Abdallah Mohammed, Africa Strategy Director, Country Coordinator, Kenya, abdallah@thinkimpact.org
Abdallah, born and raised in Kenya, has been involved in several organizations that have helped him develop his passion for serving his community. He has always been motivated by how significantly people’s lives can be changed from being given the opportunity to make a difference. He served as a program officer for the Muthaa Community Development Foundation, a Kenyan organization that works to promote programs that affect positive change in developing communities. Abdallah graduated with Second Class Honors from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology in 2008 with a B.S. in Food Science and Nutrition. He also received his Certified Public Accountant (CPA) from the Visions Institute of Professionals in 2007.
Benson Adjei, Country Coordinator, Ghana, benson@thinkimpact.org
Born and brought up in Kumasi, the second largest city in Ghana, Benson obtained his first degree in Agricultural Science from the University of Cape Coast, Ghana in 2002 and has been working with the National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI) as a Small Business Trainer since 2003. Benson has been working in rural Ghana for the past six years as the District Coordinator for the the Rural Enterprises Project in the Atwima Nwabiagya District. The project is being supported by the Ghana Government, IFAD, African Development Bank and African Development Fund. It is an initiative to enhance the access of rural entrepreneurs to training and advisory services, equipment, modern technology, market and credit. Benson has extensive expertise in facilitation, livelihood empowerment, small business development, community development and local/regional economic development. In 2009, Benson was awarded a scholarship by the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation (BMZ) to undergo a one-year International Leadership Training in Managing Development in Rural Regions. It was a hands-on training that greatly enhanced his skills in rural development, SMEs promotion and the development of agricultural value chains. Benson is also the co-founder and Programs Director for Kumasi Center for Life-long Learning, a non-profit organization that is focused on youth empowerment, skills development and the promotion of entrepreneurship. Benson has a passion for initiatives that enhance the economic well-being of rural people and is proud to be part of the ThinkImpact Team.
Jessica Morse, Community Manager, jessica@thinkimpact.org
Jessica joined the ThinkImpact team in the summer of 2010 as an Intern. A San Francisco native, Jessica received a B.A. from University of California, Davis in International Relations. Since graduating in 2009 Jessica has worked as a research associate at Next Endeavor, LLC where she supported start-up nonprofit organizations. International experiences include an immersion trip to South America where she honed her Spanish language skills and working as an activities director on board the Crystal Serenity in the Mediterranean. She is currently pursuing a Masters in International Education at the George Washington University, researching innovative alternatives to traditional study abroad. Jessica has also worked with Professor Ryan Watkins at George Washington University to build a database of aid projects, chronicling the use of Performance Improvement on the project and organizational level. She just recently returned from a summer in Kenya, where she was working as an Advisor on the 2011 Innovation Institute.
Jimmy Mhlanga, Country Coordinator, South Africa, jimmy@thinkimpact.org
Jimmy was born in Soweto (in the Gauteng province of South Africa) and moved to a village called Utah in the northeastern part of the country at the age of four. He attended primary school and high school locally. Jimmy completed customer care, business skills, management and field courses in college in 2003. From 2004-2009 Jimmy served as Camp Manager at Djuma Game Reserve, a 5 star luxury reserve in the private Sabi Sands park. His sense of humor and love of people from different cultures and nationalities infused a deep passion for working with diverse groups. While at Djuma and after his tenure there, Jimmy worked closely with government and non-government entities, including The Buffelshoek Trust and the Rotary Club of Vancouver, Canada. Jimmy has successfully managed development of several preschools through such partnerships. In 2008 Jimmy completed a lodge management course with South African Wildlife College. As a community leader, Jimmy is working with a group of fifty unemployed youth setting up small business in four communities with support from the municipality and the local tribal authorities. Jimmy believes deeply in the power of entrepreneurship and youth, saying, through “this program and dedicated youth we can eliminate the high rate of unemployment, alcohol, drug abuse and AIDS [in South Africa].”
Kate Loose, Africa Operations Manager, kate@thinkimpact.org
Kate first became involved with ThinkImpact as a Global Development Intern (now called “Scholar”) in South Africa in 2010. She worked with four local entrepreneurs to start a women-run cooperative business with the aim to create a space for women in the community to meet, share ideas, and learn about business practices while also earning some much-needed income and fostering feelings of pride and dignity. Kate then returned to ThinkImpact as the Manager of Logistics in South Africa for the 2011 Innovation Institute and joined the team as the Country Manager in fall 2011. Kate believes strongly in the power of social enterprise to empower local community members to work collectively to find innovative solutions to complex problems and is excited to work with the next generation of social entrepreneurs in pursuit of that goal. Kate received her B.A. in economics and government from Cornell University in Ithaca, NY.
Noel Ntabanganyimana, Country Coordinator, Rwanda, noel@thinkimpact.org
Noel is originally from Rwanda and joined ThinkImpact in January 2012. He has always been focused on empowering rural communities and is interested in ways people can drive their own development regardless of their education level. Noel has been involved with many different companies and organizations that work in rural community development, including serving as district supervisor of biomass consumption in the Northern and Southern provinces of Rwanda for Africa Energy Services Group. He is currently a Generation Rwanda scholar completing his Bachelor’s degree in Estate Management and Valuation at the Kigali Institute of Science and Technology (KIST). Noel believes that entrepreneurship comes after innovation, and that the development of social enterprise is key to unleashing the many resources and assets present in rural communities. He sees many opportunities to develop his profession, his country and his people by being a member of the ThinkImpact family and he is excited to develop and grow ThinkImpact’s presence in Rwanda.
Patrick Keane, Program Manager, patrick@thinkimpact.org
Born in Kenya, Patrick has also lived in Zimbabwe, Indonesia, Thailand, Uganda, the US and Nepal. He has seen, firsthand, the prospects for the future of community leadership in developing countries. Patrick is a firm believer that social enterprise can drive local communities to collaboratively design and implement strategies for sustained development. Patrick interned with ThinkImpact’s DC office in 2010 before joining the team as Program Manager in March 2011. As a StartingBloc Fellow, he is an active member of the social entrepreneurship community. Patrick hopes to grow and learn from the ThinkImpact family in order to bond with those who share his goals and feel the spark of our collective creativity. Patrick believes that young leaders can break free of the status quo to nurture innovation, and is delighted to work with you on that process. He earned his B.A. in Writing, Rhetoric and Technical Communication with a minor in Philosophy from James Madison University in Virginia.
Stacy Klingbeil, Assistant to the CEO, stacy@thinkimpact.org
Stacy joined the team in December 2011 as Assistant to the CEO and received her BS in Engineering Management from Miami University in 2011 where she was involved in Miami’s Center for Social Entrepreneurship and their student social enterprise, EDUN Live On Campus. She believes that building cross-cultural relationships, being resourceful, and having an open mind are the most important aspects of social entrepreneurship, and experienced this firsthand interning in Guatemala with Social Entrepreneur Corps in the summer of 2010. There, she helped local entrepreneurs thrive through the MicroConsignment Model, and helped spread environmental awareness at a rural afterschool program where her life was permanently changed. She believes in the generous, caring nature of human kind and is excited to continue her path of making a social impact with ThinkImpact through the development of on-the-ground travel experiences and inspiring new ways of thinking.
