Meet the Changemakers
The MenCare Changemakers are influential stakeholders from business, the media, culture, civil society, governments and more, working together to understand how we achieve health and wellbeing for men and boys together with women and girls, and how to solve some of the biggest problems facing men, boys, and manhood around the world today.
The Changemakers
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Anthea Spinks
Director of Community Development, City of Melbourne
Anthea Spinks
Director of Community Development, City of Melbourne
Anthea Spinks is the Director of Community Development with extensive experience leading place‑based, people‑centred initiatives. Her career spans local government and international aid and development, where she worked on programs focused on equity, capacity‑building, and humanitarian disasters and community resilience across diverse contexts. Anthea is known for her collaborative leadership style and strong partnership approach. She brings a global perspective to local challenges, translating complex community needs into practical outcomes. Anthea is deeply committed to strengthening social connection and long‑term community wellbeing.
“I’ve been surrounded by amazing changemakers my whole life so I know that when we come together and stand in solidarity we can make a difference, we can build brighter, better and more equal communities.”
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Cathy Morgan
Director of Secondary Prevention, England Department of Health and Social Care
Cathy Morgan
Director of Secondary Prevention, England Department of Health and Social Care
Cathy Morgan is a Senior Civil Servant and Director of Secondary Prevention at the Department of Health and Social Care in England. She brings 30 years’ experience across the UK Civil Service, with a career focused on shaping health and social care policy through major legislative, strategy and delivery roles. Cathy leads England’s first-ever Men’s Health Strategy, working across central and local government, the NHS, the voluntary and community sector, academia and industry to drive system-wide change and reduce health inequalities.
Cathy also leads the implementation of England’s HIV Action Plan which aims to eradicate the transmission of HIV in England by 2030 and has responsibility for a portfolio of analytical and behavioural science programmes focused on preventing ill health alongside multiple policy teams delivering key government priorities, including cardiometabolic health, sexual and reproductive health, and screening. She lives in Suffolk, England, with her husband, daughter and two sons.
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Laura Tami Leal
Secretary for Women’s Affairs, City of Bogotá
Laura Tami Leal
Secretary for Women’s Affairs, City of Bogotá
Laura Tami Leal is the Secretary for Women’s Affairs of Bogotá. She is a lawyer with more than 15 years of experience across the public and private sectors, specializing in administrative law, institutional management, and the protection of human rights. As Secretary for Women’s Affairs of Bogotá, she has led the development and implementation of public policies with gender and intersectional approaches, the governance and legal strategy of Bogotá’s District Care System, and comprehensive strategies for the prevention, response, and prosecution of violence against women. She has also advised high-level government decision-making processes and strategic initiatives that integrate legal, administrative, and financial management with the achievement of institutional goals and public policy outcomes.“We work to advance the rights of women in Bogotá, driven by the conviction that preventing gender-based violence requires transforming the social norms, stereotypes, and beliefs that sustain it. That is why we place care, autonomy, and cultural transformation at the center of our work — showing up where women need us most to help build a safer, more equal city.”
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Odanga Madung
Co-Founder and Managing Director, Odipo Dev
Odanga Madung
Co-Founder and Managing Director, Odipo Dev
Odanga Madung is a Kenyan data journalist and researcher whose work examines how digital platforms reshape power, democracy, and public accountability. He is the co-founder and Managing Director of Odipo Dev, a Nairobi-based media and impact think tank, and has written for outlets including The Guardian, WIRED and CNN on disinformation, platform governance, and the political economy of attention. His focus is strengthening the integrity of the information environment and understanding how media systems shape democratic outcomes—particularly from the vantage point of the Global South.
He was also a Mozilla Fellow and has helped surface and challenge disinformation-for-hire ecosystems and advance real-world accountability conversations with major tech platforms. He’s also currently on the boards of DW Akademie and Amnesty International Kenya.
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Jordan Stephens
Creative, Musician, Author
Jordan Stephens
Creative, Musician, Author
Jordan Stephens is a creative, musician, and author, best known as one half of the chart-topping duo Rizzle Kicks. Jordan is also an established actor, having made his debut as the lead in the London stage production of Entertaining Mr Sloane. On television, he has appeared in series such as The Ex-Wife (for two seasons), Starstruck, and Catastrophe, alongside film roles in Teen Spirit and Star Wars: Rogue One. He also hosted the ITV2 show Don’t Hate The Playaz for four series.
By speaking openly about his own mental health struggles, Jordan has become a leading voice in raising awareness and tackling stigma. His #IAMWHOLE mental health campaign reached over 120 million people online and was mentioned in the UK Parliament. He published a children’s book, The Missing Piece, a personally inspired story about joy and connection, and his first book for adults, Avoidance, Drugs, Heartbreak and Dogs.
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Dr. Celmário Castro Brandão
Coordinator: Men’s Healthcare, Brazilian Ministry of Health
Dr. Celmário Castro Brandão
Coordinator: Men’s Healthcare, Brazilian Ministry of Health
Coordinator of the Coordination for Men’s Health Care at the Brazilian Ministry of Health (COSAH/DGCI/SAPS/MS), leading the nationwide implementation of the National Policy for Comprehensive Men’s Health Care, with a particular focus on the pillars of violence prevention, sexual health, reproductive health, and fatherhood and care. He possesses 16 years of experience in the management of the Unified Health System (SUS) and serves as a federal public servant—specifically, a Technologist in Public Health Policy Management. He holds a Ph.D. in Collective Health from the University of Brasília (UnB), where his research analyzed Federal Governance in Primary Health Care Management during the response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil; a Master’s degree in Collective Health from the same university, focusing on Management Capacity within Municipal Health Secretariats; a postgraduate specialization in Collective Health with a concentration in Primary Health Care Management from the Institute of Collective Health (ISC/UFBA); a postgraduate specialization in Microbiology from the Faculty of Pharmacy at UFBA; and a Bachelor’s degree in Pharmacy from UFBA.
“Para conhecer o amor, os homens precisam ser capazes de abrir mão da vontade de dominar . Precisam ser capazes de escolher a vida em vez da morte. Precisam estar dispostos a mudar.” – bell hooks
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Seán Cooke
Chief Executive Officer, Men’s Development Network
Seán Cooke
Chief Executive Officer, Men’s Development Network
Seán Cooke is the Chief Executive Officer of the Men’s Development Network (MDN)and has been since October 2018. MDN is a developmental organisation working with and engaging men and boys on their health, wellbeing, gender equality and ending gender-based violence. Sean has over 30 years’ experience working in Community and Voluntary sector in Ireland, both at front line and senior management level.
Previous experiences include working in Youth and Community programmes in some of the most disadvantage communities in Ireland. Seán is passionate on communicating the transformational model to engaging men and boys ensuring an invitational and a strengths-based approach is applied.
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Priscilla Souza
Museum Educator, Museu de Arte do Rio (MAR)
Priscilla Souza
Museum Educator, Museu de Arte do Rio (MAR)
Priscilla is Black, lesbian woman. A museum educator for over 10 years, she has worked at the Rio Art Museum since 2014. She develops and organizes projects, courses, and seminars focused on the relationship between art and education through cultural mediation and educational practices intersected by racial, gender, and sexuality relations. She develops art and education projects in collaboration with the school community and cultural institutions.
