Featured Speaker: Pauline Mujawamariya Koelbl
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2019 | 3:00 - 5:00 p.m.
Talk and Reception: International Center, 427 North Shaw Lane, East Lansing, MI 48824
Innovation, Social Entrepreneurship, and Enterprise for the Public Good in Africa
Pauline Koelbl-Mujawamariya
Freelance Innovation Catalyst
Angel Investor
Co-Founder and Vice President of Operations, Professional Women of African Heritage (PROWAH)
Pauline Koelbl-Mujawamariya's passion lies in innovation, entrepreneurship, and empowerment of youth and women. She is co-founder and vice president of operations of the PROWAH initiative, which empowers professional women of African heritage to connect, learn from each other, and expand their professional and leadership skills to serve as change agents, shaping the African narrative globally. The organization is based in Switzerland.
Koelbl-Mujawamariya has over 20 years' experience in the international affairs and philanthropic sectors. She has worked for UN bodies and international organizations in Africa, Europe, and the USA, including the World Health Organization in Geneva, UNESCO in Paris, UNICEF in Goma, ENDA Tiers Monde in Dakar, and Jewish Family & Children's Services in Tucson, Arizona.
From 2011 to 2018, she worked for the African Innovation Foundation (AIF) in dual roles as managing director and program director for AIF's flagship program, Innovation Prize for Africa, which celebrates and rewards African innovation and ingenuity. At AIF, she was responsible for overall management of the Foundation, leading its vision and activities toward strengthening African innovation ecosystems and catalyzing African-led development across the continent and beyond.
Koelbl-Mujawamariya currently serves on the board of directors of the Flame Tree Initiative, a US-based NGO that uses ICTs to address the digital divide through collaboration with African universities. She is an advisory board member for EurAfrican Forum, GreenTec Capital Partners, and Innovation in Laboratory Engineered Accelerated Diagnostics (iLEAD). She is also a Bellagio/PopTech Catalyst, a joint initiative between the Rockefeller Foundation and PopTech, working with a global community of innovators for positive social change.