Vanessa Zimmerman

Vanessa is a recognised global corporate sustainability expert. Originally an anti-trust lawyer at King & Wood Mallesons, she was a Legal Advisor to the UN Special Representative on Business and Human Rights. This included being part of the core team drafting the internationally recognised UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. Vanessa has also advised other key global business and human rights initiatives and worked with businesses from multiple sectors. From 2011 – 2018 Vanessa managed implementation of Rio Tinto’s human rights programme. In 2018 she founded Pillar Two, a specialist advisory firm helping business to manage their human rights risks.

Vanessa holds various expert advisory roles including as Board Member of the UN Global Compact Network Australia and Chair of its Human Rights workstream and Modern Slavery Community of Practice. She has been appointed to several Australian government advisory groups including Australian Border Force’s Modern Slavery Expert Advisory Group and the Governance and Advisory Board to the Australian National Contact Point under the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, based in Cth Treasury.

Vanessa’s qualifications include a Master of Laws from Harvard University.