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Adriana Phillips Ligiero
Project Manager (Gerente de Projeto), Brazil’s National Secretariat for Care and Family Policy
Adriana Phillips Ligiero
Project Manager (Gerente de Projeto), Brazil’s National Secretariat for Care and Family Policy
Adriana Ligiero has been a specialist in public policy and government management since 2004, with extensive experience in social policy and innovation in the public sector. She currently works in the Office of the National Secretariat for the Care and Family Policy, at the Ministry of Social Development and Assistance, Family and Fight Against Hunger of Brazil (MDS), where she serves as advisor and acting chief of staff to the National Secretary, focusing on governance and special projects. She has extensive experience leading teams and facilitating collaborative processes to develop public solutions, with experience in areas such as care, labor and employment, continuing education, digital government, public procurement, and reducing bureaucracy.
“Care work is the foundation of our society, and it should be a shared responsibility. Our current care model is unequal, unfair, and unsustainable. We urgently need to innovate, and the best way to do so is by working together.”
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Dr. Derek M. Griffith
Chairman, Global Action on Men’s Health
Dr. Derek M. Griffith
Chairman, Global Action on Men’s Health
Dr. Derek M. Griffith is the Risa Lavizzo-Mourey Population Health and Health Equity University Professor at the University of Pennsylvania, where he also serves as Senior Advisor on Health Equity and Anti-Racism. A leading scholar on racial, ethnic, and gender equity in health, he specializes in community-based interventions to advance Black men’s health and intersectional approaches to health policy. Dr. Griffith chairs Global Action on Men’s Health and edits the International Journal of Men’s Social and Community Health. Widely published and honored, his work bridges research, policy, and practice to dismantle structural racism and promote health equity globally.
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Giovanna Lauro
Deputy Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Equimundo
Giovanna Lauro
Deputy Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Equimundo
Giovanna has more than 20 years of experience advancing gender equality and preventing gender-based violence, with a focus on transforming harmful masculinities. As Equimundo’s Deputy CEO, she leads global research and program strategy. Previously, she was Associate Director of the Women and Population Programme at the United Nations Foundation and conducted research at the London School of Economics. A native of Italy, Giovanna is fluent in English, French, and Spanish, and serves as a Court Appointed Special Advocate for foster youth in the United States.
“Let’s choose care over fear; speaking up for equality over silence; and let’s do it together!”
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Laura Addati
Global Care Policy Specialist, International Labour Organization (ILO)
Laura Addati
Global Care Policy Specialist, International Labour Organization (ILO)
Laura Addati leads global policy research and technical assistance on care policies and gender equality at work at the ILO, the only tripartite specialized agency of the United Nations, bringing together governments, employers, and workers to advance decent work and social justice. She contributed to the ILO’s work leading to the adoption of the Resolution concerning decent work and the care economy in 2024 and coordinates implementation of its follow-up Plan of Action.
Laura has more than 20 years of experience across the UN system at global and regional levels in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Europe. She has authored major ILO reports, policy tools, and initiatives on the care economy, maternity protection, parental leave, childcare, work-family policies, and decent work for care workers, in support of gender equality, labour rights, social protection and the world of work.
“Care work, paid and unpaid, is essential to all other work. It is the foundation of decent work, equality, and social justice. When care is valued, shared, and supported, everyone thrives. It is time to place care at the centre of policies and workplaces.”
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Colette Bailey
Chief Executive Officer (CEO), WOW – Women of the World
Colette Bailey
Chief Executive Officer (CEO), WOW – Women of the World
Colette is CEO at WOW – Women of the World and a creative producer, with an established history and over 25 years experience of leading SME organisations and teams in the UK. Previously she was Artistic Director and CEO of Metal (2002-2021) and Managing Director at the Royal Society of British Sculptors (1998-2022). Her work has always been purpose-driven, creating arts programmes that are underpinned by social change, community participation and nurturing talent within people of all ages.
She is a passionate advocate for the transformational power of the arts to create change – for both people and places – and equally passionate that access to culture should be available to everyone. All her work to date has been to find ways to advocate for, develop and deliver this.
“Time and again I have seen first hand how the arts can transform possibilities for people, places and ideas. A warm welcome; exposure to a multitude of stories; feeling represented; and multiple entry points for getting involved can really begin to shift embedded behaviour, foster understanding and change hearts and minds in a way that traditional education or doctrine does not.”
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Ana Moreno
Technical Secretary, Global Alliance for Care
Ana Moreno
Technical Secretary, Global Alliance for Care
Ana Moreno is a social anthropologist and journalist with over 30 years of experience in public policy, international, and local sustainable development projects. She specializes in defining and implementing collaboration platforms and multi-stakeholder alliances, participating in intergovernmental processes, and designing advocacy and outreach strategies for sustainable development and resource mobilization.
Notable roles include serving as Coordinator for the United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III) and the UN-Habitat World Urban Forum (2012-2018), as well as Director of the UN-Habitat Office for Brunei-Darussalam, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand. Additionally, she has held key positions with the Barcelona City Council, Spain’s Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Trade, and the Ministry of Economy and Finance.
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Jonathan Njus
Senior Program Officer, W.K. Kellogg Foundation
Jonathan Njus
Senior Program Officer, W.K. Kellogg Foundation
Jonathan Njus is a Senior Program Officer for the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, whose mission is to support families and communities in improving life outcomes for vulnerable children. Jonathan serves on the national leadership team, who guide strategy and grantmaking to advance more equitable food, health, education and employment access for working families. He also leads the Expanding Equity initiative for the foundation, which is partnering with private sector companies to build workplaces that are inclusive of all workers.
Prior to joining the foundation, Jonathan was appointed to the Obama Administration, where he served as a senior policy advisor for the U.S. Department of Labor, helping to strengthen low-wage workers’ rights and protections. His career has been grounded in ensuring that workplaces are fair and safe for all workers, especially women, and elevating the role of men as allies toward that end.
“Men are key to building a more caring and less violent world by simply showing up better in their own individual spheres of influence.”
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Diana Rodríguez Franco
Special Advisor on Gender and Diversity to the President, Inter-American Development Bank
Diana Rodríguez Franco
Special Advisor on Gender and Diversity to the President, Inter-American Development Bank
Diana Rodríguez Franco is the Special Advisor on Gender and Diversity to the President of the Inter-American Development Bank. She brings nearly 20 years of experience advancing gender equality and human rights across Latin America, combining a strong academic background in sociology, law, and economics with hands-on leadership in public policy and social innovation. Diana has a proven track record of designing and driving transformative initiatives for women’s rights and social justice in both governmental and non-governmental settings. As Secretary for Women’s Affairs for the city of Bogotá (2020–2023), she conceived and implemented innovative, internationally recognized public policies to address the unpaid care burden—most notably the Care Blocks (Manzanas del Cuidado)—and to respond to gender-based violence. During her tenure, she also led the mainstreaming of a gender perspective across city government and forged strategic partnerships with private-sector stakeholders. Previously, Diana served as Deputy Director of Dejusticia, a leading non-profit legal organization promoting human rights and the rule of law in Colombia and across Latin America. Diana holds a PhD in Sociology from Northwestern University, as well as a law degree (Juris Doctor) and a degree in Economics from Universidad de los Andes in Bogotá. She is a member of the LSE Cities Advisory Board and has been recognized as one of Colombia’s 100 New Leaders.
“I want a world where investing in care — the policies, the services, the people — is treated as seriously as a development and economic priority as investing in roads, energy, and AI”.
