Mendi Njonjo

Mendi Njonjo is a seasoned global leader in the philanthropic and non-profit sector with over 20 years of experience advancing climate and social justice. She has a proven track record of leading high-performing global and multi-country teams. Her expertise lies in designing and scaling transformative initiatives that address entrenched structural challenges in partnership with the private sector, civil society, and governments.

Currently, Mendi serves as the Director of the KCB Foundation, driving initiatives that promote educational and economic empowerment in East and Central Africa. Previously, she served as Regional Director for East and West Africa at Hivos Foundation. Her extensive career includes leadership roles such as Director of Africa Projects for the Advocacy Project in Kampala, Uganda, and Washington, D.C., and as Africa Director for the Center for the Prevention of Genocide in Rosslyn, Virginia.

Her expertise includes economic empowerment, gender and women’s empowerment, climate change and environmental advocacy, fundraising, strategy development, risk management, operational excellence, and global non-profit programming.

Mendi holds a Master of Arts in Conflict Resolution from the University of Massachusetts, Boston, and a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and Geography from the University of Nairobi, Kenya.

In addition to her professional accomplishments, Mendi is a founder and author. She established The Maarifa Project, an initiative committed to safeguarding and protecting African traditional knowledge with and from artificial intelligence. Her literary contributions include the forthcoming titles Wanjiru and the Magic of Millet (April 2025) and We Need New Words (June 2026). Mendi is also a board member of the Thomson Reuters Foundation.