Emtech, a Black female owned central bank digital infrastructure provider, targets emerging markets where payments infrastructure need aligning with digital innovations — to improve efficiency, introduce new products and services that are likely to promote financial inclusion, and in ensuring the secure movement of money.
Born in Los Angeles, Nwandu grew up in a foster home after her mother was killed by her father in a tragic episode of domestic violence. Fast forward to 2014, which by all accounts, looked like it was the year that Angelica Nwandu’s adult life was in a downward spiral. She failed her LSAT and GMAT exams because she couldn’t afford test-prep classes while all her friends were graduating. But her life turned around years after and now she owns one of the largest media brands on social media –
Zuora, Inc, the leading cloud-based subscription management platform provider, announced that Valerie Jackson will join as the company’s first Chief Diversity Officer, in November 9, 2020 and since then she’s been making waves. Jackson has been leading Zuora’s diversity and inclusion strategy and initiatives across its global workforce. As the newest member of the executive team, she reports directly to co-founder and CEO Tien Tzuo. She made the move to technology as she has always viewed it as an industry of innovation, core to building the future and changing the
Northern Commerce, a web development and digital marketing firm that was founded in 2015 and has about 190 staff, is giving $150,000 to the Lead to Change Foundation, a Toronto-based agency that supports black youth in arts and culture. The money is a one-year commitment and will be used to offer youth workshops in garment and print design, podcasts and broadcasting, photography and video, and audio recording and engineering. Northern staff will also work with youth in developing digital marketing skills. The firm has presented Lead to Change with an
Just 1% of venture capital raised goes to Black entrepreneurs. Fifth Star wants to change that. It’s writing checks at the earliest stages of a startup’s life — the “friends and family” round — providing investments between $25,000 and $50,000 for each startup. It has so far raised just under $1 million, with plans ultimately to deploy $5 million to Chicago’s Black founders. Launched in February 2021, Fifth Star Funds has created a unique venture capital fund specifically dedicated to backing Black founders in Chicago. Fifth Star Funds aims to foster a more
Jade Kearney, who experienced postpartum depression herself, developed an app to help solve this particular problem. Although the journey as a Black female founder hasn’t been easy – she’s keeping hope. Kearney’s mental wellness journey began soon after giving birth to her daughter as she experienced postpartum depression and anxiety, and had difficulty finding a community and culturally competent resources to turn to. The birth of her daughter made her realize the neglect Black mothers face when it comes to their mental well-being. But the mother had to teach herself
Just one percent of VC-funded founders in the US are Black and the rates of investment in European Black-owned businesses are even lower. Just three percent of Londoners working in the tech sector are Black and only 8.5% of senior leaders in the UK tech sector are from Black, Asian, or minority ethnic backgrounds. If we were to break these numbers down further – the numbers would be very low for Black women. But this isn’t because they aren’t creating amazing things. Take Sheilisa McNeal Burgess for example – a
Virginia Tech’s Black College Institute (BCI), a four-day summer academic enrichment program for talented rising high school juniors and seniors, has received a silver Anthem Award in the special projects category. Since it first started, BCI has contributed to an increase in the number of Black students who matriculate at the university, from 4.5 percent of the entering freshman class in 2017 to 8.8 percent in 2021. This year, there will be two in-person BCI sessions for high school seniors, June 19-23 and June 26-30, and a virtual BCI for
You might have read the article published last year on the Silicon Valley employee who hid his disability from his employers. In an in-depth piece about his experiences, they started off by saying: “I have a learning disability, meaning that I learn differently from other people. I live and work in Silicon Valley, the natural habitat of road runners. I’ve spent my professional life as one of those worker bees who creates the widgets and doodads that make life a little easier. For the sake of this story—and my employability—let’s
The Propel Center, the global HBCU technology and learning hub intended to level the playing field and open greater doors of opportunity for HBCU students, today announced the launch of its Propel Student Impact Scholarships, with support from Apple and Southern Company. The new scholarship program, directed at HBCU students who are interested in pursuing careers in entrepreneurship, arts & entertainment, agri-tech, social justice, and health, is open to rising sophomores, juniors, seniors, and graduates students alike. Propel Center will donate a total of 100 $10,000 scholarship awards to the winners, an
