Deborah Vorhies

Deborah Vorhies is the CEO of the FairWild Foundation,  a Swiss-based global foundation which promotes global goals for biodiversity conservation, social and economic wellbeing, and responsible business through the sustainable wild harvesting of plants. FairWild provides a Standard and assurance through supply chains through third party certification.

Deborah Vorhies is a global sustainability policy and investment strategist, with extensive experience in international biodiversity, trade and investment policy, and management within the NGO sector, specifically in relation to the environment, investment and business sustainability. 

Deborah has experience across the private sector, the United Nations, the World Bank group and the non-profit sector. She established and grew the UNEP Financial Institutions Initiative to a global membership of 160, and then joined the IFC to develop and manage a global portfolio of biodiversity-related investments, forging innovative partnerships with the private sector and IFIs.

As COO of the ICTSD – a global research thinktank based in Geneva – she contributed to the development of innovative and effective policies to promote sustainability within the international trade and investment policy arenas, both globally and regionally within Africa, and inclusive economic transformation.