Manjula Lee

Manjula Lee is a British-Australian entrepreneur of South Asian heritage whose career has spanned finance, international development, and sustainability technology. She began in mergers and acquisitions and strategic partnerships at Shell Australia, where she became one of the youngest members selected for the company’s Global Business Leadership Programme. Her work exposed her to long-range data on environmental and social trajectories that compelled her to shift careers — from corporate finance into the civil society sector, where she spent nearly a decade advising organisations including Oxfam and Amnesty International, and served as Head of Philanthropy at Habitat for Humanity.

In 2016, Manjula founded World Wide Generation with a mission to accelerate the delivery of the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. The following year she developed the G17Eco platform, a sustainability data and finance exchange that brings together governments, businesses, civil society and citizens in a single interoperable ecosystem. The platform offers end-to-end sustainability support — from education and materiality assessment through digital reporting tools, GHG calculators and assurance trackers, to a marketplace for sustainability solutions and finance.

Manjula’s work has been recognised at the highest levels. She was appointed to the advisory committee of the Global Partnerships Forum at the United Nations, to the City of London’s Global Steering Committee for Sustainable Finance, and to the Green Finance Task Force. In 2018, the UK government named World Wide Generation as the Technology Partner for its Sustainable Development Capital Initiative — announced by Prime Minister Theresa May at the UN General Assembly. She has been voted among the 100 most influential women in blockchain and fintech globally, and won the UKBAA’s Best Led Female Investment award.