THE nongovernance body that shapeS THE THINK TANK
THE nongovernance body that shapeS THE THINK TANK
THE nongovernance body that shapeS THE THINK TANK
The MESA Advisory Council is a nongovernance body that helps shape the Institute’s intellectual direction.
The MESA Advisory Council is a nongovernance body that helps shape the Institute’s intellectual direction.
The MESA Advisory Council is a nongovernance body that helps shape the Institute’s intellectual direction.
Composed of leaders and experts with global perspectives across policy, technology, diplomacy, and civil society, the Council serves as a sounding board for the Institute’s programming, research priorities, and strategic growth. Such seasoned judgment is essential to providing the Institute’s early-career core with the academic infrastructure and global network needed to enact change. This role becomes increasingly important as the Institute branches into new regional and policy areas, ensuring that the next-generation voices reach the rooms where decisions are being made.
Composed of leaders and experts with global perspectives across policy, technology, diplomacy, and civil society, the Council serves as a sounding board for the Institute’s programming, research priorities, and strategic growth. Such seasoned judgment is essential to providing the Institute’s early-career core with the academic infrastructure and global network needed to enact change. This role becomes increasingly important as the Institute branches into new regional and policy areas, ensuring that the next-generation
voices reach the rooms where decisions are being made.
Sarah Holloway
New York, USA
Faculty, Columbia University SIPA & Social Entrepreneur
Sarah Holloway is a social entrepreneur and faculty member at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA). For three decades, she has worked at the intersection of education, equity, and technology, co-founding organizations including Mouse.org, CSforALL, The Wellness Classroom, Ediphii, and eLab. Her current work focuses on bridging philanthropy and government to unlock sustainable public funding for youth mental health. She is leading the development of School WellForce NYC – a five‑year demonstration pilot that trains local wellness coaches and embeds them in local public schools, financed over time through Medicaid. As both a practitioner and academic, she navigates the complex policy and implementation landscape to shift school mental health from crisis response to prevention. She is also actively exploring how AI and emerging technologies can reshape learning systems equitably. Sarah has a BA from Bowdoin College and a MPA from Columbia.
Steven Mac Andrew
Paramibo, Suriname
Former Minister of Labour, Employment and Youth Affairs, Suriname
Steven Mac Andrew is a national of Suriname and former Minister of Labour, Employment and Youth Affairs. A Sustainable Development Advocate focused on youth affairs, decent work, and international cooperation, he brings over 35 years of senior leadership experience across the private, public, semi-governmental, and non-governmental sectors, with postings in Suriname, Guyana, and Barbados. During his ministerial tenure, Mac Andrew developed Youth POWER, a policy framework grounded in five pillars – Participation, Development, Resilience, Economic Activities, and Rights – designed to position young people as agents of change at the family, community, national, regional, and global levels. He holds master's degrees from the Anton de Kom University of Suriname in Sociology, the University of Birmingham in Poverty Reduction and Development Management, and the University of Limerick in Project and Programme Management. He demitted office in July 2025 and currently resides in Suriname.
Steven Mac Andrew
Paramibo, Suriname
Former Minister of Labour, Employment and Youth Affairs, Suriname
Steven Mac Andrew is a national of Suriname and former Minister of Labour, Employment and Youth Affairs. A Sustainable Development Advocate focused on youth affairs, decent work, and international cooperation, he brings over 35 years of senior leadership experience across the private, public, semi-governmental, and non-governmental sectors, with postings in Suriname, Guyana, and Barbados. During his ministerial tenure, Mac Andrew developed Youth POWER, a policy framework grounded in five pillars – Participation, Development, Resilience, Economic Activities, and Rights – designed to position young people as agents of change at the family, community, national, regional, and global levels. He holds master's degrees from the Anton de Kom University of Suriname in Sociology, the University of Birmingham in Poverty Reduction and Development Management, and the University of Limerick in Project and Programme Management. He demitted office in July 2025 and currently resides in Suriname.
