About us

The BrainTrust Chairs

The Members

Andrea Pfeifer, PhD

Dr Andrea Pfeifer is the CEO of AC Immune SA, a Swiss Company developing new medicines for Alzheimer’s Disease. She is a globally recognized leader and strategist in the field and Chair of the Global BHP BrainTrust.

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In 2003 Prof. Dr. Andrea Pfeifer co-founded AC Immune where she holds since foundation the position of CEO. Prior to AC Immune she was head of Nestlé’s Global Research in Lausanne, Switzerland and managed a group of more than 600 people. While at Nestlé, she led the scientific development of the first Functional Food, LC1, and one of the first Cosmoceutical products in a joint venture with L’Oreal, Innéov Fermeté. She also co-founded the Nestlé Venture Capital Fund, a € 100Mio. Life Sciences corporate venture fund. She serves as chairwoman of the Biotechmedinvest AG Investment Fund, Basel and AB2Bio, Lausanne and is member of the Supervisory Board of Symrise AG, Holzminden. Prof. Pfeifer is a member of the the CEOi Initiative on Alzheimer’s Disease. She was recognized in 2009 as Technology Pioneer by the WEF and Swiss Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst&Young. Additional recognitions include the BioAlps prize 2013, the election as one of the top 10 women in biotech from Fierce Biotech and one of the 300 most influential personalities in Switzerland. In 2021, she was awarded the first SEF.WomenAward for CEO of the Year by the Swiss Economic Forum.

Prof. Pfeifer holds a PhD in Toxicology, Cancer Research from the University of Würzburg, Germany and continued with post-doctoral work in Molecular Carcinogenesis at the National Institutes of Health, Human Carcinogenesis Branch, in Bethesda, USA. She is a registered Toxicologist and Pharmacist, received her habilitation from the University of Lausanne, Switzerland and is an honorary professor at the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland. She has published more than 200 papers and abstracts in leading scientific journals.

Mara Hank Moret

Mara Hank Moret is a remarkably talented next generation leader, angel investor and brings both sophistication and sensitivity to the challenges faced by her generation as Vice-Chair of the Global BHP BrainTrust.

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Her charitable work extends internationally and has supported initiatives such as the Women’s Brain Foundation, Laureus Sport for Good Foundation based in the UK, Children Action and Human Rights Watch, dedicated to helping the disadvantaged improve their quality of life. Previously she worked for the Tourism Board at the Mexican Embassy in London and for the Commerce Department at the US Embassies in London and Paris.

Born in Tijuana, Mexico, and educated in the United States, Ms. Moret holds two Bachelor of Arts degrees, one in Political Science and the other in Sociology from the University of San Diego, California, USA. In recent years, she has chosen to focus on her role as a mother of three children, ages 16, 14, and 11, in their formative years. Her philanthropic work has continued on a personal basis and on behalf of Lobnek Wealth Management. She lives with her husband and children in Geneva, Switzerland.

 

The Members of the Global BrainTrust

Fiona Kendrick

Fiona Kendrick, former Chairman and CEO of Nestlé UK&I, is Chair of PWC Public Interest Body and is Deputy Chair of the Institute for Apprenticeships Board. Fiona is an advisor for Newton Europe and for Innovate UK.

 

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Having started her career initially in teaching, Fiona joined Nestlé UK in 1980 in a commercial role, and spent her working life with Nestlé in key strategic roles in the UK market as well as at global level.

Fiona has a personal passion for the youth employment and skills agenda, and has led a number of lighthouse projects in this area both for Industry and Government.

Former member of the Food & Drink Sector Council leading Workforce and Skills and on the Productivity Leadership Council for the Government, Fiona was also a UK Commissioner for Employment and Skills and played a lead role in supporting the development and delivery of strategies for skills and employment across the four UK nations.

Fiona was President of the Food and Drink Federation, the association that represents the UK food and drink manufacturing industry (2015-2017). She previously led the F&D sector’s skills and competitiveness agenda and co-chaired the UK Food and Drink Export Forum.

In the 2015 New Year’s Honors’ list Fiona was created Dame Commander of the British Empire for services to the food industry and support for skills and opportunities for young people.

In recognition of services to the food and drink industry and young people’s employment and skills, Fiona has been awarded honorary degrees by Sheffield Hallam University, York University and Warwick University.

Fiona has been awarded the Chartered Management Institute Gold Medal for Leadership 2017.

