Shifting Power in Philanthropy – March 19

Coco Jervis has worked at Mama Cash since 2019. She joined as the Grants Manager and, in July 2022, became the Director of Programmes, based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Prior to starting at Mama Cash, Coco served as the campaign and communications manager at the Global Network of People Living with HIV (GNP+). Coco is a proud graduate of City University of New York, Hunter College and Howard University School of Law. 

John Hecklinger leads Global Fund for Children as President and CEO, driving social change by helping effective community-led organizations around the world connect with the resources they need to empower children and youth to reach their full potential. Prior to joining GFC, John served as Chief Network Officer for GlobalGiving, where he established partnerships to drive GlobalGiving’s growth as a globally networked organization. John holds a Master’s in English Language and Literature from the University of Florida and a Bachelor’s in English Language and Literature from the University of Virginia. John serves as Co-Chair of the Alliance for International Youth Development and as a Leap Ambassador, and he is an active member of learning communities such as Elevate Children Funders Group, the Council on Foundations, and NationSwell.

Cynthia Eyakuze is the Co-Vice President of Global Programs at the Equality Fund.  She has over 25 years of experience in human rights, women’s rights, sexual and reproductive health and rights, and governance and accountability.  She is a skilled and innovative strategist with expertise in advocacy, program development and delivery, and philanthropy. Cynthia led the Open Society Foundations’ (OSF) Women’s Rights Program from 2014-2017, which focused on advancing women’s sexual and reproductive rights, promoting economic justice for women and strengthening women’s rights organizations and movements.  Prior to that, she directed OSF’s Public Health Program’s Accountability and Monitoring in Health Initiative for 7 years, overseeing efforts to support civil society organizations to increase accountability and transparency in the financing and delivery of health care at the local, national, regional, and global levels with a particular focus on marginalized communities. Before joining OSF, Cynthia directed the Francophone Africa Program at Family Care International, an NGO based in New York, overseeing programs on HIV/AIDS, adolescent sexual and reproductive health and maternal health in West Africa.  She holds an MA in French from Bryn Mawr College, and an MPH from Columbia University. 

Serra Sippel is a Visiting Practitioner at the Center for Public and Nonprofit Leadership. She is founder and president of Serra Sippel Strategies LLC, where she advises and supports nonprofits, foundations, and corporations that seek to build just and equitable societies to help them achieve deeper impact. Serra has devoted more than 20 years to the advancement of gender equality and sexual and reproductive health, rights and justice in the U.S. and globally. She was president of CHANGE (Center for Health and Gender Equity) for fifteen years and in 2021, co-founded Fòs Feminista, a global feminist alliance, through the merger of CHANGE with two other women’s rights nonprofits. Serra was a commissioner for the International AIDS Society-Lancet Commission on the Future of Global Health and HIV Response. She holds a master’s degree in religion from the Earlham School of Religion with an emphasis on peace and justice. She earned an Executive Certificate in Nonprofit Management from the Center for Public and Nonprofit Leadership.