Advisory Board Members

Managing Director & Senior Partner of Boston Consulting Group (BCG)

David Young is a Managing Director & Senior Partner of Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and leads BCG's total societal impact and sustainability topic globally. He is a Fellow of the BCG Henderson Institute, working on the role of the corporation in society.  Dave works across the Social, Public, and Private sectors in developing strategy and transforming these organizations to achieve greater social impact, at a higher scale, more quickly. He supports companies in optimizing for business and societal value and using the scale of business and capital to contribute to the  Sustainable Development Goals.  Dave serves as co-chair of the executive board of the UN’s Connecting Business Initiative CBi which activates networks of companies in countries to improve disaster preparedness, resilience, response, and recovery.  He is also involved in the WEF’s efforts to catalyze the Humanitarian and Resilience Investment space.  Previously Dave served at World Vision International as Global COO with oversight of its field, technical, and administrative functions across the spectrum of humanitarian response, community development, and microfinance.

Member of Afghan Peace Negotiations

Fatima Gailani has been serving as the president of the Afghan Red Crescent Society since 2004. She is the daughter of Pir Sayed Ahmed Gailani, the leader of the National Islamic Front of Afghanistan who fought against the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan in the 1980s.

After graduating from Malalai High School in Kabul, Ms Gailani obtained a BA and subsequently an MA in Persian Literature and Sufism in 1978 from the National University of Iran. She also earned an MA in Islamic Studies from the Muslim College in London in 1994. She lived in exile during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and acted as spokesperson in London for the Afghan Mujahideen. She attended the Bonne Conference on Afghanistan in 2001. After her return to Afghanistan she was chosen as a delegate to the Emergency Loya Jirga – Grand Council – of June 2002 and was appointed as a constitution drafting and ratifying commissioner. Ms Gailani is the author of two books (Mosques of London and a biography of Mohammed Mosa Shafi).

CEO, WHF
 

Feraye Ozfescioglu is the Chief Executive Officer of the World Humanitarian Forum. She is the co-founder of the organisation and has been instrumental in the process of its establishment as an impactful initiative and platform with dedication and passion to shape a better future. She is a strategist with cross-sector knowledge, has designed and implemented various initiatives with the power of dialogue as a catalyst for action. Working alongside Ban-Ki Moon, Rt. Hon. Jack Straw and various heads of states, government and multilateral officials, she has contributed to the transition from aid to development built on “one humanity and shared responsibility”.Prior to her appointment as a CEO, she worked as the Events Director of the UN’s first ever World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul, 2016; where she was not only responsible of the management of the Summit, but also advised a number of governments on the structuring and implementation of new models in humanitarian aid and international development. She has been involved in the management of G7 - G20 Summits, EXPO organisations all around the world. She has international expertise and has been a consultant for UN since 2010. 

She was selected as one of the women leaders who will influence the future of the world by Goldman Sachs and US State Department.

She speaks English, Spanish and Turkish.

Former Director-General of UNESCO

Irina Bokova, born in Sofia (Bulgaria), has been two terms the Director-General of UNESCO from 2009 to 2917. She is the first woman to lead the Organisation. 

 

Having graduated from Moscow State Institute of International Relations, Irina Bokova was a Fellow at the University of Maryland, Washington, and followed an executive program at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. 

 

As Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova was actively engaged in the UN efforts to adopt Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development, particularly Goal 4 on “Inclusive and equitable quality education and life-long learning for all», promoting the critical role of science for development, gender equality, the protection of the world’s cultural heritage. 

 

She was particularly active in the defence of cultural heritage in conflict in Mali, Syria and Iraq and in denouncing extremists’ destruction of heritage as a tool of war, which lead to the adoption by the UN Security Council of several land mark resolutions on the link between maintaining peace, security and the protection of cultural heritage

 

Irina Bokova was on the Forbes List of the world's most influential women for 2016.

 

In 2020 she was elected International Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and in 2021 – Fellow of the World Academy of Art and Science.

 

She has received state distinctions from more than 40 countries and is Doctor honoris causa of leading universities across the world such as King’s College and University of Edinburgh, UK, Paris-Sud Saclay, France, Boston University, US, Catholic University of Milan, Italy, and others.

 

Currently, she is a Member of the Board of “Ban Ki Moon Centre for Global Citizens”, Member of the Board of Governors of the UN University of Peace, Costa Rica, Member of the Concordia Leadership Council, New York, Member of the Leadership Council of the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), New York, Co-Chair of the Commission for Global Scientific Missions for Sustainability, established by the International Science Council (ICS), Member of the Strategic Committee of the Paris School of International Affairs /PSIA/ at SciencesPo, and lecturer on cultural diplomacy, Member of the Higher Committee on Human Fraternity, among other activities.

