WHO WE ARE

Todd is the CEO at SecondMuse. For the last twenty years Todd Khozein has been involved in the study and application of systems theory, in particular as it applies to economic development. Beginning with the use of biological systems as models for cashew farming cooperatives in Honduras, he went on to develop and build businesses in multiple industries.

For the past ten years since co-founding SecondMuse he has accelerated over 300 impact business, raising over $500M and generating over $13B in market value. At the center of this work is the development of economies that create social and environmental justice.
Todd is proud to serve on the Board of Directors of TechSoup Global, a leader in capacity building for civil society world-wide, and Circulate Initiative, whose mission it is to end ocean plastic waste.

Dr Stuart Gill is the Global Head of Strategy & Operations at SecondMuse. Stuart is a pioneer in the practice of applying networks and communities to economic development through the acceleration of entrepreneurs and their businesses.

Stuart believes that the connections enabled by new technologies create new economic and social value, firstly by generating new data and insight, and secondly by facilitating relationships and belonging. Further, he believes that these connections change the nature of power and thus our approach and capacity to grow a healthy and equitable society. Before coming to SecondMuse, Stuart founded the first innovation group at the World Bank and built public-private partnerships across a spectrum of global challenges. Before the Bank, Stuart taught and researched in the Department of Astrophysics at Columbia University in the City of New York.

Chad is a co-founder of SecondMuse, serving as the Global Head of Finance & Corporate Services. He is also Managing Director of SecondMuse Capital.

As a business professional with 25 years experience in management, systems design and technology, he believes collaboration is fundamental in addressing the complex problems facing humanity. His current work is focused on designing and launching capital mechanisms to finance more inclusive and resilient economies.

Prior to founding SecondMuse in 2008, he worked in Mexico as executive director of a public foundation, served on the startup team of an online university in Iran, and ran a knowledge management company in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

He holds a BA from Purdue University and MBA from the University of St. Thomas.

Simone Byrd is the Global Head of Marketing & Communications at SecondMuse. She is responsible for collaborating with our programs to create marketing and communications strategies that support our efforts. As a confident self-starter with a collaborative spirit, Simone is willing to tackle complex challenges to support our programs and achieve our collective goals.

Simone draws on her experience in the strategic development and tactical execution of successful campaigns for niche and mass-market brands. She has a passion for branding and brings an ability to concept fresh ideas in order to meet objectives and garner results within the ideal target audience. Prior to SecondMuse, Simone had a realization in which she felt a sense of urgency to involve herself in projects that are impact-driven. She is deeply rooted in her commitment to fulfilling the work that SecondMuse is doing to build ecosystems.

Simone happily resides in Brooklyn, N.Y., where she had been for over a decade after spending some time in California and growing up in Laramie, Wyoming. Beyond her work, she enjoys exploring experimental cooking, snuggling with her cats, coaching basketball, and any fitness activity that keeps her moving.

Jeremy is the Global Head of Business Development at SecondMuse, with an expertise in designing and managing large complex projects, including open innovation programs, incubators and accelerators, and convening complex systems to identify and implement solutions to hard challenges.

Prior to managing LAUNCH, Jeremy experience spanned both private and public clients, including launching the Solar Decathlon program in China with Applied Materials, developing early education markets in the US with the Kellogg and Packard Foundations, helping PEMEX find new technologies to reduce flaring and venting in Mexico and working with Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to build local economies in the Indian Ocean region through aquaculture. All of this work, and prior roles with UK Trade and Investment, the UK’s Science and Innovation Network and as a board member at INCLUDED.org, has made Jeremy realize that all problems are solvable, if you can help the right people to come together and work towards a common North Star.

Jeremy loves spending time outside, and is always trying to convince friends and family to join him on his next camping trip or a bbq at the beach, if you fancy, let him know!

Katey is the Senior Vice President for the North America region at SecondMuse. For 8 years she has designed, supported and led over two dozen programs. Her early work included open innovation programs like Space Apps, the Blue Economy Challenge and National Day of Civic Hacking. Katey went on to establish the New York City (NYC) Hub, growing a portfolio of entrepreneur support programs for Next Top Makers to a multi-year, multi-program climate tech and manufacturing suite of programs. Under Katey’s leadership, NYC became the testing site for community sourced incubator programming which laid the foundation for the ecosystem development work. Over the past year, Katey led the launch of GET (Gender Equality in Tech) Cities and securing five years of funding for early stage innovators under the For Climate Tech brand.

