Erin Hafkenschiel

Erin Hafkenschiel is the President of ThinkTennessee, a nonpartisan, results-oriented think tank that works to build a state where all Tennesseans are civically engaged and economically secure.

Erin has spent her career in public policy, including roles in higher education, municipal government, and philanthropy. Most recently, she was the Executive Director for Mobility and Transportation at Vanderbilt University, where she launched the MoveVU transportation program. Prior to that, she served as Director of the Mayor’s Office of Transportation and Sustainability for Nashville Mayors David Briley and Megan Barry. Erin also has significant experience in philanthropy and consulting through her work with CEA Consulting, the Bay Area Council, and the William & Flora Hewlett Foundation.

A U.S. Fulbright Scholar to China, Erin holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Economy of Industrialized Societies from UC Berkeley and a Masters in Public Policy and Urban Planning from Harvard University. She is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Civil Infrastructure Systems at Vanderbilt University. In 2023, the Nashville Business Journal recognized her as one of Nashville’s 40 under 40 awardees.

Erin is the co-founder of Voices for a Safer Tennessee and serves on the board of WalkBike Nashville and the Moving Forward Coordinating Committee. She lives with her husband and three daughters in Nashville, TN.