 

In addition to her mother tongue, she speaks English, French, Spanish and Russian.

Director of the Development Co-operation Directorate (DCD) at OECD

From 2013 to 2015, he was Portugal’s Minister of Environment, Energy and Spatial Planning. Prior to this Ministerial position, he served as Senior Environmental Finance Advisor and Programme Manager on Climate Change Innovative Finance at UNDP’s Bureau for Development Policy (2009-2012); Senior Advisor to the President of Portugal (2006-2009); Secretary of State for Science and Higher Education and Secretary of State for Environment and Spatial Planning (2003-2005). He also served as First Vice‐President of the Executive Board of Partido Social Democrata, PSD (2010-2016); Member of the Portuguese Parliament (1995-99; 2005-2006; 2015-16); and Member of the European Parliament (1999-2003).
He graduated from the University of Porto with a degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering and holds a postgraduate degree in Senior Management from the AESE-IESE Business School, Navarra University, Spain.

EBRD First Vice President and Head of Client Services Group

Jürgen Rigterink is the EBRD's First Vice President and the Head of its Client Sevices Group.

Mr Rigterink oversees the Client Services Group which is comprised of the Banking and Policy & Partnerships departments. He has overall responsibility for implementation of Banking and Policy objectives, ensuring that EBRD investments, policy engagement and advisory services deliver the maximum transition impact in the countries where the EBRD works.

From July to November 2020, Mr Rigterink was also the EBRD's Acting President, running the Bank in the period between the departure of Sir Suma Chakrabarti and the arrival of Odile Renaud-Basso.

Before he came to the EBRD in 2018, Mr Rigterink was the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Management Board of FMO, the Dutch Development Bank.

Before his time at FMO, he worked in the private sector at ABN AMRO, where he ran the company’s activities in Kazakhstan and held a number of senior positions including Sector Head of Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa.

Executive Director, the International Monetary Fund. 
United Nations Special Envoy on Financing the 2030 Development

Dr. Mohieldin, is an economist with more than 30 years of experience in international finance and development. He is an Executive Director at the International Monetary Fund. He has been United Nations Special Envoy on Financing the 2030 Development Agenda since February 2020. He was the former Minister of Investment of Egypt from 2004-2010, and most recently, served as the World Bank Group Senior Vice President for the 2030 Development Agenda, United Nations Relations and Partnerships. His roles at the World Bank also included Managing Director, responsible for Human Development, Sustainable Development, Poverty Reduction and Economic Management, Finance and Private Sector Development, and the World Bank Institute; World Bank President's Special Envoy on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the Post-2015 Development Agenda (later, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)), and Financing for Development; and Corporate Secretary and Executive Secretary to the Development Committee of the World Bank Group's Board of Governors. Mr. Mohieldin also served on several Boards of Directors in the Central Bank of Egypt and the corporate sector. He was a member of the Commission on Growth and Development and selected a Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum in 2005. His professional experience extends into the academic arena as a Professor of Economics and Finance at the Faculty of Economics and Political Science, Cairo University and as a Visiting Professor at several renowned Universities in Egypt, Korea, the UAE, the UK and the USA. He is a member of the International Advisory Board of Durham University Business School. He also holds leading positions in national, regional and international research centers and economic associations.

Mr. Mohieldin holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Warwick, United Kingdom; a Master’s in Economics and Social Policy Analysis from the University of York, United Kingdom; a Diploma of Development Economics from the University of Warwick; and a B.Sc. in Economics from Cairo University. He also participated in high-level certification programmes at Wharton Business School of the University of Pennsylvania and Georgetown University. In 2018, the American University in Cairo conferred upon him the honorary degree of doctor of Humane Letters “in recognition of renowned attainments and achievements”. He has authored numerous publications and articles in leading journals in the fields of economics, finance and development in English and Arabic.

Former Minister of Foreign Affairs and of Defense of
Ecuador, former President of the UN General Assembly

Ecuadorian scholar, diplomat and politician. Ms. Espinosa has also held
many leadership positions within the Government of Ecuador, serving as
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Defense and Minister of Cultural
and Natural Heritage. Furthermore, she was the first female ambassador
and permanent representative of Ecuador to the United Nations offices
in New York and in Geneva.
Most recently, Ms. Espinosa served as President of the 73rd Session of the
United Nations General Assembly, becoming the fourth woman in history
and the first from Latin America and the Caribbean to preside over this
body.
Ms. Espinosa is currently member of the Strategic Committee of the
Science Panel for the Amazon of the Sustainable Development Solutions
Network; member of the international Lancet COVID-19 Commission;
councilor of the World Future Council; member of the Multi-Stakeholder
Steering Committee of the Generation Equality Forum; member of the
Political Advisory Panel of the Universal Health Coverage 2030 Movement
(UHC2030); fellow of the World Academy of Art and Science (WAAS);
member of the Group of Women Leaders for Change and Inclusion (GWL);
and Goodwill Ambassador for the Latin American and Caribbean Fund for
the Development of the Indigenous Peoples (FILAC).