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Dr. Alex Blower
Founder, Boys’ Impact
Dr. Alex Blower
Founder, Boys’ Impact
Dr. Blower is an author, researcher and global thought leader on issues related to masculinity, inequality and education. Since completing his doctoral research which focused inequality and access to university for white working-class boys in the West Midlands in 2020, he has been a keynote speaker at national and international conferences, talking on issues related to inequality and the experience of young working-class men in education. In 2023, he founded Boys’ Impact, a UK-wide network of educators who are committed to taking an evidence-based approach in closing the gap in educational outcomes for young men who are eligible for Free School Meals. Regularly commenting on issues related to masculinity and inequality in education for media outlets such as the BBC, LBC and The Times, his first book, Lost Boys: How Education is Failing Young Working-Class Men, was published last summer.
“To truly protect and honour the emotional lives of boys we must challenge the patriarchal culture. And until that culture changes we must create subcultures, the sanctuaries where boys can learn who they are uniquely, without being forced to conform to patriarchal masculine visions. To love boys rightly we must value their inner lives enough to construct worlds, both private and public, where their right to wholeness can be consistently celebrated and affirmed, where their need to love and be loved can be fulfilled”. – bell hooks
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Declan Ottaro
International Development Leader of Operations, Ushahidi
Declan Ottaro
International Development Leader of Operations, Ushahidi
Declan Wakhu Ottaro is a Nairobi-based international development leader and Chief Operating Officer at Ushahidi, a global open-source technology non-profit. With over 20 years of experience across 30 countries, he has led multi-million-dollar programmes at the intersection of technology, innovation, and social impact for leading NGOs and multilateral development organisations.Beyond his professional work, Declan is a founding member of a mentorship group that brings together boys and the fathers and male authority figures in their lives, equipping them to grow into responsible, engaged citizens. He believes men carry a profound responsibility to shape the next generation of men — and that intervening early, while boys are still forming their values and identity, is one of the most powerful levers for lasting societal change.
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Dian Castillo Maheia
Chief Executive Officer, Ministry of Education, Culture, Science and Technology of Belize
Dian Castillo Maheia
Chief Executive Officer, Ministry of Education, Culture, Science and Technology of Belize
Mrs. Dian Castillo Maheia has spent her life in and around schools. Raised by a mother who was a teacher and later a principal, she found herself following in those capable footsteps. After completing her Bachelor’s degree as a Fulbright scholar at 19, she returned to Belize and to her alma mater, SCA, where she taught English and Literature for 12 years, preparing students for CXCs and immersing herself in academic life.
In 2003, she led the planning of the first National Education Summit, which resulted in a four-day gathering, published papers, and a national action plan. She later served as Action Plan Coordinator for Belize’s Ministry of Education and worked with Macmillan Caribbean as a writer, editor, and trainer. In 2009, she co-founded Horizon Academy, a child-centred, inclusive school where she has served as principal since its inception. As a teacher, mother, and leader, Mrs. Maheia remains deeply committed to education and to Belize.
“When boys feel seen, heard, and valued, they rise. Our work at Belize’s Ministry of Education has always been about fostering environments where young men understand that their voice matters and their future is worth investing in.”
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Maria Caridad Araujo
Chief of Gender and Diversity Division, Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)
Maria Caridad Araujo
Chief of Gender and Diversity Division, Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)
M. Caridad Araujo is the Chief of the Gender and Diversity Division at the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). In this role, she leads efforts to promote gender equality and inclusion across Latin America and the Caribbean. Previously, she served as Principal Economist in the IDB’s Social Protection and Health Division, focusing on early childhood development and anti-poverty programs. Her career also includes academic experience as a professor at Georgetown University and work at the World Bank. A native of Ecuador and mother of two daughters, she holds a Ph.D. in Agricultural and Resource Economics from the University of California, Berkeley
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Marija Manojlovic
Executive Director, Safe Online
Marija Manojlovic
Executive Director, Safe Online
Marija is the Executive Director of Safe Online, managing a USD 100 million investment portfolio focused on tackling digital threats to children, particularly online Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (CSEA).
A strong advocate for children’s digital safety, she ensures it remains a priority in global policy on sustainable development and technology. Previously, she worked with the End Violence Global Partnership and UNICEF, specializing in innovation, research, partnerships, and system reform. Marija holds an MSc in International Relations and Diplomacy from Leiden University.
Outside of work, she enjoys painting and listening to jazz.
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Patu Araújo
Artist and Designer
Patu Araújo
Artist and Designer
Patu Araújo is a Brazilian multidisciplinary artist and designer born in Ilhéus, Bahia, and currently based in Curitiba, Paraná.
Their practice engages with the construction of identity and the ongoing processes of erasure surrounding Afro-Indigenous Brazilian histories. Working across visual arts, Patu develops a language shaped by distortion and a vibrant, insurgent color palette, moving fluidly between painting, performance, photography, and video mapping. In the field of design, their work centers on typography, animation, and production design, where narrative, space, and visual rhythm converge as critical tools of expression.
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Adewunmi Emoruwa
Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Gatefield
Adewunmi Emoruwa
Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Gatefield
Adewunmi Emoruwa is a global policy leader and CEO of Gatefield, a Sub-Saharan Africa-focused public strategy and media group. He has led landmark policy and regulatory reforms across public health, governance, fiscal policy, democracy, and gender equity, contributing to improved health outcomes, stronger democratic institutions, and expanded economic opportunity for millions of Africans.
He advises foundations and multilateral institutions — including the Gates Foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Luminate, Open Society Foundations, the World Bank, African Development Bank, and the European Union — on strategy, narrative, political risk, and public accountability. An investor in African media, he is known for building coalitions, shaping public discourse, and holding institutions and political power to account by aligning evidence, narrative, and platforms to deliver lasting reform. Adewunmi regularly speaks on evidence-based advocacy, gender and power, and the politics of policy design, contributing to global debates across the World Economic Forum, The Guardian, Project Syndicate, Bloomberg, BBC World, and Al Jazeera.
“Outcomes reflect choices about people, power, and platforms. When systems fail at scale, those failures are designed.”
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Alex Lloyd Hunter
Co-Founder, The Dad Shift
Alex Lloyd Hunter
Co-Founder, The Dad Shift
Alex is co-founder of The Dad Shift, a grassroots, dad-led campaign for active fatherhood in the UK. The UK has the worst paternity leave in Europe, and The Dad Shift was launched in September 2024 with a mission to change that. To date, the campaign has mobilised tens of thousands of members of the public and sent paternity leave racing up the media and political agenda. The UK Government is now reviewing parental leave in 2026, creating a once in a generation opportunity to win longer, better paid paternity leave.
Before co-founding The Dad Shift, Alex spent his career working on digital campaigns with charities and the UK Labour Party. As co-founder and CEO of Forward Action, a digital campaigning agency for progressive causes, Alex worked on issues including domestic abuse, assisted dying and climate change. He also launched the “Campaigns By You” platform at online campaigning organisation 38 Degrees, which gives thousands of people the technology to run their own campaigns every year.
“Gender equality isn’t a zero sum game. We need to bring more men into proudly pro-gender equality campaigns that not only benefit women, but benefit them too. Promoting active fatherhood is a key part of this.”
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Dr. Rosemary Morgan
Associate Professor: Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Dr. Rosemary Morgan
Associate Professor: Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Rosemary Morgan, PhD is an Associate Professor in the Department of International Health at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (BSPH) where she holds the Edgar Berman Professorship in International Health. Dr. Morgan is recognized as a specialist in gender analysis in health and health systems research, interventions, and programs. Her work spans research, teaching, and policy engagement to examine how gender norms, roles, and relations shape health and health system experiences and outcomes, and to advance more equitable, people‑centered health systems for all. Dr. Morgan co-directs the Gender and Health Track in the Global Health Summer Institute and coordinates the Gender and Health Certificate at BSPH.
