People
Knox Thames
Strategic Religious Engagement Hub Advisory Board Member
Profile
This individual is not a direct affiliate of the Berkley Center. They previously worked with one or more of our core projects or programs. Please contact the individual at their home institution.
Knox Thames is a globally recognized human rights lawyer, advocate, and author who has worked for over two decades to promote human rights, defend religious minorities, and combat persecution worldwide. His 20-year government career spans service under the George W. Bush, Obama, and Trump administrations, reflecting a nonpartisan approach to diplomacy. As a reflection of this, he was named the first special advisor for religious minorities at the U.S. Department of State, working under both the Obama and Trump administrations to address persecution in the Middle East and South/Central Asia. Thames currently serves as the executive director of the Everett Center for Global Religious Freedom at Dallas Baptist University. He was a 2025-2026 member of the Strategic Religious Engagement Hub Advisory Board, an initiative hosted by the Georgetown University Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs; Thames previously directed the Program on Global Faith and Inclusive Societies at Pepperdine University, a research initiative supported by the Templeton Religion Trust. His book Ending Persecution: Charting the Path to Global Religious Freedom (2024) comprehensively explores strategies to combat religious oppression worldwide. He was also the lead author of International Religious Freedom Advocacy: A Guide to Organizations, Law, and NGOs .