About us

Carey R. D’Avino is an American attorney who has devoted his litigation practice to helping victims of state sponsored violence in Europe, Asia, and Africa for more than a quarter of a century. His work has inspired activists and lawyers around the world to seek justice for marginalized indigenous peoples and victims of war crimes and crimes against humanity. In addition to negotiating a series of multilateral settlements of Holocaust era claims he is a signatory to the Joint Statement establishing the terms of the German Foundation, “Remembrance, Responsibility, and Future,” the Joint Statement establishing the terms of the Austrian Fund, “Reconciliation, Peace, and Cooperation,” and the Joint Statement establishing the terms of the “Austrian General Settlement Fund.” He represented the Kiobel plaintiffs in the United States Supreme Court in a ground breakingcivil action establishing that U.S. corporations can be held accountable under the ATS for acts of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. He has served as a Visiting Scholar at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and was awarded the John Henry Hobart Fellowship in Ethics and Social Justice by Hobart and William Smith Colleges.

Prof. Mugendi K. M'Rithaa is a transdisciplinary industrial designer, educator, researcher and consultant presently working at Machakos University, Kenya. He studied in Kenya, the USA, India, and South Africa and holds a Bachelor's degree in Design; a Masters degree in Industrial Design; a Higher/Postgraduate Diploma Higher Education and Training; as well as a Doctorate in Universal Design. He is widely traveled and has taught in Kenya, Botswana, Canada, India, Norway, South Africa, Sweden and Uganda and is passionate about various expressions of socially conscious design, including Advanced Ergonomics/Human Factors Engineering; Design Thinking/Human-Centred Design (HCD); Designerly Strategies for Mitigating Climate Change; Design for Social Innovation and Sustainability; Distributed Renewable Energy; Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS); Participatory/Co-Design; Sustainable Development; Sustainable Transportation; and Universal/Inclusive Design (UD). Mugendi has a special interest in the pivotal role of design thinking and the Ubuntu philosophy in advancing the developmental agenda on the African continent. He is a founding member and Simba Fellow of the Pan-Afrikan Design Institute (PADI)/Design Council of Afrika, and is associated with a number of other international networks focusing on design within industrially developing (or majority world contexts) including the Association of Designers of India (ADI). He is also the Founding Patron of the Interior Designers' Association of Kenya (IDAK); a Board Member of Open Design Afrika (ODA); the Special Advisor to the Hasso Plattner School of Design Thinking – d-school at the University of Cape Town; the Special Advisor to the Nairobi Design Week (NDW); a Founding Professional Member of the Design Kenya Society (DKS); as well as an Advisory Committee Member of the International Center for Creativity and Sustainable Development (ICCSD) under the auspices of UNESCO. Additionally, Mugendi is President Emeritus and Senator of the World Design Organization – having been the first African President in the history of the WDO from 2015-2017. Much of his work with the WDO focuses on the importance of supporting the aspirations of designers worldwide in the [industrial] design profession's collective quest to resolve wicked problems in diverse contexts.

Founder and Chairman of Global Equality Alliance , Dr Mohan Kaul is a champion of international trade, investment, and emerging markets, as well as a recognised policy advisor , business leader, social entrepreneur, and academic. His achievements include being a member of the UN Secretary-General’s Management Efficiency Group , conducting as the World Bank adviser the first evaluation of Nobel Laureate Mohammed Yunus’ world famous Grameen Bank in Bangladesh. He had the honour to address a special session of the UN General Assembly on Public Management. Dr. Kaul was a professor and later Dean at the prestigious Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad. He previously held the position of United Nations Adviser and Senior diplomat and Director of management Development at the commonwealth Secretariat and the founder Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of the Commonwealth Business Council. He has also been member of board of directors of ICICI Bank (UK ), UK India Business Council (UKIBC),World Bank Africa Virtual University and Royal Overseas League . He is also currently President of the Indian Partnership Forum, a leading UK think tank formed in the aftermath of Brexit ,a member of Board of directors of Crown Agents Foundation , Liveryman of city Of London and Chairman of Promake Ltd . His detailed profile is on www.kaul.co.uk.
Dr Mohan Kaul

Dr Banjoko Titilola currently works as an Executive Managing Director in the NHS. She has a clinical background. She successfully pioneered the formation of AfricaRecruit and FindaJobinAfrica.com aimed at harnessing human resources and social capacity in Africa. Currently she serves as the chair of the board for the Foundation for Women's Health Research and Development (FORWARD) and the chair of the International Rescue Committee UK....

