I parlayed my international following as a model and commentator into becoming Founder and CEO of The Global Townhall. Many of the guests on the site are either my friends or often become so throughout the interview process. Some guest I don't know at all.
My time is filled with global leaders, block buster movie stars, billionaires, celebrities, Ambassadors, dignitaries, astronauts,etc... and attending premier events I'm invited to around the world (here is a "Celebimonial" on what my guests and friends say about me and The Global Townhall.) So, my days are spent having breakfasts, lunches, dinners, phone calls interviewing guests for my company or brainstorming solving global/organizational/business issues... It's a good thing I live and love my work, a normal work day could be 15 hours short.
Besides working at The Global Townhall I serve on boards including the International Relations Council, Greater Kansas City People to People and am involved in a global energy policy initiative with Senators and Congressmen from both sides of the aisle at Set America Free.
Born in Darwin, I spent six years in the Australian bush in Kalamunda, a suburb of Perth, catching deadly snakes and training wild kookaburra's to sit on my shoulder. For three years I ran barefoot in Papua New Guinea growing up with the native children. I kayaked from island to island through the Indonesian archipelago and explored the mountains and volcanoes long before the rise of international tourism (and terrorism.) My family and I caught boats with the pigs and the chickens to remote islands in Thailand where there wasn't even a pier; you had to jump onto a plank of wood and pull yourself by rope to shore. One of my favorite pastimes is sleeping under a million stars in Alice Springs in the Australian Outback where I lived for 15 years.
Besides living in Australia, America and Papua New Guinea, I have collectively spent years travelling to:
China, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Japan, England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Portugal, Spain, The Netherlands, Italy, France, Germany, Croatia, Austria, Monaco, Switzerland, Egypt, Canada and Mexico.
The globe and I grew up together.
I moved to Kansas City, USA 13 years ago and have bounced back and forward between the rawest most primitive pleasures, to fine dining, the finest hotels, Broadway theatre, yachts and limousines, first-class round-the-world tickets sipping champagne and eating lobster. I have rode elephants in Asia, camels around the Pyramids, been dog sledding in the Arctic, took a sampan (row boat) through the North Vietnam jungle, rode horses through the ocean in the Caribbean, big game fishing on the Great Barrier Reef... and on and on. Life has been an exquisite tapestry for me and you could comfortably call me an adventure traveler.
I guess going to a snooty all-girls school where we wore gloves, berets, ties and blazers over our crisply starched blouses, to living in the Outback and Papua New Guinea set me up to love everything. I love backpacking. I love the Ritz. I love the middle. I love life in all its different flavors. I love the poor. I love the rich. I love the left. I love the right. I love the centre. I will not limit myself with stereotypes and boxes. I have freedom and I embrace every morsel of it.
I live by the Chinese proverb "walk 10 000 miles, read 10 000 books." I have a deep passion to learn and experience that pulses through my veins all day every day. My home is wired with speakers throughout so when I shower, cook etc, I can keep up on select international news and educational shows that I have pre-programmed to record. I have my ipod loaded with educational audio books and The Economist magazine so when I walk I learn. When I drive I learn. I lift weights next to my computer so I can work out to motivational and deeply profound songs on youtube to rejuvenate my spirit as well as my muscles daily. No wasted moments, my schedule is precise so I am as fully briefed as I can be on the broad range of topics I need to engage in intelligent, versatile conversations and solutions.
Most of all, I hope my footprint on the planet lifts people around the world to be able to live a more fulfilled life. I believe I am living my destiny, and that you are a part of it.
Email: gabrielle (@) theglobaltownhall.com
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