Under Secretary General: Global Relations, Humanitarian Diplomacy and Digitalization, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC)

 

Ms. Nena Stoiljkovic began her mandate as Under Secretary General for Global Relations, Humanitarian Diplomacy and Digitalization at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) in October 2020. Ms. Nena Stoiljkovic has been working for more than 30 years on global development issues such as climate change, gender, and fragile and conflict-affected situations including through her previous role of Vice President for Asia and Pacific for the International Finance Corporation (IFC). Ms. Stoiljkovic has promoted development finance innovation in a variety of leadership roles at IFC including efforts to build a new architecture for development finance with other institutions, governments, and the private sector. She helped shape the World Bank Group strategy, working with the International Development Association on a
pioneering private sector window to catalyze greater private investment in low-income
and conflict-affected countries.

 

CEO, the British Asian Trust

Richard Hawkes joined the British Asian Trust as Chief Executive in September 2015 after having held a range of senior roles in the UK and international not-for-profit sectors for more than 20 years.

Richard has been Chief Executive of Scope (one of the largest not-for-profit organisations in the UK) and International Director of VSO (a UK based international NGO working in 40 countries).  He has worked for the United Nations and been Chair of a number of sector bodies, including BOND (the umbrella body for UK international NGOs) and the UK voluntary sector body on social care.  He has been a member of the BBC Appeals Advisory Committee and is currently Chair of Motivation, an international disability NGO, on the Advisory Board of Charity Bank and on the judging panel for the UK Charity Awards.  He has a vast experience of social finance. As CEO of Scope he was responsible for launching the first social investment bond in the UK, a £20m bond that was listed on the Luxembourg Stock Market and the British Asian Trust recently launched the world’s largest education Development Impact Bond.

 

President, Sesame Workshop

Sherrie Westin is President of Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit educational organization behind Sesame Street.

Westin leads the organization’s efforts to serve vulnerable children through mass media and targeted initiatives in the United States and around the world. She serves as Sesame Workshop’s chief mission ambassador, raising awareness, developing strategic partnerships, and cultivating philanthropic support to further the Workshop’s mission to help children everywhere grow smarter, stronger, and kinder.

Previously, Westin served as Sesame Workshop’s President of Social Impact and Philanthropy. In that role, she spearheaded a partnership to create the largest early childhood intervention in the history of humanitarian response, bringing critical early education to refugee children in the Syrian response region. Working with the International Rescue Committee, she led Sesame Workshop’s efforts to compete for and win a historic $100 million grant from the MacArthur Foundation to fund this work. With an additional $100 million grant from the LEGO Foundation, this initiative has expanded to Bangladesh. She also oversees Sesame Street in Communities, Sesame’s comprehensive initiative designed to give children the tools they need to overcome traumatic experiences.

Westin was named a “Leading Global Thinker” by Foreign Policy Magazine and one of Fast Company’s “100 Most Creative People in Business.” She was also recognized with the Smithsonian’s “American Ingenuity Award.”  A staunch advocate for addressing children’s needs, she regularly appears on major media outlets to highlight the value of investing in early childhood development, especially for the most vulnerable children.

Westin has held leadership positions in media, nonprofit, and public service.  She was Assistant to the President for Public Liaison and Intergovernmental Affairs for President George H.W. Bush, Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and she held senior positions at the ABC Television Network and U.S. News & World Report.

Westin is Chair of the Joan Ganz Cooney Center, an independent research and innovation lab named for Sesame Street’s Founder. Westin serves on the boards of the U.S. Fund for UNICEF, the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition, Communities in Schools, and Vital Voices Global Partnership.  She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the U.S. Afghan Women’s Council, the Early Childhood Peace Consortium Advisory Board, and serves on the Early Childhood Development Action Network Education Leadership Council.

Westin is a graduate of the University of Virginia and holds an Honorary Doctorate from Concordia College in New York.

