the
steering committee

“Love is a combination of care, commitment, knowledge, responsibility, respect and trust.” ― Bell Hooks

Hon. Obiageli “Oby” Ezekwesili
senior economic adviser
Africa Economic Development Policy Initiative

Hon. Obiageli “Oby” Ezekwesili

Current Organization

senior economic adviser

Africa Economic Development Policy Initiative

Hon. Obiageli “Oby” Ezekwesili

senior economic adviser

Obiageli “Oby” Ezekwesili an Economic Policy Expert, she is Senior Economic Adviser of the Africa Economic Development Policy Initiative and one of co-founders and pioneer directors of Transparency International-TI, the Berlin-based global anti-corruption organization. Ezekwesili is currently also the Founder-CEO of Human Capital África (HCA) working in the education sector across Africa.

Ezekwesili is the Founder-Chairperson of the Board of SPPG (School of Politics Policy and Governance) in Abuja, Nigeria. She was a candidate for office of the President of Nigeria in the 2019 election and the Founder-Chairperson of #FixPolitics Initiative a research-based citizens-led initiative. #FixPolitics envisions “A country where politics is inclusive, the needs of citizens are prioritized, democratic principles are respected, such that good governance is the norm”.

Ezekwesili was a Vice President of the World Bank- Africa Region in Washington DC between 2007 and 2012. She served in the Government of Nigeria between 2000 and 2007. She was the Minister of Minerals and later of Education. She was a presidential aide and headed the Budget Monitoring and Price Intelligence Unit which later became the Bureau for Public Procurement- BPP. She was concurrently the pioneer Chairperson of the Nigerian Extractive Industry and Transparency Initiative- NEITI in which capacity she successfully designed and implemented the global principles for Nigeria. Ezekwesili also worked as the Director of the Harvard-Nigeria Economic Strategy Project at the Center for International Development at the Kennedy School of Government, Massachusetts.

A Chartered Accountant and Consultant; She holds an MA in International Law and Diplomacy, an MA in Public Policy and Administration from the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University. She’s an honorary Doctor of Science degree, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta Nigeria and in 2016 the University of Essex Business School awarded her an honorary Doctorate Degree in Business in recognition of her role in promoting economic and social justice in African countries.

Ezekwesili was recognized as one of Time-100 Most Influential People and by New York Times as one of the 25 Women of Impact, 2015. Albert Einstein Foundations named her one of 100 visionaries featured in the 3D book "Genius:100 Visions of the Future.” Ezekwesili was a Richard von Weizsäcker Fellow at the Robert Bosch Academy in Berlin Germany between 2019 and 2020.

She has received numerous awards and on boards of numerous local and international organizations such as; Board of Trustees, the International Bureau of Fiscal Documentation (IBFD); Honorary Member, Committee of the Crans Montana African Women’s Forum; Board of Director of the Economic Policy Think Tank, AfriHeritage; Ambassador, International IDEA; Member of the Global Advisory Board for Facebook's Community Leadership Program; Global Board of Governors, NCMG International; Member of the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR)’s Advisory Group on Gender, Forced Displacement and Protection; Member of the Advisory Board of the Atlantic Dialogues; Independent Director, Board of Bharti Airtel India; Member of Board, Tufts University-Global Leadership Center Boston; International Advisory Board, Tel Aviv University Hartog School of Public Policy, Tel Aviv, Israel; Central European University-School of Public Policy, Budapest Hungary; Global Board, WWF-Switzerland; Commissioner, Global Ocean Commission - United Kingdom; IC Publications; Democracy Ambassador - International IDEA and several others.

She was decorated with the national award of Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (CFR) by her country and was selected as a 2020 Global Leadership Awards Honoree by Vital Voices for her leadership role in the fields of human rights, economic empowerment and political reform.

Dr. Ezekwesili is a Senior Fellow at Yale Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, USA and was also a Richard von Weizsäcker Fellow at the Robert Bosch Academy in Berlin Germany.

Monica Aleman
international program director
gender, racial and ethnic justice at the Ford Foundation

Monica Aleman

Current Organization

international program director

gender, racial and ethnic justice at the Ford Foundation

Monica Aleman

international program director

Monica Aleman serves as International Program Director for Gender, Racial and Ethnic Justice at the Ford Foundation. She plays a key role in the foundation’s efforts to reduce gender-based violence, end structural inequalities, and expand the role of philanthropy in global processes. She was previously a senior advisor on the GREJ-I team and a senior program officer on the BUILD team, working to support organizations and networks to become more resilient and durable in their pursuit of social justice and leverage more and better resources for women’s rights organizations in different parts of the world.

Before this, she was based in the foundation’s East Africa office, where her grantmaking focused on advancing gender equality and women’s rights, increasing the financial resilience of organizations and networks, protecting the rights of women and other minorities, increasing the participation of women in governance structures, and consolidating the infrastructure of the women’s rights movement.

Before joining the foundation in 2011, Monica was executive director of the International Indigenous Women’s Forum and founder of the Indigenous Women’s Fund, a global coordination network of organizations in Asia, Africa, and the Americas. She also served as program and policy director at MADRE, an international women’s rights organization and Ford Foundation grantee. In addition, Monica worked as the coordinator of the International Youth Summit for the World Conference Against Racism for the United Nations’ Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and has consulted for various organizations, including the United Nations Permanent Forum.

Monica is also the co-chair of the board of directors for Witness, an international organization that uses technology to protect and defend human rights, and co-chair of the International Funders for Indigenous Peoples, a global donor network dedicated to expanding high impact investment in Indigenous organizations and territories and creating a new movement that centers notions of intercultural philanthropy. Her background encompasses expertise in community organizing, social movement building, and participatory monitoring and evaluation. She also has written a number of opinion and issue-oriented articles, primarily on women’s rights and the rights of Indigenous peoples and communities.

