Elaine Grunewald is a global sustainability and development expert and has worked in the private sector for over two decades as a corporate executive, an investor, and a tech founder. Her consistent advocacy for the private sector’s role in solving sustainability challenges has played out in multinational as well as startup environments. She is an adviser to numerous start-ups, companies, and CEOs. Formerly, she was SVP and Chief Sustainability and Public Affairs Officer at Ericsson, and a member of the Executive Team, where among other things she headed the company’s humanitarian and disaster response program.
Her public board assignments have included the European Sustainable Growth Acquisition Corp, Azelio AB, Sweco AB and she is an advisor to the Rockton Sustainable Aviation Fund. She currently engages in a variety of clean tech initiatives and investments. In 2018 she co-founded the AI Sustainability Center. She has been actively engaged in the World Economic Forum, the Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development, the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, the Boards Impact Forum, and is a member of the International Women’s Forum. She is also the co-author of the book “Sustainability Leadership: A Swedish Approach to Transforming Your Company, Your Industry and the World” (Palgrave MacMillan 2020). She holds a double Master’s degree from Boston University’s Center for Energy and Environmental Studies.