“Gender equality cannot be achieved without challenging and changing norms that harm men and those around them.”
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Adjani Salmon
Writer and Director
Adjani Salmon
Writer and Director
Hailing from Jamaica, Adjani is a writer-director and actor who only writes “what he likes”. As well as an avid reader, he spends his time people-watching, eavesdropping and randomly chatting up strangers, not putting his Architecture degree to good use.
In 2022, the pilot for BBC3’s TV adaptation of his web series Dreaming Whilst Black garnered critical acclaim winning an RTS and BAFTA Award for Breakthrough and Emerging Talent respectively. In collaboration with A24, Season 1 is available globally (including being spotted in an illegal DVD shop in Uganda) with Season 2 out now. Despite his accolades, Adjani is most proud of the fact that he can finally pay rent from his once passion turned profession.
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José Campi-Portaluppi
Director of Communications and Advocacy, Equimundo
José Campi-Portaluppi
Director of Communications and Advocacy, Equimundo
José is the Director of Communications and Advocacy at Equimundo. He leads the communications and advocacy teams, amplifying research and programming on masculinities and gender justice to inspire action and drive impact in personal opinion, community norms, and public policy. Prior to joining Equimundo, José worked with different international organizations in educommunications, capacity strengthening, political incidence, research and learning experience design.
“Real transformation comes from moving people, the culture that shapes them, their attitudes and mindsets.”
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Cynthia Miller-Idriss
Director, Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab (PERIL), American University
Cynthia Miller-Idriss
Director, Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab (PERIL), American University
Cynthia Miller-Idriss is a Professor in the Schools of Public Affairs and Education at the American University, where she is also the founding director and chief vision officer in the Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab (PERIL). She writes frequently for the public, most recently in Man Up: The New Misogyny and the Rise of Violent Extremism, as an opinion columnist for MS Now, and in recent by-lines in The New York Times, The Atlantic, Foreign Affairs, The Washington Post, Politico, and more.Her current book-in-progress, on how gender is dividing a new generation, reports on qualitative research with young men across five countries.
“None of us wants our best measure of violence prevention to be how good we’ve become at barricading the doors. Solutions need to begin much further upstream, starting with ensuring every individual feels seen, heard, and needed.”
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Cody Ragonese
Director of Programs, Equimundo
Cody Ragonese
Director of Programs, Equimundo
Cody is the Director of Programs at Equimundo, where he leads U.S. and international efforts to engage men and boys in building more caring, equitable communities. He’s passionate about helping organizations – from schools to global companies – challenge harmful gender norms and promote healthier models of masculinity. Cody designs programs, develops curricula for boys, young men, and fathers, and partners with public and private sector leaders to advance male allyship in the workplace. He also trains facilitators worldwide to spark conversations that drive real social change.
“If you build it right, they will come. Yes, including men.”
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Brian Waniewski
Executive Director, Harmony Labs
Brian Waniewski
Executive Director, Harmony Labs
Brian Waniewski is an innovative institutional leader whose work has spanned media and research, data and AI, systems design and spiritual development. He serves as executive director at Harmony Labs, a non-profit media research lab on a mission to research and reshape society’s relationship with media. For 10+ years Harmony Labs has helped storytellers and strategists, decision makers and dreamers, harness the immense power of media to shape a positive, pluralistic future and support human flourishing. Before Harmony Labs, Brian served as managing director at Institute of Play, a design studio for experiences that make learning irresistible. Brian helped establish Quest to Learn, a New York City public school that leverages game design to make school engaging and culturally relevant for young people, and GlassLab Games. Brian was trained as a poet and spends a portion of each year meditating, dividing his time between New York, Lima, and Rio.“Why, look you now, how unworthy a thing / you make of me! You would play upon me, you / would seem to know my stops, you would pluck / out the heart of my mystery, you would sound me / from my lowest note to the top of my compass; / and there is much music, excellent voice, in this / little organ, yet cannot you make it speak.”
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Trenesa Stanford-Danuser
Chief Communications Officer and Chief of Staff, Catalyst, Inc.
Trenesa Stanford-Danuser
Chief Communications Officer and Chief of Staff, Catalyst, Inc.
Trenesa Stanford-Danuser is a strategic communications and organizational leader whose work sits at the intersection of leadership, inclusion, and culture change. As Chief Communications Officer and Chief of Staff at Catalyst, she helps shape the vision, voice, and strategy of one of the world’s leading organizations advancing women and inclusive workplaces. Trenesa spent 25+ years in luxury beauty, fashion and retail, including 14 years at The Estée Lauder Companies, launching and building a global portfolio of skincare, beauty, and haircare brands across markets worldwide. Throughout that career, she was doing inclusion work long before anyone called it that. She co-founded a groundbreaking initiative with CoverGirl to serve African American consumers when the industry wasn’t yet asking the question. She negotiated directly with indigenous palm oil farmers in Honduras on behalf of a prestige haircare brand.
At Saks Global, she helped lead a landmark collaboration with First Nations communities, including a ceremonial unceded land acknowledgment gift supported by then-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in alignment with Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation initiative. That journey, from the frontlines of one of the world’s most aspirational industries to the current work of workplace equity, informs everything she brings to Catalyst, where she helps elevate CEO Jennifer McCollum’s newly launched book Men at Work: The Roadmap to Gender Partnership. Like the MenCare Changemaker Journey, Men at Work challenges narrow definitions of who gets to lead, who gets to care, and what real partnership looks like in practice. As one of Equimundo’s 100 Changemakers, Trenesa is honored to stand with a global community committed to making caring manhood the new normal. Her core belief: real progress happens when we invite people into the work of change with authenticity, accountability, and courage.
“When people care for you and cry for you, they can straighten out your soul.” — Langston Hughes
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Caroline Hayes
Technical Specialist on Digital Strategies, Equimundo
Caroline Hayes
Technical Specialist on Digital Strategies, Equimundo
Caroline is Senior Technical Specialist on Digital Strategies at Equimundo, leading efforts to address harmful masculinities online and promote healthy, caring digital engagement. She oversees the LinkUp Lab and guides the design, implementation, and evaluation of digital-first interventions across research, programs, and advocacy. Caroline builds institutional capacity, forges partnerships with digital creators, tech leaders, and policymakers, and represents Equimundo in global forums on digital safety and gender justice. Previously, she worked with the White House Gender Policy Council and the U.S. Department of Justice on gender-based violence prevention, and served in the U.S. Peace Corps.
“I’m certainly no Luddite.” — J.G. Ballard
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Dr. Ros Baxter
Chief Executive Officer, Good Start Early Learning
Dr. Ros Baxter
Chief Executive Officer, Good Start Early Learning
Ros is a nationally recognised education executive with 25 years’ experience championing early intervention and education as vital tools to disrupt intergenerational disadvantage. Her unique background—spanning frontline social work, law reform, government policy, and executive leadership—has enabled her to shape national policy and strategies that create positive change for children, families, and communities.Appointed CEO of Australia’s largest early learning provider in 2022, she has also held senior public policy roles with responsibility for gender equality, family and domestic violence, and programs for men and boys. Ros’s dedication began in 1996 as a child protection social worker, where she witnessed firsthand how skilled early learning educators can transform lives. Guided by the principle “Who needs us most?” Ros has since held influential roles across government and community organisations, ensuring the early years remain central to national policy.At Goodstart, Ros leverages her expertise in public policy, research, and community engagement to drive innovative, child-centric solutions. As a mother of four, including three boys, she understands the importance of inclusive, high-quality early learning for every child, and strives to nurture their strengths and potential.“We have a never-to-be-repeated window of opportunity in the early years to imagine and realise better ways of learning, growing and caring. Together.”