 

 

Vice-Chairman, SUN Group, Chairman of the Entrepreneurship Sports Generation, Executive Chairman of the Global Education and Leadership Foundation (tGELF)

 

Chairman of SUN Group, a 120-year-old family enterprise comprised of both operating and investment companies. SUN Group is active in Asset Management (Private Equity, Venture Capital and Real Estate), Natural Resources (Mining, Gold, Battery Metals), Green Infrastructure (Renewable Energy, Electric Mobility and EV Batteries), and High Technology (Aerospace, Communications and Electronics). The group has been active in various regions around the world, including India, Latin America, West Africa, Russia, the Middle East, Central and South-East Asia, Japan, and China. In the technology space, SUN has been an early and growth stage investor since the mid-1990s and has helped create venture capital investment businesses such as Westbridge Capital, which later partnered with Sequoia to become Sequoia India. SUN Group is also an active investor in the energy technology and energy transition space. SUN has partnered with Maini Group to establish SUN Mobility, an energy tech company focused on becoming a leader in EV energy infrastructure by utilizing a battery-as-a-service business model. SUN is also a significant investor in a leading EV Solid State battery manufacturer, Prologium. Shiv is the Chairman of the Entrepreneurship Sports Generation, a sports-infused startup competition that has reached over 300,000 entrepreneurs and curated USD 300+ million in rewards. Shiv is the also Executive Chairman of the Global Education and Leadership Foundation (tGELF), a foundation that has reached over three million students worldwide and aims to create the next generation of ethical and altruistic leaders that tackles the world’s most pressing challenges. The foundation has partnered with Global Citizen to create Global Citizen India, which raised over USD six billion in commitments in support of the UN SDGs. Shiv is currently a member of the Board of Governors at Junior Achievement Worldwide and is a member of the Leadership Council at the Brooking Centre for Universal Education.

Executive Vice President for Humanitarian & Development, Mastercard

In this role, she leads the company’s strategy to develop and scale products & solutions for the Base of the Pyramid. The Humanitarian & Development team is dedicated to creating an ecosystem that streamlines access to education, health, commerce, and other vital services for the most vulnerable communities. By working in collaboration with governments, NGOs and other private sector companies, Tara’s team is focused on driving commercially sustainable social impact. 

Prior to this role, Ms. Nathan served as chief executive officer of Mobile Payment Solutions, a Mastercard/Smart Hub, Inc. joint venture.   In this role, she led the innovation and commercial development of the Mastercard Mobile Payments Gateway, an open mobile payment processing platform designed to facilitate mobile payments for consumers around the world, particularly important for consumers in emerging economies who do not have access to modern forms of commerce.

Before joining Mastercard, Ms. Nathan headed Citigroup’s cross-sell business and also held various management roles across Citigroup’s retail banking business including Commercial Banking, Risk, and Operations. Prior to joining Mastercard, Ms. Nathan was a diplomat in the U.S. Foreign Service serving posts in Taiwan, Japan and China.  

She earned a BSFS from the Georgetown School of Foreign Service and an MBA from The Wharton School of Business.

Founder-President of The Wellbeing Foundation Africa (WBFA)

As Founder-President of The Wellbeing Foundation Africa (WBFA), Her Excellency Mrs Toyin Ojora Saraki is a global advocate for women’s and children’s health and empowerment, with two decades of advocacy covering reproductive, maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health; ending gender-based discrimination and violence; and improving education, socio-economic empowerment, and community livelihoods in sub- Saharan Africa.

 

Mrs Saraki is the Inaugural and Emeritus Global Goodwill Ambassador for the International Confederation of Midwives (ICM); special adviser andStyles member of the Independent Advisory Group (IAG) of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Regional Office for Africa (AFRO), was named by Devex as UHC Global Champion, is the UNFPA Nigeria Family Planning Champion, is the Save the Children Newborn Health Champion for Nigeria; and is a Global Champion for the White Ribbon Alliance for Safe Motherhood, and member of the International Steering Committee ICPD25.

Global Leader, Strategy and Leadership, PwC

 

Blair joined PwC in 2012 as Global Leader, Strategy and Leadership and he leads the team that
is responsible for articulating PwC’s global strategy across 155 countries and the development
of the current and next generation of PwC leaders. He is also Professor Emeritus and Dean
Emeritus of Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business. As Dean, Blair was the primary
architect of Duke Kunshan University in China, which opened in 2014.
Blair has advised more than 100 companies and governments in the areas of leadership,
corporate strategy, organizational relationships and design, and has published more than 50
books and articles. His publications, A crisis of legitimacy and Adapting to a new world in
strategy+business magazine, focus on the most acute global challenges facing the world today,
including those of the post-COVID-19 landscape. His book Ten years to midnight: four global
crises and their strategic solutions was published in August 2020.