Rising Stars in Charity 2017 Archives - WeAreTheCity Rising Star Awards

Yasmine Davies | Autistica

I’m a highly motivated, proactive and experienced fundraiser, always working to expand my horizons and try new things. I am proud to have worked in the charity sector since leaving university, primarily in roles covering corporate and major donor fundraising, but also collaborating with colleagues and managing junior staff across multiple forms of fundraising.

I started my career at the Woodland Trust, where I gained an incredible grounding in top-quality account management and business development as part of a highly successful corporate fundraising team.

Since moving to London, I have worked at Autistica, the UK’s leading autism research charity, for over four years, leading both major donor and corporate fundraising. I have secured gifts from donors ranging from a few thousand pounds up to a million (Autistica’s first ever corporate donation at that level) and led corporate partnerships across financial services, retail and media. I created the charity’s first gala dinner which smashed its fundraising target and brought in many new donors.

My passion is creating those breakthrough moments with supporters and prospective supporters: working with major donors one-to-one often for years to find just the right project for them to fund or delivering large-scale events which inspire and enthral a crowd. I feel so lucky to be working for Autistica - it’s a fantastic, fast-growing organisation with an incredibly tightly knit, energetic team and I have the opportunity daily to meet truly inspiring people using the power of science to ensure people with autism can live longer, happier, healthier lives.

by Alison Fearn

Elizabeth Renshaw | City University London

Hello, I’m Liz. I’m 30, I live at the end of the Metropolitan line, I’m really in to mini eggs and crime dramas and I’m completely thrilled to be nominated for a WATC Rising Star award! I’ve recently landed a real dream job and this has been the perfect opportunity to reflect on how I got there.

I’ve worked in and around the charity sector for my whole career and I’m such a fan of it; it’s truly full of incredible people doing life changing work. Starting off, I dabbled with fundraising and volunteer management but my real interest lay in people development. Soon after, I had a lightbulb moment; mentoring is my passion! (These moments are few and far between so I pay attention when they happen).

My 20s were a real journey through the working world; I didn’t find it easy and it took me a long time to work out what my strengths were and what I felt good at. Looking back, the thing that really helped me was learning from people around me with experience and who had a story to share. But I know not everyone has access to good role models and that’s why I’m determined to pour my energy in to changing this.

With encouragement from my own role models, I now work as part of the Ethics and Social Responsibility team, at Cass Business School, managing a mentoring programme for schools. It’s a really forward thinking project; the only one of it’s kind in the UK. We introduce a group of undergraduates to the concept of community volunteering, train them up in mentoring skills and then match them to a student from a local school to mentor for 8 weeks. It combines a lot of my passions and I can’t wait to see how it progresses.

Mentoring is such a joy to do I’ve tried to find ways to do it in my spare time too. I volunteer for a few mentoring schemes, including Aspire - a programme for women in the charity sector. I mentor an amazing woman, with a different background to me. We talk often and I get as much from her as she’s hopefully getting from me.

My other big love is helping to raise awareness and money for a couple of breast cancer charities. I can sometimes be found standing at the top of escalators in train stations asking sleepy commuters to pop a pound in the bucket. My biggest challenge is coming up in November - trekking through Oman for CoppaFeel!

by Alison Fearn

Bukola Adisa | Career Masterclass

Bukola Adisa is a senior Compliance and Financial Crime expert with extensive experience in the Financial Services Industry. She is currently the Head of Europe Regulatory Compliance Monitoring and Testing at HSBC where she leads a team of 110 professionals in executing compliance reviews across all lines of business in the region.

Until recently, she was the Global Head of Financial Crime Assurance at The Royal Bank of Scotland. In this role, she led a global team of professionals based in 3 regions who were responsible for ensuring that the bank complied with relevant Anti Money Laundering regulations across all lines of business. In her time at RBS, Bukola was promoted three times in 18 months and was one of the most senior black female leader within RBS in the UK.

Bukola has also worked at Tier one investment bank JP Morgan Chase where she was responsible for the EMEA Financial Crime Audit team. She also spent time at Deloitte LLP where she advised top tier banking clients such as Goldman Sachs, Barclays,and BGC partners on regulatory matters.