Monica received her master’s degree from the Indigenous University, Popayán, Colombia, and her bachelor’s degree in international relations, with a focus on political science and business administration, from the University of Mobile, Latin America Campus at San Marcos, Nicaragua. Her academic experience also includes postgraduate education on the function of the United Nations system from Columbia University and special studies in diplomacy, women’s human rights, human rights, the right to education, ethics, and politics in various institutions of higher learning in Latin America and the United States

Jeff Bradach
co-founder & former managing partner
The Bridgespan Group

Jeff Bradach

Current Organization

co-founder & former managing partner

The Bridgespan Group

Jeff Bradach

co-founder & former managing partner

Jeff Bradach is the Co-Founder and former Managing Partner of The Bridgespan Group, a global nonprofit organization that collaborates with mission-driven leaders, organizations, and philanthropists to break cycles of poverty and dramatically improve the quality of life for those in need. Bridgespan collaborates with social sector leaders to help scale impact, build leadership, advance philanthropic effectiveness, and accelerate learning, helping them to achieve breakthrough results in addressing society's most important challenges and opportunities.

Based in Bridgespan’s San Francisco office, Jeff consults with leading nonprofits and philanthropists. He writes and speaks extensively on nonprofit strategy, transformative scale, social sector leadership and philanthropy. His publications include: “The Problem with Color-Blind Philanthropy,” (Harvard Business Review, 2020) “Racial Equity and Philanthropy: Disparities in Funding for Leaders of Color Leave Impact on the Table,” (Bridgespan.org, 2020) “Achieving Kindergarten Readiness for All Our Children: A Funder’s Guide to Early Childhood Development from Birth to Five,” (Bridgespan.org, 2015) "Transformative Scale: The Future of Growing What Works," (Stanford Social Innovation Review, 2014) "Scaling What Works: Implications for Philanthropists, Policymakers, and Nonprofit Leaders," (Bridgespan.org, April 2009) "Delivering on the Promise of Nonprofits," (Harvard Business Review, 2008), and “Should Nonprofits Seek Profits,” (Harvard Business Review, 2004). He is the author of the book, Franchise Organization, Harvard Business School Press.

Jeff has served on numerous nonprofit and for-profit boards, including Giving Tuesday and PolicyLink. He is the former board chair of Independent Sector. Prior to establishing Bridgespan, Jeff taught at Harvard Business School, where he was a member of the Organizational Behavior and the Social Enterprise Initiative faculty. Jeff began his career at Bain & Company. He is a graduate of Stanford University and received his MA in sociology and PhD in organizational behavior from Harvard University.

Stuart Feldman
co-ceo and chief scientist
Schmidt Futures

Stuart Feldman

Current Organization

co-ceo and chief scientist

Schmidt Futures

Stuart Feldman

co-ceo and chief scientist

Stuart Feldman is the Co-CEO and Chief Scientist of Schmidt Futures where he is responsible for the Scientific Knowledge programs, including creating fellowship programs, supporting nascent innovative research projects, and driving new platforms and larger research projects that aim to change the way scientific research is done.

Stuart did his academic work in astrophysics and mathematics and earned his AB at Princeton and his PhD at MIT. Stuart is best known for writing “Make” and other essential tools. He was awarded an honorary Doctor of Mathematics by the University of Waterloo. He is former President of ACM (Association for Computing Machinery) and former member of the board of directors of the AACSB (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business). He received the 2003 ACM Software System Award. He is a Fellow of the IEEE, ACM, and AAAS. He is Board Chair of the Center for the Minorities and Disabled in IT, serves on a number of university advisory boards and National Academy panels, and has served on a wide variety of government advisory committees.

Latanya Mapp
president and ceo
Global Fund for Women

Latanya Mapp

Current Organization

president and ceo

Global Fund for Women

Latanya Mapp

president and ceo

Latanya is the President and CEO of Global Fund for Women and serves on the Board of Directors for Global Fund for Women and Global Fund for Women UK. As a feminist fund, Global Fund for Women offers flexible support to a diverse group of partners – more than 5,000 groups across 175 countries so far – to create meaningful change that will last beyond our lifetimes.

Previously, she was the Executive Director of Planned Parenthood Global, the international arm of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, with regional and country offices in Africa and Latin America. She quadrupled the size of the program in four years to become one of the most innovative and sustainable global health organizations in the field.

Latanya worked for eight years as a human rights officer for the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and for 10 years with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Ms. Frett served as a delegate to the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995 and continues to fight for the human rights of women.

An attorney by training, she began her career at the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund in Washington, DC. She has received many honors and awards, including two Esteemed Meritorious Honor Awards from the U.S. government and the highest honor in civil service, the Superior Honor Award, from the U.S. State Department. Ms. Frett was one of 30 Foreign Service Officers honored with the Colin Powell Fellowship by then-Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Ms. Frett currently serves on the Board of Directors at Oxfam America and Management Sciences for Health and is an Adjunct Professor at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health. Ms. Frett is a Woodrow Wilson Fellow and author of four U.N. human rights reports and manuals. She is a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer and Alum of ICAP. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in government and politics, a master's in public policy, and a JD from the University of Maryland.

Valerie Taylor
director of the mathematics and computer science division
Argonne National Laboratory

Valerie Taylor

Current Organization

director of the mathematics and computer science division

Argonne National Laboratory

Valerie Taylor

director of the mathematics and computer science division

Valerie Taylor is the Director of the Mathematics and Computer Science Division at Argonne National Laboratory, a leading multidisciplinary science and engineering research center. She received her Ph.D. in electrical engineering and computer science from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1991. She then joined the faculty in the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Department at Northwestern University, where she was a member of the faculty for 11 years.  In 2003, she joined Texas A&M, where she served as head of the computer science and engineering department and senior associate dean of academic affairs in the College of Engineering and a Regents Professor and the Royce E. Wisenbaker Professor in the Department of Computer Science.

Her research is in the area of performance analysis and modeling of parallel, scientific applications.  Currently, she is focused on the areas of performance analysis, power analysis and resiliency.Valerie Taylor is a fellow of IEEE and ACM.