Yoshioka Tatsuya
Tokyo, Japan
Co-Founder, Peace Boat & 2008 Nobel Peace Prize Nominee
Yoshioka Tatsuya has been a leading figure in Japanese civil society for the past 40 years, and has been active internationally in the fields of education, peace and conflict resolution. He is a founding member of the UN- initiated Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC) International Steering Group, Head of its Northeast Asia Secretariat, and was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2008 for leading the Global Article 9 Campaign to Abolish War. Yoshioka co-founded Peace Boat in 1983 to foster grassroots dialogue and people-to-people reconciliation between Japan and other Asian countries during a period of tension and hostilities in the region. Since its inception, Peace Boat has grown into a thriving NGO and social business that has organized 90 voyages for peace, and taken more than 80,000 people to over 100 ports on 7 continents for study, volunteering, cultural exchange and tourism. After the March 11, 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami, Yoshioka established the Peace Boat Disaster Relief Volunteer Centre, which has dispatched more than 14,000 volunteers to the stricken region and helped to rebuild devastated neighborhoods, as well as working on Disaster Risk Reduction through training young leaders worldwide. With a strong commitment to environmental sustainability, and a passionate belief in the necessity to develop awareness of the need for non-fossil fuel, non-nuclear energy capacity, Yoshioka is currently spearheading the development of Peace Boat's Ecoship Project to create the world's most sustainable cruise ship.
Anil Swarup
New Delhi, India
Former Secretary to the Government of India & Founder, Nexus of Good
Anil Swarup is a retired Indian Administrative Service officer of the 1981 batch, who served the Government of India for 38 years across a range of senior positions. In his final years of service, he held the post of Secretary to the Government of India in the Ministry of Coal, where he managed the aftermath of the coal allocation scandal, and later served as Secretary of School Education and Literacy, where he worked to build public-private partnerships aimed at improving school education quality. He also served as Additional Secretary in the Cabinet Secretariat, Additional Secretary for Labour and Employment, Export Commissioner in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. After retiring in 2018, Swarup founded the Nexus of Good movement and an accompanying foundation to identify, document, and help scale effective grassroots and governance practices across India. He is the author of three books on public administration and the ethical dimensions of civil service, including Not Just a Civil Servant.
Anil Swarup
Lima, Peru
Former Secretary to the Government of India & Founder, Nexus of Good
Anil Swarup is a retired Indian Administrative Service officer of the 1981 batch, who served the Government of India for 38 years across a range of senior positions. In his final years of service, he held the post of Secretary to the Government of India in the Ministry of Coal, where he managed the aftermath of the coal allocation scandal, and later served as Secretary of School Education and Literacy, where he worked to build public-private partnerships aimed at improving school education quality. He also served as Additional Secretary in the Cabinet Secretariat, Additional Secretary for Labour and Employment, Export Commissioner in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. After retiring in 2018, Swarup founded the Nexus of Good movement and an accompanying foundation to identify, document, and help scale effective grassroots and governance practices across India. He is the author of three books on public administration and the ethical dimensions of civil service, including Not Just a Civil Servant.
Áslaug Arna Sigurbjörnsdóttir
Iceland
Former Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation
Áslaug Arna Sigurbjörnsdóttir, born in 1990 in Reykjavík, is an Icelandic lawyer and prominent politician representing the Independence Party. She graduated with a master’s degree in law from the University of Iceland in 2017, focusing her research on democratic governance. Before committing fully to public service, she gained varied professional experience, working as a reporter for the newspaper Morgunblaðið, a law firm intern, and a police officer. Her political ascent was rapid; she was elected Secretary of the Independence Party in 2015 and won a seat in the Althing, Iceland's parliament, in 2016. In 2019, she was appointed Minister of Justice. Following a cabinet reshuffle in 2021, she transitioned to the role of Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation, a position she held until December 2024. Recognized internationally for her leadership, she was named one of the Politicians of the Year by One Young World in 2022. She continues to be a highly influential legislative figure within contemporary Icelandic governance.