She has authored several industry wide papers on AML and Compliance trends and her ACAMS white paper on AML De-risking was voted as one of the top five papers for 2014.

Bukola is also the Founder/CEO of Career Masterclass which is a not-for-profit Organisation focused on imparting women and BME professionals with practical skills that they can use to build and enjoy a successful career.

by Alison Fearn

Tonia Ashikodi | Mumtrepreneur Club

Tonia is the founder of the mumtrepreneur club and the project director of The F.E.E.D Project UK . Tonia is very passionate about the community and understands the importance of giving back to society. “We cannot change the world but we can change a life”. (Tonia). Tonia's Journey in community giving dates back to 2002 when she was part of a team that pioneered a charity program to raise money for less privilege children in Africa. . In 2004, she engaged in a volunteer experience at the London Metropolitan police, where she was on the streets serving the community. In 2005, she became a certified Peer Mentor and helped young people grow their talent and increase their confidence. In 2007 she served a one year elected/voluntary term as a UK Youth Parliamentary representative for the London Borough of Bexley, where she was a medium in voicing out the opinion of over 22,000 young people within the community. In the same year she was called to join the Bexley partnership where she served for 2 years as an active member, this organisation caters to the needs of those in community development. Tonia has also volunteered at the Central London Law Center, where she dealt with issues such as Housing, Immigration and employment of which she describes as “ Some of the basic elements of stability for life in the UK”. Tonia is currently a local government Councillor and she represents the Glyndon ward in the Royal Borough of Greenwich.

Tonia is the Founder of Mumtrepreneur club, a social enterprise which focuses on building entrepreneurial mums and helping them create a work/family balance. The F.E.E.D project is an initiative by the Mumtrepreneur club. Tonia is highly motivated and keen on giving back to the community. Her passion for giving has led to the birth of The F.E.E.D Project . She will use this medium to promote the importance of adequate primary socialization and helping those in need.

by Alison Fearn

Tanya Compas | The Change Foundation

After failing my A-Levels at the age of 18, I got my first taste of work within the charity sector. I spent a year volunteering in a boys orphanage in a small town called Oropesa in rural Peru, during which I fulfilled the role of big sister, mother and carer for a group of 13 indigenous boys. This proved to be one of the most transformative experiences of my life and career. Thanks to my experience in Peru, I was accepted to study Hispanic Studies at the University of Kent, during which I took another year out to work as an English and P.E teacher in Colombia whilst simultaneously volunteering at a rural school in my spare time. In 2014 I spent 4 months volunteering in Favela Vidigal in Rio de Janeiro teaching English through football for young girls, in 2015 I spent 3 months working at a camp in San Francisco for disadvantaged young people in which I managed the programming for girls aged 13-16. After coming back from America I spent a year working as a motivational speaker in schools at a charity called WE on behalf of the Mayor Of London's office and now work at The Change Foundation as The Women and Girls Project Manager. I have a raw and genuine passion for working with marginalised and disadvantaged young people, both nationally and internationally but in particular with young women from BAME communities. I have been able to draw upon my varied experiences and lessons learnt from around the world to bring a new, unique and exciting take on youth development.

by Alison Fearn

Natalie Campbell | A Very Good Company

Natalie Campbell is an award-winning businesswoman and HarperCollins author. She won the ‘Community Spirit’ award at the ‘Women of the Future Awards’ in 2016 and was recognised in the Management Today 35 Women Under 35 and City AM Power 100 Women lists. Natalie is the co-founder of A Very Good Company (AVGC), a global social innovation agency and recently launched London's newest wellbeing craze, "The Badass Principle - a workout for the mind and soul". As a non-executive director, she Chairs the Nominet Trust and has governance oversight of over £1billion in public funding through her roles on the board of the Big Lottery Fund, UnLtd, the foundation for social entrepreneurs and the Mayor's London economic strategy board.

by Alison Fearn

Emma Miller-McCaffrey | Planet L Events

A Former Teacher, I have been working with Greater Manchester Police on a project training all frontline officers (800-2000) on LGBT matters and Domestic Abuse within the LGBT Community. This ground breaking project will see a new recording code introduced in April 2017. I moved into the Charity Sector approximately 15 months ago, my passion is supporting and providing guidance for young people and members of the LGBT community.

by Alison Fearn

Trishna Bharadia | MS Society

I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis aged 28, in 2008, and since then have become a leading and award-winning advocate for people with MS/chronic illness/disability, using my experiences to help others, largely through charitable work.

