GEAPP Appoints Simon Harford as CEO and Ravi Venkatesan as Board Chair

The Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) announced that Simon Harford will join as its inaugural Chief Executive Officer and UNICEF's Ravi Venkatesan will serve as Board Chair.

These key leadership appointments mark a significant milestone for the Alliance, which was launched during the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in November with USD10 billion to accelerate investment in green energy transitions and renewable power solutions in emerging economies worldwide. 

With more than 30 years of experience at the intersection of finance, business-building and global development across both emerging and developed markets, Harford comes to the Alliance from Actis, a leading global investor in sustainable energy infrastructure and champion of responsible investing in growth markets, where he served as Senior Adviser and co-head of Africa.

Together with Venkatesan, they will provide critical leadership in the Alliance's quest to unlock USD100 billion in public and private capital over the next decade to reach one billion people with reliable, renewable power; avoid and avert four billion tons of carbon emissions; and create, enable, or support more than 150 million green jobs and drive economic growth.

"The Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet is a unique partnership model spanning the public and private sector based on deep support from major philanthropy. I strongly believe in the power of access to energy and the opportunities a cleaner energy sector brings for the environment, society and the economy. I'm conscious of the responsibility to lead the Alliance, and want to thank all who have worked hard to set-up this extraordinary platform and bring it to where it is today," said new CEO Simon Harford.

"I am excited to have the opportunity to work on the defining challenge of our time," said Ravi Venkatesan, UNICEF's Special Representative for Young People and Innovation. "The Alliance will show that a coalition of committed partners and a lot of innovation can make a meaningful reduction in carbon emissions and a big leap in energy access."

"In November, we launched the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet at COP26 in Glasgow to an extraordinary reception, most consequentially from nations eager to transition their economies to green electricity and connect their people to the jobs and power they need to compete in the 21^st century economy." said Dr. Rajiv J. Shah, President of The Rockefeller Foundation. "Simon is the right leader to realize GEAPP's potential; he brings the experience, the values and the connections to build on this early momentum and to change energy for good for everyone."

"Ravi is one of the most passionate and innovative leaders in the world today, as he's shown over a long, illustrious career," said Per Heggenes, CEO of the IKEA Foundation. "The Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet has an ambitious aim to cut emissions, create jobs and connect people to power. To reach its potential, the Alliance needs leaders like Ravi who inspire and enable impact in the countries where it is most needed. I'm convinced that with Simon as the new CEO and Ravi as the new Board Chair, the Alliance is in a strong position to build the transformative partnerships and programs that can solve some of humanity's most urgent challenges."

"The Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet can become the leading platform for supporting decarbonization of power in developing countries and providing access to reliable clean energy, jobs, and economic development," said Andrew Steer, President & CEO of the Bezos Earth Fund.