Gordon Goldstein
New York, USA
Adjunct Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations
Gordon Goldstein is an adjunct Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, where he focuses on technology, innovation, and U.S. foreign policy. Dr. Goldstein worked for the United Nations Secretary-General in the Strategic Planning Unit, is a former Wayland Fellow at Brown University, and a visiting lecturer at the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, the U.S. Army War College, Columbia, Harvard, and Princeton Universities. Dr. Goldstein is the founder of GMG Strategic Advisers, a corporate consultancy serving some of the largest banking, private equity, and telecommunications businesses in the world. After holding senior positions across finance, consulting, and public affairs, he served for nearly a decade as Managing Director and Head of Public Policy and Communications at Silver Lake, where he managed the largest privatization and the largest merger in the history of the tech industry. Dr. Goldstein is a graduate of Columbia University, where he was awarded a BA, MIA, M.Phil and Ph.D in political science and international relations. He is the author of Lessons in Disaster: McGeorge Bundy and the Path to War in Vietnam, a study of presidential decision-making and military strategy. His commentary has appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, and the Financial Times.
Gordon Goldstein
New York, USA
Adjunct Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations
Gordon Goldstein is an adjunct Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, where he focuses on technology, innovation, and U.S. foreign policy. Dr. Goldstein worked for the United Nations Secretary-General in the Strategic Planning Unit, is a former Wayland Fellow at Brown University, and a visiting lecturer at the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, the U.S. Army War College, Columbia, Harvard, and Princeton Universities. Dr. Goldstein is the founder of GMG Strategic Advisers, a corporate consultancy serving some of the largest banking, private equity, and telecommunications businesses in the world. After holding senior positions across finance, consulting, and public affairs, he served for nearly a decade as Managing Director and Head of Public Policy and Communications at Silver Lake, where he managed the largest privatization and the largest merger in the history of the tech industry. Dr. Goldstein is a graduate of Columbia University, where he was awarded a BA, MIA, M.Phil and Ph.D in political science and international relations. He is the author of Lessons in Disaster: McGeorge Bundy and the Path to War in Vietnam, a study of presidential decision-making and military strategy. His commentary has appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, and the Financial Times.
Claudia Cornejo Mohme
Lima, Peru
Former Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism
Claudia Cornejo Mohme is a Peruvian political scientist and strategic leader working at the intersection of global policy, digital governance, and ethical technology. With over two decades of experience spanning government, the private sector, and multilateral engagement, she brings a systems-level lens to complex policy and institutional challenges. She served as Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism of Peru under President Francisco Sagasti and previously as Vice Minister of Tourism under President Ollanta Humala. Her career spans senior roles in government, the private sector, and multilateral engagement, including as CEO of CONFIEP, Peru's leading private sector confederation, Consulting Director at Deloitte Peru, and Co-Founder of Capitalismo Consciente Perú. She is currently Country Representative for the Sustainable Innovation Council and International Advisor to the Initiative for Knowledge in the Americas. She holds a Bachelor's degree from Lafayette College and a Master's in Political Communication from the London School of Economics.
Jose Mauricio Pineda
San Salvador, El Salvador
Former Minister of Education
José Mauricio Pineda Rodríguez served as El Salvador's Minister of Education from 2022 to 2025, where he led "Mi Nueva Escuela," the national reform that reshaped the country's public education system. His tenure placed El Salvador at the center of regional debates on how education systems can adapt to economic, technological, and demographic change. He now works across consulting, academia, and international development, advising on education policy and multilateral cooperation throughout Central America and beyond, including engagements connected to the Inter-American Development Bank. He is currently completing a scholarly volume on the Mi Nueva Escuela reform for Springer Nature. His work rests on a simple conviction: that education is the foundation of social cohesion and long-term resilience, and that the perspectives of young people and emerging regions must shape the institutions meant to serve them.
