Ertharin Cousin

One of Forbes’ “World’s 100 Most Powerful Women” and TIME’s “100 Most Influential People in the World,” Ertharin Cousin leads the fight to end global hunger – and inspires others to join this critical humanitarian relief effort.

A globally respected voice on a range of national and international political and humanitarian issues and operations, Ertharin is widely sought for her expertise on food, hunger, community development, and resilience strategies. As executive director of the United Nations World Food Programme from 2009 to 2017, Ertharin guided the world’s largest humanitarian organization, with 14,000 staff serving 80 million beneficiaries in 75 countries meeting urgent food needs—all while championing and serving as a global advocate for longer-term solutions to food insecurity and hunger.

From 2017 to 2019 Cousin served as the Stanford University Payne Distinguished Lecturer in Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies. Cousin retains a relationship with Stanford University as a Visiting Scholar in the Freeman Spogli Institute.

In 2018 and 2019 Cousin with a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation initiated and led a research project exploring a theory of change for reducing malnutrition in poor and underserved communities (globally and domestically) through investment in market-based innovation solutions including agtech and foodtech.  

With decades of leadership experience in the nonprofit, government and corporate realms, Ertharin shares her passionate, visionary outlook on a host of issues involving agriculture, food security, and nutrition through the lens of the global political, economic, and social state of affairs. She expertly equips audiences with strategies and knowledge to participate in the vital movement to find long-term solutions to hunger and food insecurity and help vulnerable populations around the world.