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Dr. Hannah Phillips
Respectful Politics Policy Manager, The Jo Cox Foundation
Dr. Hannah Phillips
Respectful Politics Policy Manager, The Jo Cox Foundation
With a decade of experience in the public sector and academia, Hannah is an expert in advancing gender equality. Currently, she leads The Jo Cox Foundation’s policy development and advocacy to address abuse in public life and strengthen democracy. Her unique background spans local, national and international policy. She has significant experience advising and implementing strategic priorities, including at the United Nations and UK House of Commons. Originally from Scotland, she pursued her undergraduate studies at Harvard University. While also working, she studied for her MSc in Gender, Policy and Inequalities at the London School of Economics and completed her DPhil (PhD) at the University of Oxford.
“We can change institutional cultures for the social good through collaborative action.”
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Rob Moss
Vice President, International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP)
Rob Moss
Vice President, International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP)
Rob Moss trained as a hospital pharmacist in Haarlem, the Netherlands, and has worked in clinical practice throughout his career while actively sharing in raising his children. He is a consultant in hospital pharmacy, supporting improvements in patient care, organisational effectiveness and professional education for pharmacists and healthcare staff.
He is passionate about strengthening equitable and resilient health systems through innovation, digital transformation and international collaboration in both high-income and low- and middle-income countries. His areas of expertise include medication shortages, substandard and falsified medicines, health-system preparedness and global hospital pharmacy development. Rob is also a strong advocate for health equity, people-centred care and the role of pharmacists as highly accessible healthcare professionals within communities.
Rob is currently Vice-President of the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) and Immediate Past President of the FIP Hospital Pharmacy Section. In 2025, he received the Donald E. Francke Medal for international contributions to advancing hospital pharmacy practice.
“As a father, grandfather and pharmacist, I am reminded daily that men's health reaches far beyond men alone. We should strive to build fairer, healthier societies where seeking care and caring for others are seen as strengths in all people — regardless of gender identity. Pharmacists, as highly accessible health professionals, can help open that trusted first door towards improved men’s health”
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Julia Munroe
Policy Officer, Metropolis
Julia Munroe
Policy Officer, Metropolis
Julia serves as a Policy Officer in Metropolis, specialising in local care policies, mainstreaming gender equality, and local feminist agendas in large cities and metropolitan areas. Her role involves leading international city-to-city policy exchanges, developing knowledge and toolkits and supporting the International Fund for Metropolises: Local Care Systems.
Hailing from South Africa, she has a background working with local government, international cooperation and grassroots organisations in Cape Town, Barcelona, and internationally. She previously held positions with United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG), and the City of Cape Town. She has a Joint Masters degree in Urban Studies from the Universities of Brussels and Vienna and a Bachelors (Hons) in Social Anthropology from the University of Cape Town.
“Gender equality is not only about who holds power, but who has the right to be supported; where tenderness is strength, and care is a shared public good.”
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Eyrún Þórsdóttir
Managing Director and Board Member, Reykjavík Global Forum
Eyrún Þórsdóttir
Managing Director and Board Member, Reykjavík Global Forum
Eyrún Þórsdóttir is the Managing Director of the Reykjavik Global Forum and a member of its Board. Based in Iceland, the organization is dedicated to advancing women’s leadership globally by increasing the number of women in leadership positions worldwide. Eyrún has been part of the Reykjavik Global team since its inception in 2018, playing a role in shaping the Forum’s growth and global impact.
The Reykjavík Global Forum – Women Leaders, hosted under the theme “Power, Together!”, convenes influential women and their allies from across the world to exchange ideas, spark solutions, and drive progress toward equality. The Forum has become a premier platform for global collaboration, bringing together leaders from politics, business, civil society, academia, the arts, and media. Each year, the invite-only gathering welcomes 500 global leaders and is co-hosted by the Government and Parliament of Iceland, a country recognized globally for its leadership in equality.
Eyrún holds a B.A. in Anthropology and Gender Studies and an M.A. in International Relations from the University of Iceland. Her work is driven by a strong commitment to inclusive leadership and advancing representation across sectors.
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Kay Rufai
Artist and Researcher
Kay Rufai
Artist and Researcher
Kay Rufai is a Photographer, Poet, Filmmaker, Author, Mental Health researcher and founder of the internationally acclaimed S.M.I.L.E-ing Boys projects. He is currently the first Artist in residence for West Midlands Police Artist as part of Coventry City of Culture, using creative arts to improve relationships between police and marginalised young people. His work spans the past 8 years in a handful of countries including the UK, USA, Ethiopia, Bhutan, Germany, Scandinavia, Mexico, Nigeria and Colombia.
His work explores themes of masculinity, identity, mental health, serious youth violence and community cohesion through art, photography, educational workshops, residencies, training and public events.
A great deal of his work has directly engaged diverse communities, young people in custody, at-risk youth, refugee and displaced groups of people as well as collaboratively creating bodies of work with them.
He has recieved numerous accolades for his research-led series of workshops and exhibitions across the country. His work has been exhibited at The Barbican, City Hall, Tower Bridge, the Royal Court and The Battersea Arts Centre. His award-winning work has been featured on the BBC, Channel 5 News, in the Guardian and HuffPost.
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Robbie Bird
Choreographer and Founder, MENtalk
Robbie Bird
Choreographer and Founder, MENtalk
Robbie Bird launched MENtalk a festival focusing on men’s mental wellbeing in October 2025. He trained from the age of ten at The Royal Ballet School before embarking on a career dancer with English National Ballet and The Estonian National Ballet. After injury, he pivoted to choreography, attaining an MFAC and creating works for The Stuttgart Ballet and a range of other platforms. His film 1-4-2 has recently been screened at Richmond Festival of Ideas . He’s training to be a counsellor and his 8 year old daughter is also encouraging him in his occasional stand up. RobbieBird.co.uk
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Vidhya Ramalingam
Founder and CEO, Moonshot
Vidhya Ramalingam
Founder and CEO, Moonshot
Vidhya Ramalingam is Founder and CEO of Moonshot, an organization empowering people to thrive online. Under her leadership, Moonshot has pioneered a proven model to offer lifesaving services online to people considering violence; collaborations with tech companies like Spotify and Google to ensure safer user experiences; and critical support to institutions and individuals facing online abuse. Moonshot has twice been named to Fast Company’s World’s Most Innovative Companies list. Vidhya is also recognized internationally for her role leading policy responses to terrorism. Following the 2011 attacks in Norway, she led the European Union’s first intergovernmental initiative on white supremacist terrorism. She has been recognized by Fortune’s Most Powerful Women and sits on Spotify’s Safety Advisory Council. Watch her TED talk: The real-world danger of online myths.
“Our work to create a safer future must be rooted in the fundamental belief that – even in the darkest of moments – change is possible.”
