Vanessa Gray

Vanessa Gray

Vanessa Gray is the Head of the ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau’s (BDT) Division on Climate Change and Emergency Telecommunications. She is responsible for developing and overseeing projects and technical assistance on disaster preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery. This includes the development of national emergency telecommunication plans (NETPs) and the organization of regional and national workshops and capacity building exercises for disaster management. In the area of disaster response, Ms Gray leads the work on the Disaster Connectivity Maps (DCM) and the deployment of emergency telecommunication equipment to countries hit by disasters. Ms Gray is the ITU focal point for the UN’s Early Warning for All (EW4all) initiative and coordinates the initiative’s pillar on Warning Dissemination and Communication, to ensure that alerts reach people at risk. She is also responsible for the organization of the Global Forum on Emergency Telecommunication (GET) and specific ICT for disaster management tools and publications, for example in the area of disruptive technologies, gender, and ICT drills.     
In the area of the environment, Ms Gray coordinates the BDT’s work on the circular economy and green digital transformation, which includes monitoring industry emissions, energy use and climate commitments from tech companies, and supporting countries in tracking ICT sector GHG emissions. In the area of circular economy, Ms Gray manages the work on e-waste policies and data, which includes the publication of the Global and Regional E-waste Monitors. Her role is to build public-private partnerships, develop projects and strengthen the role of the BDT in terms of e-waste coordination, for example with the E-waste Coalition, the Global E-waste Statistics Partnership, and with the private sector.    
Prior to this position, Ms Gray was part of the ITU’s Data and Statistics Division and contributed to the design and preparation of the Division’s analytical publications, including the Measuring the Information Society Report (MISR). She also contributed to and coordinated the analysis of information society developments, organized ICT-related meetings, and delivered national and regional trainings and workshops on ICT statistics to ITU member states. Ms Gray holds a Master’s degree in Political Science and Economics from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva, Switzerland.

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  • Organization
    International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
  • Profession
    Head, Climate and Emergency Telecommunications Division, Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT)
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