I’m a full-time translator but in my spare time collaborate with organisations in the UK and abroad, including MS Society (Ambassador), Sue Ryder, the Wheelchair Dance Sport Association (Patron), the Cambridge MS Therapy Centre (Patron), Asian MS (Newsletter Editor and Committee member), the MS Trust, MS-UK, the European MS Platform, Disability Horizons, the Patient Information Forum, and various pharmaceutical companies, among others, to raise awareness about MS/chronic illness, improve support for people living with chronic illness/disability, and improve patient and volunteer engagement.

I speak at events and in the media about issues affecting people with MS/chronic illness/disability, campaign, write, vlog, blog, advise on health projects/research studies and educate pharmaceutical staff and healthcare professionals about living with MS/chronic illness. I’m on the steering committee for the The World vs MS Project run by Sanofi Genzyme, as well as being a member of “The Ozone” virtual round table for key opinion leaders across healthcare specialties by Oyster Healthcare. In 2015 I put MS on the national map by appearing in the first ever “People’s Strictly for Comic Relief” on BBC1, a four-part Strictly Come Dancing spin-off, in recognition of my charity work. I’m regularly asked to speak at conferences and workshops on topics ranging from living with chronic illness, improving patient engagement and volunteering.

I’ve been pioneering within the Asian community, where chronic illness/disability (especially for women) is still not talked about openly.

My charitable work has had a profound impact on the world of MS, particularly when it comes to increasing understanding and showing people how living a positive life is possible with chronic illness.

by Alison Fearn

Sonia Meggie | Inspirational YOU

I am the Founder of Inspirational YOU, a UK based Social Enterprise that specialises in delivering empowering masterclasses and workshops for women, students and start ups. I have engaged with thousands of attendees via Inspirational YOU and have a proven track record of successful partnerships with the corporate, statutory and third sector organisations. These include the BBC, UK Supreme Court, Lewisham Homes, PwC, Pearson, ITV News, Channel 4, Go Think Big, Impact Hub, Punch Records, London Youth, BBC, Birkbeck, University of London, Lambeth Council and Metropolitan Housing.

by Alison Fearn

Caroline Odogwu | Business Launchpad

Caroline Odogwu is committed to working with young people, inspiring them to reach their full potential. And after working nearly five years at youth entrepreneurial charity, Business Launchpad, alongside running her own award winning social enterprise - she has an inspiring story of her own!

After graduating with a degree in journalism, Caroline began her career as a broadcast journalist working with OHTV (Sky Digital), ITV, Granada and Sky News. It was through this work that Caroline was able to hone her skills in digital marketing and communications. Coupling this budding talent with her passion for working with her fellow 20 somethings, she created a TV series called Young Achievers for OHTV. The 20-part programme shone a spotlight on the achievements of young professionals across the UK, giving voice to an often under-represented section of society.

Channeling the knowledge and experience she gained working in the media, Caroline was driven to do more to give young people a voice. She began speaking out about issues such as youth unemployment, diversity and entrepreneurship, reaching key influencers at round table discussions at the House of Lords and House of Commons. Caroline also secured speaking engagements about these vital issues at events with top business leaders from companies including RBS, Tata Consulting and vinspired.

Generating awareness was only one piece of the puzzle, however, it was Caroline’s drive to do something that led her to co-found She is You in 2012. Aimed at helping girls and young women achieve their full potential, She is You provides workshops, events and peer mentoring.

In addition to that Caroline currently works as the Marketing & Outreach officer for Business Launchpad (BLP), a South London-based charity that connects young entrepreneurs, providing them with the skills, resources, support and mentoring they need to start their own businesses. In addition to her marketing role, Caroline leads on BLPs peer-led youth leadership panel and is currently piloting a youth-led digital marketing agency as part of BLP’s development programme.

by Alison Fearn