Taking a global perspective

Simon Moss (OTG 2000) describes his time at Trinity as “transformative”.

“I came in as a dorky 11-year-old who’d never had a family member finish high school,” he said, “and left knowing that if I worked hard and was bold, I could do anything I wanted”.

Today, as co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of international advocacy organisation Global Citizen, Simon’s work focuses on action-based international campaigns.

“We campaign to secure commitments to change policies and get large-scale funding for the world’s most impactful groups that work to defeat poverty and defend the planet,” he said.

Their model at Global Citizen, Simon says, is all about mixing pop culture – like films and music – with policy issues – like climate change. They’ve put on major concerts and events around the world, with artists from Kendrick Lamar to Billie Eilish, Post Malone and Beyonce.

The subjects and cocurricular activities Simon engaged with Trinity he says “set the course” of his life. Enhancement History gave him his first taste of politics and arguments about geopolitical power; areas of focus which are now central to his career path. Debating, he says, taught him how to build and convey complex ideas.

“When my German Language teacher encouraged me to apply [for a short study exchange] in Germany, it took me on a plane and overseas for the first time ever and gave me a global perspective,” he said.

Soccer was a passion for Simon during his time at school, and in Year 12 he was part of the school’s first AGSV Soccer Premiership. Simon went on to become a co-founder of the Old Trinity Grammarians’ Soccer Club in 2002.

Outdoor Education, another formative experience for Simon, he says taught him that being smart alone isn’t enough.

“It’s about how you work with others,” he said. In the year after Simon graduated, he became an Outdoor Education Assistant and spent time supporting school expeditions before backpacking overseas.

While studying a BA at the University of Melbourne, Simon says that he discovered that “doing” is “more fun than learning” and as such spent much of his time engaging with volunteer community, advocacy and fundraising projects; a trend that continues for him today.

Simon has spent much of this year working on a big idea “that we’ve just taken the wraps off”; partnering with FIFA to deliver the first ever half-time show at the Men’s World Cup Final in 2026.

“Based loosely on the NFL Superbowl Halftime show, we’re excited to be mixing it up, making it both entertaining and impactful, raising hundreds of millions of dollars to fight poverty,” he said.

Simon has lived in New York for several years now, where he says it’s been “wonderful” to see many OTGs pass through.

“Just last week I saw Michael Fan, 2023 School Captain, who is now studying at Princeton; and who by chance, had previously been on exchange to Münster in Germany with SAGSE just as I did back in 1999-2000,” he said.

In August, Simon returned to Trinity, speaking with a Year 10 Ethics Class and Year 9 Religious Education class about his work in global development.

“I’ve visited every couple of years, and what has struck me is how even though the individual students change, the buildings get fancier, and the teachers I know grow a little older, the ethos and values of the school stay the same,” he said.

“I’ve always valued the school’s emphasis on being a citizen and well-rounded person.”

“It’s what defined my experience, and it’s what the world needs more of”

Learn more about Simon’s work at globalcitizen.org