Gretchen Peters

Founder & Executive Director, ACCO

Gretchen Peters investigates and researches fraud, corruption, money-laundering, the intersection of crime and conflict, and illicit activity in cyberspace. She conducts complex investigative work on commercial fraud for private clients, and in 2022 was named one of Fast Company’s Most Creative People in Business for her work to bring forward whistleblowers. She has consulted to U.S. Central Command, U.S. Special Operations Command, the U.S. Department of Justice, as well as multiple conservation groups and NGOs. Gretchen co-chaired an OECD Task Force on fighting wildlife crime, and authored the groundbreaking book, Seeds of Terror, about the Taliban’s role in the Afghan heroin trade.

Gretchen appeared on The Daily Show and in other leading media outlets to discuss the Afghan heroin trade. She delivered presentations and training programs about wildlife trafficking, transnational organized crime and the global drug trade to U.S. and multinational entities including: the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime, the U.S. Defense Department, the U.S. State Department, the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Homeland Security, and she has provided training to the Navy Seals, U.S. federal agents and thousands of U.S. and NATO troops deploying to Afghanistan.