WEDU - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Regional Executive Director
Aarati is an intrapreneur with over 11 years of global experience in organisational leadership, education policy and impact measurement in various capacities across geographies. She has led strategic initiatives with Leadership Accelerators such as Teach for India, Global Citizen Year, and the Latin American Leadership Academy, enabling them to scale. Leadership, gender equality, and inclusion have been the overarching themes throughout her career. She has actively participated in various initiatives, such as AIESEC, Education Pioneers, Global Shapers, volunteered for the Paralympics, and served as a Climate Ambassador to Antarctica through the Leadership on the Edge program.
Aarati holds a master's in International Education Policy from Harvard University, is a certified Yoga & Mindfulness instructor and an Advanced Open Water Diver. As the Regional Executive Director, she collaborates with the Executive Director and boards to successfully implement Wedu's strategy and achieve widespread impact in closing the gender leadership gap.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Chairman and Secretary of the Thai Board
Ada is a pioneer in the fields of social entrepreneurship and social investment in Thailand. Ada is currently holding a full-time position as CEO of TaejaiDotcom, the first and largest crowd giving platform in Thailand. She is also a Founder and Managing Director of the Thai Young Philanthropist Network (TYPN) and Board member and advisor to several impact organizations in Thailand and Asia. She plans to utilize her expertise and social capital to expand Wedu's work in the country, especially on FISA.
Previously, Ada was ChangeVentures Head of Social Impact Advisory, a university lecturer and co-founding executive director of GLab (Social Innovation Lab) at Thammasat University and a Deputy Secretariat of the National Sub-Committee on Social Finance at the Office of the Prime Minister. She graduated with MSc in Environment and Sustainable Development from University College London and MA in International Finance and Economic Policy from Columbia University. She is a Rockefeller Foundation Global Fellow on Social Innovation and Asia 21 Young Leader of the Asia Society.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Senior Business Executive
- Treasurer of the UK Board
Ana-Luiza is a senior business executive with over 20 years of experience in Europe and North America. She is a Partner with Andersen, focusing on international taxation and executive compensation and advises private and public boards in matters relating to governance, financial health and compensation programs.
Ana-Luiza passionately supports women's leadership and mentorship initiatives and has developed financial literacy programs for women entrepreneurs. She currently supports the global connection and mentorship of women through her service on the Stanford Graduate School of Business Women Circles' Global Board, Growth and Operations Committee, and Regional Leadership Board.
In addition to various law and accounting degrees, Ana-Luiza holds the Corporate Board certification from the Silicon Valley Institute and is currently enrolled in the director programme at IMD Lausanne. As Treasurer, Ana-Luiza builds and strengthens Wedu's financial frameworks.
Babita brings over four years of experience specialising in international development finance in Nepal, along with a firm belief that once equal opportunities are provided to women, every sector will start experiencing incomparable growth and development. Babita holds a BBA in Management from Pokhara University and an MBA in Finance from Purbanchal University. She leads Wedu's accounting and finance functions and oversees global operations.
Claire brings a decade of experience cultivating young women's leadership in Asia, along with expertise in nonprofit management, resource mobilisation, and programme design and evaluation, to Wedu. She has championed Wedu's work since 2013 as a talent spotter and mentor and served as ED since 2021.
Prior to running Wedu, Claire co-founded Women LEAD Nepal, and under her leadership, the organisation grew from a pilot project to an award-winning, girl-led, multi-national organisation. Claire earned an MSc in Impact Evaluation from the University of Sussex, a BSc in Gender and International Development from Georgetown University, and is a certified executive coach and divemaster.
In partnership with the boards, Claire leads Wedu's programmes, operations, and growth to usher in a world where half of all leaders are women.
Job Titles:
- Marketing & Communications Coordinator
Jo is a digital marketer with over five years of experience supporting social impact organisations navigate the digital world so they can maximize their real-world impact. She specializes in designing integrated marketing campaigns, conducting marketing research, and running paid media campaigns.
