Innovators In Action Masterclass — Social Entrepreneurs in Health and Environment

Speakers

• Vera Cordeiro

  Speaker

  Founder & Chairwoman of the Board, Instituto Dara

  Founder and Chairwoman - Vera Cordeiro graduated in medicine from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) in 1975. From 1978 to 1998, she worked at Hospital da Lagoa, a Federal Hospital in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, originally working as a general practitioner. She founded and led the Psychosomatics Department in 1979. In 1991, she founded Instituto Dara (former Associação Saúde Criança), a social organization that uses a pioneering methodology to promote the well-being of families in situations of social vulnerability, with long-term results, as proven by researchers at Georgetown University in 2013. Instituto Dara has been awarded among the many prizes received in Brazil and abroad Dr. Vera is an Ashoka fellow, Avina leader, Social Entrepreneur of Schwab Foundation andSkoll awardee. Honorary Member of the Ashoka World Council. Member of the Academy of Medicine of Rio de Janeiro and former board member of the PATH: A Catalyst for Global Health from 2005 to 2011.

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• Mindy Lubber

  Speaker

  Chief Executive Officer and President, Ceres

  Mindy Lubber is the CEO and President of the sustainability nonprofit organization Ceres. She has been at the helm since 2003, and under her leadership, the organization and its powerful networks have grown significantly in size and influence. As a well-known global thought leader, Lubber has inspired capital market leaders to consider all material financial risks and opportunities—including those related to climate change, water scarcity and nature loss—in decision-making. She has also received numerous awards and recognitions for her leadership including the ’Champions of the Earth award, the UN's highest environmental honor; the Barron’s Magazine’s annual list of the 100 most influential women in U.S. finance every year since 2020; the Climate Visionary Award from the Earth Day Network; the Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship from the Skoll Foundation; and the Nonprofit Times 2022 Power & Influence Top 50.

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• Blaise Judja-Sato

  Speaker

  Founder and Chairman of the Board of Directors, VillageReach

  Born in Cameroon, Blaise Judja-Sato was a successful U.S. businessman until a devastating flood in Mozambique prompted his return to Africa. While helping with relief efforts, he saw both the suffering of the rural poor and the frustration of nongovernmental organizations that could not get medicines across the “last mile” of remote country to those in need. Judja-Sato founded VillageReach (VR) because he recognized that the solution involved building a reliable “pipeline” infrastructure. He also realized that these last-mile barriers affected industries and others who might be willing to pay into a shared system that benefited everyone. Blaise remains on the board of VillageReach however, over the past few years, he has increasingly been dedicating resources to the development of innovative, scalable solutions to help: (1) raise awareness on the world’s most pressing challenges; and (2) enable donors, and the advisors and institutions serving them, to become more strategic and effective in reaching their philanthropic objectives. For more information, please contact him at bjsato@gmail.com

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• Barry Coleman

  Speaker

  Co-founder, Riders for Health

  First degree: philosophy. Post-graduate: law. First career: journalism: The Guardian, BBC etc. Second: business/corporate communication consultant. Third (and final?!) devloping systems for reliable transport for health-care delivery in Africa.

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• Andrea Coleman

  Speaker

  Founder and board, Riders for Health

  Andrea Coleman is co-founder of Riders for Health and founder of Two Wheels for Life. She is life-long motorcyclist and co-founded Riders with Barry Coleman, her husband, and motorcycle sporting hero, Randy Mamola in 1996. She has worked for 30 years to show that a systematic approach to managing motorcycles and motorised vehicles in Africa means health care can be delivered – predictably and reliably, however harsh the conditions or however remote the community - money saved and people employed and trained to a very high standard. Andrea’s motorcycle racing life and her work in promotion and sports management provided her with a practical outlook and a set of skills that have helped to guide the financial and advocacy development of the work of Riders for Health. In 2013 Andrea won the Women of the Year Award, sponsored by Barclays Bank for her part in revolutionising medical provision across Africa. In 2006 she won the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Award. Andrea was select

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