Council of Councils
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Introduction
Over the last several decades, governments have collectively pledged to slow global warming. But despite intensified diplomacy, the world is already facing the consequences of climate…
Tony Coles has served as the Cerevel Therapeutics chairperson of the board of directors since December 2018 and was previously the CEO of Cerevel from September 2019 to June 2023.
Prior to joining Cerevel, Dr. Coles co-founded and served as the chairperson and CEO of Yumanity Therapeutics, a biotechnology company focused on transforming drug discovery for neurodegenerative diseases. Before co-founding Yumanity Therapeutics, Dr. Coles served as the chairperson and CEO of TRATE Enterprises, LLC, a privately -held company.
Dr. Coles also served as president, CEO, and chairperson of the board of Onyx Pharmaceuticals until its acquisition by Amgen. Before joining Onyx Pharmaceuticals, he was president, CEO, and a member of the board of directors of NPS Pharmaceuticals. Prior to that, Dr. Coles was senior vice president of commercial operations at Vertex Pharmaceuticals, and earlier held several executive positions at Bristol Myers Squibb and positions of increasing responsibility at Merck. In addition to having previously served as a director of Onyx and NPS, Dr. Coles was formerly a director of CRISPR Therapeutics AG, Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings, Campus Crest Communities, and McKesson Corporation. He also previously served as a member of the Harvard Medical School Board of Fellows.
Dr. Coles currently serves on the board of directors of Regeneron Pharmaceuticals. He is the Advisory Council chair for the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC, and a member of the Board of Trustees of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Dr. Coles is also the co-founder and co-chair for the Black Economic Alliance, a 501c4 organization devoted to advancing an economic agenda for Black Americans. In 2022, Dr. Coles was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Dr. Coles earned his bachelor’s degree at Johns Hopkins University, a medical degree from Duke University, and a master’s degree in public health from Harvard University. He completed his cardiology and internal medicine training at Massachusetts General Hospital and was a research fellow at Harvard Medical School.