Pierre Vimont
France
First Executive Secretary General, European External Action Service
Pierre Vimont is a French diplomat, and was the first Executive Secretary General of the newly-created European External Action Service, from 2010 to 2015. Before that, he was the French Ambassador to the United States (2007-2010), and also served as the Permanent Representative of France to the European Union, and as the chief of staff of the French Foreign minister (2002-2007). In March 2015, Vimont joined the European Leadership Network, a group of high-level former and serving officials from across Europe focused on dealing with foreign and security related challenges across the continent. He is a member of the European Council on Foreign Relations, and aSenior Network Member at the European Leadership Network. He became chairman of the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue in June of 2016, and serves as a member of the advisory board of Centre for European Reform. He is a Knight of the National Order of Merit and a commander of the National Order of the Légion d'Honneur.
Pierre Vimont
Tokyo, Japan
First Executive Secretary General, European External Action Service
Pierre Vimont is a French diplomat, and was the first Executive Secretary General of the newly-created European External Action Service, from 2010 to 2015. Before that, he was the French Ambassador to the United States (2007-2010), and also served as the Permanent Representative of France to the European Union, and as the chief of staff of the French Foreign minister (2002-2007). In March 2015, Vimont joined the European Leadership Network, a group of high-level former and serving officials from across Europe focused on dealing with foreign and security related challenges across the continent. He is a member of the European Council on Foreign Relations, and aSenior Network Member at the European Leadership Network. He became chairman of the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue in June of 2016, and serves as a member of the advisory board of Centre for European Reform. He is a Knight of the National Order of Merit and a commander of the National Order of the Légion d'Honneur.
Lisa Ann Kurbiel
New York, USA
Head of the Joint SDG Fund
Ms. Kurbiel leads the UN's premier financing instrument for development, the Joint SDG Fund, currently capitalized to US$500 million, to accelerate achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. She leads the Fund’s inter-agency engagement across multilateral and international organizations, whilst developing new, innovative partnerships with the private sector, from global asset managers and financial institutions to foundations and family offices. A passionate human rights advocate, she has cultivated and managed partnerships with key business entities, civil society organizations and philanthropies, always focused on the most vulnerable. Ms. Kurbiel brings over 22 years of experience, having served across the UN system, including in Somalia, South Sudan, Mozambique and Kenya. Her skills include public policy and legislative reform, strategic communications and advocacy and innovative financing solutions. Lisa received her Juris Doctor from Saint John’s University Law School and a Bachelor of Arts from Niagara University.
Sarah Holloway
New York, USA
Faculty, Columbia University SIPA & Social Entrepreneur
Sarah Holloway is a social entrepreneur and faculty member at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA). For three decades, she has worked at the intersection of education, equity, and technology, co-founding organizations including Mouse.org, CSforALL, The Wellness Classroom, Ediphii, and eLab. Her current work focuses on bridging philanthropy and government to unlock sustainable public funding for youth mental health. She is leading the development of School WellForce NYC – a five‑year demonstration pilot that trains local wellness coaches and embeds them in local public schools, financed over time through Medicaid. As both a practitioner and academic, she navigates the complex policy and implementation landscape to shift school mental health from crisis response to prevention. She is also actively exploring how AI and emerging technologies can reshape learning systems equitably. Sarah has a BA from Bowdoin College and a MPA from Columbia.
Gordon Goldstein
New York, USA
Adjunct Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations
Gordon Goldstein is an adjunct Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, where he focuses on technology, innovation, and U.S. foreign policy. Dr. Goldstein worked for the United Nations Secretary-General in the Strategic Planning Unit, is a former Wayland Fellow at Brown University, and a visiting lecturer at the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, the U.S. Army War College, Columbia, Harvard, and Princeton Universities. Dr. Goldstein is the founder of GMG Strategic Advisers, a corporate consultancy serving some of the largest banking, private equity, and telecommunications businesses in the world. After holding senior positions across finance, consulting, and public affairs, he served for nearly a decade as Managing Director and Head of Public Policy and Communications at Silver Lake, where he managed the largest privatization and the largest merger in the history of the tech industry. Dr. Goldstein is a graduate of Columbia University, where he was awarded a BA, MIA, M.Phil and Ph.D in political science and international relations. He is the author of Lessons in Disaster: McGeorge Bundy and the Path to War in Vietnam, a study of presidential decision-making and military strategy. His commentary has appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, and the Financial Times.
