Kara Hurst

Kara plays a crucial role in BSR's global expansion by overseeing the U.S. East Coast offices as well as BSR’s Conference and Partnership Development teams. A skilled CSR practitioner, Kara's areas of expertise include corporate transparency, responsible supply chain management, management structures, CSR and public policy, and industry collaboration. Since joining BSR, Kara has developed and led several industry practices, including pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, media and entertainment, travel and tourism, and information and communications technology. She also led BSR’s work on social entrepreneurship and cofounded and facilitated several groundbreaking industry initiatives, including the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition and the Pharmaceutical Supply Chain Initiative.
In addition to her senior management role, Kara oversees BSR’s work in the travel and tourism and media sectors and leads our partnership with GE, including work on strategy, reporting, policy development, and issues management. Additional clients include American Express, Cisco, Dell, Disney, Google, Hilton, HP, Hyatt, IBM, Johnson & Johnson, Merck, Pfizer, Starwood, and Time Warner. Prior to joining BSR, Kara worked in California’s Silicon Valley as the executive director of Open Voice, an East Palo Alto public-private venture that uses web-based media to develop and empower communities. Kara has also worked in politics, for former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown and the late U.S. Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan.
Kara holds a masters degree in public policy from the University of California, Berkeley, and a bachelors degree from Barnard College of Columbia University. She is the coauthor of a recently published children’s book on pro bono service and volunteering. In 2009, she was named an Aspen Institute Ideas Festival Fellow.