Dr. Wanjiru Kamau-Rutenberg is a distinguished academic and leader with extensive experience in various organizations dedicated to social equity and development. Currently serving as a Senior Fellow at the Ford Foundation, Dr. Kamau-Rutenberg is also the Founder and Executive Director of Black Women in Executive Leadership (B-WEL). Additionally, Dr. Kamau-Rutenberg contributes to the Africa Food Prize Selection Committee, the International Advisory Board of the Zentrum für Entwicklungsforschung / Center for Development Research (ZEF), and acts as a Gender Fund Advisor for Co-Impact. Dr. Kamau-Rutenberg holds a Ph.D. in Political Science with a focus on Comparative Politics from the University of Minnesota and has been awarded an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Whitman College.