Justine E. Amekoe

I would attribute my success to persistence, faith, education, and the people who have supported me along the way. Coming from a humble background, I didn’t always know what opportunities were available to me, so a lot of my journey has been about learning, asking questions, taking chances, and continuing even when I didn’t have everything figured out.

I have been fortunate to have mentors, family, friends, and institutions that have opened doors and believed in me. Those experiences have also shaped how I define success today. It’s no longer just about how far I can go personally, but what I can do with the opportunities I’ve received to make someone else’s journey a little easier.

The best career advice I’ve received is not to disqualify myself before I’ve even tried. Earlier in my journey, I sometimes looked at opportunities and focused first on what I didn’t have or why I might not be ready.

Over time, I have learned to prepare, ask questions, put myself forward, and allow the opportunity to tell me no rather than telling myself no first. Some of the most meaningful opportunities in my journey have come simply because I was willing to try.

I would tell young women to stay curious, ask questions, and never let being unfamiliar with a space convince you that you don’t belong there. You don’t have to have everything figured out before you begin.

Seek mentors, build meaningful relationships, and be willing to put yourself forward for opportunities even when you’re unsure. And as you grow, remember to bring others along. Success becomes much more meaningful when you can use what you’ve learned to make the path a little easier for someone coming behind you.

I think one of the biggest challenges in public policy is the gap between what a policy is designed to do and what people actually experience. A program can look effective on paper, but barriers like access, information, eligibility, or implementation can prevent it from reaching the people who need it most.

At the same time, I see a huge opportunity in using better data, rigorous research, and community voices together to understand those gaps. That’s what excites me about the field: using evidence not just to evaluate whether a policy works, but to understand for whom it works, who may be left behind, and how we can do better.

The values that are most important to me are faith, integrity, empathy, service, and continuous growth. I try to approach both my work and personal life with the belief that what I do should have meaning beyond myself.

Integrity keeps me grounded in doing things the right way, empathy reminds me to consider the people behind the work, and service reminds me to use what I learn and the opportunities I receive to help others. I also value growth because I believe there is always something new to learn: from our experiences, from our mistakes, and especially from other people.