Lunchtime Delegate-Led Discussions

Speakers

• Alexis de Belloy

  CEO, Tendrel

  As the newly appointed CEO of Tendrel, Alexis is focused on serving social entrepreneurs by providing them with a vibrant global professional association. Frequent connection and open exchange allow Tendrel members to support each other and build the underlying advocacy infrastructure necessary to shape the way the world approaches social change. Alexis has over 15 years of experience starting and growing global Internet companies. He served as Chief Revenue Officer at Vinted, a social/mobile peer-to-peer clothing marketplace, Executive in Residence at Accel Partners, a leading venture capital firm, SVP at HomeAway, the world's leading online marketplace for the vacation rental industry, GM at Match.com and head of Business Development at eBay Europe. In addition, Alexis was the founder and CEO of Fotango, an online photo business acquired by Canon. Prior to joining Tendrel, Alexis was Entrepreneur in Residence at the Skoll Global Threats Fund, leveraging mobile technology and crowd participation to help prevent pandemics. Alexis started his career in manufacturing, working for Alcatel's optical fiber cable division in France and China. Alexis holds mechanical and industrial engineering degree from ICAM in France and an MBA from Stanford University. In his off time, Alexis can be found coaching a ski team, kiteboarding, advising early-stage internet companies or simply baking bread for his 4 children.

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• Tim Rann

  Senior Advisor, Social Ventures, Mercy Corps

  I am an entrepreneur and investor focused on emerging markets with experience leading businesses and investment funds that endeavor to address major social inequalities and climate change. I bring over a decade of experience in the field with 30+ emerging markets startup investments across the capital continuum and four exits to-date. I am the Managing Partner at Mercy Corps Ventures, a seed stage impact fund that invests up to $500,000 (equity / quasi equity) in innovative start-ups. I manage the full investment cycle for our fund in Latam, SS Africa and SE Asia. My particular focus is on Agriculture, including AgTech, AgFinTech, Traceability / Provenance, Geospatial Tech, and Precision Ag. Prior to joining Mercy Corps to launch the fund, I led ventures in Cambodia, Vietnam, and Afghanistan, including Joma Bakery Cafe, Hagar Social Enterprise Group and Artillery Group. I also advised impact investment funds and social businesses in Southern Africa, East Africa and Southeast Asia, including Insitor Fund, Inkomoko, Bertha Philanthropy Fund and Uberis Capital. After 10+ years abroad, I am now based in Washington, DC.

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• Shai Reshef

  President, University of the People

  Shai Reshef is President of University of the People (UoPeople) – the world’s first non-profit, tuition-free, accredited American online university, which is dedicated to opening access to higher education globally. President Reshef is an educational entrepreneur, with over 25 years of experience in the international education market. President Reshef has been widely recognized for his work with UoPeople, including being named one of Fast Company’s 100 Most Creative People in Business; selected by OneWorld as one of its ‘People of 2009'; awarded an Ashoka fellowship; joined UN-GAID as a High-level Adviser; granted membership in the Clinton Global Initiative; granted an RSA Fellowship; selected by The Huffington Post as the Ultimate Game Changer in Education; nominated as one of Wired Magazine’s 50 People Changing the World; and selected as a Top Global Thinker by Foreign Policy Magazine. Recently, he was awarded the Prince’s Prize for Innovative Philanthropy by Prince Albert II of Monaco. Before founding University of the People, Reshef directed KIT e-learning, the first online university in Europe. His TED Talk: “An Ultra-Low-Cost College Degree” has been viewed by over 4 million people. More at www.uopeople.edu

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• Alexis Bonnell

  Chief, Applied Innovation & Acceleration, US Global Development Lab

  Over her career, Bonnell has developed and delivered over a billion dollars of humanitarian and development programming in over 25 conflict, post-conflict and emergency countries, in almost every sector from education to stabilization, for more than 30 international bilateral donors, 10 U.N. agencies, the military and the private sector. She has held positions with every side of development including: implementers, donors, policy makers and beneficiaries. With more than 20 years of experience in management and communications, Bonnell has worked with: Wall Street and “dot.coms,” and on projects such as the Middle East Peace Plan, Afghan and Iraqi elections, tsunami response, Pakistan and Haiti earthquakes, construction projects, and major logistics operations. After years of working overseas, Bonnell returned to the United States with USAID as the senior adviser on business transformation and knowledge management. She then served as the Chief of Engagement for the Office of Education, where she helped shape the USAID education strategy. Bonnell was a founding senior member of the U.S. Global Development Lab at USAID. Most recently, Bonnell served as the Division Chief for Applied Innovation and the Office Director for Engagement and Communications in the Lab. She has supported over 9 Grand Challenges and Prizes, Development Innovation Ventures, many prize, hackathon, and other internal and external innovation approaches. Bonnell was the creator and founder of the Global Innovation Exchange and Global Innovation Week. Bonnell has been recognized by teams inside USAID, across the Interagency, development and the private sector for actively building coalitions around innovative approaches. Bonnell believes that first and foremost innovation is "A voracious appetite for excellence" and it is the job of every person to innovate. She is honored to work hand in hand evryday at USAID with some of the most innovative people on earth.

