Rachel Kyte

Co-Chair, VCMI; Former Chief Executive Officer of Sustainable Energy for All; former Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All


Rachel Kyte is Professor of Practice in Climate Policy, Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford. Earlier, she was the 14th dean of The Fletcher School at Tufts University. Prior to joining Fletcher, Kyte served as special representative of the UN secretary-general and chief executive officer of Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL). She previously was the World Bank Group vice president and special envoy for climate change, leading the run-up to the Paris Agreement. She was also vice president at the International Finance Corporation responsible for ESG risk and business advisory services. She served as co-chair of UN Energy.

Kyte is a member of the UN secretary-general’s high-level advisory group on climate action and an advisor to the UK presidency of the UN climate talks. Kyte is co-chair of the Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Initiative (VCMI), and chair of the FONERWA, the Rwanda Green Fund. She serves on the boards of the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG), the Climate Policy Institute and CDP. She advises investors, governments, and not-for-profits on climate, energy, and finance for sustainable development.

A British citizen, Kyte earned ​her undergraduate degree from University of London and ​a Master of Arts in International Relations (GMAP) from The Fletcher School. She is a regular contributor on global media. Kyte has received numerous awards for leadership in climate and sustainable development and was named by Time magazine as one of the 15 women that were leading climate action.