Carrie is the Chairperson of the SecondMuse Group, broadly responsible for building the SecondMuse Group Advisory Board. She is also the interim Executive Director of the SecondMuse Foundation.

Passionate about sustainability, equality and innovation, Carrie has worked to advance these on a global stage as an entrepreneur and previously as an intrapreneur. She has pushed the theory of complex collaboration between governments, business, and communities throughout her career. Prior to joining SecondMuse, Carrie spent 15 years at Intel in various management positions. In her last role there as Director of Sustainable Business Innovation, she pioneered strategies around a corporate impact investing fund and the development of technology market solutions related to natural resource management and climate change. In 2009, Carrie formed the corporate sustainability group and directed corporate-wide efforts working with key stakeholders to ensure industry leadership. Carrie has championed gender equality and women in STEM by initiating, designing and leading programs; while also coaching and mentoring other women.

Carrie has had numerous advisory and board positions that span the for-profit, non-profit, public and philanthropic sectors. She regularly speaks globally on the roles of technology, sustainability, gender equality, innovation and corporate responsibility. Carrie calls New Mexico her home and in 2012 was honored as a New Mexico 40 Under 40 Business Leader.

Neisan Massarrat is the Global Head of Technology & Manufacturing at SecondMuse, with over 13 years of experience in business innovation and international development. Neisan has worked with Fortune 100 corporations, governments and Multilateral Development Banks, including Intel Corporation, NASA, Nike, NYCEDC, DFAT, USAID and the World Bank Group. His expertise covers open innovation, corporate strategy, entrepreneurship, ESG investing, AI/big data and public-private partnerships.

Neisan has worked across multiple sectors, from economic resilience to climate change, disaster risk management, high tech and data innovation. He has developed and executed over 60 projects across more than 30 countries, including the global platform NASA International Space Apps Challenge and the World Bank’s big data strategy.

Based in Washington, DC, Neisan is passionate about addressing complex development challenges through collaboration, human-centered design and technology. Prior to SecondMuse, Neisan was a senior consultant on corporate strategy at Germany’s development agency GIZ.

Kristin is the Global Head of Food & Nature-based Solutions at SecondMuse. Her work is focused on systems transformation through social entrepreneurship, sustainable business, and fostering cross-sector collaboration. Kristin uses experience design, systems thinking, and cross-sector network cultivation to drive local, national, and global change.

Prior to SecondMuse, she raised more than $65M to design and develop dozens of award winning sustainable tourism destinations across the globe. Each destination championed local economies, local conservation, and local culture through every touch point of the guest experience.

As Director of Finance at Secondmuse, Heidi oversees the Finance team and functions across four global entities. Working closely with our CFO, she is responsible for the co-development and implementation of policies and processes that ensure accuracy and compliance of SecondMuse finances, enabling integration of data across programs and the globe.

A committed believer in the principles of collaboration and unity in diversity, and with an interest in ecological and systems thinking, Heidi was deeply attracted by the approach of SecondMuse to advancing efforts to advance solutions to the toughest challenges faced by humanity. The full range of challenges addressed by SecondMuse make her work in the company meaningful as she strives to maximize her impact from within, bringing an eclectic career experience spanning science, the music industry, eco-hospitality, and Main Street business management.

Outside her work day, Heidi prioritizes family, leads local children’s activities, enjoys mountain biking and hiking, travel, gardening, and practices the Japanese tea ceremony.

Garrison is the Chief of Staff - Growth at SecondMuse. In his role, Garrison assists the CEO for Growth with overall strategic decision making and execution of the company-wide growth strategy. This includes collaborating closely with the C-Suite, Leadership Team and Chief of Staff - Operations to drive forward the company’s strategic vision, as well as coordinating the intersection of the Business Development, Marketing and communications, and SecondMuse Capital team.

Garrison is passionate about his work because growth enables us to scale our impact. Impact can occur in a variety of ways, including providing direct support to entrepreneurs, building capacity in other organizations to provide such support, and bringing our cultural imperatives into every space we join. Prior to starting at SecondMuse, Garrison worked in KPMG’s Deal Advisory & Strategy practice where he helped companies develop and execute their strategic goals – often involving acquisitions or divestitures.

