Registration Opens May 20th
TBA
Ian Smith
Ian Smith is the founding partner of Bespoke Approach, an Australian corporate advisory firm, and a Senior Adviser to Washington-based Albright Stonebridge Group, part of DGA Group. He advises companies and nonprofit organizations internationally on strategy, governance, and public policy.
Patron Event
June 3rd, Wednesday, 2026
6:00- 8:00pm
Reception: 6:00 – 7:00 PM
Lecture and Q&A: 7:00 – 8:00 PM
E&W Library at the Cosmopolitan Club
122 East 66th Street
New York, NY 10065
About the Topic
TBA
About the Speaker
Ian Smith is the founding partner of Bespoke Approach, an Australian corporate advisory firm, and a Senior Adviser to Washington-based Albright Stonebridge Group, part of DGA Group. He continues to advise companies and nonprofit organizations internationally on strategy, governance, and public policy, dividing his time between Europe and the United States.
He has extensive board experience across both corporate and community sectors. Ian is deeply engaged in refugee advocacy, establishing Barefoot to Boots, a charity supporting refugee camps and host communities, and serving as its chair from its founding in 2015 until 2026. He is also a director of Community Refugee Sponsorship Australia, which oversees the resettlement of refugees through community sponsorship programs.
His nonprofit leadership has also included working with First Nations communities as Chair and Director of Jirrawun Arts in the Kimberley region of Western Australia, and as founding director of Developing East Arnhem Limited in Australia’s Northern Territory.
Earlier in his career, Ian served as a non-executive director of Novera Energy, contributing during a key period in the company’s development as a leading independent landfill-gas power generator in the United Kingdom. From 2000 to 2008 he was Chief Executive Officer of Gavin Anderson & Company (Australia), part of a global public affairs and strategic communications firm and at the time Australia’s largest public relations company.
He served as the United Kingdom’s Honorary Consul for South Australia from 2015 to 2025 and is currently Deputy Chair of King’s Trust Australia, founded by His Majesty King Charles III.
In 2018, Ian was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for significant service to the State of South Australia through nonprofit organizations and for strengthening Australia–United Kingdom relations. In 2025 he was awarded an Honorary Fellowship of the University of South Australia in recognition of his strategic leadership and advocacy for accessible and equitable education and employment.