Hon. Obiageli “Oby” Ezekwesili
senior economic adviser
Africa Economic Development Policy Initiative

Hon. Obiageli “Oby” Ezekwesili

Current Organization

senior economic adviser

Africa Economic Development Policy Initiative

Hon. Obiageli “Oby” Ezekwesili

senior economic adviser

Obiageli “Oby” Ezekwesili an Economic Policy Expert, she is Senior Economic Adviser of the Africa Economic Development Policy Initiative and one of co-founders and pioneer directors of Transparency International-TI, the Berlin-based global anti-corruption organization. Ezekwesili is currently also the Founder-CEO of Human Capital África (HCA) working in the education sector across Africa.

Ezekwesili is the Founder-Chairperson of the Board of SPPG (School of Politics Policy and Governance) in Abuja, Nigeria. She was a candidate for office of the President of Nigeria in the 2019 election and the Founder-Chairperson of #FixPolitics Initiative a research-based citizens-led initiative. #FixPolitics envisions “A country where politics is inclusive, the needs of citizens are prioritized, democratic principles are respected, such that good governance is the norm”.

Ezekwesili was a Vice President of the World Bank- Africa Region in Washington DC between 2007 and 2012. She served in the Government of Nigeria between 2000 and 2007. She was the Minister of Minerals and later of Education. She was a presidential aide and headed the Budget Monitoring and Price Intelligence Unit which later became the Bureau for Public Procurement- BPP. She was concurrently the pioneer Chairperson of the Nigerian Extractive Industry and Transparency Initiative- NEITI in which capacity she successfully designed and implemented the global principles for Nigeria. Ezekwesili also worked as the Director of the Harvard-Nigeria Economic Strategy Project at the Center for International Development at the Kennedy School of Government, Massachusetts.

A Chartered Accountant and Consultant; She holds an MA in International Law and Diplomacy, an MA in Public Policy and Administration from the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University. She’s an honorary Doctor of Science degree, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta Nigeria and in 2016 the University of Essex Business School awarded her an honorary Doctorate Degree in Business in recognition of her role in promoting economic and social justice in African countries.

Ezekwesili was recognized as one of Time-100 Most Influential People and by New York Times as one of the 25 Women of Impact, 2015. Albert Einstein Foundations named her one of 100 visionaries featured in the 3D book "Genius:100 Visions of the Future.” Ezekwesili was a Richard von Weizsäcker Fellow at the Robert Bosch Academy in Berlin Germany between 2019 and 2020.

She has received numerous awards and on boards of numerous local and international organizations such as; Board of Trustees, the International Bureau of Fiscal Documentation (IBFD); Honorary Member, Committee of the Crans Montana African Women’s Forum; Board of Director of the Economic Policy Think Tank, AfriHeritage; Ambassador, International IDEA; Member of the Global Advisory Board for Facebook's Community Leadership Program; Global Board of Governors, NCMG International; Member of the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR)’s Advisory Group on Gender, Forced Displacement and Protection; Member of the Advisory Board of the Atlantic Dialogues; Independent Director, Board of Bharti Airtel India; Member of Board, Tufts University-Global Leadership Center Boston; International Advisory Board, Tel Aviv University Hartog School of Public Policy, Tel Aviv, Israel; Central European University-School of Public Policy, Budapest Hungary; Global Board, WWF-Switzerland; Commissioner, Global Ocean Commission - United Kingdom; IC Publications; Democracy Ambassador - International IDEA and several others.

She was decorated with the national award of Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (CFR) by her country and was selected as a 2020 Global Leadership Awards Honoree by Vital Voices for her leadership role in the fields of human rights, economic empowerment and political reform.

Dr. Ezekwesili is a Senior Fellow at Yale Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, USA and was also a Richard von Weizsäcker Fellow at the Robert Bosch Academy in Berlin Germany.

Monica Aleman
international program director
gender, racial and ethnic justice at the Ford Foundation

Monica Aleman

Current Organization

international program director

gender, racial and ethnic justice at the Ford Foundation

Monica Aleman

international program director

Monica Aleman serves as International Program Director for Gender, Racial and Ethnic Justice at the Ford Foundation. She plays a key role in the foundation’s efforts to reduce gender-based violence, end structural inequalities, and expand the role of philanthropy in global processes. She was previously a senior advisor on the GREJ-I team and a senior program officer on the BUILD team, working to support organizations and networks to become more resilient and durable in their pursuit of social justice and leverage more and better resources for women’s rights organizations in different parts of the world.

Before this, she was based in the foundation’s East Africa office, where her grantmaking focused on advancing gender equality and women’s rights, increasing the financial resilience of organizations and networks, protecting the rights of women and other minorities, increasing the participation of women in governance structures, and consolidating the infrastructure of the women’s rights movement.

Before joining the foundation in 2011, Monica was executive director of the International Indigenous Women’s Forum and founder of the Indigenous Women’s Fund, a global coordination network of organizations in Asia, Africa, and the Americas. She also served as program and policy director at MADRE, an international women’s rights organization and Ford Foundation grantee. In addition, Monica worked as the coordinator of the International Youth Summit for the World Conference Against Racism for the United Nations’ Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and has consulted for various organizations, including the United Nations Permanent Forum.

Monica is also the co-chair of the board of directors for Witness, an international organization that uses technology to protect and defend human rights, and co-chair of the International Funders for Indigenous Peoples, a global donor network dedicated to expanding high impact investment in Indigenous organizations and territories and creating a new movement that centers notions of intercultural philanthropy. Her background encompasses expertise in community organizing, social movement building, and participatory monitoring and evaluation. She also has written a number of opinion and issue-oriented articles, primarily on women’s rights and the rights of Indigenous peoples and communities.

Monica received her master’s degree from the Indigenous University, Popayán, Colombia, and her bachelor’s degree in international relations, with a focus on political science and business administration, from the University of Mobile, Latin America Campus at San Marcos, Nicaragua. Her academic experience also includes postgraduate education on the function of the United Nations system from Columbia University and special studies in diplomacy, women’s human rights, human rights, the right to education, ethics, and politics in various institutions of higher learning in Latin America and the United States

Jeff Bradach
co-founder & former managing partner
The Bridgespan Group

Jeff Bradach

Current Organization

co-founder & former managing partner

The Bridgespan Group

Jeff Bradach

co-founder & former managing partner

Jeff Bradach is the Co-Founder and former Managing Partner of The Bridgespan Group, a global nonprofit organization that collaborates with mission-driven leaders, organizations, and philanthropists to break cycles of poverty and dramatically improve the quality of life for those in need. Bridgespan collaborates with social sector leaders to help scale impact, build leadership, advance philanthropic effectiveness, and accelerate learning, helping them to achieve breakthrough results in addressing society's most important challenges and opportunities.