Outside of work, Garrison enjoys accompanying youth in his neighborhood to serve their community. He is also always working to get better at soccer and cooking.

As Director, Programs at SecondMuse, Laura oversees programs in the Asia Pacific region focused on strengthening circular and regenerative economic systems and processes. Most recently, she oversaw program activities across Indonesia, India, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam. These included working with incubators and accelerators, entrepreneurs and innovators, investors, NGOs, and government leaders from across the region to develop and scale impactful solutions for waste management practices to combat plastic pollution.

Laura's background in human-centered design and experience working on complex system challenges drive her to create positive change through collaboration. Prior to SecondMuse, Laura worked with the public, private and not-for-profit sectors across Asia and East Africa, leading design projects for organizations such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Red Cross, Oxfam, Economic Development Board of Singapore and Singapore Family Justice Courts, to help solve problems that would create value for people and improve lives. Using human-centered design methods and tools to tackle complex challenges and innovating through a design-led approach, Laura has particular strengths in designing systems change, ethnographic research and strategy development.

Outside of the office, you’ll find Laura exploring different countries and cultures across Asia, FaceTiming her nieces or baking up a storm in the kitchen using old family recipes.

Angela is a Director for Growth at SecondMuse, working with funders and program teams in Asia to scale the adoption of circular business models, inclusive economic development, and climate innovation financing.

She has spent the last 9 years working with impact-driven startups, and has accelerated climate transitions through corporate-startup collaborations and innovation programs in partnership with MNCs, startups, and state actors for the shipping, logistics, and plastic-heavy industries.

Kate Key is the Senior Manager of Organizational Learning & Development at SecondMuse and supports the leadership of the company by ongoing management of system-wide meetings, thought partnership, content creation and implementation, organizing resources, and supporting on project implementation. Additionally Kate spends time supporting and implementing company-wide processes which aid in the betterment of our team to create lasting and important impact across the globe. Kate also serves on the Learning and Development core team of 2M which seeks to strategically develop and enhance systems to retain, organize, and develop SecondMuse’s institutional knowledge in order to continue to build capacity at the company-level as well as to positively impact the ecosystems in which we work and live.

Kate cares deeply about creating sustainable systems to benefit future generations.

Passionate about organizational leadership through an educational and developmental lens, Kate’s graduate studies focused on educational support systems at the collegiate and university level. From this came her desire to focus on the study of understanding how systems, processes,and organizations or individuals learn together, retain, and share knowledge across dispersed and diverse ecosystems. Kate is also focused on creating systems which allow for pathways of development both internally as well as externally at the community and ecosystem level so as to create developmentally sustainable, equitable, and inclusive solutions conducive to a better and more responsible future.

Kate is originally from Omaha, Nebraska but is now very much at home and invested in the Albuquerque community.

Based in Bali, Inar Andrea is the Finance Manager for SecondMuse Indonesia. Working with SecondMuse’s global team of finance, legal, HR, and operations, she implements company-wide policies and practices in Indonesia while accomodating the unique needs and perspectives of the Indonesian team and entity. She also assists financial functions of SecondMuse Global and associated entities in Australia, Singapore, and the US, helping to maintain and improve the financial systems as well as reporting processes for the company and its projects.

Passionate about organizing, Inar brings 7 years of experience in event management and 3 years in HR, finance, and accounting. Prior to joining SecondMuse, she worked at an International Festival and a Creative Hub in Bali, working closely to assist the director and took part in supporting local business incubation. Working largely with the creative community, Inar has a deep understanding of how to create impact with a diverse community and cater to their needs.

In her free time, Inar runs various community events mostly with the fashion and food community, including Pasar Jajan Sanur and Fashion Revolution in Bali. Equipped with new knowledge in financial management, Inar dreams to become a patron and voluntarily spread her knowledge to help youth entrepreneurs.

Shai is a Senior Business Development Manager based in Brooklyn, New York. Shai helps manage the implementation of program growth strategies, including proactively identifying and building relationships with existing and prospective private, nonprofit, and public sector funders. He also supports the company’s global work to build partnerships with climate/cleantech/energy, workforce, entrepreneurship, innovation, and economic development funders.

Shai believes in the importance of engaging critical stakeholders — from government and corporations to start-ups and local communities — to address ever-pressing climate and economic problems. Shai's professional, educational, and first-hand background in the international development and environmental sectors helps drive his efforts to create a more innovative, equitable, and responsible climate industry.