Steven Mac Andrew
Paramibo, Suriname
Former Minister of Labour, Employment and Youth Affairs, Suriname
Steven Mac Andrew is a national of Suriname and former Minister of Labour, Employment and Youth Affairs. A Sustainable Development Advocate focused on youth affairs, decent work, and international cooperation, he brings over 35 years of senior leadership experience across the private, public, semi-governmental, and non-governmental sectors, with postings in Suriname, Guyana, and Barbados. During his ministerial tenure, Mac Andrew developed Youth POWER, a policy framework grounded in five pillars – Participation, Development, Resilience, Economic Activities, and Rights – designed to position young people as agents of change at the family, community, national, regional, and global levels. He holds master's degrees from the Anton de Kom University of Suriname in Sociology, the University of Birmingham in Poverty Reduction and Development Management, and the University of Limerick in Project and Programme Management. He demitted office in July 2025 and currently resides in Suriname.
Claudia Cornejo Mohme
Lima, Peru
Former Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism
Claudia Cornejo Mohme is a Peruvian political scientist and strategic leader working at the intersection of global policy, digital governance, and ethical technology. With over two decades of experience spanning government, the private sector, and multilateral engagement, she brings a systems-level lens to complex policy and institutional challenges. She served as Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism of Peru under President Francisco Sagasti and previously as Vice Minister of Tourism under President Ollanta Humala. Her career spans senior roles in government, the private sector, and multilateral engagement, including as CEO of CONFIEP, Peru's leading private sector confederation, Consulting Director at Deloitte Peru, and Co-Founder of Capitalismo Consciente Perú. She is currently Country Representative for the Sustainable Innovation Council and International Advisor to the Initiative for Knowledge in the Americas. She holds a Bachelor's degree from Lafayette College and a Master's in Political Communication from the London School of Economics.
Yoshioka Tatsuya
Tokyo, Japan
Co-Founder, Peace Boat & 2008 Nobel Peace Prize Nominee
Yoshioka Tatsuya has been a leading figure in Japanese civil society for the past 40 years, and has been active internationally in the fields of education, peace and conflict resolution. He is a founding member of the UN- initiated Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC) International Steering Group, Head of its Northeast Asia Secretariat, and was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2008 for leading the Global Article 9 Campaign to Abolish War. Yoshioka co-founded Peace Boat in 1983 to foster grassroots dialogue and people-to-people reconciliation between Japan and other Asian countries during a period of tension and hostilities in the region. Since its inception, Peace Boat has grown into a thriving NGO and social business that has organized 90 voyages for peace, and taken more than 80,000 people to over 100 ports on 7 continents for study, volunteering, cultural exchange and tourism. After the March 11, 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami, Yoshioka established the Peace Boat Disaster Relief Volunteer Centre, which has dispatched more than 14,000 volunteers to the stricken region and helped to rebuild devastated neighborhoods, as well as working on Disaster Risk Reduction through training young leaders worldwide. With a strong commitment to environmental sustainability, and a passionate belief in the necessity to develop awareness of the need for non-fossil fuel, non-nuclear energy capacity, Yoshioka is currently spearheading the development of Peace Boat's Ecoship Project to create the world's most sustainable cruise ship.
