Hertford College Principal Professor Tom Fletcher announced he will be leaving his role for a new appointment as Undersecretary General for Humanitarian Relief and Emergency Relief Coordinator at the United Nations, leading the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). His last day will be 18th November.
In an email to Hertford, Fletcher recalled how his experience at Hertford “changed his life” in the years he’s been “blessed to see Hertford from every angle”: as a student of Modern History, a night porter, a barman, a JCR president, a summer school guide, an alumnus, an honorary fellow, and the principal.
After graduation Fletcher served as a UK diplomat in Nairobi and Paris, the foreign policy and Northern Ireland advisor to Prime Ministers Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, and David Cameron, and the British Ambassador to Lebanon. Upon returning to Hertford as an honorary fellow, Fletcher was elected as the youngest ever principal in 2020.
He wrote: “On Monday, the UN Secretary General asked me to take [the OCHA role] on. Millions are in dire need of protection and support, including in regions I know and love. I hope you’ll understand why I must go.”
Through two stories, Fletcher emphasised his commitment to accessibility at Hertford during his tenure. A first-generation university student who got the highest mark in Oxford and is now on the frontline of tackling the climate crisis told him last week that “Hertford is base camp.” Another masters student from Syria who got funding from an alumni due to Fletcher’s efforts told him that Hertford is her “sliding door moment.”
Fletcher continued: “There is a student, born today, who will come to us in 2042. They will have had every reason not to make it. But, somehow, they will. And we will be ready for them. And they will change the world.”
During his tenure as Principal, Fletcher oversaw the establishment of the Asseily Scholarship for a student displaced by conflict, persecution, or deprivation, as well as the Sibusiso Scholarship for five African graduate students.
Fletcher was commended by the UN for possessing “strong experience of leading and transforming organisations” and “an understanding of diplomacy at the highest levels”, as well as previous colleague Gordon Brown for his “creativity and resilience”.
As Martin Griffith’s successor, Fletcher will be the sixth successive British head of OCHA. Prior to his selection, over 60 diplomats and humanitarians wrote an open letter to UN Secretary General António Guterres calling for equal consideration of nationals of all member states in deliberation for the role.