Tim Yeend

Tim Yeend, Director of Tourism Australia
Director
Tim Yeend has worked in government and the international system for 35 years as a trade and geostrategic expert focusing on the Indo-Pacific and the global trading system. Most recently he was Associate Secretary for Trade and Investment in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and before that Australian Ambassador in Geneva. He also had diplomatic assignments in Indonesia and South Africa.
Tim led Australia’s international trade and economic engagement at a time of unprecedented geostrategic challenges in key regional markets including China, India and the countries of South-East Asia. He was responsible for a number of Australia’s recent trade negotiations including Free Trade Agreements with India and the UK, both of which delivered important gains for Australian services exporters including tourism.
Tim worked for eight years in the international system as Principal Adviser and Chief of Staff to the Director-General of the World Trade Organization in Geneva, Switzerland. He played a key role in promoting the rules-based system which is vital to Australia’s economic interests.
Currently Tim is a Visiting Fellow at the University of Adelaide’s Institute for International Trade and previously held board positions with Export Finance Australia and the Australian Infrastructure Financing Facility for the Pacific. He is also a member of the Centre for Strategy and Governance and an Advisor to Geopolitical Strategy, a geostrategic consultancy.
Tim has a BA (Hons) from ANU and more recently an FT Board Governance Advanced Diploma from the UK.