Jose Mauricio Pineda
San Salvador, El Salvador
Former Minister of Education
José Mauricio Pineda Rodríguez served as El Salvador's Minister of Education from 2022 to 2025, where he led "Mi Nueva Escuela," the national reform that reshaped the country's public education system. His tenure placed El Salvador at the center of regional debates on how education systems can adapt to economic, technological, and demographic change. He now works across consulting, academia, and international development, advising on education policy and multilateral cooperation throughout Central America and beyond, including engagements connected to the Inter-American Development Bank. He is currently completing a scholarly volume on the Mi Nueva Escuela reform for Springer Nature. His work rests on a simple conviction: that education is the foundation of social cohesion and long-term resilience, and that the perspectives of young people and emerging regions must shape the institutions meant to serve them.
Anil Swarup
New Delhi, India
Former Secretary to the Government of India & Founder, Nexus of Good
Anil Swarup is a retired Indian Administrative Service officer of the 1981 batch, who served the Government of India for 38 years across a range of senior positions. In his final years of service, he held the post of Secretary to the Government of India in the Ministry of Coal, where he managed the aftermath of the coal allocation scandal, and later served as Secretary of School Education and Literacy, where he worked to build public-private partnerships aimed at improving school education quality. He also served as Additional Secretary in the Cabinet Secretariat, Additional Secretary for Labour and Employment, Export Commissioner in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. After retiring in 2018, Swarup founded the Nexus of Good movement and an accompanying foundation to identify, document, and help scale effective grassroots and governance practices across India. He is the author of three books on public administration and the ethical dimensions of civil service, including Not Just a Civil Servant.
Pierre Vimont
France
First Executive Secretary General, European External Action Service
Pierre Vimont is a French diplomat, and was the first Executive Secretary General of the newly-created European External Action Service, from 2010 to 2015. Before that, he was the French Ambassador to the United States (2007-2010), and also served as the Permanent Representative of France to the European Union, and as the chief of staff of the French Foreign minister (2002-2007). In March 2015, Vimont joined the European Leadership Network, a group of high-level former and serving officials from across Europe focused on dealing with foreign and security related challenges across the continent. He is a member of the European Council on Foreign Relations, and aSenior Network Member at the European Leadership Network. He became chairman of the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue in June of 2016, and serves as a member of the advisory board of Centre for European Reform. He is a Knight of the National Order of Merit and a commander of the National Order of the Légion d'Honneur.
Áslaug Arna Sigurbjörnsdóttir
Iceland
Former Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation
Áslaug Arna Sigurbjörnsdóttir, born in 1990 in Reykjavík, is an Icelandic lawyer and prominent politician representing the Independence Party. She graduated with a master’s degree in law from the University of Iceland in 2017, focusing her research on democratic governance. Before committing fully to public service, she gained varied professional experience, working as a reporter for the newspaper Morgunblaðið, a law firm intern, and a police officer. Her political ascent was rapid; she was elected Secretary of the Independence Party in 2015 and won a seat in the Althing, Iceland's parliament, in 2016. In 2019, she was appointed Minister of Justice. Following a cabinet reshuffle in 2021, she transitioned to the role of Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation, a position she held until December 2024. Recognized internationally for her leadership, she was named one of the Politicians of the Year by One Young World in 2022. She continues to be a highly influential legislative figure within contemporary Icelandic governance.
Lisa Ann Kurbiel
New York, USA
Head of the Joint SDG Fund
Ms. Kurbiel leads the UN's premier financing instrument for development, the Joint SDG Fund, currently capitalized to US$500 million, to accelerate achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. She leads the Fund’s inter-agency engagement across multilateral and international organizations, whilst developing new, innovative partnerships with the private sector, from global asset managers and financial institutions to foundations and family offices. A passionate human rights advocate, she has cultivated and managed partnerships with key business entities, civil society organizations and philanthropies, always focused on the most vulnerable. Ms. Kurbiel brings over 22 years of experience, having served across the UN system, including in Somalia, South Sudan, Mozambique and Kenya. Her skills include public policy and legislative reform, strategic communications and advocacy and innovative financing solutions. Lisa received her Juris Doctor from Saint John’s University Law School and a Bachelor of Arts from Niagara University.