Jacqueline Novogratz
Encyclopedia
Jacqueline Novogratz is founder and CEO of Acumen Fund
, a non-profit global venture capital
fund that uses entrepreneurial approaches to solve the problems of global poverty. Acumen Fund
has invested over $50 million of patient capital
in 50 businesses that have impacted more than 40 million people in the past year alone. Any money returned to Acumen Fund is reinvested in enterprises serving the poor. Currently, Acumen has offices in New York, Mumbai, Karachi and Nairobi.
, where she studied Economics
and International Relations
. The title of Novogratz’s 2009 book The Blue Sweater: Bridging the Gap Between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World is based on an encounter she had in high school that led to her giving away a favorite sweater to Goodwill
, only to find the same sweater years later on a boy in Rwanda
.
as an international credit analyst. After three years, she left banking to explore how to make a bigger difference in the world. This led her to work throughout Africa as a consultant for the World Bank
and for UNICEF. As a UNICEF consultant in Rwanda
in the late 1980s, she helped found Duterimbere, Rwanda’s first microfinance
institution. Novogratz also founded and directed The Philanthropy Workshop and The Next Generation Leadership programs at the Rockefeller Foundation
before starting Acumen Fund
in 2001. Under Novogratz's leadership, Acumen Fund has grown to serve 40 million people a year through its investments of patient capital
in businesses that provide low-income people with critical goods and services. She also oversaw the creation of Acumen's year-long Fellowship program that aims to build the next generation of leadership for the social sector. Novogratz has an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business
.
Novogratz currently serves on the advisory boards of Stanford Graduate School of Business
and of Innovations (journal)
published by MIT Press
. She also serves on the Aspen Institute
Board of Trustees and as a member of a World Economic Forum
Global Agenda Council on Social Innovation. She is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations
.
In 2010, Jacqueline Novogratz was honored as the 2010 Rensselaer Entrepreneur of the Year (EOY) for her work with Acumen as well as for her New York Times best seller 'The Blue Sweater: Bridging the Gap Between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World', published in 2009. In early March 2010, she received an honorary degree from Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Such mark of recognition of her work in Kenya inspired her to establish a book club for The Blue Sweater, using the school's honorarium to create "The Blue Sweater Challenge." The program allows young organizers from the slums of Nairobi, Kenya, who have hosted both "The Blue Sweater book club" and a TEDx in the Kibera slum, to identify and award three local groups who are doing the most to effect positive social change in their communities.
. Since its publication, the book has been picked by the University of North Carolina at Charlotte
and Peace College
as common reading for all incoming freshmen.
, the curator of TED
.
Acumen Fund
Acumen Fund is a non-profit global venture fund that uses entrepreneurial approaches to solve the problems of global poverty. Its aim is to help build financially sustainable and scalable organizations that deliver affordable critical goods and services that improve the lives of the poor...
, a non-profit global venture capital
Venture capital
Venture capital is financial capital provided to early-stage, high-potential, high risk, growth startup companies. The venture capital fund makes money by owning equity in the companies it invests in, which usually have a novel technology or business model in high technology industries, such as...
fund that uses entrepreneurial approaches to solve the problems of global poverty. Acumen Fund
Acumen Fund
Acumen Fund is a non-profit global venture fund that uses entrepreneurial approaches to solve the problems of global poverty. Its aim is to help build financially sustainable and scalable organizations that deliver affordable critical goods and services that improve the lives of the poor...
has invested over $50 million of patient capital
Patient capital
Patient capital is another name for long term capital. With patient capital, the investor is willing to make a financial investment in a business with no expectation of turning a quick profit...
in 50 businesses that have impacted more than 40 million people in the past year alone. Any money returned to Acumen Fund is reinvested in enterprises serving the poor. Currently, Acumen has offices in New York, Mumbai, Karachi and Nairobi.
Early life
Jacqueline was born in the U.S., the eldest of seven children (who all currently reside in New York City). Her father is a U.S. military veteran. She went to high school in suburban Virginia and attended college at the University of VirginiaUniversity of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
, where she studied Economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
and International Relations
International relations
International relations is the study of relationships between countries, including the roles of states, inter-governmental organizations , international nongovernmental organizations , non-governmental organizations and multinational corporations...
. The title of Novogratz’s 2009 book The Blue Sweater: Bridging the Gap Between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World is based on an encounter she had in high school that led to her giving away a favorite sweater to Goodwill
Goodwill
Goodwill or Good Will may refer to:* Goodwill , the value of a business entity not directly attributable to its assets and liabilities* Goodwill, Maryland, United States...
, only to find the same sweater years later on a boy in Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
.