Chabi Nouri

CEO of Bonhams; Former CEO of Piaget

Driven by curiosity, thirst to learn and passion for people, Chabi Nouri has built her professional life on the belief that anything can be achieved with resilience and perseverance.

Before joining Bonhams, the international auction house as Global CEO, Chabi Nouri was Private Equity Partner at the Mirabaud Group and President and Chief Executive Officer of Piaget, the watch and jewelry company (Richemont Group). 

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She began her career in 1998 at Cartier (Richemont Group) where she held various positions in operational marketing, merchandising, retail and jewelry marketing, where she was responsible for the brand’s high and fine jewelry collections. In 2008, she joined the international BAT group as Global Director of the Vogue cigarette brand. She then rejoined the Richemont Group in 2014 as Chief Marketing Officer of Piaget and took over the company in early 2017. After seven years at Piaget, Chabi took on a strategic advisory role focusing on Yoox Net-a-Porter reporting to Richemont Group CEO.

Chabi Nouri who earned her Masters in Economics from the University of Fribourg and University of Hohenheim in Stuttgart, has continuously spent time developing herself with a Gemologist accreditation from the GIA, Leadership programs from IMD, Digital programs from IMD and MIT. Chabi is a Swiss citizen with a multi-cultural heritage and background. She has also been an active member of the international Young President Organization (YPO) since 2017.

Renée Fleming

International Performing Artist

Renée Fleming is a 2023 Kennedy Center Honoree and world-renowned singer of our time, performing on the stages of the world’s great opera houses and concert halls. Honored with five Grammy awards and the US National Medal of Arts, she has sung for momentous occasions from the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony to the Super Bowl. 

 

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In recent years, Renée has become a leading advocate for research at the intersection of arts, health, and neuroscience. As Artistic Advisor to the Kennedy Center, she helped launch the first ongoing collaboration between The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and the National Institutes of Health. She has presented her program Music and Mind in more than 50 cities around the world, and in May 2023, Renée was named a Goodwill Ambassador for Arts and Health for the World Health Organization. Renée’s other awards include the 2023 Crystal Award from the World Economic Forum, the Fulbright Lifetime Achievement Medal, and honorary doctorates from eight leading universities.

www.reneefleming.com

Princess Tatiana of Greece and Denmark

Princess Tatiana (née Tatiana Blatnik) is a wellness entrepreneur, author & philanthropist who has dedicated her career to creating partnerships for impact. 

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Guided by her passion for giving a voice to others, heritage-based projects and a holistic approach to healthy living, she combines the spirit of philanthropy with socially responsible business initiatives. 

In March 2021, Princess Tatiana launched “BREATHE,” a Mindful Mental Health Movement, dedicated to raising awareness around mental health and building healthier, more resilient communities. 

Through this movement, she has partnered with PeakState: Mental Fitness, to bring online resources, based on cognitive behavioural therapy, to Greece. She is the founder of Mindful City™, an initiative designed to help cities create positive communal spaces and provide holistic emotional well-being education to their community. 

Tatiana currently serves as the International Ambassador of The Hellenic Initiative – a global movement of the Greek Diaspora to develop sustainable business programs in Greece. Most recently, she worked with Lemon Tree Trust, where she launched agricultural businesses in refugee communities in Northern Iraq, Greece and Jordan. 

She is the co-author of A Taste of Greece, an entrepreneurial project to support and promote Greece and Greek cuisine. 

Tatiana started her career by launching marketing strategies for Diane von Furstenberg’s Fashion House, while supporting emerging women leaders through Vital Voice’s platform. She has been a keynote speaker in over 30 events worldwide. 

Princess Tatiana was born in Caracas, Venezuela. After graduating from Aiglon College in Switzerland, she received her BA in Sociology from Georgetown University. She currently resides in Athens, Greece with her husband, HRH Prince Nikolaos.

http://www.tatianablatnik.com/

Lola Nashashibi Grace

Founder Middle East Children’s Institute

Venture philanthropist, Lola Nashashibi Grace, has led an active career in investment banking and asset management and is engaged in philanthropic and community endeavors relating to international development, education and biological/genetic research. She was an investment banker for Morgan Stanley and First Boston in corporate finance prior to spending 20 years in the investment management and financial advisory business.

