MEET OUR STEERING COMMITTEE
NGFP Steering Committee
NGFP is a community-led network. This means that our members are directly involved in shaping the priorities and the future of our network. Yearly, we appoint some of our members to form a Steering Committee to oversee NGFP’s activities. Their role is to make sure that we keep aligned to our vision, mission, principles and values and meet our objectives.
Each year a subset of the members will stay on for a second year to ensure continuity and a smooth transition. All members who step down will be invited to stay on as advisors and supporters, so the steering and leadership of the network will continue to grow organically year on year and become increasingly decentralised.
See who has been part of our Steering Committee:
Dr. Charles Umeh, a 31-year-old Medical Doctor and Public Health Expert, is a renowned Telemedicine advocate with seven years of experience. Co-author of the “Fundamentals of Telemedicine and Telehealth” textbook by Elsevier, he’s led various digital health projects. Dr. Umeh’s “PARKERS MOBILE CLINIC” initiative has improved healthcare for vulnerable populations in Eastern Nigeria. He’s received numerous accolades, including grants and awards from organizations like the Goethe Institute, Openideo, Commonwealth Youth Council, and Clinton Global Initiative. A finalist in the 2020 African Union Bechangemaker Program and a United Nations Global Compact Young SDG Innovator, he’s had a significant impact in healthcare and telemedicine. Dr. Umeh has spoken at international conferences, served as a delegate in various programs, and acted as a consultant for WHO. His influence in public health extends worldwide, making him a valuable contributor to the field.
Courtney is a connector by nature with a focus on systems transition design for climate and social innovation. In the past 15 years she has lived, worked and traveled across more than 70 countries in pursuit of positive impact using design and participatory based approaches. She is the cofounder of The Circular Design Lab based in Bangkok, Thailand, a fellow with the Royal Society of the Arts (RSA) and in 2022 you can find her working with the UNDP Chief Digital Office on the Digital X 2.0 Scale Accelerator, coleading the Oxford Climate Tech Initiative and supporting the UNICEF Global Office of Innovation team on climate innovation R+D. She is currently co-authoring Inclusive Innovation – Bridging Theory, Policy and Practice to published in the Routledge Innovation and Technology Horizons Series and studying climate innovation and funding for systems change at Oxford Saïd Business School as a recipient of the Executive MBA Director’s Award.
Deepshikha is an architect, industrial designer, and futurist from India. She has worked on various projects ranging from city planning to book designing. Her core strengths include design research, ideation, branding, business development, and event management. In the past, she has worked for diverse industries such as marketing, agriculture, education, rural healthcare, heritage tourism, urban transport, and lifestyle products. Currently, she is pursuing her Ph.D. in design.
Fisayo is a foresight practitioner, researcher, and facilitator. Her expertise lies at the intersection of food systems, technology, and youths, where she collaborates on projects and works with multilateral organizations to drive positive change. She is a judge, fellow, and member of the NGFP network, a UNICEF Youth Senior Foresight Fellow, and SOIF alumni. Fisayo is also an advisor on the APF IF Awards. One of Fisayo’s achievements includes her role as an author in the “Journey to 2050” within the African Digital Futures project, demonstrating her commitment to shaping the future in meaningful ways. Among her notable projects is: the Farmers’ Futures Program (FFP), which employs a participatory futures approach and dialogue to facilitate long-term thinking and collective actions toward desired futures for farmers. Additionally, she led the grassroots-stakeholders futures process to investigate challenges in the food system and also contributed to the Peaceful Futures manifesto and AI for development projects in Africa, amongst others.
María Laura is an independent researcher and consultant working in the Global South on issues related to social inclusion, the SDGs, gender equality, and change-making. She is originally from Chile, where she received her bachelor’s degree in business engineering and her master’s degree in Innovation and Design at Adolfo Ibáñez University. She is currently based in Kenya. Previously she lived in Turkey for four years, where she received my doctoral degree in Design, Technology, and Society for researching alternative futures of meaningful intercultural interactions. She collaborates in research and projects related to social design and innovation, participatory design, participatory futures, social inclusion, feminist technologies, and education.
Nancy is a Governance and Foresight Expert who seeks to tackle humanity’s systemic and wicked problems while working with others to develop solutions. She is interested in Governance, Circular Economy, Foresight and Futures methodologies. She is passionate about the Continent of Africa and Kenya and seeks to find ways she can be of help to generations coming after her. She is committed to Africa’s development and support to its young women and men. Currently, she is a Governance Adviser at the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office-Kenya. She has worked in Kenya, Netherlands, Somalia and Somaliland.
Nicole is secretary to the Chair and Board Liaison at the Association of Professional Futurists.