Based in Bridgespan’s San Francisco office, Jeff consults with leading nonprofits and philanthropists. He writes and speaks extensively on nonprofit strategy, transformative scale, social sector leadership and philanthropy. His publications include: “The Problem with Color-Blind Philanthropy,” (Harvard Business Review, 2020) “Racial Equity and Philanthropy: Disparities in Funding for Leaders of Color Leave Impact on the Table,” (Bridgespan.org, 2020) “Achieving Kindergarten Readiness for All Our Children: A Funder’s Guide to Early Childhood Development from Birth to Five,” (Bridgespan.org, 2015) "Transformative Scale: The Future of Growing What Works," (Stanford Social Innovation Review, 2014) "Scaling What Works: Implications for Philanthropists, Policymakers, and Nonprofit Leaders," (Bridgespan.org, April 2009) "Delivering on the Promise of Nonprofits," (Harvard Business Review, 2008), and “Should Nonprofits Seek Profits,” (Harvard Business Review, 2004). He is the author of the book, Franchise Organization, Harvard Business School Press.

Jeff has served on numerous nonprofit and for-profit boards, including Giving Tuesday and PolicyLink. He is the former board chair of Independent Sector. Prior to establishing Bridgespan, Jeff taught at Harvard Business School, where he was a member of the Organizational Behavior and the Social Enterprise Initiative faculty. Jeff began his career at Bain & Company. He is a graduate of Stanford University and received his MA in sociology and PhD in organizational behavior from Harvard University.

Stuart Feldman
co-ceo and chief scientist
Schmidt Futures

Stuart Feldman

Current Organization

co-ceo and chief scientist

Schmidt Futures

Stuart Feldman

co-ceo and chief scientist

Stuart Feldman is the Co-CEO and Chief Scientist of Schmidt Futures where he is responsible for the Scientific Knowledge programs, including creating fellowship programs, supporting nascent innovative research projects, and driving new platforms and larger research projects that aim to change the way scientific research is done.

Stuart did his academic work in astrophysics and mathematics and earned his AB at Princeton and his PhD at MIT. Stuart is best known for writing “Make” and other essential tools. He was awarded an honorary Doctor of Mathematics by the University of Waterloo. He is former President of ACM (Association for Computing Machinery) and former member of the board of directors of the AACSB (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business). He received the 2003 ACM Software System Award. He is a Fellow of the IEEE, ACM, and AAAS. He is Board Chair of the Center for the Minorities and Disabled in IT, serves on a number of university advisory boards and National Academy panels, and has served on a wide variety of government advisory committees.

Latanya Mapp
president and ceo
Global Fund for Women

Latanya Mapp

Current Organization

president and ceo

Global Fund for Women

Latanya Mapp

president and ceo

Latanya is the President and CEO of Global Fund for Women and serves on the Board of Directors for Global Fund for Women and Global Fund for Women UK. As a feminist fund, Global Fund for Women offers flexible support to a diverse group of partners – more than 5,000 groups across 175 countries so far – to create meaningful change that will last beyond our lifetimes.

Previously, she was the Executive Director of Planned Parenthood Global, the international arm of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, with regional and country offices in Africa and Latin America. She quadrupled the size of the program in four years to become one of the most innovative and sustainable global health organizations in the field.

Latanya worked for eight years as a human rights officer for the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and for 10 years with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Ms. Frett served as a delegate to the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995 and continues to fight for the human rights of women.

An attorney by training, she began her career at the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund in Washington, DC. She has received many honors and awards, including two Esteemed Meritorious Honor Awards from the U.S. government and the highest honor in civil service, the Superior Honor Award, from the U.S. State Department. Ms. Frett was one of 30 Foreign Service Officers honored with the Colin Powell Fellowship by then-Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Ms. Frett currently serves on the Board of Directors at Oxfam America and Management Sciences for Health and is an Adjunct Professor at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health. Ms. Frett is a Woodrow Wilson Fellow and author of four U.N. human rights reports and manuals. She is a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer and Alum of ICAP. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in government and politics, a master's in public policy, and a JD from the University of Maryland.

Valerie Taylor
director of the mathematics and computer science division
Argonne National Laboratory

Valerie Taylor

Current Organization

director of the mathematics and computer science division

Argonne National Laboratory

Valerie Taylor

director of the mathematics and computer science division

Valerie Taylor is the Director of the Mathematics and Computer Science Division at Argonne National Laboratory, a leading multidisciplinary science and engineering research center. She received her Ph.D. in electrical engineering and computer science from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1991. She then joined the faculty in the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Department at Northwestern University, where she was a member of the faculty for 11 years.  In 2003, she joined Texas A&M, where she served as head of the computer science and engineering department and senior associate dean of academic affairs in the College of Engineering and a Regents Professor and the Royce E. Wisenbaker Professor in the Department of Computer Science.

Her research is in the area of performance analysis and modeling of parallel, scientific applications.  Currently, she is focused on the areas of performance analysis, power analysis and resiliency.Valerie Taylor is a fellow of IEEE and ACM.

the
b-wel staff team

Dr. Wanjiru Kamau - Rutenberg
Founder and Executive director

Dr. Wanjiru Kamau - Rutenberg

Current role

Founder and Executive director

Black Women in Executive Leadership (B-WEL)

Dr. Wanjiru Kamau - Rutenberg

Founder and Executive director

Dr. Kamau-Rutenberg is the Founder and Executive Director of Black Women in Executive Leadership (B-WEL). Prior to B-WEL, Wanjiru served as the inaugural Executive Director of Rise, a program for young leaders, at Schmidt Futures.  She joined Schmidt Futures from African Women in Agricultural Research and Development (AWARD) which works towards inclusive, agriculture-driven prosperity for the African continent by strengthening the production and dissemination of more gender responsive agricultural research and innovation.


