Fall 2024 Hauser Leaders
Prime Minister of New Zealand (2017-2023); Angelopoulos Global Public Leaders Fellow, Hauser Leader - Center for Public Leadership, Senior Fellow - Women and Public Policy Program, at Harvard University; Patron, Christchurch Call Foundation; Board Member, The Earthshot Prize; Distinguished Fellow, Conservation International.
The Right Honourable Dame Jacinda Ardern became the Prime Minister of New Zealand at just 37 years of age. During her time in office, she faced the challenges of a live streamed domestic terror attack against New Zealand’s Muslim community, a volcanic eruption and the COVID-19 pandemic. Ardern’s focus on people, kindness and what she has called “pragmatic idealism” saw New Zealand achieve some of the lowest losses of life experienced by any developed nation through the pandemic, the ban of military style semi-automatic weapons in her country, and the creation of the Christchurch Call to Eliminate Violent Extremism Online. Ardern currently holds the role of the Patron for the Christchurch Call Foundation and the 6th Arnhold Distinguished Fellow for Conservation International.
Ardern is a champion of women's empowerment. While in office, New Zealand reached 50 percent representation of women in Parliament, and on government appointed boards. She decriminalised abortion, improved pay equity laws and extended paid parental leave to 6 months - all while being only the second woman in the world to have a baby while leading her country.
Ardern is a passionate advocate on climate action and is a board member of The Earthshot Prize, focusing on solutions to climate change and environmental issues.
In 2024 to 2025, Ardern has Harvard Kennedy School fellowship appointments as the Angelopoulos Global Public Leaders Fellow, Hauser Leader at the Center for Public Leadership, and Senior Fellow at the Women and Public Policy Program.
Ardern holds an Honorary Doctorate from Harvard University.
21st U.S. Deputy Secretary of State (2021-2023)
Wendy R. Sherman, the 21st U.S. Deputy Secretary of State and the first woman in that position, has been, in her long career, a diplomat, businesswoman, professor, political strategist, author, broadcast analyst and social worker.
Ambassador Sherman served under three presidents and five secretaries of state, becoming known as the diplomat for ‘hard conversations in hard places.’ As Deputy Secretary, Sherman was the point person on China. When Undersecretary for Political Affairs, Sherman led the U.S. negotiating team that reached an agreement on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action between the P5+1, the European Union and Iran. And, as Counselor at the State Department, Sherman led on North Korea and was engaged on Middle East negotiations. President Barack Obama awarded Sherman the National Security Medal for her diplomatic accomplishments.
Prior to becoming Deputy Secretary, Sherman was Director of the Center for Public Leadership at the Harvard Kennedy School, as well as a Senior Fellow at the School’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs and a professor of the practice of public leadership.
In 2002, along with former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, Sherman built a global consulting business, The Albright Group, where she served as vice-chair for a decade and later returned as Senior Counselor to then the Albright Stonebridge Group.
Sherman previously served on the President’s Intelligence Advisory Board, chaired Oxfam America’s Board of Directors, served on the U.S. Department of Defense’s Defense Policy Board, successfully managed a campaign for U.S. Senate, and was Director of Child Welfare for the State of Maryland.
Wendy R. Sherman has been a frequent commentator on television and radio and is the author of “Not for the Faint of Heart: Lessons in Courage, Power and Persistence”.
Sherman attended Smith College and received a B.A. cum laude from Boston University and a Master’s degree in Social Work, Phi Kappa Phi, from the University of Maryland. She is married to Bruce Stokes and has a daughter and two grandsons.
Rochelle Walensky
19th Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2021-23), Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School (2012-2021), and Chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases, Massachusetts General Hospital (2017-2021)
Dr. Rochelle Walensky served as the 19th Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2021-23), Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School (2012-2021), and Chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases, Massachusetts General Hospital (2017-2021). Dr. Walensky is an infectious disease clinician whose research career is guided by a belief that the clinical and economic outcomes of medical decisions can be improved through the explicit articulation of choices, the systematic assembly of evidence, and the careful assessment of comparative costs and benefits. She has focused these beliefs on mathematical model-based research toward the promotion of global access to HIV prevention, screening, and care. Her ground-breaking work and over 300 research publications have motivated changes to US HIV testing and immigration policy; promoted expanded funding for HIV-related research, treatment, and the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPfAR); and led to policy revisions toward aggressive HIV screening – especially for the underserved – and earlier treatment in resource-limited international settings. In light of these contributions, Dr. Walensky has been an active member of policy discussions at the WHO, UNAIDS, the DHHS HIV Guidelines Committee, and the NIH Office of AIDS Research.
Dr. Walensky served on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic in Massachusetts until beginning her tenure at the CDC on January 20th, 2021. While at the CDC, Dr. Walensky led the nation - and the world - through unprecedented times, navigating the darkest days of the COVID-19 pandemic and further facing the largest density of diverse infectious threats likely ever seen in this country. During her tenure, she participated in nearly 100 press conferences and countless media appearances, and provided testimony at 17 Congressional hearings.
Dr. Walensky is a member of the American Academy of Physicians, National Academy of Medicine and the Council on Foreign Relations. She currently serves on the Board of Trustees at the Doris Duke Foundation and The Carter Center.
Dr. Walensky received her BA (Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 1991) from Washington University in St. Louis; her MD from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine (1995) and her MPH from the Harvard School of Public Health (Clinical Effectiveness, 2001). She completed her Internal Medicine residency at the Johns Hopkins Hospital (1995-1998) and her Infectious Disease fellowship at the Massachusetts General/Brigham and Women’s Hospital combined program (1998-2001). She is married to Loren Walensky, MD, PhD, a physician-scientist and pediatric oncologist at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute/Boston Children’s Hospital. The Doctors Walensky have 3 sons ages 20, 22, and 24.