Naoko Ishii is Professor and Executive Vice President of the University of Tokyo, where she is also the inaugural Director for the Center for Global Commons.

Prior to this, Ishii was CEO and Chair of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) from 2012-2020. She formed GEF’s first mid-term strategy, GEF 2020, focusing on the transformation of key economic systems. Ishii entered Japan’s Ministry of Finance in 1981 and served as Deputy Vice Minister of Finance from 2010-2012. She holds a B.A. in economics and a Ph.D. in international development, both from the University of Tokyo.