Ambassador Susan Esserman, JD, director of the SAFE Center for Human Trafficking Survivors (a joint project of UMB and the University of Maryland, College Park) spoke in February 2018 about the center's efforts to end the brutal trade of human trafficking and to help its survivors heal.

‌‌Susan G. Esserman is a visiting professor in the School of Social Work and founder and director of the University of Maryland Support, Advocacy, Freedom, and Empowerment (SAFE) Center for Human Trafficking Survivors. The SAFE Center is a unique interdisciplinary service organization that draws on the many professional schools at the University of Maryland to provide comprehensive, integrated services to human trafficking survivors as well as advocacy and research. 

She also is a top-ranked international trade partner at the Washington office of Steptoe & Johnson LLP. She served in four senior positions in the Clinton Administration, including Deputy U.S. Trade Representative with the rank of Ambassador, General Counsel to USTR and at the Commerce Department, as well as Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Import Administration (decision-maker in anti-dumping and countervailing duty investigations). 

At Steptoe, she provides legal and strategic advice to domestic and foreign clients on expanding access to global markets and represents clients on international trade litigation and dispute resolution matters. A significant focus of Ambassador Esserman’s practice involves U.S.-India and U.S.-China matters.  

She has served on the boards of a number of nonprofit organizations, particularly those focused on supporting women, international development, and the arts. She is a frequent speaker and writer on trade law and policy, India issues, and women’s leadership.