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Curtis Valentine
Founding President, Male Educator Networks and Policy Institute
Curtis Valentine
Founding President, Male Educator Networks and Policy Institute
Curtis Valentine is Founding President of Male Educator Networks and Policy Institute, the first policy think tank and national network dedicated solely to men in education. Curtis also serves as a Fellow at the American Institute for Boys & Men (AIBM). Previously, Curtis served as Co-Director of the Reinventing America’s School Project at the Progressive Policy Institute. The founder of Real Men Teach, Curtis has been fighting for diversity in teaching for over 20 years as a classroom teacher and eventually a School Board Member in the 20th largest school district in America. An adjunct professor at the University of Maryland, College Park and Johns Hopkins University, Curtis is writing a book entitled “Real Men Teach: The Future of Education” that will be published this fall. A graduate of Morehouse College and the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, serves on the boards of the American Institutes for Research’s (AIR) Opportunity Fund and the Julius Rosenwald & Rosenwald Schools National Park Campaign.“America is less competitive when only half of our future workforce is pushed to do our country’s most important work: teaching.”
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Felicity Mulford
Research Manager, Centre for Information Resilience (CIR)
Felicity Mulford
Research Manager, Centre for Information Resilience (CIR)
Felicity Mulford leads work tackling Technology-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence (TFGBV) and partners with academics to test AI systems. Through this work, Felicity combines her commitment to gender equality and gender-informed tech development with data-driven insights to strengthen evidence and empower communities.
At the Centre for Information Resilience (CIR), she leads a TFGBV programme in Ethiopia (evidence gathering, community building, and designing youth-led toolkits) and research on gendered abuse in the 2024 US elections. She spearheads the organisation’s annual “16 Days of Activism Against GBV” campaigns and the “Gender Lens” initiative – a dedicated hub for investigating and exposing Gender-Based Violence through digital investigations.
Felicity is a Hillary Rodham Clinton Global Challenges Scholar and worked with international lawyers to investigate war crimes. She holds a BA and two MAs (International Relations & Law), with multiple publications and academic awards. Beyond work, Felicity manages a music event to raise funds for various charities.
“For a world without violence we must redefine strength: not dominance, but care.”
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Glenn Gillis
Co-Founder and CEO, Sea Monster
Glenn Gillis
Co-Founder and CEO, Sea Monster
Glenn Gillis is co-founder and CEO of Sea Monster, and a globally recognised thought-leader on impact games and immersive technologies. With a Business Science degree from the University of Cape Town and over 25 years as a senior executive, consultant, and entrepreneur, Glenn brings commercial rigour to the intersection of play, storytelling, and social change. As Chairperson of Games for Change Africa, Glenn helps shape the continent’s fast-growing games ecosystem, championing the power of games as catalysts for social impact and economic growth across Africa. As co-founder and chair of the not-for-profit social enterprise Relate, he has also helped generate over $5.3 million in employment opportunities and charitable donations across South Africa.
“Games are the digital continuation of humanity’s oldest cultural technology. When we understand play as fundamental human behaviour, not entertainment novelty, we unlock its real potential to engage, educate, and transform.”
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Dilip Pattubala
Co-Founder, Centre for Men and Boys – South Asia
Dilip Pattubala
Co-Founder, Centre for Men and Boys – South Asia
Dilip Pattubala is the co-founder of the Centre for Men and Boys – South Asia. Over the past 15 years, his work has explored how shame, silence, and gender norms shape the lives of young people, especially concerning bodies, health, identity, and care.Previously, he founded Uninhibited, an organisation that has worked with over a million adolescent girls on menstrual health and gender-responsive education. He now works to understand boys and men more deeply and to help institutions, markets, and systems respond to them in ways that advance gender justice. Dilip is a Mulago Fellow, an Acumen India Fellow, and a GLG Social Impact Fellow.
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Anthony Keedi
Masculinities and Gender Technical Advisor, Abaad
Anthony Keedi
Masculinities and Gender Technical Advisor, Abaad
Anthony has been working in Lebanon for the past 19 years piloting and promoting applied theories for Engaging Men in Ending Violence Against Women and Transformative Masculinities in the MENA region. He is a psychologist and also holds a Master’s degree in Gender Studies. Some of his notable achievements in his work thus far are as follows: Managed the 1st ever White Ribbon Campaign in MENA; Develops and oversees Research on Masculinities in Conflict settings in Lebanon; Creates and Advises on Advocacy campaigns designed for Men and Boys; Developed several Gender Equality Training workbooks and manuals on Masculinities in MENA; established the 1st psychological rehabilitation clinic for men with abusive behaviors in MENA; and He participated in expert panels for the CEDAW commission as well as on the 1st Human Rights Council Resolution for Engaging Men and Boys to end GBV.
“One day they will look back at my life, when I am long gone and deceased. I pray that they say that ‘the journey he walked was always a path of peace.'”
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Sindy González Tijerina
Early Childhood Manager, FEMSA Foundation
Sindy González Tijerina
Early Childhood Manager, FEMSA Foundation
Sindy González Tijerina has been part of the FEMSA Foundation team since 2012 and currently serves as Early Childhood Manager. In this role, she leads strategic initiatives focused on strengthening early education and preschool education, as well as empowering parents, promoting positive parenting practices, and supporting caregiver well-being. Her work also centers on advancing public spaces designed from a child- and caregiver-centered perspective, and on strengthening the early childhood ecosystem through the advocacy of effective public and corporate policies.
Firmly convinced that lasting change is built collectively, Sindy actively promotes cross-sector collaboration. Her purpose is to contribute to the construction of a more humane and equitable world—one in which every child can fully develop and thrive, regardless of their context or gender.“Children are the greatest treasure we have as humanity. Every one of them, regardless of their context or gender, deserves the opportunity to fully develop, flourish, and thrive.”
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Andrew Pel
Head of Campaigns, Moonshot
Andrew Pel
Head of Campaigns, Moonshot
Andrew Pel is Head of Campaigns at Moonshot, where he develops evidence-based interventions for online harms. His work addresses violent misogyny, extremism, disinformation, and other challenges young men face online. In Canada, Andrew leads multi-sectoral programs that connect individuals engaging with violent extremist content to confidential support services. He also develops gender-based violence and suicide prevention campaigns that connect people in crisis to local responders. More recently, Andrew ran a global media literacy initiative for Google, reaching over 200 million people across Europe and Indonesia and helping citizens recognize online manipulation tactics. Andrew is committed to translating research into solutions that engage men and boys in positive, pro-social ways.
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Regan Mitchell
Director: Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander Strategy, Our Watch
Regan Mitchell
Director: Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander Strategy, Our Watch
Regan is a proud First Nations Wiradjuri and Ngunnawal woman from regional New South Wales, Australia.
With extensive lived and frontline experience, Regan is highly skilled in navigating complex systems and providing intensive support to women and children experiencing domestic, family, and sexual violence. Their voices inform her role as Director, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Strategy at Our Watch.
Widely respected for her expertise, Regan is passionate about ending violence against all women and children with a particular focus on First Nations women in remote communities – the most impacted and the least seen. Through truth telling, she shines a light on the root causes of the unacceptably high rates of violence against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, and what we must all do individually and collectively to stop gender based violence before it starts
Widely respected for her expertise, Regan is passionate about ending violence against all women and children through truth telling with a particular focus on First Nations women in remote communities – the most impacted and the least seen.
“To achieve true equity, we have to recognise that the starting line is not the same for everyone. For some, the starting line is completely out of reach.”