Before AWARD, Dr. Kamau-Rutenberg founded and served as Executive Director of Akili Dada, an award-winning leadership incubator that invests in high-achieving young women from under-resourced families, who are passionate about driving change in their communities. She was also an assistant professor of Politics at the University of San Francisco and a lecturer in International Relations at Hekima College, a constituent college of the Catholic University of Eastern Africa. Her academic research and teaching interests centered on African politics, gender, international relations, ethnicity, and democratization, and the role of technology in social activism.


Born in Kenya, Dr. Kamau-Rutenberg holds a PhD and an M.A. degree in Political Science from the University of Minnesota, as well as a Bachelor of Arts degree in Politics and a Doctorate (Honoris Causa) from Whitman College in Washington, U.S.A.


She has received widespread recognition for her work, including being honored as a White House Champion of Change by the Obama Administration, named one of the 100 Most Influential Africans by New African magazine, recognized as a Ford Foundation Champion of Democracy, awarded the United Nations Intercultural Innovation Award, and named one of Kenya’s Top 40 Women Under Age 40 and an Archbishop Desmond Tutu Fellow. 


Dr. Kamau-Rutenberg is a member of the selection committee of the prestigious Africa Food Prize. She also serves on the Boards of the Autodesk Foundation, the Syngenta Foundation, and Landesa, the world’s largest land rights organization.  She sits on the Council of the African Climate Foundation, as well as on the Malabo Montpellier Panel, a high-level panel of independent experts that supports African governments and civil society to identify and implement policies that enhance agriculture, food and nutrition security across the continent.  Her service also includes educational institutions as a member of the President’s Advisory Board of Whitman College in the USA, and the International Advisory Board of the Center for Development Research at the University of Bonn, Germany.

Jasmin Church
Director of Operations

Jasmin Church

Current role

Director of Operations

Black Women in Executive Leadership (B-WEL)

Jasmin Church

Director of Operations

Jasmin serves as the Director of Operations at Black Women in Executive Leadership (B-WEL), where she brings her expertise as a consultant specializing in operations for SMEs and nonprofits. Her dedication to social impact, particularly in gender equity and within Diaspora communities, has shaped her career path.

Before her current role at B-WEL, Jasmin was a consultant at The Bridgespan Group (TBG), where she focused on strategy for nonprofit and philanthropic clients across the United States. Notably, she spearheaded the "Africa Initiative" at TBG, relocating to Johannesburg, South Africa, to provide strategic guidance to nonprofits and NGOs across the continent. Jasmin's early curiosity about international development led her to the Princeton in Africa Fellowship, where she lived and worked in Kampala, Uganda for an infrastructure developer.

Simultaneously, Jasmin is a digital creator, specializing in Lifestyle & Travel content that highlights her experience living in Johannesburg and the joy of exploring the continent. Her passion lies in fostering connections within the Diaspora community and engaging in dialogue on identity. Recently, she was featured in South Africa’s Fairly Magazine sharing her story.

Jasmin holds an MBA from the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia, where she was both a Consortium and a Forte Fellow. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Spelman College.

Jessica Kihori
Community Manager

Jessica Kihori

Current role

Community Manager

Black Women in Executive Leadership (B-WEL)

Jessica Kihori

Community Manager

Jessica Kihori is a skilled marketing professional currently serving as the Community Manager at Black Women in Executive Leadership (B-WEL). With a strong background in client relationship management, project coordination, and brand management, she plays a crucial role in fostering a vibrant and engaged community of fellows within B-WEL. She is responsible for overseeing fellow communications ensuring that the community experience is enriching and inclusive.

Before joining B-WEL, Jessica worked as an Account Manager at Dentsu Creative, where she led client relationships for prominent brands to deliver impactful marketing campaigns. She also gained valuable experience at Ogilvy Africa, where she managed both local and multi-national clients.

Jessica holds a Bachelor of Commerce in Marketing from Daystar University and is pursuing her Master of Arts in Project Planning and Management from the University of Nairobi. She is also certified in Integrated Brand Communication and Digital Marketing.

Dr. Wanjiru Kamau - Rutenberg
Founder and Executive director

Dr. Wanjiru Kamau - Rutenberg

Current Organization

Founder and Executive director

Dr. Wanjiru Kamau - Rutenberg

Founder and Executive director

Dr. Kamau-Rutenberg is the Founder and Executive Director of Black Women in Executive Leadership (B-WEL). Prior to B-WEL, Wanjiru served as the inaugural Executive Director of Rise, a program for young leaders, at Schmidt Futures.  She joined Schmidt Futures from African Women in Agricultural Research and Development (AWARD) which works towards inclusive, agriculture-driven prosperity for the African continent by strengthening the production and dissemination of more gender responsive agricultural research and innovation.


Before AWARD, Dr. Kamau-Rutenberg founded and served as Executive Director of Akili Dada, an award-winning leadership incubator that invests in high-achieving young women from under-resourced families, who are passionate about driving change in their communities. She was also an assistant professor of Politics at the University of San Francisco and a lecturer in International Relations at Hekima College, a constituent college of the Catholic University of Eastern Africa. Her academic research and teaching interests centered on African politics, gender, international relations, ethnicity, and democratization, and the role of technology in social activism.


Born in Kenya, Dr. Kamau-Rutenberg holds a PhD and an M.A. degree in Political Science from the University of Minnesota, as well as a Bachelor of Arts degree in Politics and a Doctorate (Honoris Causa) from Whitman College in Washington, U.S.A.


She has received widespread recognition for her work, including being honored as a White House Champion of Change by the Obama Administration, named one of the 100 Most Influential Africans by New African magazine, recognized as a Ford Foundation Champion of Democracy, awarded the United Nations Intercultural Innovation Award, and named one of Kenya’s Top 40 Women Under Age 40 and an Archbishop Desmond Tutu Fellow. 