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Lola Nashashibi Grace is currently founder and Chairman at Middle East Children Institute (MECI). She holds three degrees from Stanford University and had an active career in investment banking. She is now engaged in a number of  philanthropic activities. Her interest in science is expressed in different activities: she is Honorary Trustee at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, where she served in a number of capacities for 15 years and she is also founder and organiser of the “Women in science lunch” that raises funds for different research programmes led by women. She has been an essential driving force to create the Impact Cancer Foundation.

Megan Carroll Beyer

Foreign Diplomat to Switzerland: U.S. Embassy

Ms. Beyer also served as the External Relations Representative for the Swiss-based EDGE Gender Certification, a company that certifies companies achieving a global standard of gender certification.

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Megan Beyer is a journalist, activist, and life-long advocate of women’s rights and gender issues, and the arts. She founded Megan Beyer Associates in 2016 with clients including Civic Nation, The Better Angels Society, and the American Film  Institute.

In 2015, Beyer was appointed by President Barack Obama as Executive Director of  the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities. During her tenure at  PCAH, Beyer led the first official U.S. Cultural Delegation to Cuba, resulting in the  first bilateral government-to-government agreements following President Obama’s historic visit to the country. In 2010, with the US Embassy in Bern, Switzerland,  Beyer founded the bilateral Swiss-U.S. project, Sister Republics, accelerating private market drivers to break the glass ceiling. Upon return to the U.S., Beyer became  Director, External Relations for the Swiss-based EDGE Gender Certification, a  company that certifies companies achieving a global standard of gender certification.

Beyer began her career as a reporter covering education and politics for local and national television news programs. She was a regular contributor to Tamedia newspapers in Switzerland from 2010-2013, and in the US, her essays are found on  Motherhood Movement Online, Role Reboot, The Hill, the Alexandria Times, and The Huffington Post. For the last 15 years, she has been a regular panelist on PBS’ To the Contrary, a women’s political talk show on public television stations nationwide. She co-chaired the founding of a women’s peace prize at the U.S. Institute for Peace, the Women Building Peace Award.

She serves on the advisory board of EDGE Certification, the statewide board of Virginia Humanities, and is development chair and co-chair of Culturefix at Meridian International. Over the last twenty-five years, she has served on dozens of national, state, and local boards, including WETA- DC’s public television station, the national board of Reading is Fundamental, Virginia NARAL, and was Finance  Chairman of the Virginia Community College System, appointed by Governor Mark Warner.

Meryl Comer

Co-Founder of UsAgainstAlzheimers; UsA2 Representative Global BHP BrainTrust; and Vice Chair, WHAM (Women’s Health Access Matters)

Meryl Comer is a veteran broadcast journalist, author, advocate and former Chair of the Global Alliance on Women’s Brain Health. She led the global roll-out of the Be Brain Powerful campaign first launched in the USA by UsAgainstAlzheimers under Honorary Chair, First Lady Laura Bush.

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For more than a decade (2007-2019), Ms. Comer served as President and CEO of the Geoffrey Beene Foundation Alzheimer’s Initiative, a catalyst funder targeting early diagnosis through spirited public engagement campaigns, early assessment technologies, support of the first “virtual registry”, and pre-clinical AD research to modify disease risk @merylcomer.com.She served on the NIH National Advisory Council on Aging (NACA) from Sept 2018-Jan 2022. In 2012, she led the formation of the 21st Century BrainTrust® (21CBT), a non-profit partnership to advance mobile health technologies and brain health. Comer was also Co-Principal Investigator for the PCORI Alzheimer’s Patient/Caregiver Research Network in partnership with the Mayo Clinic, UCSF’s Brain Health Registry, and UsAgainstAlzheimer’s.  In 2009, she served on the bi-partisan Alzheimer’s Study Group, charged with presenting a National Strategic Plan to Congress. A former veteran broadcast journalist, 100% of Comer’s New York Times bestseller, “Slow Dancing with a Stranger” (HarperCollins), supports Alzheimer’s research.

Constanze Egger

Deputy Chairwoman of the Board of the Patrizia Foundation

Constanze Egger has over 20 years of experience as an organizational developer, executive, consultant and leader of IPOs, international company acquisitions and sales. She is also the respected Deputy Chairwoman of the Board of the Patrizia Foundation.

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The well-being of children is particularly close to her heart; thus she always keeps the Foundation’s vision in mind: To ensure that every child worldwide has access to education and the opportunity for a brighter future. Economic efficiency in socially sustainable projects is among her foremost concerns.