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• Paul Rice

  Founder & CEO, Fair Trade USA

  Since launching the Fair Trade Certified™ label in 1998, Paul has helped establish Fair Trade as one of the fastest growing segments of the food and apparel industries. To date, Fair Trade USA has partnered with over 1,500 leading companies, including Green Mountain, Nespresso, Whole Foods, Costco, Kroger, and Target. Fair Trade USA now certifies coffee, tea, cocoa, sugar, coconut, fresh produce, and seafood. Through groundbreaking partnerships with Patagonia, Athleta, West Elm and J. Crew, Fair Trade has begun certifying apparel and home goods. In 2022, consumer recognition of the Fair Trade Certified label hit 65%. To date, Fair Trade USA and its partners have generated over $1 billion in additional income for farmers and workers in 51 countries, allowing them to care for the environment and steadily improve their livelihoods. Paul has been named Ethical Corporation’s 2019 Business Leader of the Year and is a four-time winner of Fast Company magazine’s Social Capitalist of the Year.

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• Pat Mitchell

  Co-Founder/Editorial Director TEDWomen; Managing Partner, Connected Women Leaders, Pat Mitchell Media

  Throughout her career as an award-winning journalist, producer and media executive, Pat Mitchell broke new ground for women as the first woman President of PBS and of CNN Productions. Today, Pat is a co-founder, host and curator for TEDWomen and co-founder and managing partner of ConnectedWomenLeaders, a cohort of global women leaders, across generations and geography, who are launching a global, women-led campaign for climate justice titled Project Dandelion. She is Chair Emeritus of the Sundance Institute and just received the Vanguard Award for philanthropy. She also serves on the board of The Skoll Foundation, Participant Media, The Woodruff Arts Center, and the VDAY movement to end violence; she’s also a member of CARE’s Global Advisory Council and Chair Emeritus of the Women’s Media Center which established an annual award in her name. In her memoir, “Becoming a Dangerous Woman,” Mitchell shares her journey as a frontline advocate for a just, equitable and sustainable world.

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• Clara Barby

  Partner, Bridges Fund Management

  At Bridges Fund Management, Clara takes the lead on the fund’s Impact strategy throughout the investment cycle – from defining the strategy and process for selecting impact investments, to engaging with portfolio companies to create additional value through environmental and social factors, to tracking and reporting results to investors and other stakeholders. In addition to growing impact through our own funds, Clara leads Impact+, Bridges’ advisory efforts to promote the growth of the wider sustainable and impact investment sector. Prior to Bridges, Clara focused her career on investing in innovative high-impact businesses – most recently on the management team of AyurVAID Hospitals, an India-based healthcare chain and Acumen Fund portfolio company. Clara previously worked for Acumen Fund’s Capital Markets team in New York where she played a lead role in designing an innovative investment vehicle and later co-led the Acumen energy portfolio in India. Before Acumen, Clara worked in Bogota, promoting socially responsible investment. Clara holds a BA (Hons) in Greats from Oxford University and an MBA from INSEAD.

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• Beto Verissimo

  Senior Researcher, Imazon

  Beto Veríssimo is a co-founder and associate researcher at Imazon, a think and do tank in the Brazilian Amazon. He is also co-founder of Amazon Center for Entrepreneurship. Moreover, he is Co-Director of Amazon 2030 Program, an initiative that seeks to develop an action plan for sustainable development of the Brazilian Amazon and Director of Social Progress Brazil. He received several awards including the 2010 Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship. Verissimo has a graduate degree in Agriculture by Federal University of Brazilian Amazon and Ecology by Penn State University.

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• Jim Bildner

  Discussion lead

  CEO, Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation

  Jim Bildner is the CEO of the Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation (www.drkfoundation.org), one of the largest venture philanthropy firms in the world. DRK has made more than 210 investments in early stage non-profit and for-profit social enterprises working to solve complex societal issues including systemic poverty, food and water insecurity, access to healthcare and economic opportunities, sanitation, homelessness, criminal justice, social justice and climate change and adaptation strategies. In the aggregate, its portfolio organizations have directly impacted more than 300 million lives. He is also an Adjunct Lecturer in Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School. He is a trustee of The Kresge Foundation and chair of its Investment Committee and serves on the boards of a number of other non profit and for profit organizations.

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