sustained engagement with the role of artistic expression within human rights systems, bridging legal practice, policy development, and cultural advocacy at the international level.
