Gabrielle Fitzgerald manages the issue advocacy portfolio for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s global health program.  With $250 million in grants, Gabrielle and her team work to leverage the foundation’s resources to raise money and draw attention to issues ranging from malaria to polio to “neglected tropical diseases.”   The team uses a combination of diplomatic skills and the bully pulpit to try to solve some of the most challenging health problems facing the world today.

Prior to joining the Gates Foundation, Gabrielle spent five years at the U.S. Agency for International Development, where she led the agency’s public affairs work on HIV/AIDS, during a period of significant growth in US government funding on the issue.  She also led communications efforts to warn of a potential famine in the Horn of Africa – which was averted due to public pressure on donor governments.

Before working on HIV/AIDS issues, Gabrielle devoted her advocacy skills to international refugee issues at the US Committee for Refugees, raising awareness about refugee crises around the world.  In 1999, when the US government relocated refugees from Kosovo to the United States, Gabrielle served as the national spokesperson on the refugee resettlement process.

Earlier in her career, Gabrielle served as a speechwriter for President Clinton in The White House.  She had previously worked on his 1992 presidential campaign, working as a field organizer during the New Hampshire primary and on the team who created the campaign’s ads during the general election.

Gabrielle holds a Master’s in Public Administration from Syracuse University and a Bachelor of Arts from American University.