This week, Anne Firth Murray interviews Dr. Wanjiru Kamau-Rutenberg about her work as founder and executive director of Akili Dada, an organization based in Nairobi, Kenya.
Dr. Wanjiru Kamau-Rutenberg is is the Founder and Executive Director of Akili Dada. A Kenyan, Wanjiru earned a B.A. in Politics from Whitman College and Masters and Ph.D. degrees in Political Science from the University of Minnesota. Wanjiru is also on extended leave from the University of San Francisco where she is an Assistant Professor in the Politics department. Her research and teaching interests center on the politics of philanthropy, gender, Africa, ethnicity, and democratization, and on the role of technology in social activism. Working at the intersection of academia and social entrepreneurship, Wanjiru is passionate about the synergy between rigorous academic analysis and committed social activism.
She has received widespread recognition for her work with Akili Dada, including being honored as a 2012 White House ‘Champion of Change’, named one of the 100 Most Influential Africans by New African Magazine, 2012 Ford Foundation Champions of Democracy, 2011 Yamashita Prize, 2011 African Achievers International Award, and a winner of the 2010 United Nations Intercultural Innovation Award among others. Wanjiru is also a wife and mother of a 4-year-old son and an avid knitter and organic gardener. Learn more about Wanjiru’s vision for founding Akili Dada.
