Jennifer Chalk

Jennifer Chalk

My 30 year career journey has been and continues to be as a member of the United Nations ITU team, committed to improving lives through technology. This means I get the opportunity to work with ICT leaders from governments, especially from least developed and developing countries, as well as from private sector large corporates, international organizations, innovation hubs/accelerators and an impressive set of tech startups and SMEs.

It is inspiring to be part of some amazing heart-warming success stories – I think you will enjoy reading these too – see https://digital-world.itu.int/success-stories/ For me, helping boost business growth was more important than ever during the COVID-19 pandemic which took its toll on so many of us. I really enjoy helping governments and companies, whether big, medium, small, start-up or micro, continue to achieve their goals through key ITU events, namely AI for Good – All Year, Always Online (https://aiforgood.itu.int/) and previously our flagship ITU Telecom events (https://digital-world.itu.int/).

I believe innovation, particularly through SMEs, is the driver of socio-economic development. Yet I feel humble compared to ‘my’ SMEs’ young, but very talented minds. I am privileged to have worked with some brilliant people whose innovative tech solutions with social impact are taking us closer each day to achieving the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs) – less than 10 years to go! Such entrepreneurship is making the world a better place for us all to live and work in, by leveraging technology to reduce pollution, improve education, good health/well-being, boost economic growth, advance sustainable smart cities and more. Many of the entrepreneurs I work with end up on-stage to retrieve an Award with a smile so wide, that it reminds me why I love my job.

I always love to learn new things and in 2023 will commence a course on ‘Digital4Sustainability’ to add further value.

When I’m not working, as a mother of two, I enjoy gardening, cooking, making mosaics, and I’m also a struggling 5K runner to keep fit.

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  • Organization
    International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
  • Profession
    Partnerships Officer

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