Dorian Baroni currently is based in the Southwest of the US, working as an executive coach and global leadership development advisor to teams in the business and the nonprofit sectors, as well as a leadership development innovator committed to women's leadership. Her work is informed by her graduate level studies in Anthropology and in Business Management, as well as several decades of global corporate experience in a variety of industries, functions and geographies. After an early career in Information Systems in Investment Banking in the US, she went on to experiment with the connection between leadership development, inclusion and social responsibility in the Energy sector working in the US, Venezuela and the UK. In her coaching and consulting work, Dorian focuses on high effectiveness teaming, awareness based systemic change, the power of leveraging action learning for mindset shifts and micro-habit transformation, as well as the role of women's leadership in redefining business models. She is passionate about inviting business leaders to reimagine the role of business in society so as to leverage the positive potential that exists in new business models focused on innovation and reciprocity. Dorian received her MBA from the Anderson School at UCLA and her undergraduate degree from the College of William and Mary. Dorian continues to learn and explore her areas of interest and works as a senior leadership consultant with a number of consulting firms such as the Presencing Institute, Mannaz and Morris Graham, runs her own coaching business and has founded Women Agents Of Change, an online initiative committed to democratizing access to change leadership knowledge and skills for women via online resources.

The Rt Hon Sir Cable Vince was Secretary of State for Business Innovation and Skills and President of the Board of Trade (2010-2015). He was Member of Parliament for Twickenham 1997-2015; deputy leader of the Lib Dems 2007-2010 and shadow chancellor 2003-2010. He was the leader of the Liberal Democrats 2017-2019; he has served as Member of Parliament for Twickenham 1997-2015, 2017-2019. Some of his achievements include the world's first ever Green Investment Bank, support for young people through apprenticeships and the promotion of socially responsible capitalism From 1966 to 1968 he was Treasury Finance Officer for the Kenya Government. After lecturing at Glasgow University in economics he worked for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office as a first secretary in the Diplomatic Service (1974-76). He was then appointed Deputy Director of the Overseas Development Institute, which included a period working for the then Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, John Smith, as a special advisor. From 1983 to 1990, Vince worked as special advisor on Economic Affairs for the Commonwealth Secretary General, Sir Sonny Ramphal. In 1990 he joined Shell International taking up the post of Chief Economist in 1995. He has also been head of the economics programme at Chatham House and is a former fellow of Nuffield College Oxford and the LSE.Vince served as a Labour councillor in Glasgow between 1971 and 1974, before joining the Social Democrat party. He is currently a visiting professor at the London School of Economics.

Amb. Rudo Chitiga is a senior development expert and diplomat who has held senior management and leadership positions in government, intergovernmental and civil society organisations at national, regional, and international levels. She has vast experience in programme development, capacity building of social and economic development programmes in developing countries of Africa, Asia, the Pacific, and the Caribbean. Rudo has a strong commitment to and expertise in gender equality and inclusion and empowerment of people at all levels.

Duetting Gisela is an anthropologist by training and specialized in social movements, gender and economic justice. Between 1991 and 1998, she was the Director of the Women’s Global Network for Reproductive Rights, campaigning internationally with 1600 groups. She has more than 25 years of experience deployed on long-and short-term assignments for trade unions, public interest networks, social movements and women’s organisations in over 35 countries. From 2017-2020, she was the Senior Specialist Gender and Livelihood at UN Women. Currently, she is seconded by the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs as a Gender/Women Peace and Security expert to the EU. She has been in the board of various organisations, among them the Transnational Institute and WIDE (Women in Development Europe).

Harker John is a former Canadian diplomat with extensive experience in African security issues. His engagement with Africa began when he served as advisor on African Liberation Movements to Canadas Prime Minister at the 1979 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Lusaka. He later authored the proposal on South Africa which was taken up by Commonwealth Heads of Government at their 1985 Nassau Meeting as the Eminent Persons Group. In 1990, he was appointed to chair the Commonwealth Expert Group on Human Resources Development for a post-Apartheid South Africa, as requested by Nelson Mandela. In 1995 he was appointed as advisor to the chair of the Senate Inquiry into Canadas peacekeeping mission in Somalia. In 1996-97, he served in Pretoria, as Special Advisor in the Office of the President, working on the creation of the National Development Agency. In 1999 the Government of Canada appointed him as Special Advisor on African Issues and tasked him with examining the role of Canadas largest oil and gas producer in the context of the civil war in Sudan. In 2002, former US President Jimmy Carter invited him to advise on Security issues in Sierra Leone during the first post-war Elections and after this he served for 10 years as President and Vice Chancellor of Cape Breton University, retiring in 2013.

