Elizabeth Linder is an internationally-recognized expert in the space where technology meets societal trends, global governance, and 21st-century leadership.
Often referred to as a “non-state actor diplomat”, Elizabeth advises heads of state, government officials, executive management teams, and civil society leaders on changing patterns of leadership in more than forty countries across Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and the United States.
She is regularly invited to speak at leading international institutions and businesses, including NATO, the European Parliament, Commission, and Council, the African Union, the Gulf Cooperation Council, the U.S. State Department, and the London Stock Exchange.
Elizabeth is a regular contributor and commentator for major media broadcasts and publications, including BBC, CNN, Newsweek, and Sky.
Elizabeth Linder is the Founder and CEO of The Conversational Century, a global advisory movement placing the art of conversation squarely at the heart of 21st-century leadership.
She previously spent eight years at Facebook, where she envisioned, founded and built Facebook’s Politics & Government division for the Europe, Middle East and Africa region.
She launched her career at Google, where she was among the first Googlers to build out YouTube’s politics team.
Elizabeth serves as Senior Consulting Fellow for Chatham House. A California native, Elizabeth graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Princeton University.
She resides in London and holds an Exceptional Talent Visa in the UK tech sector.
Watch Elizabeth on BBC Breakfast discussing President Obama’s Farewell Speech:
Elizabeth Linder – Keynote Speaker:
As a keynote speaker, Elizabeth speaking topics include:
Conversational Leadership:
Social media rewards conversation at a scale never before possible, yet few political and business leaders use conversation as a key instrument of their online strategies. How might the art of conversation change and influence tomorrow’s leaders, and will it create a more accessible, human approach to leadership long-term?
Global Connectivity and the Rise of Human Compassion:
With more human beings than ever before connected to each other, for the first time in history conversations are taking place between borders, cultures, languages, and socioeconomic strata. How is global connectivity influencing human compassion, and how can we channel this movement to change the world in which we live?
Foreign Policy and the Non-State Actor:
Since 1648, we have lived according to a Westphalian world-view: nations talking to nations; diplomats talking to diplomats; heads of state talking to heads of state to negotiate and get things done. How are non-state actors, such as Facebook and Humans of New York, entering the space of foreign policymaking, and what does this mean for the future of sovereign nations?
21-st Century Decision-making and the Connected Conundrum:
With the rise of global connectivity comes the ability to involve more and more people in the decision-making process. What does this mean for how decisions will be made and communicated in the future?