When Shai isn't at work, he enjoys being out and about in Brooklyn with his family and dog Layla. He likes to travel and vastly prefers trekking through a remote jungle to relaxing on a beach. He is a sports enthusiast, loves a good documentary, and has an eclectic taste in music from Joni Mitchell to Jay-Z.

Jade is the Global Head of People Operations at SecondMuse. As a member of the leadership team, Jade owns the global inclusive growth strategy work and creates full end-to-end plans to achieve success for all employees at SecondMuse. She also leads the global social impact programming, internal stakeholder engagement, measurement, and thought leadership design framework.

Jade serves as a strong partner to fellow executive leadership and senior management teams in developing goals, skills, competencies, training, and strategies that increase the impact of our people across all SecondMuse entities. As a link between management and employees, she proactively identifies issues and navigates solutions to all people-operations challenges.

She provides strategic and creative leadership at all levels to advance SecondMuses’ inclusion and diversity goals and cultivate an inclusive environment for people from all backgrounds as well as provide meaningful consultation to build a steady cadence around inclusion and equity.

As an activist for systemic change, Jade believes that fostering empowerment within communities promotes true authenticity and acceptance. She values herself as a strategy activator, culture shifter and change maker, whose methodology is rooted in moving at the speed of trust and empowering others to lead and engage authentically.

A little fun fact: Most people call her Queen Jade.

Marie is responsible for the management and implementation of client facing projects including NIST’s Public Safety Communication Research program.

Prior to joining SecondMuse, Marie worked for the largest college honor society, The National Society of Collegiate Scholars, for seven years as the Associate Director of Strategic Partnerships & Programs. In this role, she found her passion for leading and executing engaging events while also bringing shared value through forming community partnerships.

Marie is an avid runner, yogi, and hiker. She’s also a lover of international travel with her family residing in Madrid, Spain. When she’s not cheering for favorite sports teams, the Washington Caps or Nats, you can find Marie volunteering with several DC based non-profits such as Back On My Feet, LearnServe International, and LadiesDC.

Anne Dodge is a Business Development Director at SecondMuse, focusing on Responsible and Ethical Technology and working closely with the Headstream and GET Cities initiatives and the entire Growth team. Anne's work centers on developing partnerships and resources to extend and expand the company's current work, while also exploring new opportunities that advance SecondMuse's mission to create and foster just, inclusive economies.

Prior to joining SecondMuse, Anne served as the Executive Director of the Mansueto Institute for Urban Innovation at The University of Chicago. This work engaged data and theory about urban environments and processes, creating an evidence base for scalable change. She also served as an instructor in the Harris School of Public Policy, and prior to UChicago, she worked at the intersection of cultural and economic development planning, on a range of subjects, including place-based giving, affordable housing, historic preservation, and community safety through environmental design. She holds a BA from Harvard University with a joint concentration in visual and environmental studies and history and a Master’s in City Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Anne grew up in Texas and loves to talk about data, visualizations, pop culture, and reckless ideas. She also loves learning new words every day from her two kids, Janie and Freddie, and she stans her adopted home city of Chicago.

Cindy is the Senior Manager for Marketing & Communications at SecondMuse, leading Brand Marketing & Communications globally. Based in Singapore, she previously developed and led execution of the communications strategy behind The Incubation Network, our three-year program to scale up innovation reducing ocean plastic and improving waste worker livelihoods in Asia.

Driven by the need to build connections between people and social causes, Cindy is a strong believer in the power of good storytelling and taps on her years of experience to ideate compelling strategies that foster positive brand outcomes. Prior to joining SecondMuse, Cindy has worked across a diverse range of private and public sectors, culminating in a desire to work closely in line with her personal goal to be socially conscious.

"Memento Mori" is one of Cindy's favourite expressions and reminds her of the inevitability of returning to earth, and the need to leave behind a better world for future generations. When she isn't delving into existential thoughts, Cindy enjoys baking, staying on top of internet culture, and spending time with her loved ones.

Ashlynn is a Communications Associate at SecondMuse based in Brooklyn, New York. She manages, creates, and executes communications strategies across different SecondMuse programs. She supports the NASA Space Apps Challenge, the largest annual hackathon in the world and Headstream, an initiative designed to empower the youth in digital spaces, advocating for youth wellness and diversity.

