HRH Princess Karen W.S. Brengettsy-Chatman keynote speaker

HRH Princess Karen W.S. Brengettsy-Chatman is a globally recognized humanitarian, historian, genealogist, acclaimed author, and Sovereign of The Official Royal House of Sori®. Born and raised in Natchez, Mississippi, the very city where her ancestor Prince Abdulrahman Ibrahima Ibn Sori was emancipated in 1828, she carries a centuries-old dynastic legacy into the world’s most consequential conversations about power, dignity, and human rights. A recognized heir to the Sori Dynasty of Timbuktu and Fouta Jallon, she is one of the most distinctive American-born voices at the intersection of global justice, historical preservation, and social impact.

Her published works, The Lost Crown of Prince Abdulrahman and The Sovereign’s Redemption, are recognized acts of historical reclamation, restoring to public memory the lives and lineages of a royal people whose stories were suppressed and erased. She also authors The Adventures of the Lost Prince series, children’s literature designed to carry this mission of legacy preservation across generations. As creator and steward of the African Royalty Database, an archive documenting more than 400 years of royal lineages across the African continent, Princess Karen is equally a scholar whose work lives in academic institutions as well as on bookshelves.

As Chairperson of Root Nine Foundation and Institute, she leads a charitable organization dedicated to advancing equity, cultural preservation, and human development across underserved communities. As Academic Society Founding Partner of the National Institute for the Legacy and Cultural Preservation of Prince Abdulrahman Ibrahima Ibn Sori (NICPAS), she has institutionalized the very mission her books ignited, transforming personal legacy into a permanent and formally recognized body of scholarship.

Her work carries formal governmental recognition. In December 2024, U.S. Ambassador to Guinea Troy Fitrell acknowledged her in an official Embassy letter as representing the descendants of Prince Abdulrahman and the historical impact of his legacy. She holds recognition from the United States Department of State for humanitarian efforts and historical preservation, and from the City of Hartford, Connecticut. Her royal title is recognized by the United Nations and the United States, and her institutional partnerships span Qatar Foundation, Carnegie Mellon University Qatar, Gamal Abdel Nasser University of Conakry, Kofi University, and The Stowe Center.

Princess Karen has been featured in Total Prestige Magazine and has published academic articles on Academia.edu, ResearchGate, and through peer-reviewed DOI publications, establishing her as a recognized scholar as well as a practitioner. Her work is also documented on Wikipedia. With more than 100 keynote addresses to her name, she speaks with equal authority to Fortune 500 executives, university faculty, government officials, and international conference audiences, making her one of the most credentialed and versatile voices available to event organizers today.