Career
Novogratz started her career at Chase Manhattan BankChase Manhattan Bank
JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., doing business as Chase, is a national bank that constitutes the consumer and commercial banking subsidiary of financial services firm JPMorgan Chase. The bank was known as Chase Manhattan Bank until it merged with J.P. Morgan & Co. in 2000...
as an international credit analyst. After three years, she left banking to explore how to make a bigger difference in the world. This led her to work throughout Africa as a consultant for the World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
and for UNICEF. As a UNICEF consultant in Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
in the late 1980s, she helped found Duterimbere, Rwanda’s first microfinance
Microfinance
Microfinance is the provision of financial services to low-income clients or solidarity lending groups including consumers and the self-employed, who traditionally lack access to banking and related services....
institution. Novogratz also founded and directed The Philanthropy Workshop and The Next Generation Leadership programs at the Rockefeller Foundation
Rockefeller Foundation
The Rockefeller Foundation is a prominent philanthropic organization and private foundation based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The preeminent institution established by the six-generation Rockefeller family, it was founded by John D. Rockefeller , along with his son John D. Rockefeller, Jr...
before starting Acumen Fund
Acumen Fund
Acumen Fund is a non-profit global venture fund that uses entrepreneurial approaches to solve the problems of global poverty. Its aim is to help build financially sustainable and scalable organizations that deliver affordable critical goods and services that improve the lives of the poor...
in 2001. Under Novogratz's leadership, Acumen Fund has grown to serve 40 million people a year through its investments of patient capital
Patient capital
Patient capital is another name for long term capital. With patient capital, the investor is willing to make a financial investment in a business with no expectation of turning a quick profit...
in businesses that provide low-income people with critical goods and services. She also oversaw the creation of Acumen's year-long Fellowship program that aims to build the next generation of leadership for the social sector. Novogratz has an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business
Stanford Graduate School of Business
The Stanford Graduate School of Business is one of the professional schools of Stanford University, in Stanford, California and is broadly regarded as one of the best business schools in the world.The Stanford GSB offers a general management Master of Business Administration degree, the Sloan...
.
Novogratz currently serves on the advisory boards of Stanford Graduate School of Business
Stanford Graduate School of Business
The Stanford Graduate School of Business is one of the professional schools of Stanford University, in Stanford, California and is broadly regarded as one of the best business schools in the world.The Stanford GSB offers a general management Master of Business Administration degree, the Sloan...
and of Innovations (journal)
Innovations (journal)
Innovations is a peer-reviewed academic journal that focuses on entrepreneurial solutions to global challenges. It is published quarterly by the MIT Press.- History :Innovations published its first issue in 2006...
published by MIT Press
MIT Press
The MIT Press is a university press affiliated with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts .-History:...
. She also serves on the Aspen Institute
Aspen Institute
The Aspen Institute is an international nonprofit organization founded in 1950 as the Aspen Institute of Humanistic Studies. The organization is dedicated to "fostering enlightened leadership, the appreciation of timeless ideas and values, and open-minded dialogue on contemporary issues." The...
Board of Trustees and as a member of a World Economic Forum
World Economic Forum
The World Economic Forum is a Swiss non-profit foundation, based in Cologny, Geneva, best known for its annual meeting in Davos, a mountain resort in Graubünden, in the eastern Alps region of Switzerland....
Global Agenda Council on Social Innovation. She is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations
Council on Foreign Relations
The Council on Foreign Relations is an American nonprofit nonpartisan membership organization, publisher, and think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and international affairs...
.
In 2010, Jacqueline Novogratz was honored as the 2010 Rensselaer Entrepreneur of the Year (EOY) for her work with Acumen as well as for her New York Times best seller 'The Blue Sweater: Bridging the Gap Between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World', published in 2009. In early March 2010, she received an honorary degree from Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Such mark of recognition of her work in Kenya inspired her to establish a book club for The Blue Sweater, using the school's honorarium to create "The Blue Sweater Challenge." The program allows young organizers from the slums of Nairobi, Kenya, who have hosted both "The Blue Sweater book club" and a TEDx in the Kibera slum, to identify and award three local groups who are doing the most to effect positive social change in their communities.
Book
In 2009, Novogratz published the New York Times bestseller The Blue Sweater: Bridging the Gap Between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World. The book is a firsthand account of her journey from international banker to social entrepreneur and founder of Acumen FundAcumen Fund
Acumen Fund is a non-profit global venture fund that uses entrepreneurial approaches to solve the problems of global poverty. Its aim is to help build financially sustainable and scalable organizations that deliver affordable critical goods and services that improve the lives of the poor...
