Press Releases

Announcing The First Cohort Of Grameen Foundation's Leadership Advisory Council

Washington, DC, 10/21/2024 – In a bold step to drive systemic change for women around the world, Grameen Foundation is proud to announce the launch of its Leadership Advisory Council. This newly formed Council will focus on scaling and growing programs that drive transformative shifts for women, addressing the critical need for impactful, sustainable change that will end poverty in our lifetime.

The Leadership Advisory Council brings together a diverse group of global experts, innovators, and thought leaders with a shared commitment to reimagining systems for women. The Council will support initiatives that transform financial, educational, and technological landscapes, ensuring inclusive opportunities and long-term societal shifts.

Zubaida Bai, CEO of Grameen Foundation, emphasized the significance of this launch:
“We are at a pivotal moment. Women are still disproportionately excluded from the systems that drive progress and innovation, to the detriment of us all. Our Leadership Advisory Council is designed to not just address barriers, but to reimagine the structures that have held women back for too long. Together, we will set the example of what inclusive leadership looks like and ensure that every program we scale has the power to change systems at their core.”

Key areas of focus for the Leadership Advisory Council include:

• Financial Inclusion and Economic Strengthening: Scaling programs that enable women to access financial services, build businesses, and achieve agency and economic independence.
• Education and Skill Development: Driving initiatives that provide women with the tools and training needed to thrive in the digital economy and other emerging sectors.
• Advancing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: Investments in women provide the fastest and most sustainable solutions for achieving rapid progress towards the UNSDGs.

With a strategic vision to impact millions of women globally, the Council will work closely with Grameen Foundation to ensure that the initiatives not only foster innovation but also create sustainable, far-reaching change.

Grameen Foundation is honored to welcome Council members: Pankaj Agarwal, Fund Manager, ReCubed Capital; Emily Bowers, Business Strategist, AI at Google; Josephine Holmes Philanthropist and Silicon Valley Technical Writer; Gabriel Jarrosson, Managing Partner, Lobster Capital; Karen Krause; Kevin Lander, Managing Director, JPMorgan Chase; Sheila Leatherman, Professor, The University of North Carolina; Loreal LeGate, Co-founder and CEO, Rising Lotus Foundation; Dr. Katharine Modisett, Physician, Anne Muhlethaler, Founder, AVM Consulting; Madhuri Rao, Senior Vice President Finance & Analytics, PRG; Annie Ryu, CEO & Founder, The Jackfruit Company and jack & annie's; Vidya Satchit, Managing Director & Global Strategist, Edelman; Marianne Udow Phillips, Senior Advisor, Center for Health and Research Transformation (CHRT), University of Michigan; Puja Vohra, Executive Vice President, Marketing, Paramount+ and SHOWTIME.

About Grameen Foundation:
Grameen is a global non-profit focused on ending poverty by enabling systemic change for women and girls at the intersection of gender, climate, and financial inclusion. Investing in women through the HER Framework sees sustainable change realized and achieves rapid progress towards our United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

For more information, please contact: Rebecca Abbey
rabbey@grameenfoundation.org