Olga Shaeva is a trends and futures researcher. She is co-founder of Algorithm Trend Intelligence (Lille, France) – a startup developing digital trend intelligence toolbox that helps monitor emerging trends and weak signals of change, create future visions and act on future opportunities ahead of the curve. Olga has been working on developing proprietary methodology of trendwatching and futures research and applying it to solve challenges for companies in the CIS, EEMEA and global market since 2016. Before that she had worked in media research and had done academic research in the field of social structure, change and transformation. Olga holds a PhD in sociology. Olga is part of Trend Locals trendspotters network, Radar DAO, Next Generation Foresight Practitioners (NGFP) Fellow and winner of the 2022 education award.
2022
Bárbara operates in the integration between anticipatory thinking, strategy, psychology, systems thinking, and eco-social regeneration. She has a bachelor’s degree in Business Engineering and a Master’s degree in Organizational Psychology from Adolfo Ibáñez University (Chile), also studied Ontological Coaching. Currently works as Foresight Director in Memética and hosts the podcast “Exploradores de Futuros”, which has the purpose of democratizing and spreading futures conversations in Spanish. She has worked as a consultant in corporations, ventures and NGOs based in Latin America and Europe on issues of foresight, strategy, strategic communication, and cultural transformation.
Courtney is a connector by nature with a focus on systems transition design for climate and social innovation. In the past 15 years she has lived, worked and traveled across more than 70 countries in pursuit of positive impact using design and participatory based approaches. She is the cofounder of The Circular Design Lab based in Bangkok, Thailand, a fellow with the Royal Society of the Arts (RSA) and in 2022 you can find her working with the UNDP Chief Digital Office on the Digital X 2.0 Scale Accelerator, coleading the Oxford Climate Tech Initiative and supporting the UNICEF Global Office of Innovation team on climate innovation R+D. She is currently co-authoring Inclusive Innovation – Bridging Theory, Policy and Practice to published in the Routledge Innovation and Technology Horizons Series and studying climate innovation and funding for systems change at Oxford Saïd Business School as a recipient of the Executive MBA Director’s Award.
Deepshikha is an architect, industrial designer, and futurist from India. She has worked on various projects ranging from city planning to book designing. Her core strengths include design research, ideation, branding, business development, and event management. In the past, she has worked for diverse industries such as marketing, agriculture, education, rural healthcare, heritage tourism, urban transport, and lifestyle products. Currently, she is pursuing her Ph.D. in design.
Hamood is an HR professional with more than 10 years of experience into various HR fields ranging from recruitment, talent management, learning and development across Oil and Gas sector. Holding BSc in Management from Sultan Qaboos University, and MSc in Management from University of Strilling, backed with HR professional certification (CIPD level 3 and 5) from Chartered Institute of Personnel Development. Passionate about future foresight and scenarios planning, which was translated into contribution during his career in Petroleum Development Oman through the Future of Work Project 2030. Certified foundation executive coach by Association of Coaching (AC), and embarking on a continues learning and development into Change Management fundamentals.Currently leading key important development programme for Young Professional in Petroleum Development Oman (Graduate Development Programme) for technical and commercial functions.
Markus is a futurist, foresight practitioner, strategist, business executive, musician, engineering technician, project manager and doctoral student. He started his career as an electrical engineering technician, from where he grew into managing projects in the aviation sector. After obtaining an MPhil in Futures Studies from Stellenbosch University his responsibilities shifted to corporate foresight and strategic management. This mix of skills has given him the privilege to work across the entire planet – but no matter where his work takes him, he always loves returning home to his beautiful Cape Town. Besides jamming music with his friends, he feels most passionate about helping to build a better future for his company, city, country, and continent.
Mathew is a Futures Studies PhD Candidate and Lecturer in the Department of Political Science at the University of Hawai’i at Manoa. His research at the Hawai’i Research Center for Future Studies focuses on decentralized and democratic futures, the theory and practice of sanctuary, countering violent extremism (CVE), anticipatory governance design and quantum social science. Markman currently serves as the DAO Facilitator for Decentraland and co-created and directs Big Green DAO. As former Deputy Director of Programs and Director of Research for Proximity International, Mathew oversaw dozens of applied research, monitoring and evaluation projects for the Department of State, FCO, DFID, and GIZ security sector, governance and CVE programming in Syria and Iraq. Previously, he worked as a Security Manager and Senior Intelligence Analyst for a corporate security and risk mitigation firm.
Nancy is a Governance and Foresight Expert who seeks to tackle humanity’s systemic and wicked problems while working with others to develop solutions. She is interested in Governance, Circular Economy, Foresight and Futures methodologies. She is passionate about the Continent of Africa and Kenya and seeks to find ways she can be of help to generations coming after her. She is committed to Africa’s development and support to its young women and men. Currently, she is a Governance Adviser at the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office-Kenya. She has worked in Kenya, Netherlands, Somalia and Somaliland.
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