She has a background in strategic communications, social management and content creation. Her passions are focused around diversity, inclusion and social impact. She has diversity and inclusion experiences across the US and the world—from representing Hawaii’s social impact in Japan to higher education leadership at Harvard Business School. She strives to empower underrepresented communities in education, opportunity, and leadership. Ashlynn hopes to bring her passions to the SecondMuse community, bringing people together, creating change and cultivating global impact.

Ashlynn spent her most recent years living in Hawaii, experiencing different cultures, communities, and environments. She enjoys all things nature, exploring, traveling, and visiting museums and is always down to try new foods and culture experiences.

Riza is a Senior Research Manager at SecondMuse based in Lombok, Indonesia. As part of the Impact, Research and Learning team, she manages research and provides analysis support for programs across the company. Through data collection and analysis, her work contributes to strengthening our program design and implementation.

Through her research, Riza seeks to understand how change happens, and how it can benefit the community and the environment. She believes in the power of getting the story right, including understanding how change affects different groups and communities differently. Riza has extensive field and research experience focused on addressing complex collective action problems such as tropical deforestation and rural development in Indonesia. Having worked directly with government stakeholders, communities and farmers on the ground, Riza has developed an appreciation for the challenges of translating data and information into actionable plans on the ground.

When not working, Riza spends her time hiking, snorkeling (or just be at the beach), and learning how to grow flowers.

Renni is a Program Manager at SecondMuse, where she manages accelerator programs in Indonesia. Her job involves program design, offering support for its implementation, and collaborating with partners to ensure that participants receive the essential support they need for their success. She is deeply committed to fostering innovation to address waste issues in Indonesia.

Outside her professional life, Renni enjoys a variety of hobbies and interests. She shares her home with three furry companions, loves watching movies and hitting the gym regularly.

Indra is a Finance and Administrative Associate at SecondMuse, based in Bali, Indonesia. His work focuses on supporting the finance, legal, HR, and operations team for Indonesia and Singapore. His responsibility includes maintaining day-to-day administrative operations, ensuring company’s legal compliance, and keeping financial records with accuracy and consistency.

Indra always believes that humans can grow and prosper without sacrificing the earth, he calls this ‘growing responsibly’. Growing with respect to the surroundings is what he strives to achieve. SecondMuse’s vision inspired him to contribute to caring for the planet and addressing some of the world’s complex issues. Prior to joining SecondMuse, Indra worked as a recruiter and a trainer. Working with different people around the world helps him understand the richness and diversity of human culture.

Outside his work, he enjoys hiking or just about everything that relates to outdoor activities.

Titus is the Program Manager, Circularity at SecondMuse, where his work focuses on driving innovative solutions for plastic pollution mitigation and the advancement of more circular economies across South and Southeast Asia. Over the past two years, Titus’s work has primarily centered around strengthening the plastic waste management and recycling ecosystem, as well as supporting the growth of upstream solutions in Thailand.

Through his experience as a project manager of environmental and sustainability work across various industries within the private sector and, most recently, as an Environmental Analyst for the United Nations Development Programme in Malaysia, Titus has practised both top-down and bottom-up approaches to environmental challenges; however, he believes that there is still a plethora of ideas with untapped potential waiting to be unearthed.

Outside of work, Titus enjoys going on outdoor excursions with his small family, be it short hikes, visiting waterfalls or just simply a walk in a park, in addition to playing basketball and reading a good book in his spare time. Titus is based in Singapore.

Viviana is a Communications and Marketing Manager at Second Muse based in San Diego, California. As part of her job, Viviana supports the Headstream team by understanding the program objectives, communications goals, and target audience, as well as developing communications plans, strategies, and budgets for SecondMuse programs to meet program objectives.

Viviana believes in the power of businesses and communications to create a better world. With over five years of experience in the marketing and communications field working for companies such as L'Oréal Mexico, she is excited to focus her efforts into a mission-driven project to positively impact communities and help them thrive.

When Viviana is not working, she enjoys going outdoors and chase the wonderful sunsets in San Diego. When the weather does not allow outdoor activities, she likes reading, dancing and practicing watercolors and drawing.

