Gwen Young

Young is the chief executive officer of Women Business Collaborative. She is also a visiting scholar at the Elliot School of International Affairs, George Washington University, and former director of the Global Women’s Leadership Initiative at the Wilson Center. Young has worked across the globe to promote economic development, good governance, and peace. She has developed strategy, programming, and advocacy in the areas of humanitarian policy, international affairs, and international development. This includes developing public-private partnerships focused on public health, agriculture, gender equality, and access to finance. Further, she has advocated for and published international criminal law and designed sexual and gender-based violence guidelines. As an attorney, Young has worked as a professional advocate for women and human rights in corporate law settings with the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia and the Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice at the University of San Diego. Her career has encompassed a comprehensive array of international organizations, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Medecins Sans Frontieres, International Rescue Committee, and the Harvard Institute for International Development. An alumna of Smith College, Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, and the University of California Davis School of Law, Young has pursued a career of international public service focused on humanitarian relief, international development, and human rights, starting with gender equality and equity.

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