As Chair of Mercy Corps, Linda Mason deals with the strategy and development of this $300 million international relief and development agency, operating in 37 countries serving 17 million people, with major programs in some of the most difficult environments in the world including Iraq, Afghanistan, Darfur, Somalia, and North Korea.

Previously, Mason spent a large part of her career creating and building Bright Horizons Family Solutions, now a $1.3 billion education company. As the largest world-wide provider of worksite child care and early education, Bright Horizons operates more than 650 high quality child development centers for employers in 40 states and Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Canada. Clients include the US General Services Administration, United Nations, European Commission, Time Warner, Cisco Systems, IBM, Yale University, MIT, Universal Studios, and Paramount Pictures, among others. Bright Horizons also operates eight elementary schools, private and charter. The company employs 19,000 people and serves more than 80,000 families. Bright Horizons was selected by Fortune magazine in January 2009 for the 10th time as one of the “100 Best Companies to Work For in America”.

Mason also co-founded Horizons for Homeless Children, a Boston-based organization that serves the needs of homeless children throughout New England. HHC has trained over 9,500 volunteers to work in 150 playspaces established by HHC in homeless shelters. In addition, HHC operates 3 full-service childcare centers for homeless children, also providing assistance to mothers to reach self-sufficiency.