Resilience, Community, Innovation

Lynn A. Knight, CEcD, is Chief Knowledge Officer of the Institute for Sustainable Development. Her career incorporates successful chapters as a journalist, entrepreneur, business executive, government, and non-profit leader.  An award-winning author, entrepreneur, corporate executive, and community volunteer, she has worked in 14 countries, 26 U.S. states and 4 territories.
 
For over 5 years, Lynn served as the VP of Knowledge Management for the International Economic Development Council, the world’s largest and oldest organization for the economic development profession. She managed thought-leading research on behalf of a national think tank and created content for certification training, annual conferences, and a virtual learning program. She oversaw research publications, a quarterly journal, and an international newsletter. She served as National Program Director for the organization’s technical assistance, economic recovery, and resilience portfolio, which assisted distressed communities in dozens of states and territories that experienced natural and manmade disasters.
 
As the Washington, D.C. representative of the governor of the U.S. Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, in 2009, Lynn worked with federal agencies to build a social safety net for the territory, dealing with complex economic recovery, infrastructure, immigration, and labor issues. She was appointed by two governors to lead economic development commissions, serving on the Governor’s Strategic Economic Development Council, Strategic Workforce Action Team, and Tourism Task Force. She was elected Board chair/President of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce, and served two terms as the Elected Chair of the Hotel Association of the Northern Mariana Islands. 
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Previously, Lynn was VP of Corporate Affairs for TanHoldings for 8 years and served the board of its parent company, which operated global companies and regional businesses in the Asia-Pacific region. The firm operated affiliates in a dozen industries, including the world’s largest manufacturer of designer apparel. Lynn has worked in executive team management for an international tour company, publishing, real estate, logistics, a cargo airline, a shipping line, fishing, entertainment and insurance. She was on the executive committee of Asia-Pacific Hotels, supporting the acquisition and rebranding of several resorts. Lynn also served as VP and Publisher of a daily newspaper and as Executive Director of the TanHoldings Foundation.
 
As an entrepreneur, Lynn founded and owned a full-service public relations and advertising agency, Sunset Advertising Group, which served leading clients in the West Pacific for 14 years. She was the Saipan Bureau Chief / News Anchor for a regional cable TV company based in Guam. Early in her career, Lynn was Director of the Office of the Chairman of the California-based ComputerLand Corporation, a $1.4B retailer with 880 franchised stores in 26 countries.
 
Lynn earned Bachelor of Arts degrees in Communications and Psychology from California State University Chico.  She trained in Tourism Product Development with the U.N. World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and European Travel Commission.  She is a Certified Economic Developer (CEcD).

Updated May 28, 2021