Women’s Entrepreneurship Thought Leader
At the Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative Summit in DC, I was delighted to be a panelist discussing Investing in Women: Promoting Social and Economic Empowerment. I was even more pleased that the topic of women entrepreneurs and women in business was included in the summit. If you are unfamiliar, YLAI was launched to build links between young leaders across the hemisphere to address the opportunity gap for youth, especially women, by empowering entrepreneurs and civil society leaders with the training, tools, networks, and resources they need to transform their societies and contribute more fully to economic development and human rights in their respective countries.
It was intended for female entrepreneurs who wanted to hear what advice for founders successful female founders and US government officials could provide, when it comes to investing and growing a company. People were able to discuss why women make the best entrepreneurs and how entrepreneurship can help you achieve your own definition of happiness. People also talked about how funding is different for female founders and strategies to use when pitching male venture capitalists. The power and hope in that room was palpable.
Little did I know that I would receive my best compliment of 2016 at YLAI. Wade Channell was the panel moderator, and he told me afterwards that he considered me a thought leader on women’s entrepreneurship. Wade is the Senior Economic Growth Advisor for the Office of Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment in the U.S. Agency for International Development, so his compliment was staggering. My goal in 2017 is to make sure that I live up to that compliment and continue to lead discussions and share ideas about women’s entrepreneurship on a local and global level!
