The Global Foundation is a non-for-profit, membership organisation, supported by influential people from around the world.
Originating in Australia, the Global Foundation has become a trusted global network organisation, enabling a relatively small but growing group of prominent citizens from many walks of life and many parts of the world to align and work together in a coherent way to help shape the global common good. The Foundation convenes Global Roundtable and Australian Roundtable series that gives confidence and enables alignment on complex world issues, free from official constraints.
Ms Louise Watson, Chairman of the Board, the Global Foundation
Mr Steve Howard, Secretary General, Member of the Board, the Global Foundation
Paul Wellings OBE Member of the Board, The Global Foundation
Mr Brian Loughnane AO, Member of the Board, the Global Foundation
Ms Christine Christian AO, Member of the Board, the Global Foundation
Global Advisory Council
The inaugural meeting of our long-awaited Global Advisory Council took place in Rome on 23 May 2022. Chaired by distinguished global private sector leader, Dr Mark Cutifani who, until his recent retirement, was the CEO of global mining company, Anglo American.
Members will recall that Mark is revered within the mining industry and in communities worldwide, for his continuous commitment to ‘business with purpose’, far and beyond ESG and other metrics.
The Foundation is fortunate to have secured the leadership contributions of Mark and a stellar group of global leaders, who all share a commitment to the aspirations of the Foundation.
See here for more about our Global Advisory Council membership, which will provide ongoing global
guidance to the work of the Foundation, overlapping with that of the Australian Advisory Council, which continues to support our work from an Australian perspective.
Testimonials
His Holiness, Pope Francis: address to Global Foundation Rome Roundtable, Jan 2017.
“I am pleased to join you for this new edition of the Rome Roundtable of The Global Foundation. Inspired by the Foundation’s motto – “Together We Strive for the Global Common Good” – you have gathered to discern just ways of attaining a globalization that is “cooperative”, and thus positive, as opposed to the globalization of indifference. You seek to ensure that the global community, shaped by the institutions, agencies and representatives of civil society, can effectively achieve international goals and obligations that have been solemnly declared and assumed, such as those of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals.”
Madame Christine Lagarde
Governor, European Central Bank – Recipient of The Global Foundation Global Achievement Award
“The Global Foundation clearly helps to stir the debate, to propose ideas, to catalyse proposals, and to help in the process of all our debates across global institutions… I know that I can call on [you], my Australian colleagues, when we need new ideas, when we need energy, and when we need a bit of that sun, which helps you see the light, perhaps a little better than most…”
Mr Pascal Lamy, Honorary Member
President, Paris Peace Forum, former Director-General, World Trade Organisation – Recipient, The Global Foundation Achievement Award
“I have been acquainted with The Global Foundation for some time and am happy to see that they are still driving the idea that global problems, including global governance, can be talked about and solved. Organisations like The Global Foundation have a mission that is clearer today than a decade ago. They are the translators of global problems into something citizens understand. This knowledge brings about awareness which inspires mobilisation and ultimately, political action. Greater awareness and greater mobility require civil society, which is better equipped at bridging the gap between knowledge and action.”
President Jin Liqun
Founding President of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.
“Thanks for your great contribution. I would like to say that you are the first to support the establishment of this Bank with your foresight and insight. Looking forward to working with you in the days and years to come.”
Governance and management
Enjoying the highest possible tax-deductible status in Australia, the Global Foundation is governed by a Board of directors and managed by a modest secretariat, based in Sydney. The Board is supported by an Advisory Council, comprising a cross-section of outstanding citizens.
The Patron in Chief is the Governor General of Australia, who hosts the Foundation from time to time. It also enjoys the patronage and endorsement of many other prominent Australian and global figures.