Elsa is a Senior Associate of Marketing & Communications at SecondMuse where she collaborates to develop and execute innovative marketing and communications strategies to build awareness for the international brand. Through strategy implementation and content creation, Elsa's work aims to promote the unique approach SecondMuse takes when solving the world's most complex issues.

Elsa is deeply interested in the power of storytelling and the ways it can help create a more just world. Driven by a desire to work in impact-oriented spaces, she began her career in the non-profit sector focused on branding and digital marketing. Elsa joined SecondMuse because she is passionate about creating economies and systems in which all humans have equitable opportunities to participate and thrive.

Elsa has a BA in English with a concentration in Creative Writing from Franklin & Marshall College. Outside of work Elsa enjoys reading, yoga and spending time with friends and family.

Cassie is a Program Manager for SecondMuse's Venture For ClimateTech (V4C) Program and is based in Brooklyn NY. As a Program Manager, Cassie manages the successful execution, growth and strategy support of SecondMuse’s New York statewide V4C program. Cassie oversees the design, development, implementation and external communications of the program, as well as management of key stakeholders including partners, co-funder and sponsor relationships, advisory board, client-facing engagements and reporting. Cassie provides the leadership and strategy needed to extend our understanding of climate tech, startups, hardware and manufacturing, and provides additional value to our community through business development support.

Cassie is passionate about change related to social and environmental justice. She has a bachelors degree in Environmental Studies, and a Masters degree in Environmental Law and Policy. Before SecondMuse, Cassie worked in the environmental non-profit space, helping businesses and institutions reduce waste and turn to more eco-friendly solutions. Cassie has also spent most of her summers farming and working with circular/sustainable agricultural practices. She once ran a student-run maple syrup business out of Ithaca NY where she slept in a hammock in the woods for a semester attending to maple syrup boils.

Outside of work, Cassie loves to be active whether it be lifting, running, going for long walks around the city, or hiking. She loves to cook and bake, and finds herself always trying out new restaurants throughout the city.

Kris is the Program Manager of Scale For ClimateTech, a program that helps startups de-risk their manufacturing processes to reach their scale-up objectives. In this role, Kris provides execution and strategy support through program design, development, implementation, impact reporting, and stakeholder management.

Kris is passionate about building community by supporting one another in accomplishing shared goals, and believes designing and delivering quality educational experiences is a way to achieve that. Prior to SecondMuse, Kris ran business education programming for entrepreneurs at the NYC Department of Small Business Services. They led the design and execution of programs for Minority and Women-owned Business Enterprises as well as workshops on pivoting strategies for navigating the Covid-19 pandemic.

Outside of work, Kris is an avid board game player and loves traveling as a way to explore new landscapes and cultures. They love biking around the city, going to concerts, and just being curious.

Raven is a Senior Associate of Marketing & Communications at SecondMuse. As a Sr Communications Associate, Raven manages the day to day communications strategies for different SecondMuse programs. She supports compelling programs through their branding and communications lifecycle. Her work includes supporting the Earth Observing Dashboard Hackathon, a global hackathon in partnership with Booz Allen Hamilton, NASA Earth, European Space Agency, and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. She has also led the communications strategy for a program designated to uplift young, black Los Angeles based creators and the journey increase their knowledge of mental health and digital creativity.

Raven believes in making impact through intention setting. With a background in advocacy, she works to find solutions for equal justice across all classes, cultures, and communities.

Raven is passionate about racial justice and equity. She is also passionate about transforming lives for the greater good of the community. Prior to working at SecondMuse, Raven served as the Digital Communications manager for the Virginia Beach Community Development Corporation and Second Act Communities in Virginia Beach, Virginia. While working at the VBCDC, she immersed herself in learning and understanding the wants and needs of the homeless veterans population and how to better engage the Hampton Roads community by providing tools and resources that would make an impact in better serving those American heroes.

In her free time, Raven spends quality time with her family and German Shepherd, Apollo. She also enjoys yoga, reading articles from her favorite author Damon Young, catching up on the latest music releases, and writing about the culture.

Russel Estardo is the Program Manager for Headstream, which is a national innovation program focused on creating a just and thriving digital economy that supports the well-being of young people as they grow up. Russel's focus will be on managing the accelerator program and working with entrepreneurs to activate this space.

Russel brings experience in innovation management consulting, where he helped create new business models and reinvent existing ones. Before working at SecondMuse, he spent more than five years as a Digital/Innovation Strategist in helping to transform large established companies like Hewlett-Packard and Rabobank.

