17th Annual Wharton Leadership Conference:
The Readiness Is All: Rising Up to Leadership
JUNE 19, 2013
The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Human Resources and the Center for Leadership and Change Management, are pleased to announce an additional speaker for the 17th Annual Leadership Conference to be held at Wharton on June 19, 2013. This year’s theme, “The Readiness Is All: Rising Up to Leadership,” focuses on how individuals and organizations should not only prepare for the predictable challenges that lie ahead, but also for the unforeseeable.
New Speaker:
Valerie Amos
Under-Secretary-General and Emergency Relief Coordinator for the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Efforts
Valerie Amos is the Under-Secretary-General and Emergency Relief Coordinator (ERC) for the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Efforts (OCHA). She is responsible for the oversight of all emergencies requiring United Nations humanitarian assistance. She also acts as the central focal point for governmental, intergovernmental and non-governmental relief activities.
Amos also leads the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC), a unique inter-agency forum for coordination, policy development and decision-making involving the key United Nations and non-United Nations humanitarian partners.
Ms. Amos has a long-standing commitment to development, particularly on the African continent. As a Minister in the British Government, she worked with colleagues globally to tackle poverty in Africa by increasing aid flows through debt relief initiatives and promoting private-sector investment on the continent. She has been active for over 30 years on the promotion of human rights, social justice and equality on the African continent.
Ms Amos was the first black woman appointed to a British Cabinet and the first black Leader of the House of Lords. In the United Kingdom, she has played a central role in the Government’s broader diversity and community-cohesion agenda.
Previously announced, confirmed speakers include:
