Uniting all nations on Earth around a common cause is a daunting task– and with a hotly-debated issue like the global climate emergency, it can lead to questions about the best path forward for all people. Ilze Melngailis is Senior Director for Global Partnerships at the United Nations Foundation, an independent charitable organization created to work closely with the United Nations to drive global progress and tackle urgent problems. In this Point-of-View (POV) episode, she reveals the progress business is making to address those pressing challenges – and how we can work together in new ways to accelerate and scale those efforts to course-correct our future.
Lead With We is Produced by Goal 17 Media – https://goal17works.org
Ilze Melngailis:
Ilze Melngailis’ career has focused on applying business approaches to international development– accelerating gains in health, gender equality and poverty alleviation. She leads the Business Council for the UN (BCUN) and Private Sector Engagement at the United Nations Foundation, where she connects business with the UN and promotes companies’ participation in the UN’s historic Sustainable Development Goals. She also develops innovative corporate partnerships with the UN and other partners that help elevate the impact of each sector’s ability to drive progress. Previously, Ilze has developed and overseen social marketing programs and public-private partnerships in over 30 developing and emerging-market countries through leadership positions at GBCHealth where she was Vice President, Partnerships and Impact Initiatives, and prior roles at the USAID-funded ACQUIRE Project at EngenderHealth, International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), and consulting roles for the UN and other clients. A professional point of pride is having been the youngest-ever Executive Director of a global IPPF affiliate, when she founded and ran Latvia’s Association for Family Planning and Sexual Health, the first organization of its kind in the region following the collapse of the Soviet Union. She is an experienced speaker and moderator, is fluent in Latvian and speaks conversational French and Spanish. Ilze is also a founding board member of Operation Fistula. She earned her Bachelor’s degree at McGill University and a Master’s degree in Business Administration with academic distinction from Yale University School of Management.
Resources:
Learn more about the United Nations Foundation at: https://unfoundation.org/
Connect with Ilze on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ilze-melngailis/
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