2025 Global Fellows
Meet the 2025 class of Ford Global Fellows!
Bertha Zúniga
“I imagine a world where human dignity takes priority over individual economic interests, a world built with greater democracy, participation, respect among people, and more trees and rivers running freely. I see happier communities free of violence.”
Honduras
Dani Ayers
“A world without sexual and gender-based violence is one of safe, liberated communities that operate together with dignity, respect, empathy, and care.”
United States
Divya Varma
“I dream of a world where everyone can live and work with dignity everywhere. This is a world that treats migrant workers with dignity, where migrant worker communities are integrated into their receiving societies and are able to seamlessly access all their fundamental rights.”
India
Dr. Troy Jackson
“Leaders develop cultures with their people that are courageous, healthy, psychologically safe, able to navigate tensions, and make a tangible difference in the world.”
United States
Emmanuela Shinta
“I believe that technology in the hands of Indigenous people is very powerful; I choose storytelling and activism as my methods to help Indigenous communities reclaim their narratives and assert their rights on the global stage.”
Indonesia
Fainta Negoro
“A world without water inequality is one where every community has reliable access to clean and sustainable water resources, regardless of economic or social standing. Collaborative, locally-driven solutions are the norm, blending traditional knowledge with innovative practices to safeguard water for future generations.”
Indonesia
Gabriela Chaves
“I imagine a world where well-being, community, and sustainability are valued, and groups that have long been excluded from economic discussions shape discourse, infusing it with new perspectives and experiences.”
Brazil
Jeremy Maarman
“Leadership is about enabling individuals and communities to harness their power to transform their realities while fostering a shared responsibility for the collective good. It’s about unlocking the potential in others to lead themselves and their communities toward justice and opportunity.”
South Africa
Joy Hayley Munthali
“With boldness, empathy, and collective action, I believe we can create a world with true equity.”
Malawi
Jumko Ogata-Aguilar
“The words of Indigenous and Black writers helped me believe in the importance of my own voice, and I want to provide others with the tools and the strength to find theirs and use it to fight inequality.”
Mexico
Kodzo Yaotse
“Leadership means ensuring that those who are traditionally underrepresented are not only heard but lead the way in shaping a just and sustainable future.”
Ghana
Letícia Santiago de Moraes
“Local organizing processes are fundamental if we are to move forward with broader actions and influence the construction of public policies that reflect the realities and needs of Indigenous Peoples, quilombolas, and traditional communities.”
Brazil
Luis Javier Velásquez Varela
“No one protects what they don’t love, and no one loves what they don’t know. I imagine a world where future generations take care of the Amazon and have a better quality of life. They protect it because they love it, and they love it because at some point, they had the opportunity to learn a great deal about it.”
Perú
Lydia Namubiru
“Disrupting persistent inequality requires the courage to disrupt power imbalances, even when maintaining the status quo is to our individual benefit.”
Uganda
Mallory Zhan
“Care cannot stop at the boundaries of my personal or professional circles. Leadership, to me, means extending care to strangers near and far, recognizing our shared humanity, and acting with a sense of duty to those with fewer resources or opportunities.”
France
Mercy Mutemi
“I want to see technology that puts people first: technology that is not built on the broken backs and minds of African youth, technology that benefits Africans and allows African innovations to grow and compete on a global stage.”
Kenya
Michael Liu
“I work at the crossroads of different networks and communities, and I facilitate collaborations between people working on big picture questions and those focused on small, practical steps. I don’t dare to claim that I can work ‘on behalf of’ others.”
Netherlands
Milady Garcés Arboleda
“I imagine a world where women, ethnic and rural communities, and our youth are recognized and valued as key players in wealth creation. I envision development models that are relevant and tailored to the realities of their territories.”
Colombia
Noncedo Madubedube
“Leadership is the ability to inspire and mobilize individuals and communities to drive transformative change. We must foster adaptability and innovation as we create a shared vision that empowers underrepresented voices and builds sustainable solutions to complex social challenges.”
South Africa
Odun Orimolade
“Our actions affect others in more ways than we can imagine. If empathy were more widely available and valued, there would be a stronger thrust towards undoing systems of inequality.”
Nigeria
Patricio Cumming Rivero
“I envision a world that has a better understanding of how essential nature is for our socioeconomic systems. We must transcend from an arrangement in which we compensate for our impacts to one in which nature is valued, in all its grandeur.”
Mexico
Priya Thuvassery
“I believe in feminist leadership, which is not just about women taking on leadership roles but about leading differently. It means ensuring equality, justice, and accessibility for everyone, regardless of gender, caste, race, age, socio-economic background, disability, or sexual orientation.”
India
Racha Ghanem
“Collective work creates intricate webs. What we give in time, energy, effort, and initiative comes back to us as friendships, mutual support, and small but incremental changes in society. The world needs more people willing to do the unglamorous, day-to-day work of community-building.”
Lebanon
Rasak Adekoya
“Leadership is the ability to inspire and mobilize individuals and communities to drive transformative change. We must foster adaptability and innovation as we create a shared vision that empowers underrepresented voices and builds sustainable solutions to complex social challenges.”
Nigeria
Ronaldo Matos
“In a world without social and economic inequality, all people can create individual and collective plans for the futures of their neighborhoods, cities, states, and countries.”
Brazil
Sahar Aloul
“Unequal distribution of unpaid care work, and lack of its recognition as work, deprives women of their voice and participation in social, political, and economic life.”
Jordan
Samer Sfeir
“Innovation has led technology, food, and many other fields to great improvements. How can we create strategies to leverage innovation for taking disability inclusion to the next level?”
Lebanon
Samuel Okulony
“I imagine a world where all communities have access to clean water, food, health care, and sustainable livelihoods. Natural resources are equitably managed, ensuring that development benefits everyone rather than displaces the most vulnerable.”
Uganda
Sandhya Gupta
“I see a world where every child—regardless of gender, class, or community—believes they can learn and grow in the STEM field and in life.”
India
Valeska Ruiz Peña
“I envision a world where power is distributed in a balanced way and all people can be recognized on equal terms to exercise citizenship and live with dignity and without any form of violence.”
Perú