Miia Kivipelto, MD, PhD

Professor in Clinical Geriatrics at Karolinka Institutet (KI), Center for Alzheimer’s Research, Senior Geriatrician and Director for Research & Development, Theme Aging at Karolinska, University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden

Professor Kivipelto is the founder and scientific lead of the WW-FINGERS Network, which includes investigator teams from around the world to study, support and convene global multidomain dementia prevention trials, share experiences and data, and harmonize methods.

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Learn more here and check out Dr. Kivipelto’s book, ‘Hjärnhälsa – på dina fem fingrar’ (‘Brain health – at your fingertips’) linked here.

 

Carolee Lee

Founder and CEO Women’s Health Access Matters (WHAM)

Carolee Lee is an innovative trailblazer dedicated to transforming the health of women. In 2020, she founded WHAM (Women’s Health Access Matters), a non-profit organization. WHAM is committed to accelerating research and investment in women’s health and implementing strategies to eliminate the inequities and bias in research and enterprise, while accelerating scientific discovery and economic impact.

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Carolee assembled a board of 25 leading businesswomen to launch this initiative and commissioned the Rand Corporation to create The WHAM Report, which quantified the economic benefits of investing in woman’s health research. As a well-recognized, highly respected leader, she has shifted the dialogue on women’s health by looking at the ethics, empirical data and economic impact of women’s health while coalescing others to spearhead effective change. As an entrepreneurial thinker, Carolee believes that convening and motivating thought leaders from all parts of the ecosystem will be key in creating the needed sustainable and lasting change to drive innovation, action and address the inequities which still exist today.

Prior to founding WHAM, as a creative force and visionary leader in the fashion world, Carolee built a preeminent global brand and successfully sold it to Luxottica in 2001.

 Carolee has served on numerous public and private boards and currently serves on the boards of: The La Jolla Institute for Immunology; The Women’s Health Advisory Board, Brigham and Women’s Hospital; and The Women’s Leadership Board at The John F. Kennedy School of Government. She is a past president of the Committee of 200 and served as the Chair of its Foundation Board. Carolee also was a director on the board of DSW, Inc., the Museum of Arts and Design, NY, and The Breast Cancer Research Foundation for twenty years.

Throughout her career, Carolee has embraced mentoring and leadership roles in many diverse business organizations and is active in numerous civic, philanthropic and educational organizations.

 

Lily Johnson White

Philanthropist and Public Art Producer

Lily Johnson White is a mother of three, a Philanthropist, and Public Art Producer working in the not-for-profit world. Her passion is public art, with a special interest in directing resources to amplify the voices of communities that have been overlooked or blocked from participating in traditional education and creative institutions. Her career has ranged from transforming artisans into stakeholders in the fashion world, documentary film education initiatives, and overseeing charitable trusts that redistribute resources to education, arts, and health initiatives.

 

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Currently, Lily serves as the President of Board at The Children’s Trust (NYC, since 2014), President of the Board for Golden Children (Cambodia, since 2018), Board Member at Creative Time (NYC, since 2012), Board Member of Habits of Waste (LA, since 2020), and Co-Founder of COOLTURALIA, an events platform launching in Geneva Switzerland in the fall of 2023.

 

 

Corine Blesi

Head of the Swiss Economic Forum (SEF)

She has served as Managing Director of the SEF since 2019, as well as Managing Director of NZZ Connect. From 2016 to 2019, she worked as an independent entrepreneur and founded the Zurich Economic Impulse dialogue platform. From 2008 to 2015, she was a member of the extended management team of Swiss Air Rescue (REGA).

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Previously, she worked for two federal councilors in the Federal Department of Justice and Police. She began her career in 2001 at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos as North America manager. Corine Blesi studied economics, law and social sciences at the University of St Gallen.
The Swiss Economic Forum (SEF),a catalyst for economic, political and social change, presents the SEF Women Award (launched 2021) to women with an outstanding track record in entrepreneurship and at the same time offers a powerful and forward-thinking platform for
women entrepreneurs.  

 

Andrea Rinderknecht

Founder of Patientube and Unalone

Andrea Rinderknecht is a noted psychologist and healthcare consultant dedicated to giving patients a voice and a face. She has over 26 years of experience in psycho-oncological care for cancer patients and their families at Klinik im Park, Zurich and Klinik Hirslanden, Switzerland. She has served  as a Patient Advocate and member of various international Scientific and Social Advisory Boards.