. Since its publication, the book has been picked by the University of North Carolina at Charlotte
University of North Carolina at Charlotte
The University of North Carolina at Charlotte , also known as UNC Charlotte or simply Charlotte, is a public research university located in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States...
and Peace College
Peace College
William Peace University is a small liberal arts college located in downtown Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. It is affiliated with the Presbyterian church.-History:...
as common reading for all incoming freshmen.
Family
Jacqueline Novogratz is married to Chris AndersonChris Anderson (TED)
Chris Anderson is the curator of TED , which hosts conferences in the US and Europe each year and an open-access website where TED talks can be viewed by the public. Previously he founded Future Publishing....
, the curator of TED
TED (conference)
TED is a global set of conferences owned by the private non-profit Sapling Foundation, formed to disseminate "ideas worth spreading"....
.
Awards and Fellowships
- Rensselaer Polytechnic InstituteRensselaer Polytechnic InstituteStephen Van Rensselaer established the Rensselaer School on November 5, 1824 with a letter to the Rev. Dr. Samuel Blatchford, in which van Rensselaer asked Blatchford to serve as the first president. Within the letter he set down several orders of business. He appointed Amos Eaton as the school's...
’s Entrepreneur of the Year Award, 2010 - Wofford CollegeWofford CollegeEstablished in 1854 and related to the United Methodist Church, Wofford College is an independent, Phi Beta Kappa liberal arts college of 1,525 students located in downtown Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States. The historic campus is recognized as a national arboretum and features “The...
’s Sandor Teszler Award for Moral Courage and Service to Humankind in Spartanburg, SC, along with an honorary doctorate by the college, 2010 - Foreign PolicyForeign PolicyForeign Policy is a bimonthly American magazine founded in 1970 by Samuel P. Huntington and Warren Demian Manshel.Originally, the magazine was a quarterly...
's Top 100 Global Thinkers, 2009 - Daily Beast's 25 Smartest People of the Decade, 2009
- CASE Leadership in Social Entrepreneurship Award, 2009
- AWNY’s Changing the Game Award, 2009
- Ernst & YoungErnst & YoungErnst & Young is one of the largest professional services networks in the world and one of the "Big Four" accountancy firms, along with Deloitte, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers ....
Metro New York Entrepreneur of the Year 2008 - Rockefeller FoundationRockefeller FoundationThe Rockefeller Foundation is a prominent philanthropic organization and private foundation based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The preeminent institution established by the six-generation Rockefeller family, it was founded by John D. Rockefeller , along with his son John D. Rockefeller, Jr...
Warren Weaver Fellow - Aspen InstituteAspen InstituteThe Aspen Institute is an international nonprofit organization founded in 1950 as the Aspen Institute of Humanistic Studies. The organization is dedicated to "fostering enlightened leadership, the appreciation of timeless ideas and values, and open-minded dialogue on contemporary issues." The...
Henry Crown Fellow - SynergosSynergosSynergos is a non-profit organization with a mission to reduce global poverty through “inclusive partnerships” that bring together government, business, civil society and local communities.- History :...
Institute Senior Fellow - Honorary Doctor of Science degree, University of Notre DameUniversity of Notre DameThe University of Notre Dame du Lac is a Catholic research university located in Notre Dame, an unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States...
External links
- Acumen Fund Website
- The Blue Sweater
- Jacqueline Novogratz: Investing in Africa's own solutions, video, TED Conference, July 2005.
- Jacqueline Novogratz: Tackling poverty with "patient capital", video, TED Conference, June 2007 in ArushaArushaArusha is a city in northern Tanzania. It is the capital of the Arusha Region, which claims a population of 1,288,088, including 281,608 for the Arusha District . Arusha is surrounded by some of Africa's most famous landscapes and national parks...
, Tanzania. - Jacqueline Novogratz: A third way to think about aid", video, TED TalkTED (conference)TED is a global set of conferences owned by the private non-profit Sapling Foundation, formed to disseminate "ideas worth spreading"....
at the US State Department, June 2009 in Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution.... - Investing in the World's Poor Stanford Graduate School of Business, May 2007
- Philanthropy and Development in Emerging Markets, Business Week, March 2, 2009
- Hard Lessons Learnt in the War on Poverty, Financial Times, February 24, 2009
- Developing Entrepreneurship among the World's Poorest The McKinsey Quarterly, March 2009
- Jacqueline Novogratz and Deepak Chopra Podcast
- The Patient Capitalist The Economist, May 21, 2009
- Podcast Interview with Jacqueline Novogratz Social Innovation Conversations, April 6, 2009