Dr. Kamau-Rutenberg is a member of the selection committee of the prestigious Africa Food Prize. She also serves on the Boards of the Autodesk Foundation, the Syngenta Foundation, and Landesa, the world’s largest land rights organization.  She sits on the Council of the African Climate Foundation, as well as on the Malabo Montpellier Panel, a high-level panel of independent experts that supports African governments and civil society to identify and implement policies that enhance agriculture, food and nutrition security across the continent.  Her service also includes educational institutions as a member of the President’s Advisory Board of Whitman College in the USA, and the International Advisory Board of the Center for Development Research at the University of Bonn, Germany.

Jasmin Church
Director of Operations

Jasmin Church

Current Organization

Director of Operations

Jasmin Church

Director of Operations

Jasmin serves as the Director of Operations at Black Women in Executive Leadership (B-WEL), where she brings her expertise as a consultant specializing in operations for SMEs and nonprofits. Her dedication to social impact, particularly in gender equity and within Diaspora communities, has shaped her career path.

Before her current role at B-WEL, Jasmin was a consultant at The Bridgespan Group (TBG), where she focused on strategy for nonprofit and philanthropic clients across the United States. Notably, she spearheaded the "Africa Initiative" at TBG, relocating to Johannesburg, South Africa, to provide strategic guidance to nonprofits and NGOs across the continent. Jasmin's early curiosity about international development led her to the Princeton in Africa Fellowship, where she lived and worked in Kampala, Uganda for an infrastructure developer.

Simultaneously, Jasmin is a digital creator, specializing in Lifestyle & Travel content that highlights her experience living in Johannesburg and the joy of exploring the continent. Her passion lies in fostering connections within the Diaspora community and engaging in dialogue on identity. Recently, she was featured in South Africa’s Fairly Magazine sharing her story.

Jasmin holds an MBA from the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia, where she was both a Consortium and a Forte Fellow. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Spelman College.

Jessica Kihori
Community Manager

Jessica Kihori

Current Organization

Community Manager

Jessica Kihori

Community Manager

Jessica Kihori is a skilled marketing professional currently serving as the Community Manager at Black Women in Executive Leadership (B-WEL). With a strong background in client relationship management, project coordination, and brand management, she plays a crucial role in fostering a vibrant and engaged community of fellows within B-WEL. She is responsible for overseeing fellow communications ensuring that the community experience is enriching and inclusive.

Before joining B-WEL, Jessica worked as an Account Manager at Dentsu Creative, where she led client relationships for prominent brands to deliver impactful marketing campaigns. She also gained valuable experience at Ogilvy Africa, where she managed both local and multi-national clients.

Jessica holds a Bachelor of Commerce in Marketing from Daystar University and is pursuing her Master of Arts in Project Planning and Management from the University of Nairobi. She is also certified in Integrated Brand Communication and Digital Marketing.

the b-wel
coaching team

Tynesha McHarris
Co-Founder, Black Feminist Fund

Tynesha McHarris

Current role

Co-Founder, Black Feminist Fund

Tynesha McHarris

Co-Founder, Black Feminist Fund

Tynesha engages her work fueled by the desire to see the ideals of truth and justice actualized in the lives and conditions of every person that she encounters. With almost two decades of experience promoting racial and gender justice, Tynesha has worked extensively with private foundations, individual donors, and social justice movements that challenge the systems and institutions that perpetuate harm and injustice.

Tynesha has worked extensively with private foundations, individual donors, and social justice movements that seek to challenge the systems and institutions that perpetuate systemic violence's. She has designed and managed portfolios focused on moving resources to racial, gender and youth justice efforts and has stewarded over 150 million dollars.

Currently, Tynesha is the co-founder of The Black Feminist Fund, an unprecedented funding vehicle dedicated to moving $100 million to Black feminist movements around the world.

Tynesha’s roots are in her early work leading programming for youth justice organizations. As a youth development and movement practitioner, she has expertise managing efforts for young people who’ve experienced criminalization and mass incarceration, as well as leading work for survivors of gender-based violence.

Tynesha is a member of Shake the Table, an initiative on progressive philanthropy, transformational leadership, and movement building housed at Panorama Global. She leads Black Harvest LLC, a Black feminist consultant practice that advises philanthropic leaders, institutions, and social justice movements. She also sits on the board of Grantmakers for Girls of Color, Just Beginnings Collaborative, and the Emergent Fund.

Banke Sotomi
Senior Consultant and Coach, Delta Alpha Psi

Banke Sotomi

Current role

Senior Consultant and Coach, Delta Alpha Psi

Banke Sotomi

Senior Consultant and Coach, Delta Alpha Psi

Banke Sotomi is a Senior Consultant specializing in designing and developing equity, diversity, and inclusion programs, mainly in the Professional Services industry. As a qualified coach, Banke is experienced in providing professional coaching at a group and individual level. Banke has also trained as a Contracts and Corporate Lawyer. She holds CIPD Level 7 in Human Resources Management, a Masters in International and Commercial Law, and a Degree in Business and Finance Law. Banke facilitates self-growth by helping her clients identify the core challenges and setbacks in their lives so that they can overcome them with confidence.

She specializes in creating personalized plans and providing tools to guide her clients forward and achieve their desired goals. As a certified Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) Practitioner, Cognitive Behavioural Practitioner, and NeuroLinguistic Programming Practitioner, Banke uses a combination of powerful mindset transformation work and specific goal-setting strategies that enable her clients to create achievable action plans toward their goals. 

Banke has impacted over 3000 women with her message, conducted over 200 hours of 1:1 coaching sessions, and directly helped 500 women from around the world make life-changing transformations through her coaching. She believes she was created for such a time like this, to help people come out of the shadows of their lives and live fully in and on purpose as beacons of light to the world.

Leanne Mair
CEO & Founder Benefactum Consulting

Leanne Mair

Current role

CEO & Founder Benefactum Consulting

Leanne Mair

CEO & Founder Benefactum Consulting

Leanne Mair is the CEO and Founder of Benefactum Consulting, a management consultancy company specialising in helping financial services companies take action in their commitments to gender and racial equity. Before launching her own company, she worked in asset management for over 14 years before moving into strategic management consultancy, focusing on increasing the retention of women in the workplace.

