Candidate info
Particular qualifications:
I was attracted to join IUCN as Treasurer, because its goals and values of global conservation, development, equity and justice, strongly match my personal objectives and values. If elected, I hope to continue contributing my skills, experience and considerable time and effort to help achieve IUCN’s financial and strategic goals. I bring to IUCN, skills in areas of finance which are important to IUCN at this time. These include both accounting and legal qualifications, as well as long experience at leadership levels in multinational, regional and local firms in banking, finance and auditing. I have worked both in the developed (UK) and developing worlds (Asia), gaining particular experience in formulating long term financial strategies, capital raising, planning and monitoring investment for growth and managing organisational change. Additionally, I am well versed in accounting policies and practices. As the current Treasurer of IUCN, I have also acquired detailed experience relating to IUCN’s financial systems, processes and strategies, including a working understanding of Swiss accounting policies and IUCN’s statutes. I value in particular the working relationships I have forged within the organisation, which have greatly enhanced my understanding of its changing financial and strategic needs. These qualifications and experience have enabled me as Treasurer and member of the Finance and Audit Committee, to discharge effectively my responsibilities to Members and Council, relating to the financial affairs of IUCN. In particular, these included providing input and advice on the annual budgets and the longer-term financial plan and strategies, with particular emphasis on the management of risks, reserves and funding. This has been facilitated by a very constructive relationship with the Secretariat. As Treasurer, I also interact regularly with the external auditors.
Experience in fields of concern to IUCN:
IUCN has for many years enjoyed and relied on the unwavering financial support of a relatively small number of States, which strongly align with its mission of nature conservation. However, the challenges facing global conservation are growing in complexity and urgency. Principally, the current sources of funding for conservation alone are insufficient to meet our future needs. This is exacerbated in the near and medium terms, by recent geopolitical events that have resulted in a higher degree of volatility and risk relating to the sustainability of the financing required to achieve IUCN’s ambitious long-term plans. Further, my specific experience to help address these challenges is twofold. Firstly, as CEO of a development bank funded largely by multilateral institutions. When the multilaterals decided as a matter of policy to withdraw broad support for development banks as instruments of economic development, the bank needed to change strategic direction fundamentally and rapidly. I was privileged to lead a period of rapid, complex and successful change to its funding and business models. Secondly, as IUCN’s Treasurer, over the last few years, I was privileged to play an advisory role to the Secretariat and Finance and Audit Committee, as they identified and quantified the main financial concerns and reviewed possible pathways to long term financial sustainability. The priorities include revenue diversification and growth, quantifying and building the level of reserves necessary to support enterprise-wide risk, the efficient allocation of investment for growth and the management of costs. If elected, I hope to continue to help the Secretariat and Council complete a plan to address the challenges the organisation faces, to support its timely implementation and to provide continuity to the Finance and Audit Committee and Council, through the transition of membership following Congress, in order to overcome these financial concerns.