The Worlds Ahead Lectures feature speakers that highlight ways leaders can address complex societal issues to better serve as a force for progress and opportunity in communities around the world.
Lecture
- About the lectureAt a time when so many people are being left behind, shut out of the rewards of a growing economy, the business community must step up to the challenge. Building stronger and more resilient communities is not only the right thing to do, it is an economic imperative that helps secure the long-term future for all. Scher will highlight ways in which companies can — and must — lead in addressing complex societal issues and better serve as a force for progress and opportunity in communities around the world.
- Date
Tuesday, November 14, 2017
Presenter
- Peter Scher (2017)
Peter L. Scher is Chairman of the Mid-Atlantic region for JPMorgan Chase & Co. and the firm’s Global Head of Corporate Responsibility.
Scher oversees a number of global functions for the firm, including Government Relations and Public Policy, Philanthropy, Sustainable Finance, Nonprofit Engagement and the JPMorgan Chase Institute. He is Chairman of the JPMorgan Chase Foundation, one of the largest corporate foundations in the United States and has led the development of many of the firm’s flagship programs, including the $150 million investment in Detroit’s revitalization. Fortune Magazine spotlighted the impact of the Detroit investment by ranking JPMorgan Chase No. 1 on its 2017 “Change the World” list.
Prior to joining JPMorgan Chase in 2008, Scher was the Managing Partner of the Washington, D.C. office of Mayer Brown LLP and earlier served as the Chairman of the firm's Government and Global Trade Practice. Having spent the previous decade in public service, Scher was nominated by President Clinton and confirmed by the United States Senate as U.S. Special Trade Ambassador, and served as one of the lead U.S. negotiators on China's entry into the World Trade Organization.
Before that, Scher served as Chief of Staff for the U.S. Trade Representative and the U.S. Department of Commerce under President Clinton, Staff Director for the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works and Chief of Staff to former U.S. Senator Max Baucus. He also served as U.S. Representative to the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum (APEC) Business Advisory Council. In 2016 and 2017, Scher was named in Washington Life Magazine’s “100 Most Influential People in the U.S. Capitol” list. Scher received both his B.A. and J.D. from American University.