About Lilly

Lilly Bertz advises on strategic communications for the Department of Defense’s Military Health System, including the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs and the Defense Health Agency.

Lilly brings extensive experience from the public sector – most recently her work at U.S. Southern Command, where she led on strategic communications for Global Health Engagement at the Combatant Command level.

Prior to her work with the Department of Defense, Lilly served as a Special Assistant to the Deputy Secretary of State, working to advance the strategic effectiveness of U.S. foreign assistance programs, with a focus on United Nations negotiations and implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Previously, as a Presidential Management Fellow in the State Department’s Office of the Global AIDS Coordinator, Lilly worked closely with U.S. Embassies across Africa and the Caribbean to provide strategic and programmatic leadership to address vulnerabilities of women and girls in the global HIV epidemic as part of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. Lilly also served as a Policy Advisor in the Secretary of State’s Office of Global Women’s Issues, focusing on gender integration across U.S. foreign policy to advance the status of women and girls worldwide.

Lilly holds a Master of Public Administration and a Master of Science in Social Policy from the University of Pennsylvania, and a Bachelor of Arts in Government and Psychology from Dartmouth College.

Career Highlights

• Ward Circle Strategies, Senior Manager
• U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Southern Command, Advisor
• U.S. Department of State, Office of the Deputy Secretary of State, Special Assistant
• U.S. Department of State, Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator, Presidential Management Fellow
• U.S. Department of State, Secretary’s Office of Global Women’s Issues, Policy Advisor and Global Health Corps Fellow
• Peace Corps, Volunteer

3 Fun Facts

• Created a Village Youth Orchestra in the Peace Corps
• Competed in the 2016 CrossFit Games
• Oversees fitness regimen of her family’s English bulldog, Maggie