University of Sussex

Technologist. Anthropologist. Head of Social Purpose at Yoti

beVisioneers: The Mercedes-Benz Fellowship

Venture Coach

Supporting the latest generation of changemakers with dedicated coaching and mentoring services. Packages available for all budgets and needs.

kiwanja.net

Social Impact Coach and Mentor

Mentoring a group of Cambridge University graduate students working on a conflict resolution methodology as part of the University's i-Teams initiative.

i-Teams Cambridge

Student Mentor

Hired on a fixed term contract helping explore emerging and future data and tech trends as part of Macmillan’s wider organisational strategy, helping join up data and digital to enable the best possible experiences for people living with cancer.

Macmillan Cancer Support

Director of Future Data and Digital Self Management

Heading up Yoti's social purpose efforts aiming to maximise the social impact and humanitarian potential of our company products, services and human resources. Following an initial period of reflection, evaluation and research, in February 2019 we launched an innovative new Social Purpose Strategy which has since seeded the launch of a flagship global Fellowship Programme, a series of global innovation challenges, the launch of a Digital Identity Toolkit and the development of an innovative offline identity solution for the humanitarian sector.

In October 2019 our new social purpose work received an early boost when it was Highly Commended in the Best Brand Purpose Category at the prestigious Drum Social Purpose Awards in London.

Yoti Ltd

Head of Social Purpose

Contracted to National Geographic Expeditions (in partnership with the Wall Street Journal) as an Expert Guide for a technology, creativity and innovation-themed expedition around the world highlighting human ingenuity - past, present, and future - with 75 high net worth individuals, travelling by private jet to San Francisco, Japan, Singapore, India, Seychelles, Rwanda, Israel and Barcelona. During the flights I gave a number of talks on a range of topics including technology use in global conservation and development, and various themes around social innovation.

National Geographic

Expert Guide

Leading the development of a pilot programme to explore the potential and viability of cash donations to recipients during humanitarian emergencies.

Disasters Emergency Committee

Consultant

The Global eHealth Foundation was set up by Archbishop Desmond Tutu to be a catalyst for transforming healthcare from a privilege to a human right. I led the Foundation on a temporary part-time basis at the request of the Archbishop, providing thought leadership and key management functions, including a collaboration with Accenture to research and develop the Foundation’s new strategy. Funding ceased in 2017 and the decision was made to close the foundation down.

Global eHealth Foundation

Interim Chief Executive Officer

CARE International is a global confederation of 14 member organisations working together to end poverty. Based out of the UK office, I supported the organisation to help them better understand, and make use of, technology to deliver development outcomes. During my time at CARE I carried out technology platform reviews for World Bank and UN-funded projects in Ghana and Malawi, and led on the technical development of a mobile savings app for use in Tanzania, in addition to supporting other teams in their deployment of new technologies and innovations.

CARE

Entrepreneur in Residence

In autumn 2013 I took part in the Asia leg of Unreasonable at Sea, a radical experiment in global entrepreneurship seeking to combat the greatest challenges of our time. Unreasonable at Sea was made up of twenty mentors, one hundred days, one ship, thirteen countries and eleven ventures. During my two months aboard I helped mentor and advise a number of the startups, spoke with students about social innovation and took part in a panel discussion with Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

Unreasonable

Mentor and Advisor

Following the breakthrough use of FrontlineSMS in the 2007 Nigerian Presidential elections I was offered a Visiting Researcher position at Stanford University's Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law (CDDRL) to allow me to further develop the platform, thanks to a significant grant from the MacArthur Foundation.

Stanford University

Visiting Researcher

The Reuters Digital Vision Program (RDVP) at Stanford University provided social entrepreneurs with a creative environment to design and implement innovative technology-based solutions for untapped markets around the world. I was invited to take part in the Program as a Collaboration Fellow, supporting my colleagues with concept development and the pilot design of their ideas.

Visiting Fellow

For over 15 years kiwanja.net successfully helped the private sector, social innovators, non-profits and the wider humanitarian community make better use of information technologies in their work. Our flagship project was the development of FrontlineSMS, a text messaging platform that drives thousands of social change projects in over 190 countries around the world. Our work with FrontlineSMS lead to multiple technology and innovation awards, millions of dollars in funding and was a key factor in growing the reach and reputation of the organisation I started in 2003.

Through kiwanja.net I have had the opportunity to work with thousands of companies, social innovators, entrepreneurs and non-profit organisations around the world to help them make best use of the most appropriate technologies to achieve their goals. During that time I won contracts with the United Nations, Nike Foundation, DFID, CARE, Grameen Technology Centre and the Disasters Emergency Committee, among many others.

In addition to my technology work I was regularly invited to participate in social entrepreneurship, global development and innovation-themed events around the world as a keynote speaker, panelist and moderator. I have also written articles and features for publications including PC World magazine, the Guardian, Boston Review, the BBC, CNN, WIRED Magazine, PopTech, the Unreasonable Institute and National Geographic.

Founder

During an initial nine-month contract I worked on the development of an innovative conservation-themed mobile portal for a project funded by the Vodafone Group Foundation. This involved project managing the technical development and launch of ‘wildlive!’ to UK Vodafone subscribers which provided images, sounds and games related to different areas of conservation. After a hugely successful launch I was asked to stay on a further year to help roll out the service across Europe. 

In addition, I advised other FFI partner projects on leveraging technology to benefit development and conservation projects, particularly with reference to communities bordering Kruger National Park. This work inspired me to co-publish a report titled Mobile Phones: An Appropriate Tool for Conservation and Development? which was one of the earliest reports to examine the social potential of this rapidly expanding technology in 2004.

Fauna & Flora International

Technical Project Consultant

Helping with the day to day staffing, management and administration of a Nigerian primate sanctuary In Calabar, supporting the Director in Lagos. Principal activities included the running of the Calabar site, which housed over eighty primates, and a forest site (under development during my time) and supporting staff development, financing and the wider education programme. My planned time in Nigeria was cut short after a motorcycle accident in late 2002.

CERCOPAN

Project Manager

During an eleven-month spell living in Finland between the autumn of 2000 and summer of 2001, I provided English language/Business English training to a range of private and business clients in Southern Finland under contract to a number of language schools including Richard Lewis Communications and Kielikanava Oy.

Ken Banks