Amanda Ellis

Senior Director, Global Partnerships and Networks, Julie Ann Wrigley Global Futures Laboratory

Amanda Ellis is a globally recognized leader in sustainable development and international relations, currently holding dual roles at Arizona State University as Senior Director, Global Partnerships and Networks for the Julie Ann Wrigley Global Futures Laboratory and Executive Director, Asia-Pacific for the Global Institute of Sustainability and Innovation. She is co-chair of the WE Empower UN SDG Challenge, launched by the UN Secretary General, the President of the World Bank and the Council of Women World Leaders in 2018 to promote inclusive entrepreneurship.

Her distinguished career includes serving as New Zealand’s Head of Mission and Ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, where she was also a key figure in New Zealand’s successful bid for a seat on the UN Security Council. She went on to co-chair the UNSC’s High Level Working Group on Humanitarian Access into Syria. As New Zealand’s inaugural Ambassador for Women and Girls, she championed gender equality on the world stage. From 2010 to 2013, she was Deputy Secretary International Development and the first woman to lead the New Zealand Aid Programme, managing an annual budget of over $600M. Her tenure at the World Bank Group saw her manage the World Bank President’s Global Private Sector CEO Leaders Forum and create the “Women, Business and the Law” research project. A celebrated author, Amanda, has written two best-selling books, Women’s Business, Women’s Wealth and Woman 2 Woman and is a lead author on five World Bank research titles. Her achievements have been recognized with the TIAW Lifetime Achievement Award and induction into the NZ Business Hall of Fame.

Amanda Ellis serves on numerous advisory boards, including the Global Governance Forum, Blue Planet Alliance, Open Planet and Generate Zero. She is an Adjunct Senior Fellow at the East-West Center and a Fellow of the World Academy of Art and Science. Ellis holds a BA First Class Honors from the University of Otago, an MA from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and an LTCL from Trinity College of London. She has also completed executive education programs at Harvard, Stanford, and INSEAD.