Carolien de Bruin

Senior Director, Equity Action & Member of the Extended Leadership Group

Carolien de Bruin joined the WBCSD and the Business Commission for Tackling Inequality (BCTI) mid 2023 as Senior Director Equity Action, heading up the Council’s Equity Action portfolio.

Building off BCTI’s 2023 flagship ‘Tackling Inequality’ report and working closely with the WBCSD’s Pathways teams, her team carries a mandate to elevate social justice as a vital Boardroom agenda and facilitate widespread uptake of the report’s 10-point roadmap for private sector action.

Having worked and lived across four continents, Carolien brings 20+ years of experience working with world leading private sector, public sector, and civic organizations to transform their organizations and markets in support of a net positive future.

Prior to WBCSD, Carolien held leadership positions within Monitor Group, Deloitte where she co-led its public sector social innovation and impact investing portfolio, the University of Cape Town’s Center for Social Entrepreneurship & Innovation, and the World Economic Forum. In 2015, she founded C-Change, a tech and advisory venture. Through C-Change, she co-initiated the world’s first national industry-led ‘SDG investment agenda’ in The Netherlands and developed a tech blueprint for scaling social investment which was brought in-house by WEF in 2020.

Carolien graduated from Columbia Business School (Hons) and holds a Masters in Finance from the University of Groningen who recognised her as Alumna of the Year in 2017. She was featured in Europe’s 2020 Top 100 Women in Social Entrepreneurship. Carolien holds Board positions in domains ranging from migration, inclusive health, neonatal care, and the arts.

Having had the privilege of access to healthcare when her children needed it, she is passionate about ensuring every child receives the care it needs to thrive. She is a relentless advocate for leveraging the power of business and cross-sectoral action to do so.