As trustees, Jimmy Wales and Sarah Hunter will help to guide the organisation, alongside the board of trustees and its chair Sir John Gieve, and with chief executive Ravi Gurumurthy, who joined Nesta in December 2019.

Nesta combines policy research, with funding opportunities and on-the-ground testing of new ideas in order to find innovative solutions to some of the biggest challenges facing society. Its current projects include examining the role that technology can play in education and healthcare, examining how drones can be used for social good, and supporting the pioneers that are building democratic tools for the 21st century.

Sir John Gieve, Chair of Nesta’s board of trustees, said:

“I am delighted Jimmy and Sarah are joining the board with their outstanding records globally in innovation and social enterprise. They join at a critical time for the organisation as we define a strategy for the coming years which responds to the Covid emergency of today, and the challenges of rebuilding our society and the economy tomorrow.”

Jimmy Wales, said:

“In the last few months our world has been transformed and Nesta is in a fantastic place to respond to this and other challenges by supporting the innovations that will shape our world for the better in years to come. New technologies are once again revolutionising the way we share information and ideas and I’m looking forward to helping Nesta make the most of these opportunities.”

Sarah Hunter, said:

“The next few years will pose some big social, environmental and economic challenges. There's never been a more important time to promote and invest in innovative new approaches to meet those challenges. Helping put Nesta at the heart of that mission is something I'm really excited to be part of.”

Sarah Hunter joined the board on 1st April 2020 and Jimmy Wales will join on 1st July 2020.

Ends

Press contact - Will Hoyles, 07812 362714, [email protected]

Nesta_Press [email protected]

About Sarah Hunter

Sarah is the Director of Global Public Policy at at X, the Moonshot Factory, part of Alphabet.

X - formerly Google X - is a diverse group of inventors and entrepreneurs who build and launch technologies that aim to improve the lives of millions of people. X works across a wide range of technologies and sectors, from self driving cars to life sciences and drones. Sarah joined X in 2013 and lived in California for five years, running a team that translates between the engineers and scientists at X and the policy makers and regulators in Government. She now works globally, based in the UK, on policy and technology issues that affect X across the world. Prior to joining X, Sarah ran the UK Public Policy team for Google for four years, leading the company’s work around internet policy issues such as copyright and start-up innovation. From 2000-2005, Sarah worked in frontline British politics as a Senior Policy Adviser to Prime Minister Tony Blair on Culture, Media and Sport, working on the London 2012 Olympic bid and the BBC’s Charter renewal. Prior to government Sarah held senior roles at both the BBC and C4, advising on broadcasting, media and technology policy.

Sarah is a part time lecturer at Stanford University and a Board member of doteveryone, the responsible technology think tank.

About Jimmy Wales

Internet and technology entrepreneur Jimmy Wales, is founder of the online non-profit encyclopaedia Wikipedia and co-founder of the privately owned Wikia, Inc. including its entertainment media brand, Fandom powered by Wikia.

Wales serves on the board of trustees of the Wikimedia Foundation, the non-profit charitable organisation he established to operate Wikipedia. In 2019, Jimmy launched WT Social - a news focused social network. In 2006 Jimmy was named in Time magazine’s ‘100 Most Influential People in the World’ for his role in creating Wikipedia.

Details of the rest the full Nesta board of trustees can be found at https://www.nesta.org.uk/team/?teams=1

About Nesta

Nesta is a global innovation foundation. For us, innovation means turning bold ideas into reality and changing lives for the better.

Over 20 years we’ve been tackling the big challenges facing society through research, evidence and policy, practical programmes, making grants and investments, and running experiments. We use these methods to make positive change happen where it matters to everyone, from the frontiers of personalised healthcare to stretched public services and a fast-changing jobs market.

Nesta is based in the UK and supported by a financial endowment. We work with partners around the globe to bring bold ideas to life to change the world for good.