Jacqueline Novogratz is the founder and CEO of Acumen Fund, a non-profit global venture fund that uses entrepreneurial approaches to solve the problems of global poverty.

Previously, Jacqueline founded and directed The Philanthropy Workshop and The Next Generation Leadership programs at the Rockefeller Foundation. She also founded Duterimbere, a micro-finance institution in Rwanda. She began her career in international banking with Chase Manhattan Bank.
She is currently on the advisory boards of Stanford Graduate School of Business and Innovations Journal published by MIT Press, and she serves on the Aspen Institute Board of Trustees and as a member of World Economic Forum Global Agenda Councils on Social Entrepreneurship and Water. She is an Aspen Institute Henry Crown Fellow and a Synergos Institute Senior Fellow and was recently honored as an Ernst & Young Metro New York Entrepreneur of the Year 2008. She is a frequent speaker at international conferences, including TED and CGI.

She has an MBA from Stanford and a BA in Economics/International Relations from the University of Virginia. Her book, The Blue Sweater: Bridging the Gap Between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World, will be available beginning March 3, 2009. (For information on Acumen Fund, visit www.acumenfund.org. For further details on Jacqueline’s book, go to www.thebluesweater.com.)

Acumen Fund

Acumen Fund is a nonprofit venture fund that invests in market-oriented approaches to deliver critical, affordable goods and services to the world's poor. Acumen Fund combines philanthropic capital and business expertise to build transformative businesses that reach underserved markets and increase access to the opportunities of the global economy. Its investments focus on delivering affordable, critical goods and services – like health, water, housing and energy – through sustainable, scalable approaches.

Acumen Fund currently manages more than $30 million in investments in South Asia and East Africa, all focused on delivering affordable healthcare, water, housing and energy to the poor. The organization also includes the Acumen Fund Fellows Program, focused on building the next generation of business leaders with an understanding of global issues and poverty. The organization has offices in New York, Pakistan, India and Kenya.