Valerie Hickey

Valerie Hickey is the Director for Environment at the World Bank Group. In this role, she leads a global team that leverages data, knowledge, and partnerships to ensure that the WBG’s public and private sector investments in nature, natural resource management, pollution management, and the circular economy generate more and better jobs, in more places, putting another nail in the coffin of poverty. This work centers on scaling proven solutions to achieve greater impact and to build a better future for communities, companies, and countries.

Prior to that she was the Global Director for Climate Change and the Global Director for Environment at the World Bank following a decade managing the World Bank’s public sector portfolios on climate and environment in Latin America and in Europe and Central Asia. In those roles she managed cross-sectoral teams that invested in countries and communities on issues related to climate change, sustainable forest management, integrated conservation and development, integrated coastal zone management, fisheries and aquaculture, pollution management and environmental health, environmental economics and environmental risk management.

Valerie joined the World Bank in 2003 as a specialist in East Asia and the Pacific, working on environment and rural development projects in Cambodia, China and Lao. Valerie has since worked across the Bank’s regions providing design and implementation support to a variety of operations, including in fragile states, where she led the Bank’s environment portfolio in Haiti following the earthquake in 2010. She has also led analytical work and technical assistance on frontier issues related to the blue economy, biodiversity and wildlife crime. Valerie focuses on solving problems and deploying the World Bank Group’s capital, convening services and analytical powers to unlock healthy nature as an engine of jobs and GDP, ensure healthy environments set communities, companies, cities and whole countries up to succeed, and build green, inclusive and resilient economies. Before joining the World Bank, Valerie worked for World Wildlife Fund, the Wildlife Conservation Society and the US National Park Service where she worked on invasive species programs in Lake Mead, the reservoir to the Hoover Dam. Valerie holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Science and Policy from Duke University.