The Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce announced Wes Edens as the American recipient of the 2024 Person of the Year Awards.
For the past 52 years, the Chamber has honored as “Person of the Year” two prominent leaders, one Brazilian and one American, who have been particularly instrumental in forging closer ties and enhancing the relationship between Brazil and the United States. The 2024 Brazilian Person of the Year is Alexandre Birman, CEO & CCO of Arezzo&Co.
Wes Edens is Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Fortress Investment Group, a highly diversified global investment management firm that fosters transportation and infrastructure projects; Founder & CEO of New Fortress Energy, a global natural gas supply and infrastructure company; and Co-Owner of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks, among numerous other roles.
Mr. Edens earned his B.S. in Finance from Oregon State University and began his career in 1987 at Lehman Brothers, serving as Partner & Managing Director until 1993. He then served as Partner & Managing Director at BlackRock’s private equity division, BlackRock Asset Investors, where he remained until 1997.
In 1998, Mr. Edens engaged as one of five principal founders of Fortress Investment Group, which manages approximately $46.2 billion of assets on behalf of over 1,900 institutional clients and private investors worldwide across a range of credit and real estate, private equity, and permanent capital investment strategies. In 2014, he founded New Fortress Energy, leading the company’s rapid growth into a fully integrated, global energy leader that improves the lives of millions through its liquified natural gas (LNG) terminals, power generation facilities, and logistics assets. The company’s mission is centered around sustainability, reducing emissions, and increasing access to power across the world. New Fortress Energy has expanded operations in Brazil, solidifying its position as the foremost LNG-to-power company in Latin America’s largest economy.
Mr. Edens has also been a catalyst for the development of Brightline, the first privately owned, operated, and maintained passenger rail system in the United States, connecting Florida cities from Miami to Orlando and providing a second corridor between Southern California and Las Vegas.
Mr. Edens served as Inaugural Co-Chair of the Brown School of Public Health Advisory Council. He and his family also established The Edens Family Fund for Climate Change Research at Princeton University and endowed the Edens Professorship in Global Health at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, along with a research fund to focus on solving international infectious diseases and environmental health hazards.
The nomination of Mr. Edens as 2024 Person of the Year was widely proposed by Chamber members and unanimously approved by our Board of Directors. The Board is comprised of a broad spectrum of leading Brazilian and U.S. firms that are active in both countries.
The Board’s selection of Mr. Edens recognizes his commitment to improving health, education, food security, gender equality, livelihoods, and poverty levels by investing in communities and providing access to cleaner, affordable, and reliable energy across the globe, factors that coincide with the values promoted by the Chamber.
Mr. Edens will be honored at the 2024 Person of the Year Awards Gala Dinner, to take place at The Glasshouse in New York, on Wednesday, May 15th. Over 1,000 leaders from the international business, financial, and diplomatic communities convene in New York City each year at this traditional gala to pay tribute to the honorees.