Jill Isenbarger

Jill Isenbarger joined the United Nations Foundation as Chief of Staff where she advises the President and CEO on strategy, direction, and impact.

Prior to joining UNF, Jill was the CEO of Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture, an organization advancing sustainable agriculture and a culture of eating that can support it. Jill catalyzed Stone Barns Center from a local, New York-centric start-up to a formidable and highly regarded institution with national and international reach and influence. While there, she increased philanthropic support, expanded and honed educational programming, built staff and leadership capacity, strengthened the board of directors, and cultivated an ethic of collaborative professionalism throughout the organization. Under her leadership, Stone Barns Center launched an innovative Farm Lab; co-hosted the annual New York Times’ “Food for Tomorrow” conference; published an acclaimed book of essays, Letters to a Young Farmer (Princeton Architectural Press).

Prior to Stone Barns Center, Jill served as Chief of Staff for The Nature Conservancy, a leading conservation organization. Jill worked to advance climate change initiatives, bring the Conservancy’s Last Great Places to urban dwellers through an international traveling photography exhibition and book, In Response to Place, and developed a National Public Radio series, Stories from the Heart of the Land. She has been a critical advocate in support of ecosystem services and helped to develop the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility with the World Bank, an initiative to create financial mechanisms valuing carbon and applying high-quality standards to help developing countries protect threatened forests and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Previously, Jill worked for the Harvard Negotiation Research Project and U.S. Senator Carl Levin (D-MI).