In recognition of her work, Leanne was named a LinkedIn Top Voice for Gender Equity 2023. Leveraging her expertise and experience, Leanne helps companies identify and navigate critical challenges and create meaningful impact by changing their governance, thus improving their culture.

Leanne is also the bestselling author of Closing the Gap - How to Include Black Women in Any Gender Equity Strategy.  She has been featured in Stylist, Forbes, Business Insider, ESG Clarity, Investment Week to contribute her views on gender equity, organisational transformation and DEI.

Naketa Ren Thigpen
CEO and Relationship Advisor, ThigPro Balance and Relationship Management Institute

Naketa Ren Thigpen

Current role

CEO and Relationship Advisor, ThigPro Balance and Relationship Management Institute

Naketa Ren Thigpen

CEO and Relationship Advisor, ThigPro Balance and Relationship Management Institute

Naketa is the #1 Balance (and) Relationship Advisor in the World, activating power couples and potent humans who privately identify with witty tongue-in-cheek humor as the lazy overachievers. Although most of her clients are founders, entrepreneurs, or entrepreneurial centered organizations, the commonality is that they all honor the need to rest and recharge with room for relationship bliss just as much as the desire to dominate audacious milestones.

After a successful career helping families push through trials caused by trauma, lost confidence, and communication challenges impacting intimacy within their relationships, Naketa broke barriers and glass ceilings when she decided to break-free from outdated expectations and binding patriarchal definitions that limit expansive growth. 

Double Board Certified & formerly trained as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, she architected her core professional skill set as a Psychotherapist, Trauma Specialist, Sexology and Relationship expert with strategically infused tenets of metaphysics, consulting, and coaching to set a new bar, creating ripples inside the personal development industry.

Featured on the Lifestyle Channel, International Radio shows, Award Winning Podcasts, honored by the NAACP as one of 104 Most Influential Black Women in Philadelphia, recipient of the National Association for Professional Women of Excellence Award, Naketa is a woman who wears many hats without apology or explanation.

Utilizing her distinct experiential, intuitive and highly energetic style, Naketa is the host of the Balance Boldly Podcast, The Lazy Overachiever Show, & International Best Selling Author of the book Selfish: Permission to Pause, Live, Love, and Laugh Your Way to Joy. A highly sought after Transformative Empowerment Speaker and CEO of ThigPro Balance (and) Relationship Management Institute, she has revolutionized how to create a thriving sustainable business while balancing work/life (and LOVE).

Rachel Nyaradzo Adams
Founder & Lead Practitioner, Narachi Leadership

Rachel Nyaradzo Adams

Current role

Founder & Lead Practitioner, Narachi Leadership

Rachel Nyaradzo Adams

Founder & Lead Practitioner, Narachi Leadership

Rachel is the founder of Narachi Leadership, a boutique consultancy aimed at equipping leaders with unique tools for transformational leadership. She merges research and practice from neuroscience, psychology, biomimicry and ontology to give clients a holistic opportunity for theirs and their followers' continued development. In this work she offers her expertise as a facilitator of leadership training, ontological coach, advisory partner and speaker. She works with corporates, entrepreneurs, teams and individuals.

Named one of the 100 Young Influential Africans of 2019, Rachel Nyaradzo Adams is driven by her commitment to empower leaders towards courageous and authentic leadership. She believes that Africa will only get the future it deserves if leaders can access their highest courage and most authentic power.

Rachel has received numerous awards for leadership and academic excellence including: the Desmond Tutu Leadership Fellowship; the Mandela Rhodes Scholarship; the Mellon Mays Leadership and Service Award; the Mellon Mays Scholarship and the Felix Scholarship.

She read for her Masters in African Studies at the University of Oxford (St. Anthony’s College) and for her Undergraduate and Honours degrees in Social Anthropology at the University of Cape Town.

Rachel’s ambition is to develop deep benches of leaders across Africa - leaders who can accelerate the transformation and inclusive development of the continent. She has spoken and trained on various platforms to executives and emerging leaders. These include the UN, World Bank, Obama Leaders, TEDx, L’Oreal Women in Science and EVE amongst others. Rachel sits on the boards of MINDS, Jakes Gerwel Fellowship, St. George’s College and Old Mutual Youth Fund.

She is a contributor for Inc.Africa.

Tynesha McHarris
Co-Founder, Black Feminist Fund

Tynesha McHarris

Current Organization

Co-Founder, Black Feminist Fund

Tynesha McHarris

Co-Founder, Black Feminist Fund

Tynesha engages her work fueled by the desire to see the ideals of truth and justice actualized in the lives and conditions of every person that she encounters. With almost two decades of experience promoting racial and gender justice, Tynesha has worked extensively with private foundations, individual donors, and social justice movements that challenge the systems and institutions that perpetuate harm and injustice.

Tynesha has worked extensively with private foundations, individual donors, and social justice movements that seek to challenge the systems and institutions that perpetuate systemic violence's. She has designed and managed portfolios focused on moving resources to racial, gender and youth justice efforts and has stewarded over 150 million dollars.

Currently, Tynesha is the co-founder of The Black Feminist Fund, an unprecedented funding vehicle dedicated to moving $100 million to Black feminist movements around the world.

Tynesha’s roots are in her early work leading programming for youth justice organizations. As a youth development and movement practitioner, she has expertise managing efforts for young people who’ve experienced criminalization and mass incarceration, as well as leading work for survivors of gender-based violence.

Tynesha is a member of Shake the Table, an initiative on progressive philanthropy, transformational leadership, and movement building housed at Panorama Global. She leads Black Harvest LLC, a Black feminist consultant practice that advises philanthropic leaders, institutions, and social justice movements. She also sits on the board of Grantmakers for Girls of Color, Just Beginnings Collaborative, and the Emergent Fund.

