Sustainable Leadership

8The Ecosystem

Individually we are one drop. Together we are an ocean.

—Ryunosoke Akutagawa, Japanese author

AURÉLIA NGUYEN HAD a mind-blowing to-do list.

As Managing Director of COVAX—a joint endeavor of the World Health Organization, UNICEF, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, and GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance—it was her job to lead a global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, ensuring vaccine equity for the most vulnerable populations of the world and saving millions of lives. She was charged with overseeing more than $10 billion in pledges to fund the procurement and ultimate delivery of billions of vaccine doses to 145 countries. To achieve this monumental task, Aurélia had to partner with and coordinate dozens of teams from business, nonprofit and government sectors, leveraging their diverse expertise while rallying them around a singular, urgent purpose at lightning speed.

A little less than two years into the pandemic, I sat down with Aurélia to interview her for Russell Reynold's “Redefiners” podcast where we explore how daring leaders from across industries and around the globe are redefining their organizations—and themselves—to create extraordinary impact in today's rapidly changing world. I was intrigued to learn how this former GlaxoSmithKline director managed to maintain her cool under fire, with so many governments, NGOs and bureaucrats circling around her as she attempted to encourage, persuade, and cajole business leaders and wealthier nations to ...