Blackney with Dr. Denis Mukwege, looking at a display in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Blackney amid presenters at the 2019 Women Deliver Conference in Vancouver, Canada.

Blue skies behind the United Nations Headquarters Building in New York City, NY.

Blackney delivering a keynote speech on stage at a BlogHer Conference in New York City.i

Photo of Dr. Denis Mukwege with Bill Gates, both men in suits and smiling for the camera.

Photo by Blackney taken on the West Colonnade at the White House featuring Dr. Denis Mukwege walking with a member of the White House Medical Team.

Thousands of handcrafted ceramic bones lay on the grass before the United States Capitol for the One Million Bones installation commemorating genocide victims and Survivors.

Blackney onstage with Josh Rogin as panelists for the Act for Sudan conference in 2013 at George Mason University.

Photo of Elizabeth Blackney on the red carpet taking a photo of Dr. Denis Mukwege at the 2016 TIME 100 Honorees Dinner.

Elizabeth Blackney is a strategic consultant specializing in organizational transformation, crisis management, and high-stakes communications. She provides turnaround leadership and operational strategy to organizations navigating complexity, reputational risk, and sustainable growth. She is a trailblazing servant leader and a storyteller who continues to make a profound impact in the realm of art and cultural communications, reshaping global narratives with her unique insights and strategies.

Her strategic communications expertise includes authoring 750+ speeches for clients at international forums, including the United Nations, World Bank, and World Economic Forum. She has represented organizations to government officials, policymakers, and international agencies, advancing complex policy objectives, including successful advocacy for U.S. and EU conflict minerals legislation.

As Senior Adviser and Media Director for Nobel Prize-winning physician Denis Mukwege, MD, PhD, she executed a comprehensive organizational transformation of the US foundation’s support of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) operations to a sustainable one. She secured tier-one media placements (The New York Times, Time Magazine, Fortune, NBC News), cultivated C-suite relationships with major philanthropists. She managed crisis response during assassination attempts, asset seizures, and sustained political pressure while maintaining stakeholder confidence and organizational continuity.

Elizabeth has founded and scaled multiple organizations from concept through sustainable operations, establishing governance structures, financial systems, and logistical frameworks across sectors. She provides interim executive leadership during transitions and succession planning, board governance consulting, and strategic planning facilitation. She has delivered keynotes at the World Bank, Dartmouth College, George Washington University, and the University of Virginia. She executive-produced an award-winning documentary that premiered at the 2019 World Economic Forum.

Elizabeth serves on multiple nonprofit boards. She travels from Washington, DC, and is available for consulting engagements, interim executive roles, and board service..

Inquiries: elizabeth@girlhq.org

Elizabeth Blackney

Servant Leader. Survivor. Storyteller.