Banke Sotomi
Senior Consultant and Coach, Delta Alpha Psi

Banke Sotomi

Current Organization

Senior Consultant and Coach, Delta Alpha Psi

Banke Sotomi

Senior Consultant and Coach, Delta Alpha Psi

Banke Sotomi is a Senior Consultant specializing in designing and developing equity, diversity, and inclusion programs, mainly in the Professional Services industry. As a qualified coach, Banke is experienced in providing professional coaching at a group and individual level. Banke has also trained as a Contracts and Corporate Lawyer. She holds CIPD Level 7 in Human Resources Management, a Masters in International and Commercial Law, and a Degree in Business and Finance Law. Banke facilitates self-growth by helping her clients identify the core challenges and setbacks in their lives so that they can overcome them with confidence.

She specializes in creating personalized plans and providing tools to guide her clients forward and achieve their desired goals. As a certified Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) Practitioner, Cognitive Behavioural Practitioner, and NeuroLinguistic Programming Practitioner, Banke uses a combination of powerful mindset transformation work and specific goal-setting strategies that enable her clients to create achievable action plans toward their goals. 

Banke has impacted over 3000 women with her message, conducted over 200 hours of 1:1 coaching sessions, and directly helped 500 women from around the world make life-changing transformations through her coaching. She believes she was created for such a time like this, to help people come out of the shadows of their lives and live fully in and on purpose as beacons of light to the world.

Leanne Mair
CEO & Founder Benefactum Consulting

Leanne Mair

Current Organization

CEO & Founder Benefactum Consulting

Leanne Mair

CEO & Founder Benefactum Consulting

Leanne Mair is the CEO and Founder of Benefactum Consulting, a management consultancy company specialising in helping financial services companies take action in their commitments to gender and racial equity. Before launching her own company, she worked in asset management for over 14 years before moving into strategic management consultancy, focusing on increasing the retention of women in the workplace.

In recognition of her work, Leanne was named a LinkedIn Top Voice for Gender Equity 2023. Leveraging her expertise and experience, Leanne helps companies identify and navigate critical challenges and create meaningful impact by changing their governance, thus improving their culture.

Leanne is also the bestselling author of Closing the Gap - How to Include Black Women in Any Gender Equity Strategy.  She has been featured in Stylist, Forbes, Business Insider, ESG Clarity, Investment Week to contribute her views on gender equity, organisational transformation and DEI.

Naketa Ren Thigpen
CEO and Relationship Advisor, ThigPro Balance and Relationship Management Institute

Naketa Ren Thigpen

Current Organization

CEO and Relationship Advisor, ThigPro Balance and Relationship Management Institute

Naketa Ren Thigpen

CEO and Relationship Advisor, ThigPro Balance and Relationship Management Institute

Naketa is the #1 Balance (and) Relationship Advisor in the World, activating power couples and potent humans who privately identify with witty tongue-in-cheek humor as the lazy overachievers. Although most of her clients are founders, entrepreneurs, or entrepreneurial centered organizations, the commonality is that they all honor the need to rest and recharge with room for relationship bliss just as much as the desire to dominate audacious milestones.

After a successful career helping families push through trials caused by trauma, lost confidence, and communication challenges impacting intimacy within their relationships, Naketa broke barriers and glass ceilings when she decided to break-free from outdated expectations and binding patriarchal definitions that limit expansive growth. 

Double Board Certified & formerly trained as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, she architected her core professional skill set as a Psychotherapist, Trauma Specialist, Sexology and Relationship expert with strategically infused tenets of metaphysics, consulting, and coaching to set a new bar, creating ripples inside the personal development industry.

Featured on the Lifestyle Channel, International Radio shows, Award Winning Podcasts, honored by the NAACP as one of 104 Most Influential Black Women in Philadelphia, recipient of the National Association for Professional Women of Excellence Award, Naketa is a woman who wears many hats without apology or explanation.

Utilizing her distinct experiential, intuitive and highly energetic style, Naketa is the host of the Balance Boldly Podcast, The Lazy Overachiever Show, & International Best Selling Author of the book Selfish: Permission to Pause, Live, Love, and Laugh Your Way to Joy. A highly sought after Transformative Empowerment Speaker and CEO of ThigPro Balance (and) Relationship Management Institute, she has revolutionized how to create a thriving sustainable business while balancing work/life (and LOVE).

Rachel Nyaradzo Adams
Founder & Lead Practitioner, Narachi Leadership

Rachel Nyaradzo Adams

Current Organization

Founder & Lead Practitioner, Narachi Leadership

Rachel Nyaradzo Adams

Founder & Lead Practitioner, Narachi Leadership

Rachel is the founder of Narachi Leadership, a boutique consultancy aimed at equipping leaders with unique tools for transformational leadership. She merges research and practice from neuroscience, psychology, biomimicry and ontology to give clients a holistic opportunity for theirs and their followers' continued development. In this work she offers her expertise as a facilitator of leadership training, ontological coach, advisory partner and speaker. She works with corporates, entrepreneurs, teams and individuals.

Named one of the 100 Young Influential Africans of 2019, Rachel Nyaradzo Adams is driven by her commitment to empower leaders towards courageous and authentic leadership. She believes that Africa will only get the future it deserves if leaders can access their highest courage and most authentic power.

Rachel has received numerous awards for leadership and academic excellence including: the Desmond Tutu Leadership Fellowship; the Mandela Rhodes Scholarship; the Mellon Mays Leadership and Service Award; the Mellon Mays Scholarship and the Felix Scholarship.

She read for her Masters in African Studies at the University of Oxford (St. Anthony’s College) and for her Undergraduate and Honours degrees in Social Anthropology at the University of Cape Town.

Rachel’s ambition is to develop deep benches of leaders across Africa - leaders who can accelerate the transformation and inclusive development of the continent. She has spoken and trained on various platforms to executives and emerging leaders. These include the UN, World Bank, Obama Leaders, TEDx, L’Oreal Women in Science and EVE amongst others. Rachel sits on the boards of MINDS, Jakes Gerwel Fellowship, St. George’s College and Old Mutual Youth Fund.

She is a contributor for Inc.Africa.