SOCIAL IMPACT WEBINAR SERIES
Reviving Beirut: From nonprofit organizations to venture philanthropy, how social enterprise is shaping the aftermath of the August 2020 Explosion and beyond
with an introduction from Tony Tamer, founder and co-CEO of H.I.G. Capital; speakers Kim Issa ’14, director of advancement at International College; Zeina Mhanna, director at LIFE - Lebanese International Finance Executives; Michelle Mouracade, country director at Alfanar - Arab Venture Philanthropy Organization; Mona Shantouf, board member and secretary at Nusaned; and Johnny Yaacoub ’16, engagement manager at Strategy& (part of the PwC network); and facilitated by MENA co-president Zahi Ghorayeb ’21 and club member Lara Najjar ’21
Thursday, October 29, 2020
12:00–1:45 PM ET
Webinar details will be shared in the confirmation email.
On August 4, 2020, a blast at the Port of Beirut in Beirut, Lebanon killed over 200 people, injured upwards of 5,000 others, and displaced around 300,000 people from their homes. The disaster relief effort immediately took shape and is now nearly three months underway. However, the devastation will take years to repair and requires a concerted effort from many players in Lebanon and beyond, with crippling economic and financial crises and the COVID-19 pandemic adding to the country’s woes. With Columbia’s strong international community, alumni and current students were directly affected. Join us to hear about how the Columbia Business School community has taken action and to understand the role the social enterprise sector can play in providing relief to Beirut and ensuring long term recovery.
This event is in collaboration with Columbia Business School’s Middle East and North Africa Club (MENA).
Speaker bios:
Kim Issa ’14
Director of Advancement, International College
Kim is the Director of Advancement at the International College (IC), one of the largest international schools worldwide. Prior to that she was the External Relations Manager of arcenciel; Lebanon’s largest independent social enterprise. arcenciel was awarded “Social Enterprise of the Year” by the Schwab Foundation, organizers of the World Economic Forum in Davos (2015) among others. Kim is also a part-time Business School instructor at the Lebanese American University. Prior to that she was Finance Manager at P&G Geneva, working on home-care brands and on Western Europe’s regional finance. Additionally, in 2016, she co-founded Karm el Joz; a space for events and celebrations in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon.
Kim was born and raised in Beirut, Lebanon. She holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and a BA in business and political science from the American University of Beirut.
Zahi Ghorayeb ’21
MBA Candidate at Columbia Business School
Zahi is currently a full-time MBA student at Columbia Business School and serves as the co-president for the school’s Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Club. Last summer, Zahi interned at Amazon as a Senior Product Manager Technical for three months. Prior to business school, he worked as an Associate for the Strategy&, part of the PwC network, out of the Beirut office for nearly four years. Although currently residing in New York City, Zahi grew up in Beirut and his family continues to live there and he has been actively working to create more awareness and aid to the tragic event at the Port of Beirut.
He earned a BE in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the American University of Beirut and also spent 18 months working as a research assistant at the school.
Zeina Mhanna
Director, LIFE - Lebanese International Finance Executives
Zeina Mhanna has joined LIFE (Lebanese International Finance Executives) in 2014 to lead all Promote activities. Her appointment was a key step to grow and institutionalize the Promote pillar, which aims to support job creation, advance economic policy in Lebanon and mobilise the Lebanese diaspora towards developmental and relief projects in Lebanon.
Prior to joining LIFE, Zeina has worked with major investment banks in a variety of capital markets sales roles in London. She started her career at Morgan Stanley, before moving to JP Morgan and later to Santander GBM.
She holds a Master’s degree in Finance from ESCP-EAP in Paris and a BA in Economics from the American University of Beirut. Zeina also completed the Programme for Leadership Development at the Harvard Business School in 2018.
Michelle Mouracade
Country Director, Alfanar - Arab Venture Philanthropy Organization
Michelle Mouracade is Alfanar's Country Director for Lebanon. Michelle has 23 years of experience in strategy, HR and organisational consulting across several sectors in the US, Europe and 7 locations in Asia. Her experience covers a wide range of industries and functional expertise, from banking to internet start-ups and from business development to transformation programs. Michelle is also a very passionate executive coach, certified by HEC France.
In 2016, Michelle joined Alfanar, the first venture philanthropy organisation in the Arab world that supports growth stage social enterprises with funding, management support, training and access to networks. Michelle is also working on launching a Regional Impact Fund to help extend the financing life cycle for successful and promising social enterprises, with up to 80% of the capital allocated in Lebanon, Jordan and Egypt.
Lara Najjar ’21
MBA Candidate at Columbia Business School
Lara is currently a full-time MBA student at Columbia Business School. Prior to school, she worked as an associate for the Boston Consulting Group in the Middle East office and in the consumer goods sector in the Middle East and the US. Although currently residing in New York City, Lara grew up in Beirut and her family continues to live there. Upon learning about the explosion, Lara immediately collaborated with other classmates to launch a GoFundMe initiative, Beirut Emergency Relief Fund – CBS, to aid in the disaster relief effort, raising close to $30,000 for a local NGO actively working to provide shelter and reconstruction.
She earned a BE in chemical engineering from American University of Beirut.
Mona Shantouf
Board Member and Secretary, Nusaned
Mona Shantouf is the General Manager Mashreq region at Colgate-Palmolive and serves on the board of directors of nusaned. Before joining Colgate in March 2017, Mona assumed the Head of Sales position at Reckitt Benckiser Levant for 3 years and prior to that she was appointed as one of 3 female General Managers globally at Nokia. Mona is also a partner in Closed Circle, owner of the upscale supermarket market in Beirut which she helped in establishing successfully in 2014.
Mona earned an MBA from the American University of Beirut and a Bachelor degree in business administration from the same university.
Johnny Yaacoub ’16
Engagement Manager, Strategy&, part of the PwC network
Johnny currently works as an engagement manager in the Dubai office for Strategy&, part of the PwC network, and has spent the past four years on consulting assignments across the MENA region. Having lived most of his life in Beirut, Johnny was moved to action by the devastating explosion that struck the Port of Beirut. In the weeks following the tragedy, he committed his extra time working on a pro bono effort through Strategy& to support the disaster relief efforts and help direct funds raised to where needed most.
Johnny earned an MBA from Columbia Business School and a BE in computer and communications engineering from American University of Beirut.