Mary Robinson

Chair of The Elders; 7th President of Ireland

Mary Robinson’s presidency is widely regarded to have had a transformative effect on Ireland. Her legacy was cemented through the introduction of numerous liberalizing reforms, consisting of; the decriminalization of homosexuality; the legalization of contraception; the legalization of divorce; the ability for women to sit on juries; and securing citizens the right to access legal aid for civil legal cases. Since her gracious departure from politics, Robinson, along with; Nelson Mandela; prominent humanitarian Graça Machel; and Desmond Tutu, founded The Elders. This highly-esteemed NGO unites a range of world-renowned peace activists and human rights advocates, who collectively bring over 1000 years of experiential knowledge from their relevant professional fields to provide solutions to many insurmountable problems. The issues tackled by The Elders range from Climate Change mitigation, the HIV/AIDS epidemic and combating dire global poverty levels.