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Rodrigo Almeida
Internationalist, producer and human rights researcher
Rodrigo Almeida
Internationalist, producer and human rights researcher
Rodrigo is an internationalist, producer and human rights researcher with an international focus. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations from UERJ, with a career focused on the intersection of culture, education and human rights. He is currently a Producer at the Escola do Olhar at the Rio Art Museum, where he works on developing initiatives that bring the museum closer to neighbouring communities in the city’s Port Zone. He is co-founder of Proxy Junior Consultoria Internacional — a student-run enterprise linked to the International Relations course at UERJ. He has over five years’ experience in the cultural sector, specialising in the management and implementation of cultural and educational projects.
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Oyunga Pala
Writer and Executive Coach: Exploring African Masculinities, Grief and Loss Through Storytelling
Oyunga Pala
Writer and Executive Coach: Exploring African Masculinities, Grief and Loss Through Storytelling
Oyunga Pala is a writer, curator, and coach who looks at the world through an anthropological lens to better understand the stories we tell ourselves. For over twenty years, he has been one of Kenya’s most distinct voices, moving from the sharp satire of national columns to profound investigations into masculinity, culture, and grief.
Today, as an author and certified coach, Oyunga works at the intersection of the personal and the systemic. He helps individuals and collectives navigate “grief alchemy” by transforming sorrow into strength and finding the universal in the everyday. His debut memoir Strength and Sorrow: Reflections on the Ones We Lost (2025) is an unflinching interrogation of the 21st-century African interior, where the personal memoir of a veteran journalist intersects with the collective mourning of a nation.
“My mission is to transition the African male from a ‘Fixer’ of problems to an ‘Architect’ of care. We must ensure that our policies mirror our humanity, not just our productivity.”
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Jo Pratt
Executive Producer: Festival & Events in Australia, WOW Australia – Women of the World Australia
Jo Pratt
Executive Producer: Festival & Events in Australia, WOW Australia – Women of the World Australia
Jo Pratt is the Executive Producer of WOW Festivals & events in Australia. There, alongside Cathy Hunt AM, founder of the WOW movement in Australia, she leads a growing movement advancing gender equity through festivals, conversations and community engagement. Over the past 8 years, she has helped expand the WOW movement across Australia, creating platforms that bring together women, girls, and increasingly men and boys, to explore how we build more equal, connected, and inclusive communities. A mum of 3 sons, Jo is personally passionate about creating spaces for constructive conversations around masculinity, care, leadership, and belonging and exploring initiatives that engage men and boys as active participants in advancing gender equity through WOW Australia’s partnerships across government, business, philanthropy, education, and the arts to shape new models for community-led change.Action Track
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Dr. Daniela Ligiero
President and CEO, Together for Girls
Dr. Daniela Ligiero
President and CEO, Together for Girls
Dr. Daniela Ligiero is the CEO and President of Together for Girls, a global partnership working to end sexual violence against children and adolescents. Together for Girls combines rigorous data and research with survivor-centered advocacy to drive prevention, healing, and justice, increasing political will and mobilizing action to protect children—especially from sexual violence.
Daniela is the founder of the Brave Movement, the world’s largest survivor-led movement to end childhood sexual violence, mobilizing survivors and allies globally to demand legal reform, political accountability, online safety, and justice.
Previously, she served as Vice President of Girls and Women’s Strategy at the United Nations Foundation and held senior roles at the U.S. Department of State, where she helped develop the first U.S. global strategy to address gender-based violence and co-designed the PEPFAR DREAMS Partnership. She also held leadership roles at UNICEF and worked in the U.S. Senate.
A survivor herself, Daniela has spoken publicly for nearly two decades to help shatter stigma and drive systemic change. She has received multiple honors, including the U.S. Department of State’s Franklin Award and the Champion for Children Award presented by Her Majesty Queen Silvia of Sweden.
Daniela holds a doctorate in counseling psychology, is fluent in four languages, and lives in Bethesda, Maryland, with her husband and two daughters.
“In my work on sexual violence against children and adolescents, and on gender-based violence, one thing is clear: we cannot end violence without engaging men and boys. That means recognizing that boys experience sexual violence and deserve protection, healing, and support. It also means working with men and boys to challenge harmful norms and prevent violence before it happens.”
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Dean Peacock
Founding Co-Director, Global Coalition for WHO Action on Firearm Violence
Dean Peacock
Founding Co-Director, Global Coalition for WHO Action on Firearm Violence
Dean Peacock has been involved in work for gender equality, violence prevention, and health equity for the last three decades. He is a commissioner with the Lancet Commission on Global Gun Violence and Health and an expert advisor to the Global Taskforce on Halving Global Violence. Dean is affiliated with the University of Cape Town’s School of Public Health, the Gender Centre at the Geneva Graduate Institute, and the Violence, Inequality and Power Lab at the University of San Diego. He has co-founded and co-created many local, national and global initiatives, including the Men Overcoming Violence Youth Program, Sonke Gender Justice, the MenEngage Alliance, the MenCare Campaign, the Mobilising Men for Feminist Peace Initiative, and the Global Coalition for WHO Action on Firearm Violence where he is the co-director. His work has been published widely and he has used the arts extensively, including documentary films, photo exhibitions, murals and photo-voice.
“Acknowledging that most men do in fact care deeply about their families, friends and communities opens up so many exciting possibilities for what we can all do together to build a more just, equitable, peaceful and sustainable world.”
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Jim Milne
Deputy Director: Strategy, Planning, and Management, Gates Foundation
Jim Milne
Deputy Director: Strategy, Planning, and Management, Gates Foundation
Jim Milne is a global social impact leader with more than 25 years of experience advancing global health and development initiatives across the public, private, and social sectors. He serves as Deputy Director, Strategy, Planning and Management in the Gender Equality Division at the Gates Foundation, where he partners with senior leaders to set strategy, steward complex investment portfolios, and embed evidence and learning into decision-making.
Jim’s work advances gender-equitable norms, women’s leadership, adolescent and youth outcomes, and sexual and reproductive health equity. He brings deep experience aligning global strategy with regional and local priorities, ensuring execution reflects lived realities and delivers sustainable, long-term impact. Earlier in his career, Jim advised public and private sector organizations on strategy, organizational change, and performance improvement. He brings a deep commitment to evidence, partnership, and collective action to advance wellbeing for men and boys in parallel with progress for women and girls.
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Isabelle Santos
Co-Founder, Global Youth-Led Movement on Ending Violence Against Children
Isabelle Santos
Co-Founder, Global Youth-Led Movement on Ending Violence Against Children
Isabelle has a decade of experience working at the intersection of legal frameworks, youth leadership, and the 2030 Agenda. She holds a degree in Political Science from the University of Brasília and executive training in Early Childhood from the London School of Economics and Political Science. She is currently a postgraduate student at the Center for Public Leadership and a PhD candidate in Social Sciences at São Paulo State University. She has led several advocacy initiatives, including co-founding the first Global Youth-Led Movement on Ending Violence Against Children, and has collaborated with governments, the United Nations, and civil society to advance policy change. She previously served as an advisor at the Federal District Secretariat of Justice and Citizenship, contributing to initiatives on child participation, digital wellbeing, and parenting programs. She is also part of international communities of practice, including United People Global, the Global Youth Forum, and the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee Youth Group.
“Digital spaces are shaping the identities of boys and girls and, with them, the political and economic fabric of our societies. Ensuring that they are nurturing, inclusive, and well-regulated calls for a commitment that spans from healthy interpersonal relations to the institutional foundations of parity democracy.”
