UN Foundation Welcomes Marc-André Blanchard, Susana Malcorra to Board of Directors

The United Nations Foundation today announced the appointment of Marc-André Blanchard of Canada and Susana Malcorra of Argentina to its Board of Directors. With experience spanning geographies, sectors, and institutions, they bring diverse expertise to the Foundation’s Board at a critical time for the multilateral system and our shared future.

“It’s my great pleasure to share that Marc-André Blanchard and Susana Malcorra have joined the UN Foundation’s Board of Directors,” said Ted Turner, Founder and Chair of the Board, UN Foundation. “We need bold ideas and leadership to reboot global cooperation for 21^st century challenges. Their expertise will be invaluable to the Foundation at this make-or-break moment for our collective future.”

“We are delighted to welcome Marc-André and Susana to our Board,” added Elizabeth Cousens, President and CEO of the UN Foundation. “These leaders bring an incomparable track record of fresh thinking, institutional creativity, and foresight. Their depth of experience and astute vision are tremendous assets, especially at a time when we are working to shape a more effective multilateral future for all amid fierce headwinds.”

Marc-André Blanchard is Executive Vice-President and Head of CDPQ Global and Global Head of Sustainability, where he is responsible for coordinating CDPQ’s international operations. In this capacity, he oversees CDPQ’s international offices, ensuring the organization’s positioning as an investment partner of choice, and supports the international growth and development of Québec companies. He also oversees the organization’s sustainability orientations and activities and leads CDPQ’s strategy to integrate ESG factors into all investment activities. He sits on the Executive and Investment-Risk Committees.

Before joining CDPQ, Mr. Blanchard served as Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Canada to the United Nations in New York from 2016 to 2020. From 2017 to 2020, he sat on Canada’s North American Free Trade Agreement Council. Prior to that, he was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of McCarthy Tétrault, one of Canada’s leading law firms.

“I’m honored to join the UN Foundation’s Board of Directors,” said Marc-André Blanchard. “I’m looking forward to working with my fellow Board members to tap the full potential and power of the private sector as we look to new partnerships and modes of cooperation to secure a better, fairer future for all.”

Susana Malcorra is President and co-founder of GWL Voices, an association dedicated to advancing women’s leadership in global cooperation. She is also a Senior Advisor at IE University in Madrid and previously served as Dean of IE School of Global & Public Affairs.

Ms. Malcorra was the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Argentine Republic between 2015 and 2017. After stepping down, she served as Minister Advisor to President Mauricio Macri, coordinating and presiding over the 11^th WTO Ministerial Conference and preparing for the 2018 G-8 Summit in Buenos Aires.

Prior to her service in Argentina’s Government, Ms. Malcorra had an extensive UN career, which began in 2004 when she joined the World Food Programme as an Assistant Secretary-General and Chief Operating Officer, overseeing emergency and humanitarian operations in more than 80 countries. From 2008, she led the Department of Field Support for Peace Missions as Under-Secretary General of the UN where she provided logistics, communications, personnel, and financial support to UN peacekeeping operations worldwide. Between 2012 and 2015, Ms. Malcorra was Chief of Staff to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. In this role she coordinated the Mission on the Elimination of Syrian Chemical Weapons and the first Health Mission for Ebola Emergency Response in West Africa.

Before joining the UN, Ms. Malcorra’s career in the technology and communications sectors spanned 25 years — from a systems engineer at IBM Argentina to Telecom Argentina where she retired as Chief Executive Officer in 2002.

“After seeing the Foundation’s impact firsthand throughout my time working with the UN, I’m proud to join its Board of Directors,” said Susana Malcorra. “We desperately need more — and more effective — global cooperation and I’m eager to help chart a course toward a revitalized multilateral system that can meet this moment and deliver for everyone, everywhere.”

The UN Foundation Board of Directors includes the following global leaders with a range of expertise:

• Ted Turner (U.S.A.) — Founder and Chair of the Board, UN Foundation
• Valerie Amos (UK) — Vice Chair, UN Foundation Board; Master, University College Oxford
• Elizabeth Cousens (U.S.A.) — President & CEO, UN Foundation
• Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah (Jordan) — Chair, Jordan River Foundation
• Fábio Colletti Barbosa (Brazil) — Chairman of the Board, Natura &Co
• Marc-André Blanchard (Canada) — Executive Vice-President and Head of CDPQ Global and Global Head of Sustainability
• Kathy Calvin (U.S.A.) — Former President and CEO, UN Foundation
• Julio Frenk (Mexico) — President, University of Miami
• Charles O. Holiday (U.S.A.) — Chair, Global Federation of Councils on Competitiveness
• Naoko Ishii (Japan) — Professor and Executive Vice President, University of Tokyo
• Frannie Léautier (Tanzania) — Senior Partner, Southbridge Group
• Susana Malcorra (Argentina) — President and Co-Founder, GWL Voices
• Mark Malloch-Brown (UK) — President, Open Society Foundations; Former Deputy Secretary-General, United Nations
• R. Narayana Murthy (India) — Founder and Chairman Emeritus, Infosys Limited
• Edward Ndopu (South Africa) — Founder and CEO, Beyond Zero; Founder and Chair, A Billion Reasons
• Laura Turner Seydel (U.S.A) — Chair, Captain Planet Foundation; Director, Turner Foundation
• Marti G. Subrahmanyam (India) — Charles E. Merrill Professor of Finance and Economics, Stern School of Business at New York University; Global Network Professor of Finance at NYU Shanghai
• Hans Vestberg (Sweden) — Chairman and CEO, Verizon
• Timothy E. Wirth (U.S.A) — former United States Senator; founding President, UN Foundation

Update: In October 2024, Marc-André Blanchard was named Co-Chair of the United Nations Foundation Board of Directors, succeeding Baroness Valerie Amos, who continues as a member of the UN Foundation’s Board.

About the UN Foundation
For over 25 years, the UN Foundation has built novel innovations and partnerships to support the United Nations and help solve global problems at scale. As an independent charitable organization, the Foundation was created to work closely with the United Nations to address humanity’s greatest challenges and drive global progress. Learn more at www.unfoundation.org.