Of Malaysian Chinese origin Mei Sim Lai has lived in the UK since 1970. She has achieved a number of 'firsts' since she came to this country including being the first female and Chinese partner of the leading firm of Chartered Accountants, Pridie Brewster ( established in 1914 and now part of BDO ) in 1979, the first Chinese person to be a Master of a City Livery Company ( The Worshipful Company of World Traders ) in the very long history of the City of London in 2011, the first Chinese person to be one of Her Majesty's Representatives in Greater London when she was appointed in 2006. Since 2007 she has had responsibility for the London Borough of Brent. Alongside her work as a practising accountant at LaiPeters & Co, Mei Sim ran IoD City of London as its Honorary Secretary from 1991 to October 2020 and has chaired its China Interest Group from 2006 to date. She is also a former Board member of IoD London Region. Since the late 1980s she holds and has held several public, private, City and charity/not for profit appointments including being a non executive director of St Mary's Hospital , Paddington and a Special Trustee of the hospital, a Public Works Loan Commissioner and a member of the Senior Salaries Review Body. Mei Sim was a member of the MoD Diversity Panel and is a member of the Reserve Forces & Cadets Association of Greater London. She is also the President of the Royal British Legion of Wembley and Sudbury. She is a Past Chair of City Women's Network and IWF UK and a Past President of the City Livery Club where she now leads on Women in the Livery. Mei Sim was also a Trustee of Womenkind Worldwide and Tomorrow's People. Her other interests include being Chair of The British Malaysian Society, Chair of Television for the Environment, Chair of Mulan Foundation Network, Co-Chair of Chinese Welfare Trust, a director of The 48 Group Club and Arab International Women's Forum, a Court Member of the Worshipful Company of Horners and a member of the Advisory Board of Christ Church Business School in Canterbury. Mei Sim was appointed OBE in 2004 for services to Equal Opportunities to recognise her contribution to the DTI's Ethnic Minority Business Forum and her work on Race and Education, Race and Employment issues . She is a Past Winner of the Asian Women of Achievement Award and the Sino Pro Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Chinese Community in the UK as well as the TIA award for 100 Women in the World who make a difference. She holds an Honorary Doctor of Laws from the University of Nottingham awarded in 2019.

Nussbaum Barbara is co-author of Sawubona Africa , which looks at the management implications of African culture and values, She works with organisations globally applying an effective and innovative methodology to build belonging in teams. During these extraordinary times, when hybrid teams and disconnection are part of organisational life, ever-greater stressors are placed on individuals everywhere, The need for building belonging in teams and in the work place has never been so apparent. The design of the Finding Us in Music™ process builds belonging through music, story and respectful nuanced listening. Finding "Us in Music" has touched thousands of people in lectures and workshops delivered in Africa, the USA, Germany, India, Japan and the Netherlands. It is a #social flourishing practice perfect for these times where people in workplaces need to find meaning in their lives and feel connected to their colleagues.She now have a team of world class facilitators who can deliver this work accommodating larger numbers . The formulation of this groundbreaking methodology was published in a book which profiles the work of 50 cutting edge thinkers from around the world Handbook on Personal and Organisational Transformation. (J Neal, editor, Springer 2019). my chapter is Finding US in Music: A Method for Deeper Group Engagement. Authored 3 books and a series of articles on new paradigm thinking in business, in the USA (World Business Academy Perspectives Society for Organizational Learning, Reflections Journal at MIT, and Resurgence Magazine). Empowering teams to quickly discover their collaborative potential by building robust relationships through reflection and deep engagement. This fertilizes the soil and nourishes individuals, and sparks the creativity and inspiration to the whole team. Builds flourishing teams and organisations.

Dr Segera Sulochana Giving up on a promising career with a multinational company, Dr Sulochana Segera embarked on her own and launched a consultancy firm, which turned out to be a successful operation. Despite the success, the space seemed to be too visible. Her clients turned out to be all male and they were successful professionals occupying the top slots in the corporate world. Furthermore, having worked as a Head Hunter for senior management, it dawned on her that corporates in general were biased in their process of hiring, which was highly skewed towards men and least in favour of hiring young women or married women with young children. Her training programs were well-attended, but by men. Women had the privilege of participating only if the company had decided to sponsor them. Women were haemorrhaging from the workplace with very little in place to support their professional journey. Witnessing the real-life scenario unfold in her work, Sulochana turned to researching on women and their status and role in the Sri Lankan context. Her endeavour was initiated when the country had just recovered from a 30 year bloody civil war. Women's empowerment became a common metaphor during this time, which prompted Sulochana to try to understand the meaning underlying the expression that was so commonly used among civil society organisations. Sri Lanka's response to empowering women, as witnessed by Sulochana was not fitting in her eyes and in line with her expectations. Her effort to gather additional information from women's organisations that professed to advocate women's empowerment was even more frustrating given the lacuna in doing justice to the slogan. Initiating her own mission to bring about women's empowerment, Sulochana embarked on establishing her own network with Singapore and Malaysia in order to study their best practices in women's empowerment. She returned to Sri Lanka with a great deal of information and ideas and had by then framed her own thoughts on the course she would take in ensuring empowerment among women. She set the groundwork for an organisation for women; an organisation that would be mentoring women and building networks among organisations to benefit women in careers and businesses. Together with Nilam Samsudeen, she came up with the idea of registering Women in Management as a private institute and not as an externally financed Non-Governmental Organisation. This was indeed a very difficult and challenging decision that was accomplished, given the fact that most women's organisations were totally dependent on local or international funding. Sulochana believed that self-reliance was the key to empowerment and thus, WIM was launched as a membership driven organisation in 2010. It had only two members. Today, WIM has 2160 members worldwide and is open to all nationalities. The mentoring program implemented by WIM began by enlisting WIM members who were in top positions in their respective fields of work to mentor women in middle management to be successful in their careers. Not stopping at that, WIM began a journey to the heart of the country, namely the rural areas where no organisation had ever been to. Through its work, WIM ensured that empowerment was not merely relegated to a grand term in gender studies, but put to practice. And today more than 10,000 women from all over the country are connected with WIM as professionals and skilled employees..