 

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In 2000, she founded the Patientenforum Schweiz (Swiss Patient Forum) to represent the interests of patients and facilitate scientific exchange among doctors, patients, family members, and nursing staff. Andrea also founded Patientube to prepare patients for digital healthcare and the online community UNALONE, which allows patients and their companions to share their experiences  through audiovisual presentations.

 

 

Dr. Stephanie Blum, PhD

Board of Directors at Probi (Sweden), Former Senior Executive, Head Translational Research at Nestlé Health Science, BHP Research & Funding, FINGERS for Women Study Coordinator

Dr. Stephanie Blum, former Senior Executive, Head Translational Research at Nestlé Health Science (NHSc), is a member of the Board of Directors at Probi (Sweden) and serves as Chairwoman on the International Advisory Board of the Haute Ecole de Commerce (HEC) at the University of Lausanne. In July 2024 she became member of the Global BHP Brain Trust.

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Dr. Blum is an experienced leader in Research & Development with an internationally recognized track record in strategy development and business translation. Her scientific expertise in immunology and microbiome research is reflected in a substantial amount of peer reviewed articles and patents. She still entertains a global academic and industry network.

 While at Nestlé, Dr. Blum deepened her value driven leadership skills and managed high performing groups for more than 25 years. In addition, she coordinated many multi-national programs. Since 2017 she served on several SABs for biotech/VC funds (e.g. Flagship Pioneering, Boston).

Lately, she led the strategic collaborations for the development of microbiome based preventive and therapeutic solutions in gastro-intestinal health (e.g. Enterome and Seres Health, first microbiome therapeutic for recurrent C. difficile, launched in 2023) and to date continues to explore microbiome-based health solutions as part of preventive strategies in neuro-degenerative diseases.

 Stephanie Blum holds a PhD in Biochemistry & Pharmacology from the University of Frankfurt am Main/Germany and has continued her postgraduate specialization in Immunology at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research Lausanne/NYC and the Medical Faculty of the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois (CHUV)/Lausanne.

 

 

Christiane Kuehne

Board Member Stora Enso, Ex-Nestle Senior Vice President

Christiane Kuehne holds a degree in economics from the University of Lausanne (HEC), a law degree from the University of St. Gallen and a university diploma in nutrition from the Faculty of Pharmacy and Medicine in Dijon.

She pursued a long career with Nestlé (1977-2015), which took her to many countries. As Deputy Director, she created and led the Nutrition and Health Strategic Business Unit (2004-2009) and was Director of the Food Strategic Business Unit (2009-2015).

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Since 2012, Christiane Kuehne has sat on the boards of L’Oréal S.A. (2012-2016), James Finlay Ltd (since 2015) and Stora Enso Oyj (since 2017).

 

 

 

Ilona Kickbusch

Founder and Chair of the International Advisory Board, Global Health Centre

Professor Ilona Kickbusch is the Founder and Chair of the Global Health Centre at the Graduate Institute in Geneva. Her areas of expertise include the political determinants of health, health in all policies and global health. She advises countries on their global health strategies, trains health specialists, and is involved in German G7 and G20 health activities. She publishes widely and serves on various commissions and boards. Ilona is a member of the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board and Co-Chair of UHC 2030, and the Lancet and Financial Times Commission on “Governing health futures 2030: growing up in a digital world”.

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Her distinguished career with the WHO includes being a driving force behind the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion and WHO’s Healthy Cities Network and has remained a leader in this field by advising on WHO’s activities related to Health in the SDGs. She also served as Director of the Global Health Division at Yale University School of Public Health, where she managed the first significant Fulbright Program focused on global health. Among her many honors, she has been awarded the Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany.

 

 

 

 

The Members of the US Brain Trust

Mrs. Laura Bush

Former First Lady of the United States

Kathy Calvin

President and Chief Executive Officer; UN Foundation

Kim Campbell

Wife of the late Glen Campbell, Founder; CareLiving.org

Renée Fleming

Soprano

Dolores Huerta

Founder and President; Dolores Huerta Foundation

Kay Coles James

President; The Heritage Foundation

Jo Ann Jenkins

Chief Executive Officer; AARP

Kerry Kennedy

President; Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights

Judith Lichtman

Founder; National Partnership for Women and Families

Mary Matalin

Political Consultant

Lauren Miller Rogen

Co-Founder; Hilarity for Charity

Kathleen Sebelius

Former Secretary; Department of Health and Human Services

Donna E. Shalala

Former Secretary; Department of Health and Human Services