Jo is an activist and a firm believer in the power of digital and the arts to bring inclusive change. Some of her notable work include digitizing Filipino artists' works during the COVID-19 lockdown and volunteering as an art literacy instructor for displaced indigenous children. She has been recognized for her contributions through competitive fellowship programmes such as the inaugural UNESCO Creative Economy cohort by the University of London and UnionAid's Mindanao Young Leaders Programme implemented by the Victory University of Wellington, New Zealand.
At Wedu, Jo leads overall brand communications strategy and champions Wedu's work through public relations, media production, and digital fundraising efforts.
Job Titles:
- Community Engagement Coordinator
Juliana is a storyteller and facilitator, passionate about issues related to gender, education and travel. She brings rich experience of working in diverse fields related to women's empowerment including research, communications, community engagement, entrepreneurship and management. She graduated from the University of Sheffield with MA Intercultural Communication and International Development in 2021, as a Chevening Scholar.
Drawing from personal experience of leadership development through travel, Juliana co-founded Duluwa Outdoors, an experiential learning curator that offers travel and outdoor experiences for Nepali womxn.
She joined Wedu as a Rising Star in 2020 and now leads Wedu's Community Engagement to facilitate conversations and inspire collaborations within the community and beyond.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Trustee of the UK Board
Kate has spent her career in the corporate and higher education sectors. Most recently, she was the CEO of the public and private impact tech start-up Regulatory Genome, a spin-out of research at the University of Cambridge Judge Business School. Prior, she served as Chief Operating Officer of the University's fundraising and alumni operation. She has served on boards in both executive and non-executive capacities.
Kate is Canadian and has three grown children. She has lived and worked in the UK since earning her MBA from the Harvard Business School in 1996. She is passionate about investing in the next generation of women leaders for positive impact in local and global communities. Kate will draw on her fundraising, partnership development, strategic planning and general management experience as a trustee of the UK Board
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Thai Board
Kelly brings demonstrated leadership and diverse experience in healthcare research, academia, business development, and public health nonprofit work to the board. As a Senior Technical Officer at FHI 360, she leverages her public health research and storytelling background to spearhead Asia Pacific's thought leadership strategy.
Kelly has studied and worked in the United States, Thailand, Morocco, and South Africa and collaborates with colleagues and organisations across Asia. She has an MPH from UNC-Chapel Hill and a BA from Vanderbilt University.
Job Titles:
- Leadership Programme Intern
Job Titles:
- Member of the Cambodian Board
Ly Chhay has more than 6 years of volunteering experience with local and international organizations in creating social change, focused on education and promoting income generation for local people. Her leadership journey is featured in the book, "Diving Deep Going Far", a collection of stories from five young women leaders in Cambodia. She is a Rising Star at Wedu. Ly Chhay is pursuing a Master's in Public Affairs through the prestigious Australia Awards programme and previously earned a Bachelor's in Politics, Philosophy and Economics (PPE) and Development Studies from the Asian University for Women (AUW).
Mario is one of Wedu's Co-Founders and brings innovation and experience in social entrepreneurship. He is the CEO of Waiser, and is a former Senior Advisor for Energy Investments for Greenpeace, a former Senior Consultant for PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Advisory as well as an Acumen Fellow. He holds a Master in Economics and Management from the University La Sapienza and a MSc in Development Management, from the LSE. Mario has studied and worked in Italy, Finland, Ireland, United Kingdom, Mainland China, Hong Kong, Haiti, India, United States, Cambodia and Thailand.
Job Titles:
- Chief of the Cambodia Executive
With more than 10 years of professional experience in the development sector, Nareth brings diverse expertise and a passion to nurture the leadership journeys of women changemakers in Cambodia by helping manage its programmes and partnerships.
She is experienced in working closely with Cambodian government officials and other stakeholders, conducting research on local governance and decentralization, system strengthening, and delivering leadership training to government officials, women and youth at the national and sub-national levels.
Nareth holds a Master of Arts in Asia-Pacific Studies from Thammasat University, Thailand, and has engaged in activities across the region-from peacebuilding activities in Malaysia to supporting research in Vietnam.
