Lauren Ashley Whitehead works with United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) as the Lead for Social Protection and Gender where she oversees a global portfolio of work strengthening gender-responsive social protection with colleagues globally. Previously, she was the Chief Technical Specialist for the Generation Equality Action Coalitions at UN Women, overseeing delivery of thematic coalitions between governments, UN agencies, IFIs, foundations, private sector, and civil society to accelerate progress towards SDG 5 on gender equality. Prior to this, Lauren spent six years at BRAC, the world's largest international NGO, where she led as the Director of Technical Assistance providing technical support on social protection and economic inclusion to governments worldwide. She has also worked with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Asian Development Bank, InterAmerican Development Bank, and various nonprofit organizations in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Her expertise includes the intersection of social protection and gender, economic inclusion, and measurement and evaluation. She holds a Master's degree from Georgetown University and a Bachelor's degree from Princeton University.