In 2016, Sean was elected as Chair for the International Union for the Conservation on Nature’s (IUCN) Commission on Education and Communication (CEC). In this role, he has worked tirelessly to enhance IUCN’s use of creative communications for social change. This has included a lead role in designing and implementing #NatureForAll, helping drive a plan to realize IUCN’s commitment to working more closely and effectively with youth, and helping grow and support the work of the CEC and its over 1,600 members.
As a resourceful communications expert, Sean is deeply committed to community empowerment and to the use of creative broadcast and social media to facilitate powerful social and behavioural change. From the Caribbean to the Pacific Islands, from Latin America to Asia and Africa, Sean has led campaigns for social good, with a unique focus on focus on building the capacity of local partners around the world to use creative communications, behaviour change strategies and storytelling to effect powerful social change. With a broad range of behaviour change experiences, from Entertainment-Education series dramas, to cooking shows, to social marketing and online campaigns, Sean is a tireless advocate of the transformative power of storytelling and creative use of communications to shift social norms and bring about positive behaviour change.
Sean Southey has over 30 years of experience in the international development and communications field. With a multi-sectorial background, Sean started his career with 5 years in the Canadian Ministry of Environment, followed by 12 years working with United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) environment team – where he founded and ran the Equator Initiative for 8 years. His NGO experience was enriched through work with ICLEI (Secretary General), Rare (Vice-President) and 10 years as President of IUCN NGO member PCI Media. Over the last 10 years, he grew the PCI Media portfolio from 5 countries in Latin America to programs that now span over 65 countries, led the development of over 80 campaigns impacting over 100 countries; won over 100 awards for impactful campaigns; and, reached literally billions of people with life and planet saving information. Sean has extensive experience speaking around the world on the importance of communications and regularly runs creative design, capacity building and strategy workshops.
