RESULTS Welcomes New Board Chair Kul Gautam
Washington, DC, June 29, 2016 — The Boards of RESULTS and RESULTS Educational Fund have tapped distinguished international diplomat and development professional Kul Chandra Gautam as their new Chair. Gautam will begin his term in June 2016, when long-time Chair Dr. Scott Leckman concludes his service.
Gautam is a former Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF and Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations. In addition to his work with RESULTS and many other organizations, he is currently active in Nepal’s civil society leadership promoting issues concerning good governance, human rights and development.
“I’m thrilled that Kul Gautam will be bringing his immense talents to bear in this role,” said Scott Leckman, M.D., F.A.C.S, retiring Board Chair. “I know his leadership will help push us toward our shared goal of the end of poverty in the United States and around the world.”
Gautam’s relationship with RESULTS spans more than 25 years. In 1990, while Gautam was at UNICEF, he was a key architect of the historic World Summit for Children and drafted the summit’s Declaration and Plan of Action. At that time, RESULTS volunteers were organizing candlelit vigils worldwide to pressure leaders at the summit to help stop preventable child deaths, reduce malnutrition, and provide universal access to primary education.
Since then, Gautam has been on the forefront of global efforts to reduce child deaths, increase access to education, and improve human rights. He has worked closely with RESULTS throughout this time, as an ally, advisor, and Board member.
“I am honored to take on this new role as Board Chair. RESULTS’ effective advocacy work has helped accelerate incredible progress toward ending the worst aspects of poverty in this country and around the world,” Gautam said. “Yet much more work remains: even in the United States, a staggering one out of every five children lives in poverty. We must do more, and together I know we will.”
Gautam was born in a small, remote community in western Nepal. Raised in an area without electricity or formal schools, he received his early education in other parts of Nepal and India. He then pursued higher education at Dartmouth College and Princeton University before beginning his long career with the United Nations.
“Kul is a natural leader, visionary and also deeply practical” said Dr. Joanne Carter, Executive Director of RESULTS and RESULTS Educational Fund. “Over his long and distinguished career — as a diplomat, public policy expert, and advocate — Kul has been one of the planet’s greatest champions for the rights of children and the end of poverty. He shares RESULTS’ goals and ideals, and I’m excited about the work we’ll do together as we begin this new chapter.”
In June, Gautam will assume leadership from Leckman, who is stepping down as Chair after eight years of service. Dr. Leckman is a general surgeon in Utah, and has volunteered his time and medical expertise in the U.S. and all around the world.
In addition to three decades of advocacy work with RESULTS, Leckman has also established a volunteer network of 600 physicians in Salt Lake County and served as president of the Rotary Club of Salt Lake City. During his time as Board Chair, he has helped RESULTS grow its movement, achieve major legislative victories, and push the world and this country closer to the end of poverty.
Leckman will remain on the Boards of RESULTS and RESULTS Educational Fund, together with a group of leaders spanning a range of fields and expertise, including elected representatives of the RESULTS volunteer advocacy network.
“Scott has used his time and many talents to make the country, the world — and this organization — better. With Scott’s guidance and tireless efforts, RESULTS has grown stronger and increased the impact of its advocacy nationally and globally. I’m grateful for the incredible thoughtfulness and energy he brought to his role as Chair,” said Carter. “RESULTS is lucky to have both Scott and Kul as friends and leaders.”
About RESULTS and RESULTS Educational Fund:
RESULTS and RESULTS Educational Fund are sister organizations that, together, are a leading force in ending poverty in the United States and around the world. We create long-term solutions to poverty by supporting programs that address its root causes — lack of access to health, education, or opportunity to move up the economic ladder. We empower ordinary people to become extraordinary voices for the end of poverty in their communities, the media, and the halls of government. The collective voices of these passionate grassroots activists leverage millions of dollars for programs and improved policies that give low-income people the tools they need to move out of poverty.
Media Contact:
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