Charlene Barshefsky

Ambassador Charlene Barshefsky is chair of Parkside Global Advisors in Washington, D.C., and advises multinational companies on global market access, investment and negotiation. Prior to this, Barshefsky was the United States trade representative from 1997 to 2001, and she was acting and deputy trade representative from 1993 to 1996. As a member of President Bill Clinton’s cabinet, she was responsible for the formulation of U.S. trade policy and the negotiation of hundreds of complex trade, market access and investment agreements, including China’s historic WTO agreement and global agreements in financial services, telecommunications, high-tech products and cyberspace.

She is the recipient of numerous academic, industry and professional honors, and she has been ranked as one of the most influential lawyers in the U.S. She serves on the boards of the Estée Lauder Companies and Stagwell Global, and she previously served on the boards of Intel Corporation, Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, and the American Express Company. She is a trustee of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and chair of the National Committee on United States-China Relations.