Ismail Serageldin is the Co-Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Nizami  Ganjavi International Center (NGIC).  He was the Founding Director of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, the New Library of Alexandria in Egypt (2001-2017).  Before that he was the Vice-President of the World Bank (1993-2000) in charge of Environmentally Sustainable Development (ESD), and the Chairman of the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR).  He served on many international committees and commissions, including serving as a member of the High Level group for the Alliance of Civilizations convened by the Secretary General of the United Nations (2006-2007).   He was also a distinguished professor at Wageningen University and the College de France. He is a member of many Academies and serves on many commissions, boards, and advisory committees for academic, research, and NGO institutions. He has lectured widely and published more than 100 books and 500 articles. He has received many awards from many countries and has received more than 40 honorary doctorates from all over the world.