Ella Robertson McKay is the Managing Director of One Young World, the global forum for young leaders which convenes annually in a different city, including Pittsburgh in 2012. Under her leadership, One Young World has advanced youth-led strategies to counter hate through initiatives such as Extremely Together, a pioneering programme on preventing violent extremism, Young Leaders Against Sexual Violence, and PACT, a movement for radical goodness that unites changemakers to confront hate with creativity and compassion.
Beyond her work on hate prevention, Ella oversees the organisation’s global strategy, partnerships, and high-profile annual Summit, which brings together over 2,000 young leaders from 190+ countries alongside heads of state, Nobel laureates, and influential figures from business and civil society. She has driven the growth of One Young World’s scholarship programmes, ensuring representation from underrepresented regions and communities, and has produced large-scale opening and closing ceremonies featuring world-class artists and activists.
Ella is the co-author of How to Make a Difference, a practical guide to activism, and has delivered keynote speeches for global corporations, governments, and universities. She sits on advisory boards for UNLOC and Daughters for Earth, is Chair of the Board of Governors at a London primary school, and is a member of the Magnitsky Human Rights Awards committee.
The catalytic power of this Summit in bringing together those who are devoting their lives to pushing back and working to confront, understand and work towards solutions around hate in our society is a noble and difficult task. The Summit not only energized those who attended but led to connecting the dots in a global network of those doing this work. The stories of the victims of hate were painful to witness but their courage in coming forward was inspirational. Those who attended left energized with the hope that by working together solutions can be forged.