Job Titles:
- Acumen Fellow
- Leadership Development Programme Manager
Sara is passionate about design, culture, and education. She draws on over a decade of experience in creative expression, community engagement, and leadership development to spearhead leadership trainings at Wedu.
Most recently, Sara led Acumen's leadership initiatives in Pakistan, focusing on designing learning experiences for social impact innovators. Previously, she worked with PeaceNiche/T2F and Salt Arts, promoting inclusive discourse through intellectual and cultural engagement. She has also taught courses exploring design and social entrepreneurship at the University of Karachi. Her passion for gender equality has led her to become a founding curator for the WOW - Women of the World festival in Pakistan and design an illustrated publication for young adults featuring stories of fifty exceptional women of the country.
Sara is an Acumen Fellow and holds a bachelor's degree in design from the Department of Visual Studies, University of Karachi.
Job Titles:
- Mentorship Programme Manager
- Women 's Impact Alliance Fellow
Sidra brings over seven years of experience leading programmes and fostering partnerships within the startup ecosystem in Pakistan and the MENA region. Her expertise lies in the intersection of gender, technology, and social entrepreneurship. She has supported over 700 entrepreneurs across the region, facilitating growth, scale, and gender lens investment readiness. Sidra will draw on these experiences to lead and scale Wedu's signature mentorship programmes.
She also co-founded Daastan, Pakistan's self-publishing startup, which leverages technology to promote literature, publishing over 200 books in print and onboarding 3000+ writers worldwide. Sidra strongly believes that community engagement is at the centre of impact and is an active community builder, building multiple thriving communities of readers and young women writers across Pakistan.
Sidra is a Women's Impact Alliance fellow and graduated with a Bachelor's in Mechatronics Engineering from UET Peshawar.
Job Titles:
- Learning & Programme Officer
Sona brings three years of experience in leading analytical, data-driven, and customer-focused product designs within diverse teams across APAC. She is also a Rising Star at Wedu. Sona holds a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science and a minor in Psychology from Ashoka University. She is passionate about technology and women's representation in STEM and firmly believes that having women role models is crucial in making the sector more inclusive and accessible.
Sophiya brings demonstrated leadership in women's entrepreneurship, leadership and grassroots empowerment in Asia to the board. Over her career, she has explored how social entrepreneurship optimises impact at the community level; led gender-inclusive empowerment projects for agencies like UK Aid and the World Bank; and held governance positions at NGOs championing women's leadership in Nepal. After obtaining an MBA from Singapore Management University, Sophiya now works in Singapore's tech sector, developing policies that represent grassroots voices and enhance safer product experiences.
Sophiya became a Rising Star at Wedu in 2016 and is excited to leverage her strategic thinking, stakeholder engagement and communication skills to advance Wedu's mission through this role.
Job Titles:
- Leadership Programme Intern
Kim is pursuing a Bachelor's degree in Global Economics with a Minor in Business Intelligence at Sunmoon University, Korea, with the Global Korea Scholarship 2020. She has extensive experience in Private Equity Investment Research, data analytics, and project management. As a Manager at VietAbroader, a nonprofit organisation empowering Vietnamese youths, she spearheaded initiatives to guide students in their career paths, organised online events, and expanded study abroad opportunities. Additionally, the ‘Folktale - Một ít chuyện con nít', which she is the co-founder of, has published more than four thousand gender-equal fairy tales in Vietnam. Beyond her professional accomplishments, Kim is deeply committed to leadership and community development.
As a Rising Star and Leadership Programme Intern at Wedu, she supports in managing and organising programme data, administrative processes, and ensuring the overall success of the programmes.
With 30 years of experience working globally, Vittoria brings a passion for women empowerment and exploration to the board. Serving as Interim Chair combines her professional focus on leadership development, mentoring, transition coaching, and cross-cultural awareness with her personal mission to empower people to be catalysts for the change they want to see for themselves and their world. As a Professional Certified Coach, Vittoria has partnered with professionals from various industries (banking, nutrition, travel, finance, fashion, education) as well as change-makers in startups and Fortune 500 MNCs. Vittoria welcomes complexity while honouring and caring for the beauty and fragility of our human experience.