Rachel Kyte is Chief Executive Officer of the Sustainable Energy for All (SE4All) initiative, and Special Representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

The Sustainable Energy for All Partnership has close ties to the UN through a relationship agreement and through the co-chairmanship of its Advisory Board. Its three interlinked objectives to be achieved by 2030 are: to ensure universal access to modern energy services; to double the global rate of improvement in energy efficiency; and to double the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix. SE4All also acts in support of the 2014-24 Decade of Sustainable Energy for All as declared by the UN General Assembly.

Rachel Kyte was previously Vice President & Special Envoy for Climate Change of the World Bank, based in Washington, DC, USA, where she had overall responsibility for the World Bank’s global work in climate change adaptation, mitigation, climate finance, and disaster risk and resilience. Her scope extended across the institutions of the World Bank Group including the International Bank for Reconstruction & Development (IBRD), International Development Association (IDA), International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA).

She was Vice President for Sustainable Development, and was the IFC’s Vice President for Business Advisory Services where she led more than 1,000 Advisory Services staff in 84 offices across 66 countries. As Director for Environmental & Social Development at the IFC, she led efforts to develop new sustainability performance standards.

Prior to joining the World Bank, she was a member of the management team of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). She is a British national and has held elected positions in Europe, and founded and led non-government organizations focusing on women, the environment, health, and human rights. She is Professor of Practice in Sustainable Development at The Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy at Tufts University in Medford, MA, USA.

She holds a Master of Arts in International Relations from The Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy at Tufts University, and a Bachelor of Arts in politics and history from the University of London, United Kingdom.

Rachel Kyte was a member of the Board of the LafargeHolcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction for two years; from the start of 2015 until the end of 2016.