Over the past few years, his experience has shifted to the nonprofit sector as he was working for the largest national nonprofit organization to support BIPOC & LGBTQ+ innovators.

As Program Manager, Russel will be leading programs that are focused on creating a just and thriving digital economy that supports the well-being of young people as they grow up. He is very excited to learn and have the opportunity to create a positive difference in the lives of people.

Living in the San Francisco Bay Area, Russel enjoys exploring the area and experiencing all of the diversity and beautiful nature that surrounds the city. He is also a foodie and likes to experience different cuisines from around the world. In fact, his New Year’s resolution is to try out at least one new restaurant or cuisine a month in the San Francisco Bay Area.

McKenna is the Headstream Events and Operations Manager at SecondMuse based in Portland, Oregon. As an Events and Operations Manager, McKenna leads process implementation across the Headstream program. She helps to track progress, define goals and milestones and ensure communication between teams and projects. She is also coordinating on in person and digital events within the Headstream program and working closely with the team to align goals, expectations and workflows.

McKenna believes that our youth are our leaders. And elevating their voices, providing them with wellness tools and bringing them into the action that impacts them is the best way to make social change. Prior to SecondMuse, McKenna had her own start up building a mental health platform for adolescents and brings in her knowledge of mental health technology and love of spreadsheets to the Headstream team.

When McKenna isn't at work, she loves hanging out with friends, going on hikes, rock climbing and camping. She has two cats, Kevin and Sophie, who frequently join the Zoom calls, and she loves a good cozy day on the couch reading a book with them.

Alexis is a Grant Writer at SecondMuse based in Los Angeles, California. As a Grant Writer, Alexis is responsible for supporting the organization’s proposal development process to secure resources to grow and advance the company’s innovative programs. In her role, she works closely with the Senior Grant Writer and global program teams to craft clear and compelling proposal narratives, and to support a smooth and effective proposal development process.

Alexis has been passionate about effecting social change, earning both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Seattle University in Journalism and Public Administration, respectively. She recently finished her MPA, which focused on issues of inequity and systems change in voting rights, transportation policy, and climate change. The title of her master’s thesis was “Addressing the Climate Change Crisis: Indigenous Perspectives for Environmental Justice.”

Originally from Portland, Oregon, she recently relocated to Los Angeles after living in Seattle for 23 years. In her free time, Alexis engages in advocacy and non-profit volunteerism and loves to spend time with her partner and her dog, Nugget. She also enjoys traveling, reading, and cooking and is an avid sports fan and animal enthusiast.

Cristina is a Senior Design Manager at SecondMuse. She is actively engaged in the development, implementation, and codification of the SecondMuse Practice Framework. As part of the Practice Group, she uses human-centered approaches to increase design capacity and supports program teams with design research and design.

Cristina strives to bridge the gap between systems thinking, human experiences, and design via trust-driven collaboration. She believes that by incorporating the voices of the people we intend to design for and with, we can build systems of belonging. She has experience in the academic, nonprofit, and for-profit sectors, and her work has spanned across design strategy, community engagement, and social impact programming. Prior to joining SecondMuse, she received her MA in Social Innovation from the University of San Diego.

Having grown up between cultures in Puerto Rico and Lebanon, Cristina speaks just about five languages. She is passionate about traveling and experiencing new cultures. Cristina also enjoys playing tennis, making pottery, baking, and occasionally learning to play the guitar. On any given day, you might find her strolling through the beaches in Puerto Rico or California, or exploring art and design venues!

Marissa is the Research Manager within SecondMuse’s Practice Group and is based in Portland, Oregon. As part of the Practice Group, Marissa supports multiple programs such as the Headstream, GET Cities, and Space Apps programs by leading both participatory and traditional research efforts, including focus groups, interviews, and workshops. She then analyzes and synthesizes the collected data to distill actionable insights that will ultimately inform SecondMuse’s greater Practice and understanding of complex economic and social systems. She acts as a community builder through interdisciplinary collaborations, engaging with subject matter experts and community stakeholders.

With a background in design thinking, strategy, and social impact research and advocacy, Marissa has shown a commitment to inclusive, human-centered, mission-oriented innovation across industries. She approaches complex problems with a sense of deep curiosity, empathy, and vision that result in meaningful community-based impact.