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Nancy Pierorazio
Senior Policy Officer: Diversity and Equality, City of Melbourne
Nancy Pierorazio
Senior Policy Officer: Diversity and Equality, City of Melbourne
Nancy Pierorazio serves as a Senior Policy Officer Diversity and Equality at the City of Melbourne, where she has worked since 2002. She leads policy and project delivery to advance diversity, gender equality and inclusion, including implementation of the Inclusive Melbourne Action Plan and Gender Impact Assessments under the Gender Equality Act 2020. Nancy holds qualifications in psychology, social research and criminology, and brings extensive government experience, combining expertise in Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED), gender-based violence and gender equality to develop gender and safety audit tools.
“Local government is closest to the everyday lives of carers, and with that proximity comes responsibility: to recognise, support, and nurture the care work that sustains our communities.”
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Helena Jacques-Morton
Senior Marketing & Communications Manager – WOW – Women of the World
Helena Jacques-Morton
Senior Marketing & Communications Manager – WOW – Women of the World
Helena is a communications specialist, currently working as WOW – Women of the World’s Senior Communications and Marketing Manager leading on WOW’s social media and digital channels, and on global marketing and communications. Previously she worked at Chichester Festival Theatre, where she led on developing new audiences, championing work for young people and increasing access to the arts. She developed Chichester Festival Theatre’s first Youth Advisory Board and was an AMA Audience Diversity Academy Fellow in 2020. Helena studied English and Theatre at the University of St Andrews and University of California San Diego, followed by an MLitt in Writing for Performance. She is passionate about championing the power of stories, both real and imagined, and using storytelling to engage and inform new audiences, and writes The Rummage on Substack.
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Blessing Adesiyan
Founder and Chief Care Officer, Caring Africa
Blessing Adesiyan
Founder and Chief Care Officer, Caring Africa
Blessing Oyeleye Adesiyan is the Founder and Chief Care Officer of Caring Africa, building the infrastructure for Africa’s care economy through technology, policy, and media. She develops platforms and innovations that strengthen childcare and aging care systems, create dignified jobs, and position care as essential to economic growth. Through her writing as Editor of The Care Gap, Blessing spotlights how valuing and investing in care can unlock women’s time, catalyze economic growth, and strengthen institutional resilience, transforming an overlooked burden into a cornerstone of prosperity. Her work has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, TIME Magazine, and Fortune.Action Track
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Michael Feigelson
Chief Executive Officer, Van Leer Foundation
Michael Feigelson
Chief Executive Officer, Van Leer Foundation
Michael Feigelson has spent the last 11 years as a dad and the last 25 working on policies and programmes for new parents and children. He currently serves as Chief Executive at the Van Leer Foundation, a Dutch organization working worldwide with scientists, policymakers and business leaders on parenting and early childhood. The foundation has been focused on this since the early 1960s, making it one of the oldest global organizations dedicated to making sure all children (and parents) get a good start in life.
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Charlie Marshall
Head of Communications & Marketing – WOW – Women of the World
Charlie Marshall
Head of Communications & Marketing – WOW – Women of the World
Charlie is a strategic communications and marketing expert, with 20 years’ experience working across the cultural and charitable sectors. She specialises in purpose-driven work, digital strategy and brand leadership. As Head of Communications and Marketing at WOW – Women of the World, she is responsible for building its global reputation as a joyful, creative movement championing gender equality through arts-driven activism. Before joining WOW, Charlie worked at theatre companies and led-communications for place-led cultural projects.
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Sabeena Akhtar
Head of Projects & Programmes, WOW – Women of the World
Sabeena Akhtar
Head of Projects & Programmes, WOW – Women of the World
Sabeena is an award-winning festival programmer, curator, writer, and cultural leader with over a decade of experience delivering pioneering events across the UK and internationally. As Head of Projects and Programmes at WOW, she develops and curates world-class festivals and participatory programmes, working with global partners to platform diverse voices and urgent ideas.
A co-founder of the award-winning Primadonna Festival and Prize, Sabeena is passionate about equity in the arts and championing working-class creativity, drawing deeply from her own background and lived experience. Alongside her programming work, she is the editor of Cut From the Same Cloth? and the author of Talking About Islamophobia. A mum of four, Sabeena balances creativity, care and community within her work.
“Arts and culture don’t just reflect society, they shape it. Policy can shift structures, but art shifts imagination. If we want to change systems, we must also change the stories and narratives that sustain them”
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Lee Chambers
Chief Executive Officer, Male Allies UK
Lee Chambers
Chief Executive Officer, Male Allies UK
Lee Chambers is a business psychologist and CEO of Male Allies UK. After a diverse career, from corporate finance to building and exiting a tech company, he is now focused on supporting organisations to engage men in inclusion and promote effective allyship. He has been featured on the Startups 100 Index, has received a Great British Entrepreneur Award, and sits on the board of CMI Women and the Manchester Metropolitan University Business School. In 2024, he received the Freedom of the City of London for services to equality in business.He is a Kavli Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences and a EDI Fellow at the University of East London. He is the 2023 UN Women Changemaker of the Year, and is an ambassador for Refuge, 50:50 Parliament and Working Families. He speaks globally on allyship and masculinities, having taken the stage at One Young World, ChangeNOW and the Bloomberg Global Equality Summit, and is the author of the bestselling book, Momentum: 13 Ways To Unlock Your Potential .Action Track
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Sasha Havlicek
Chief Executive Officer and Founder, Institute of Strategic Dialogue
Sasha Havlicek
Chief Executive Officer and Founder, Institute of Strategic Dialogue
Sasha Havlicek is a social and policy entrepreneur who, for the last two decades, has incubated and scaled global initiatives to counter the rise of weaponised hate, disinformation and extremism, on- and offline. As founding CEO of the Institute for Strategic Dialogue, she has led the build-out of ISD’s advanced digital analytics capability designed to detect and mitigate information threats to democracy, public safety and national security. Spearheading ISD’s extensive partnerships with governments, cities, businesses and communities, Sasha oversees teams delivering research, policy advisory, training, digital literacy and communications programming around the world.
Sasha has advised a range of governments at the highest levels, has testified before US Congress and the UK Parliament, and is a regular commentator in the media (CNN, BBC, Channel 4 News and other networks). She is a member of the European Council on Foreign Relations and serves on the Advisory Boards of the Global Internet Forum on Counter-Terrorism, the Christchurch Call and the Global Partnership for Action against Tech Facilitated Gender Based Violence. She is a founding board member of the Forum on Information and Democracy and a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Coalition on Internet Safety.
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Dr. Fidèle Rutayisire
Founder and Executive Director, Rwanda Men’s Resource Centre (RWAMREC)
Dr. Fidèle Rutayisire
Founder and Executive Director, Rwanda Men’s Resource Centre (RWAMREC)
Fidèle Rutayisire is Founder and Executive Director of the Rwanda Men’s Resource Centre (RWAMREC), a leading organization advancing gender equality and preventing gender-based violence through gender-transformative approaches that engage men and boys as allies in justice and social change in Rwanda and the Great Lakes region.
He brings more than 20 years of experience in community-based programming, policy advocacy, and social norms transformation. Fidèle is a certified researcher and master trainer on Sexual and Gender-Based Violence with the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), working across twelve African countries to strengthen peace, governance, and human rights.
Through RWAMREC’s programs, he has supported communities to transform power, care, and relationships reducing violence, increasing men’s caregiving, strengthening women’s agency, and improving family wellbeing. His work connects grassroots realities with national, regional, and global advocacy, ensuring that women’s lived experiences and survivor-centered approaches shape justice systems, public policy, and healthier forms of masculinity.
“I have seen men put down violence and pick up their children; that simple act of care can change the future of a whole generation.”
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