Vanessa Peña

Biography

Vanessa is a proud young Ecuadorian with a strong international background. Since she was 16 she has been living and studying in different places like Switzerland, London, Paris, and the United States. Right now, she resides in Ecuador as her mission is to make an impact in Latin America. Currently, she is the director of the global fellowship at Kairos, a NYC based organization focused on building companies that make life more affordable. She is also the co-founder and CEO of Aweik, a community that promotes impact entrepreneurship in Latin America, with a strong presence in Ecuador and Colombia.

Vanessa graduated from Northeastern University with a B.A in Economics and International Affairs. Some of her past experiences range from sales and marketing for a tech company in New York, consulting for a microfinance in India, to researching and publishing an academic report on the state of impact investing in Latin America. Vanessa is the recipient of the American Ecuadorian Chamber “Entrepreneurship” merit award. She has given a talk on conscious entrepreneurship at TEDx Cuenca and is a Facebook Community Leader Fellow.