Her Story
About Grace
I run all of our brand and communications for my nonprofit called Nakupenda, and we host free sports camps in different countries all around Africa. My sister was the founder about a year ago, so it's pretty new, but we're hosting our first sports camp in Rwanda this summer in June. I do all of our communication, I am heavily involved in the strategy, I run and strategize all of our fundraising events - we've had two so far with a third one planned in spring. My background is in international marketing and communication and client work, consulting but with a little bit more marketing involved. I've been doing that for about 7 years, working primarily in MarTech, in technology and healthcare industries, with a little bit of experience across different sectors as well. I got my bachelor's in advertising and communication, so I started my career strictly in advertising, doing a lot of the ad work for Toyota under the agency Saatchi, and then I kind of pivoted to marketing once I realized I wanted to be more involved from a strategic perspective. Then I got my master's in international strategic communication, so that was kind of when the international piece came in. I've interned and did freelancing for a lot of globally-minded companies, like International Red Cross where I did a lot of their communications around environmental tragedies, and the Department of Tourism in the Democratic Republic of Congo where I did some communication and policy work. I'm currently getting a doctorate degree in public policy and political economy. I'm originally from Congo, and I feel like the work that I'm doing with Nakupenda is making an impact in a big way, especially because I've been with Nakupenda since we founded, so it just feels like what I'm doing has such a big reach and such an immediate impact on the communities I care about.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Grace
01What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would say that it's somewhat of a myth that you have to pick a path that has already been done. I think when I started out, I assumed you look at the options that are available, and you pick one, versus creating a niche for yourself. There are so many needs out there. If there's a niche that you think of, someone is looking for a creative or strategic mind to fill it. So I would always say go with what feels right, and the career will come.
02What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
I've come across a lot of women in my professional career who have made an impact and kind of just shown me that you can be powerful and be kind in positions of leadership, and I've come across a lot of women like that, and that really shaped the way that I want to interact with the roles that I'm in and the positions that I hold. I have a very big love of academia. My dad used to work for the UN, and my family is very big readers and writers, you know, back through a few generations. So I grew up really appreciating academics and just studying in general. I also travel a lot, and I think the experiences I've gotten traveling has been the most influential in my life so far, because I'm constantly in different communities and different places and having to navigate that and learn very quickly and adapt on the fly. I think it was kind of a combination of reading a ton when I was younger, and that's still a part of my life, and then just being in so many different environments that you just naturally get so many learnings about what's around you.
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