Outside of work, Marissa can be found outside, with a group of friends, and trying something new. She particularly loves roadtripping, paddle boarding, and comedy shows. When she isn’t off on an adventure, she is planning her next one.

Sidrah Durrani is a Senior Program Associate at SecondMuse, where her expertise in research shines. She plays a pivotal role in supporting the Accelerator and Youth programs at Headstream, where diverse entrepreneurs and youth professionals come together to develop innovative solutions to support adolescent mental wellbeing.

Sidrah received her masters in developmental psychology from Teachers College, Columbia University, and uses her interdisciplinary experience to drive positive impact for systemically excluded communities. She has also published research highlighting the impact of social technologies on adolescent wellbeing and development with the Youth, Media & Wellbeing Research Lab at Wellesley College. Sidrah hopes to shape the future of social impact technologies for youth, alongside youth.

When Sidrah isn’t advocating for tech & wellbeing, she is off reading, cooking, going out on walks, or playing the New York Times word games. She considers herself a budding globe trotter, being currently based in New York City while being born and raised in Saudi Arabia and India.

Sarah is a Program Lead and the Gender Equality & Social Inclusion (GESI) Specialist at SecondMuse, working with local organizations across South and Southeast Asia to explore gender-equitable solutions for improving the livelihoods and social protections of informal waste workers, and for developing socially responsible supply chains for recycled plastic.

Originally from New Zealand, Sarah brings more than a decade of experience managing business operations and social impact projects in the United States, Australia, Cambodia, India, and the Philippines. While working across a range of industries, from music to sanitation, Sarah has focused on the advancement of women's economic empowerment and youth entrepreneurship. Sarah has mentored female-led small and growing businesses via Impact Hub Phnom Penh and The Asia Foundation's Women in Tek Network, and is a member of the Asia New Zealand Foundation's Leadership Network.

Outside of work Sarah enjoys running, yoga, reading, and tropical weather.

Varsha is a Business Development Manager for SecondMuse. Her primary focus is on helping build the capacity needed within the company for growth and scaling. This includes engaging in conversation about the direction of our company’s growth strategy, supporting high priority opportunities across the company and leading the research, identification, and coordination of opportunities with teams across the company.

Varsha is passionate about utilizing economic sustainability and innovative partnerships to eliminate social inequities globally. Her past consulting analyst experience both globally and locally through her time as a Market Research Analyst at Second Harvest Food Bank and a consulting fellowship, which centered on using social entrepreneurship to help eradicate poverty for marginalized communities, made her believe that innovative solutions already exist in every community she has worked in. It is a lack of access to resources and tools that hinders these innovative solutions from changing the
world. She believes that bridging that gap means working with social enterprises all over the world get to market and lay the foundation for their local economies.

Varsha holds a BS in Public Health and BA in Economics from Santa Clara University. In her free time, she enjoys traveling to new countries, exploring local food scenes, and dancing in the rain. Her joy and inspiration come from meeting new people all around the world and hearing their stories, which then motivates her to do the work she does at SecondMuse and beyond.

Melina is the Coaching and Development Manager at SecondMuse. With a mission to further cultivate an enriching and nourishing workplace, Melina sits at the intersection between teams – she crosses borders, builds bridges, and is always looking for ways for staff and community members to feel connected, supported, and joyful. Melina facilitates teams and programs, coaches individual team members, and loves initiatives that weave between groups and ecosystem players.
As a global citizen, social entrepreneur, and community organiser, Melina has a passion for facilitating groups and individuals to do great things. She is a proud member of the global communities of practice DSIL Global and Enspiral Network. Melina also served as Startup Ecosystem Adviser for the City of Melbourne, supporting startups to thrive and bring about a more vibrant and sustainable city. Prior to SecondMuse, Melina spent 5 years living in Battambang, Cambodia, where she co-founded the initiatives of Kinyei International: Kinyei Cafe, a vocational training espresso cafe and Soksabike Tours, a cultural heritage bicycle tour company.
Melina is a Third Culture Kid and member of the queer community who loves to roller skate and discovers nature trails. Recently, she moved to Campbell’s Creek, Australia, trying the country life and learning first-hand about sustainable living, from rainwater and greywater to composting. She’s enjoying her worm farm, veggie garden, and backyard view full of kangaroos.